Sunday 13th July 2025 – Kajo-Keji
Psalm 82; Amos 7; Colossians 1:1-14; Luke 10:25-37
The instruction we receive from Jesus in our gospel reading is to “go and do likewise”. Whatever our situation – whether we are living in peace at home, living as a refugee in the camp, returning home to rebuild, we are called to “go and do likewise”.
In our Psalm we find ourselves in the great assembly with God sitting as judge. He asks “How long will you defend the unjust and show partiality to the wicked?” He says “Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked. They know nothing, they understand nothing.” As Christian’s we should be talking to those that are oppressed, the weak, the needy. Those that have not heard the gospel, those who know nothing, so that they are delivered from the hand of the wicked. God cares about justice. He wants all people, whatever their circumstance, to have the opportunity to hear about Him.
In Amos the theme of justice continues – God says he is setting a plumbline against Israel. Perhaps we have some builders here that use a plumbline; a plumbline is a weight on some string that hangs and shows how straight a wall is. God is using this example to say I’m watching you, I’m measuring your actions, I can see that you are deviating, going to the right and to the left of my standard of righteousness and justice.
Amaziah the priest hears this word from Amos – he sees Amos as a threat rather than a prophet delivering God’s word. He tells the king “Amos is starting a conspiracy, we can’t let him continue”. Amaziah tells Amos to leave and go back to the land of Judah. “Earn your bread there and do your prophesying there”. He’s saying he thinks Amos is a professional prophet, who prophesies for money.
Amos turns to Amaziah and tries to explain, he was not a professional prophet, he wasn’t famous, he was simply a shepherd, he followed the Lord faithfully and the Lord called him to go and prophesy to Israel.
While God desires mercy and forgiveness he also demands justice and righteousness.
Earlier this week the Lord put a song on my heart, one that is based on some words in Amos chapter 5 – it says –
O Lord, while precious children starve, The tools of war increase, Their bread is stolen
O Lord, dark powers are poised to flood, Our streets with hate and fear, We must awaken!
O Lord, let love reclaim the lives, That sin would sweep away, And let your kingdom come
The chorus takes verse 24 of Amos 5 – let justice flow like a river and righteousness like a never failing stream.
Today, God still measures us. Are we building our lives on truth, mercy, and care for one another? Or are we building crooked walls?
In these early days of returning and rebuilding our towns, let’s use God’s plumb line—not only for our buildings, but also for our hearts.
Our Epistle reading is an encouragement. It’s the introduction to a letter from Paul to the church in Collossae.
Paul writes to the Christians who are growing in their faith. He tells them what he is praying for them – that they will grow in the knowledge of God’s will; live lives that please God; bear fruit in good works; be strong and patient, be full of joy.
In praying this he is praying for them to have the life that God desires for them. Not just believing in Jesus but living in a way that brings light into our families, our communities, our villages and towns and our nation.
Paul reminds them – and us – that we have been rescued from darkness and brought into the kingdom of Jesus, where there is forgiveness and peace.
For people like us, who have come through difficult times, that is good news. God has not left us in the past. He is planting new hope in us. He is giving us strength to walk forward in faith. He is with us as we return and rebuild and He will help us.
Our gospel is a familiar story – the parable of the good Samaritan. In our conference this week we looked at the story of the woman at the well – she was a Samaritan and it was a shock to the disciples when they found Jesus talking to her as the two religions did not mix. To the Jewish people, Samaritans were considered at best outsiders, but often enemies.
Here we have a man travelling; he’s attacked by robbers. He’s stripped, beaten and left half dead. A priest walks by. He sees the man, but does nothing. A Levite – another religious man – walks by. He also does nothing. But then comes a Samaritan. This man stops, he sees the injured man, he has compassion, he uses his own oil and wine to treat his wounds, he puts him on his donkey and takes him to an inn, he pays the innkeeper and asks him to look after him.
Jesus asks, “Which one was a neighbour to the man?” The answer is clear: The one who showed mercy. And Jesus says: “Go and do likewise.”
All of our readings show us the mercy, justice and righteousness of God. They show us how He has a plan for our lives and he measures us by that plan – by that plumbline.
At one time or another all of us will have found ourselves beaten up, not always in a physical way, but emotionally, being ignored, being displaced, being forgotten. It’s likely that we have also all been the person who has walked by on the other side of the road; often we find ourselves too busy or too scared to help when we see someone in trouble. That might not be easy to accept – we might want to try and say that’s not true, that we would never walk by someone in need, but let’s remember that God knows everything about us. We can lie to others, we can lie to ourselves, but we cannot lie to Him.
This week in our conference we have been thinking about how God wants us to live as Christians. His heart is for the weak, the vulnerable, those who cannot help themselves. He does not favour the rich over the poor – we are all valuable in His sight.
As Christians who have made a commitment to follow Jesus we have repented and received His forgiveness. We have not earned it. We cannot earn our place in heaven through good works. God stands with arms open wide, longing to receive each one of us, longing for us to believe and trust in Him so that we can be saved by grace through the blood of Jesus who died for our sin so that we can live.
To live for Jesus, is to live with freedom in our hearts. Our physical circumstances may not always appear “free” but the inner joy of our salvation breaks through the difficulties. In his letter to the church in Thessalonica Paul tells the church to “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
We can pray the prayer that Paul prayed for the church in Collossae for our friends, our clergy, our neighbours.
As you return to the diocese from exile in Uganda you have an opportunity to start again; Jesus calls us to rebuild communities with justice and compassion.
Being a neighbour isn’t about where someone is from – their tribe, or family name – a neighbour is someone who sees, cares and acts with mercy.
It’s easy to put ourselves first, to think only of how are we in our household going to survive the challenges that we face, it’s easy to walk past others who are struggling. But Jesus calls us to do more than that. We have received His mercy, now we are called to show mercy to others.
Amos wasn’t a big person; Amos was a shepherd, yet God called him to share His word with kings. God doesn’t just use the “big people”, he uses those that the world sees as weak – and they often have more impact. Who is God calling you to share His word with? Is God calling you to cross the road and go and help someone in distress? If God put got his plumbline out to measure the Diocese of Kajo-Keji would it hang straight or are there areas that we need to improve by working together?
As Paul prayed for the church in Collossae so there are people around the world praying for the church here in Kajo-Keji – encouraging you to keep going through the challenges, thanking God for you and for your witness of Him.
God calls each one of us to show Jesus to those around us. He calls us to speak the truth, to restore broken relationships and to love one another – just as He has loved each one of us. We don’t have to use words, as we put our faith into action we point others to Jesus.
Let us not be the person that walks by; let us be the Samaritan that stops, takes time, shows Jesus’ love and brings restoration and healing.
As the church we need to wake up! Each day we get a day closer to Jesus coming again, how many people are there that still need to hear the gospel and receive His salvation?
May we listen to His small voice, trust Him, obey Him and go where He leads.
May we be people who act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with God.
Amen.