A Midsummer's Reflection Series

Thursday, June 11, 2026

Meditation 11: Matthew 9:27-30

The Bedroom, Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890), Arles, October 1888

In Matthew 9:27–30, we find an unnamed person’s house opened to Jesus and those in need of healing. Jesus entered the house, and it was in that house that Jesus restored the sight of two blind men who sought Him out. It is often in the context of such hospitality that people experience the blessing of Jesus. It may not be a physical healing—but in being listened to, in being fed, in being surrounded by the joy of others, people can experience the warmth of faith and friendship being shared in the context of hospitality. 

We don’t have to be someone famous, a Catholic celebrity, to do good, to let Jesus into our homes, and to help others encounter Christ in our homes. We don’t know if the house in Matthew 9:27–30 was of someone famous in the Gospels, since they remained nameless; the homeowner passed unnoticed in the Gospel account. But through their act of letting Jesus in, Jesus was able to transform that house into a place of healing while He remained present there.

We, too, need to open our homes to Jesus; we must make our homes places where Jesus is welcome. Our homes should be places where we spend time in prayer, and where we share with others. When we invite others to experience our hospitality, welcoming them into our homes, they can find a place of warmth and joy. Joy tends to be infectious. When we are around others with authentic Christian joy, it brightens and warms the environment. We have new eyes to see what God is doing in our lives.  

Jesus, help us to let you into our homes. Help make our homes places of Christian warmth and joy, attractive to others. When we extend hospitality to others by welcoming them into our homes and into our lives, help them encounter you in how we treat them. 

Dr. Jeffrey Morrow, Ph.D. is a professor of theology at Franciscan University of Steubenville and the Director of the St. Paul Studies Center at the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology. He spent 15 years as a professor of theology at Seton Hall University’s Immaculate Conception Seminary School of Theology. In his final year in that role, Dr. Morrow worked on the Preaching as Hospitality Formation Program, writing these reflections on Scripture through a lens of hospitality. 

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