Tuesday – 6/2
A Gospel That Moves Our Feet
Scripture: John 21:15–19 (NRSV)
Key Verse:
“He said to him the third time, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’” — John 21:17a
Reflection:
We answer Jesus with our lips while resisting the consequences of discipleship in practice. We frequently proclaim love while organizing ourselves around comfort, control, or institutional self-protection. Compassion becomes symbolic rather than costly.
This becomes visible in ordinary communal behavior. We praise service while exhausting volunteers without changing unjust systems that create suffering. We celebrate missions while remaining disconnected from the people supposedly being served. We become more comfortable discussing charity than power because charity feels safer. Feeding people is important. Asking why hunger persists becomes politically dangerous. Visiting imprisoned people is holy work. Questioning incarceration systems risks conflict. We remain willing to perform care so long as care does not disturb relationships with power, wealth, or social approval.
Jesus refuses to separate love from embodied responsibility. The resurrection creates a community responsible for one another and accountable to suffering people. That is why “a Gospel that does not move our feet, has not yet reached our hearts.” Faith that remains abstract can coexist comfortably with injustice. Faith embodied in action cannot. Jesus still asks the Church the same question: Do you love me enough to become responsible for people beyond your comfort and your fear?
Application:
Choose one concrete act of embodied care this week that requires inconvenience rather than efficiency. Visit someone isolated, deliver food personally, advocate for someone navigating a difficult system, or stay present in a difficult conversation rather than withdrawing.
Writing Prompt:
Where has your faith become more verbal than embodied? What kinds of suffering do you acknowledge emotionally while remaining practically untouched by them?
Prayer:
Christ who restores, do not let my love remain theoretical. Disturb the distance between my words and my life. Teach me to love in ways that move my feet, open my hands, and draw me closer to those the world overlooks. Amen.