Today's Gospel comes from the second of the major discourses that Jesus gives in Matthew's gospel. It consists of instructions given to his disciples as He sends them out on their mission which is to do exactly what Jesus Himself was doing and which they would continue after He has left them. Among the warnings He gives them is to expect persecution, to be attacked, abused, arrested and even killed. As Jesus told them on another occasion, the servant is not above his Master. If they did these things to the Son of God, they will do them to His followers and that has been true down to our own day. St Ignatius Loyola is supposed to have said he always hoped that Jesuits would face persecution - it would show they were doing their job! Obviously, we would not go out of our way to create opposition but again and again it has been shown that the Gospel message of love and service and fellowship is strongly resisted. Today's Gospel tells us not to be afraid of being killed. The real thing to fear is betraying our commitment to Jesus in order to protect our immediate interests. "There is no need to be afraid" - we are precious in God's eyes.