Introduction
We have spent the last few weeks in Matthew’s “Mission Discourse.” Jesus has commissioned the disciples, warned them of opposition, spoken of crosses and divisions, and reminded them that discipleship will not always be easy.
And now, quite suddenly, the discourse ends not with a dramatic call to martyrdom or a grand vision of changing the world. It ends with hospitality.
A welcome. A cup of cold water.
In the middle of a season when many congregations find themselves settling into the rhythms of summer, Matthew gives us a reminder that the kingdom of heaven is often encountered through surprisingly ordinary acts of generosity and welcome.
Narrative Context
These verses conclude Jesus’ missionary discourse in Matthew 10. Since verse 5, Jesus has been preparing the twelve for this first commission. He has instructed them where to go, what to proclaim, how to respond to rejection, and what hardships they should expect. The previous two Sundays have brought us to the climax of that teaching: disciples are not above their teacher, they need not fear those who can kill the body, and they must be willing to take up their cross and follow Christ.
Taken alone, the first part of the discourse could leave the impression that discipleship is defined primarily by courage, sacrifice, and conflict. One might even expect Jesus to conclude with a final rallying cry for perseverance in the face of opposition, especially if one hears the language of “the sword” in overly literal terms.
Yet Matthew concludes the chapter with a different emphasis. Not martyrdom. Not rebellion. But the hope of welcome.
Three times Jesus speaks of welcome: “Whoever welcomes you welcomes me.” The language reflects a common Jewish understanding of representation. The one who is sent carries the authority and presence of the sender. To welcome the messenger is to welcome the one who sent them. Thus welcoming the disciples becomes welcoming Jesus, and welcoming Jesus becomes welcoming the Father.
The progression continues. Welcoming a prophet leads to a prophet’s reward. Welcoming a righteous person leads to the reward of the righteous. Finally, Jesus brings the entire discussion down to earth. Welcome is embodied in something as ordinary as offering a cup of cold water to one of these little ones.
The discourse that began with the sending of apostles ends with the actions of ordinary people who receive them.
A Shift in Audience
One of the temptations when reading Matthew 10 is to place ourselves exclusively among the disciples who are sent.
As preachers, that temptation may be even stronger. We naturally identify with the prophets, the messengers, the proclaimers of God’s word.
Yet these closing verses subtly shift the audience’s perspective.
Shifting to Matthew’s audience, most people hearing Matthew’s Gospel were not apostles traveling from town to town. They were members of communities trying to discern how to respond to those who came among them bearing the gospel.
Early Christianity depended upon itinerant preachers and teachers. Figures like Paul traveled from city to city proclaiming the Good News, planting communities, and then moving on to the next place. While letters and occasional visits maintained those relationships, most Christians were not the ones traveling. They remained in their homes and communities, receiving these messengers, supporting their ministry, and discerning the message they carried. Paul’s letters themselves suggest that communities regularly encountered a variety of teachers and voices. Yet Jesus’ assumption in this discourse is telling. Those who come bearing the Good News should find welcome among God’s people.
If we see ourselves not just as the disciples sent but also as those welcoming, some of the focus of these final verses. The question is no longer only, “How will you go?” but also, “How will you receive?”
Who do we welcome?
Whose voices do we make room for?
Whom do we offer hospitality?
And Jesus links the presence of God to these acts of reception. The kingdom does not arrive only through dramatic preaching or extraordinary accomplishments. It also arrives through welcome.
By the end of the passage, Jesus has moved from prophets and righteous people to “little ones” (a phrase Matthew often uses for those with little status, power, or importance). The progression suggests that the welcome extended to God’s messengers ultimately expands outward to the vulnerable and overlooked.
And the act itself remains remarkably simple: a cup of cold water.
The reward is not attached to the size of the gift but to participation in God’s work. The smallest act of hospitality becomes a place where Christ is encountered.
It is a fitting conclusion to the discourse. Jesus begins by sending disciples into the world and ends by reminding the church that disciples must also be prepared to receive one another.
Preaching Possibilities
Mutual Hospitality
One possible avenue for preaching is to explore hospitality as an act of mutual exchange.
Throughout Matthew 10, Jesus has focused on the disciples who are sent. They are commissioned, instructed, warned, and encouraged as they prepare to carry the good news into the world. It is natural for us to identify with those disciples. We are the ones called to proclaim, serve, teach, and bear witness.
Yet these final verses invite us to consider the other side of the relationship. The church is not only called to send disciples; it is also called to receive them.
We often think of visitors, newcomers, and strangers as people we need to welcome, serve, teach, or incorporate into our communities. Matthew asks a different question: What if they have come bearing a gift? What if Christ is present in the one we are welcoming?
For Matthew’s audience, that question may have centered on itinerant preachers and teachers arriving from other communities. Yet the question remains just as relevant today. What might God be saying to us through the visitor who walks through our doors? What wisdom, experience, perspective, or witness might we receive from someone we initially assume is simply a guest?
“Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me.” Hospitality is not merely an act of generosity extended from one person to another. It is a place of encounter. In welcoming another person, we may discover that Christ has already arrived ahead of us.
This helps explain why the discourse concludes with something as simple as a cup of cold water. The gift itself is small. It is not a grand act of sacrifice or a dramatic display of faith. It is a simple act of welcome that creates the possibility of relationship.
A cup of water does not solve every problem. Hospitality does not replace justice. Kindness alone is not the entirety of Christian discipleship.
Yet many of the most significant moments in ministry begin with simple acts of welcome. A conversation starts with an introduction. A friendship begins with an invitation. A ministry partnership emerges because someone was willing to listen before speaking.
After several weeks of hearing about crosses, persecution, division, and costly discipleship, there is something refreshing about where Jesus ends this discourse. The kingdom of heaven often grows through ordinary encounters. Sometimes discipleship begins not with changing the world, but with making room for another person and discovering that Christ has met us there.
Perhaps the invitation of this text is to approach those we welcome with curiosity as well as generosity. Not only asking, “What do we have to offer them?” but also, “What gift might God be offering us through them?”
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Micah Krey 
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