2026-06-14 Eleventh Sunday in Ordinary Time 

Exodus 19:2-6a

Exodus 19:2 marks an important return for Moses. God first spoke to Moses from the burning bush on this very mountain (Sinai also known as Horeb) - now it comes full circle. In Exodus 3:12, God promises Moses, “I will be with you. And this is the sign for you that I Myself have sent you. When you bring the people out from Egypt, you shall worship God on this mountain.”

Upon returning to this mountain, Moses seeks God’s guidance, and God gives him a message for the Israelites. God did not free the Israelites from bondage so they can do whatever they want; instead God reminds the Israelites that they are to be God’s people and participate in the covenant made with Abraham, Issac and Jacob. Living according to God’s teaching will make the Israelites God’s covenant people when they will become “a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.” God then instructs in great detail the Israelites to build the Tabernacle and sacrifices to make, so that God can dwell amidst his chosen people.

Psalm 100

Psalm 100 extorts us to praise Yahweh in song - loud and proud. The second verse calls us to know Yahweh intimately - not just intellectually but a deep intimate awareness of God's identity. This recognition is embodied by the ritual of procession and worship involving praising, singing and celebrating God as a community.

Romans 5:6-11

In this text, God’s love for human beings takes center stage. Love has not appeared before in Romans. Despite our brokenness, God repaired the broken relationship by Jesus' crucifixion, death and resurrection. In Roman culture, to worship a crucified criminal like Jesus will be regarded as unthinkable even shameful. God’s love for us, does not depend on what we do or what we are. God made all of us in his own image and that itself makes us worthy of his love. God loves us as we are, that there is nothing we can do that will make God love us less, and that God meets us where we are. It is this immense love without limits from God that took Jesus to his death for our sakes, and which has been poured into our hearts through the gift of the Holy Spirit (5:5).

Matthew 9:35—10:8

As Jesus travels through towns and villages, teaching and healing, he is moved with compassion for the crowds —people who are “harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd” (9:36)- . This moment leads to the selection of the Twelve Apostles, and commissioning them to extend his mission. Matthew 10:1–8 describes Jesus’s commissioning of the Twelve. He gives them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, to raise the dead,  drive out demons, and to heal every disease and affliction among the lost people of Israel, a renewal movement begun by John the Baptist.

By doing so Jesus shows us that the work of the compassionate Good Shepherd is holistic; from preaching the gospel and praying to service in bringing healing and wholeness to the least of our brethren. 
Even today, the heart of discipleship means responding to the needs of the people, relying on God’s wisdom and provision, and carrying forth the work of healing and restoration.
Jesus’s statement about the harvest being plentiful but the laborers being few (9:37–38) acknowledges both the magnitude of the task and the necessity of divine grace.