In the day of my trouble, I call on you, for you will answer me. There is none like you among the gods, O Lord, nor are there any works like yours. [1]
Of more value than many sparrows
Matthew 10:24-33 NRSV
A disciple is not above the teacher, nor a slave above the master; it is enough for the disciple to be like the teacher, and the slave like the master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household!
So, have no fear of them; for nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered, and nothing secret that will not become known. What I say to you in the dark, tell in the light; and what you hear whispered, proclaim from the housetops. Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. And even the hairs of your head are all counted. So, do not be afraid; you are of more value than many sparrows.
Everyone therefore who acknowledges me before others, I also will acknowledge before my Father in heaven; but whoever denies me before others, I also will deny before my Father in heaven.
Chrysostom
If then God is not ignorant of anything that happens in creation, and if God loves us more truly than the best human father, and if God loves us so as to have numbered our very hairs, then we need not be afraid. Don’t you see that God views your fear with more concern than the lives of many sparrows? He already knows the secrets of your heart.[2]
Richard T. France
To fear human opposition is to get things out of perspective, for people can do no more than kill the body. But God can destroy both soul and body in hell. Disciples should therefore be more afraid of failing him by concealing the truth which must, in any case, inevitably be publicly proclaimed (26–27). The same God, however, can not only destroy but preserve; within his will there is no need for fear (29–31). It comes in the end to a simple choice of loyalty, which has eternal consequences (32–33).[3]
Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown
Three relations in which Christ stands to His people are here mentioned: He is their Teacher—they His disciples; He is their Lord—they His servants; He is the Master of the household—they its inmates. In all these relations, He says here, He and they are so bound up together that they cannot look to fare better than He and should think it enough if they fare no worse.[4]
The Gospel Way Catechism
Question #10
Who are we?
We are persons beloved by God, created to love God, love others, and care for the world he has made. We become like what we love. Our identity is found not by looking within ourselves but looking up to God.[5]
Question #12
What is our responsibility?
Our responsibility is to represent God by ruling wisely over his good creation, exercising authority in life-giving ways. We are called not to abandon our abuse our authority, but to serve as stewards.[6]
Glory to you who clothed yourself in the body of mortal Adam and made a fountain of life for all mortals. You are the one who lives, and those who killed you were actually like gardeners, sowing your life like a seed of wheat in the depths of the earth, so that it could rise and raise up many with it.
Lord, may our love be now like a sweet offering, and may the hymns and prayers of your people rise up to you who made your own offering on the cross, an offering on behalf of all humanity. You stooped down from above to us below, so you could pass along your treasures to us. You became the treasurer of your riches, bringing your gifts from the storehouse and distributing them to the needy. We give you glory, our Mediator. For through you we receive life, just as we once received death from the one who would slay us. Amen.[7]
His Eye is On the Sparrow
And even the hairs of your head are all numbered! Therefore, do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. [8]
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Corinthians 4.15).
[1] The Holy Bible: New Revised Standard Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1989), Ps 86:7–8.
[2] Chrysostom, The Gospel of Matthew, Homily 34.2-3. Ancient Christian Devotional Year A, p. 153.
[3] Richard T. France, “Matthew,” in New Bible Commentary: 21st Century Edition, ed. D. A. Carson et al., 4th ed. (Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press, 1994), 917.
[4] Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset, and David Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible, vol. 2 (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997), 37.
[5] Trevin Wax and Thomas West, The Gospel Way Catechism, 2025, p. 45.
[6] The Gospel Way Catechism, p. 51.
[7] “Mediator, We Give You Glory,” Ephraim the Syrian. Robert Elmer, ed., Fount of Heaven: Prayers of the Early Church (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2022), 88.
[8] W. Hall Harris III et al., eds., The Lexham English Bible (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2012), Mt 10:30–31.
