Matthew 10:26-27 – “So do not be afraid of them, for there is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known.”

“You can see easily enough why Jesus needed to tell his disciples not to be afraid, at this point in his instructions to them. After all, he’s warned them that the authorities will be after them; that they will suffer physical and emotional violence; and, now, that people will start calling them the sort of names they have already begun to call him. Plenty to be afraid of there! And yet he says, Don’t be afraid. Why not? What reason does he give?

“Not the one we expect. We might imagine that he would say ‘because God will look after you’. Well, he does say that, eventually. But the first reason he gives is that a time will come when everything will be uncovered. Everything that is presently secret will be made known.

“Why should that mean they don’t need to be afraid? Lots of people would regard the imminent disclosure of their most private thoughts and words as a further reason to be afraid, not as a reason to throw fear to the winds. Jesus seems to be assuming that what will come to light on that day is the disciples’ loyalty and faith; they will be seen to have followed the world’s true Lord. Their patience and perseverance will emerge into the light. What may have looked like obstinacy or even arrogance will at last be seen as what it is, a resolute determination to follow the Lord of life wherever he leads. In other words, truth will out, justice will prevail, and those who have lived with integrity and innocence, despite what the world says about them, will be vindicated” (N.T. Wright, Matthew for Everyone).

Let’s pray for ourselves and our churches that we will not be afraid because we trust in Jesus’ words that everything will be made known. Let us be his  loyal and faithful church who trust in his vindication.

-AP