We are opening this special section with an excerpt of a sermon that Rev. Willie Bodrick II, senior pastor of Twelfth Baptist Church in Roxbury, delivered on Sunday, Jan. 11. During the Civil Rights Movement, Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. preached at the church.

My brothers and sisters, this past Wednesday, another tragedy struck our country.

Renee Nicole Good, a 37-yearold mother newly relocated to Minnesota, was murdered in her vehicle by a U.S. ICE officer named Jonathan Ross, who fired three shots, killing her, in Minneapolis.

And now that the videos have surfaced — clear, unedited, undeniable — we know what many of us already suspected:

This did not have to happen.

The aggression was not justified. The force was not necessary.

And while the nation needed level-headed leadership, the president of the United States immediately and irresponsibly attempted to spin the narrative, painting Good as a domestic terrorist — claiming she tried to ram federal agents with her car.

But the truth is: She wasn’t trying to hurt anyone. And we refuse to be gaslit into justifying heinous behavior.

The truth is Renee Good was: A poet. A writer. A wife. A mother.

And tragically, she was killed in cold blood by state-enforced violence.

Unfortunately, Minneapolis has once again become ground zero for state-sanctioned brutality — not far from where George Floyd was killed in 2020.

And just like we said George Floyd’s name, we say Renee Good’s name.

And I find it interesting, troubling even, that there are some so consumed with a toxic, white nationalist Christian agenda, that whenever I and others dare to speak truth to power from the pulpit, they ask me with spiritual arrogance:

“What does this have to do with the Gospel?” Well, I’m glad you asked. When ICE is weaponized like a militia against citizens and operates with impunity, it has everything to do with the Gospel.When resources are withheld from certain states along partisan lines, it has everything to do with the Gospel.

When health care subsidies are stripped away and people can’t afford to live, it has everything to do with the Gospel.

When military provocation is amplified by a warmongering head of state, it has everything to do with the Gospel.

Because Jesus said: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.”

Is there anybody who can declare, “It has everything to do with the Gospel.”

See: A gospel divorced from lived experience is dangerous. And refusing to apply the gospel to everyday life isn’t neutrality — it’s negligence.

We don’t get to apply the gospel when it comforts us and withhold it when it confronts us.

And I submit that the only way we’re going to make it through the times we’re living in is by centering ourselves in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

And on this second Sunday of the year, I want to invite you to the fifth chapter of Matthean Gospel, where Jesus lays out His thesis statement for His ministry, His manifesto of the Kingdom and the reason why everything has something to do with the Gospel.

Now, the Gospel of Matthew is written to a marginalized Jewish-Christian community, living under Roman occupation, wrestling with persecution, identity and survival.

Matthew is intentional and he presents Jesus as the new Moses, presenting Jesus as the fulfillment of the Law, not the abolition of the law.

From the opening genealogy to Jesus’ baptism, temptation and public ministry, Matthew is answering one central question: What does it look like to live faithfully under God in the midst of a broken world?

By the time we reach chapter five, Jesus has announced the Kingdom, healed the sick, cast out demons and drawn large crowds.

The text says: 1 Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2 and he began to teach them.

(The Beatitudes) He said: 3 Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

7 Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.

12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

A beatitude, or makarism (Greek), declares someone to be in a privileged position because of God’s action, not human achievement.

And the community that hears itself pronounced blessed does not remain passive, but acts in alignment with the coming Kingdom.

The Sermon on the Mount reverses the value system of the world:

The poor are blessed. The mourners are honored. The meek inherit. The persecuted are promised victory. Jesus is trying to help them understand that:

“This is what My Kingdom looks like… .” So, when they ask, “What does this have to do with the gospel?” just tell them: Everything.

Because the gospel doesn’t just save us. It shapes how we respond when life shifts. It cultivates adaptability. It teaches us how to deal with whatever comes our way.

Because the gospel is not just what we believe, but it’s what keeps us centered. It shapes our morality. It clarifies our vision. It stabilizes our world.

And if you need more proof, just look at Calvary. They put Him on the cross — because he was:

Healing the sick. Giving sight to the blind. Making the lame walk. And the deaf hear. Blessing the poor. Empowering the vulnerable.

They stretched him too wide. Put nails in his hands. And nails in his feet. And holes in his side.

They put Him down in a borrowed tomb.

He stayed there all night Friday night. And all night Saturday night.

But early on Sunday morning…He got up! With all power in his hands!

And because He got up, the Gospel got up. Justice got up. Mercy got up. Peace got up. Hope got up.

And because He got up we can live centered. We can love boldly. We can stand firm.

We can make peace.

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow.

Because He lives, all fear is gone. Because I know He holds the future. And life is worth living just because He lives. And Because He Lives the gospel still saves. The gospel still shapes. The gospel still steadies. And the gospel still makes all things new.

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Rev. Willie Bodrick II is senior pastor of the historic Twelfth Baptist Church in Roxbury.