STM: Follow Me
Epiphany 3
"Follow Me"
Lately, I have been receiving in my News Gazette each week and insert with old headlines from past issues. They are celebrating an anniversary and have been including an occasional front page from their archives. And I’ve got to tell you, I don’t see much change. . . there are stories of the war in Vietnam . . . the civil rights movement. . . escalating crime rates.
I have to tell you, I don’t see much change these days, do you? Well, the very nation where Christ’s ministry began is wracked by hatred and war. Thousands have died at the hands of hateful people. There is war in Afghanistan and rumors of war in India and Pakistan. We have closed the century of the Holocaust. Our cities are marred by drugs and violence. In our homes, husbands still beat on their wives, children are exploited and abused, marriage has all but lost its sanctity in the culture.
Has the world lifted all out of poverty? Is there equity and justice? Is there peace? Has hatred and division between people and races give way to unity and understanding? Have we gotten our money’s worth out of the gospel of Jesus Christ?
Only a fool would make the case that in the past 2 thousand years, the world has achieved even the smallest measure of perfection. These problems continue because evil is still afoot in the world . . . because humanity, charged with the stewardship of creation, is not yet fully redeemed. Because the self-interestedness of humanity seeks glorification in selfish and destructive ways. To wit, Enron.
Now, isn't that an uplifting start for a Sunday morning! But those are the questions that persist, the realities that persist. Those are the confusing and frustrating and frightening tendencies that the world cannot seem to break.
This is the news. And when we reflect on the good news, we hold one against the other and we ask, how are we doing. But I think we have to pause in our thinking here, because it is full of traps.
We cannot measure the grace of Christ by sins of humanity. They are the wrong questions. It’s the wrong math. You cannot measure the grace of Christ by the collective sins of humanity.
It reminds me of the television commercial that says we measure success one investor at a time. The grace of Christ is measured one baptized Christian at a time. Because evil exists, and humanity stumbles and tarries does not make the believer any less a member of the body of Christ, any less loved by God, any less a member of the community of saints. That is the good news the Jesus began to speak in Galilee.
The measure of Christ is not the presence of evil, but the presence of grace. We know that in our lives, we know that in our families, we turn to it in times of trouble. The good news, against the news, is that Christ comes to us, comes to the world in spite of evil, in spite of human failure. The good news is that because of the persistent love of God, Christ come to redeem and love us.
Now, when Jesus had begun his ministry with the good news that the kingdom had drawn near in his very person., it was then that he called upon his disciples. Jesus called upon others to enable this ministry of grace and love, to bring the good news. Now, what’s clear in our gospel story today is that Jesus did not turn for this to the most righteous, those recognized as the most learned, the most profound in their faith. Jesus went to those who were listening. Common people. Chosen by Christ. So, the question cannot be, have we gotten our money’s worth out of the gospel. It’s not our money, not our investment. Christ made the investment.
We can never forget the singular importance of this truth, of Christ coming to us as we stand by the seashore going about our business, not drawn by our righteousness, not drawn by our purity, but propelled by the love of God. Christ investing himself in us and in the world. If we can understand that, we can understand so much better what it means to follow him.
Jesus called disciples to enable the ministry, common people to enable the message of love and redemption. I don’t suppose that we all can take literally the path of the disciples and abandon all that we have built, all that we are responsible for for the benefit of the gospel. Some do, God bless them. Not all of us can be like the sons of Zebedee who left their father and the hired men in the boat thinking what in the world is going on here. It is enough to speak that message in our lives and our actions.
Those of us who are called to be followers of Christ, those who have been marked and chosen in our baptisms, those of us who have received this grace, we small voices are called to speak the good news in spite of the news. To bear the hope. To be voice of grace against those loud winds of pain and destruction. That is our vocation these days. If Christ had wanted the powerful to bear this message he wouldn’t have canvassed the shores of Galilee, but the confines of the temple at Jerusalem or the courts of Rome. He didn’t do that. He chose the common. That’s us today. The message of the gospel is that we are the hope bearers.
Jesus called disciples to enable his message of grace, the good news. That has not changed or become less important in our time.
That can be a little intimidating when the news is so big, the evidence of our disunity and failure looms so large. But recall again that Jesus chose common people to bear his message of grace were small and common people, fishermen, tax collectors. That is Christ’s construction formula. That this profound message of love that changed history is borne by those by those who don’t normally make history, but will.
And it is intimidating that the news seems beyond our ability to change it, but let’s remember that it is Christ’s investment in us, working through us to speak grace against these forces. . . and Christ will do Christ’s work. God will do God’s work.
In my vocation before the ordained ministry, as you know, I was a reporter, a journalist. I did hard news. One of the fundamental tenets of good journalism is that you write a good lead. It presents the heart of the story, and then the rest of the supporting materials follow in response. If you were inattentive or undisciplined, you would bury the lead, find that you had left it for the third paragraph. That is bad technique and and editor will correct it.
Those of us who bear the good news, should never bury the lead. Our lead to every story is that God so loved the world that he gave his only son . .. and then everything else can follow . . . and such a lead can’t help but influence the rest of the story.
Follow my lead, says Jesus . . . For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that even as war breaks out around us, there are those who will seek healing and forgiveness. . . . and God so love the world that even as marriages fail and children are hurt, they will not be abandoned. Wholeness again beckons. For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son that even as our streets are rocked with violence, there will be peacemakers rise up and speak in his name for reconciliation.
For God so loved the world, for God so loves the world. The good news, the gospel of the Lord.
Copyright (c) 2002 by Pastor Robert J. Rasmus
"Follow Me"
Lately, I have been receiving in my News Gazette each week and insert with old headlines from past issues. They are celebrating an anniversary and have been including an occasional front page from their archives. And I’ve got to tell you, I don’t see much change. . . there are stories of the war in Vietnam . . . the civil rights movement. . . escalating crime rates.
I have to tell you, I don’t see much change these days, do you? Well, the very nation where Christ’s ministry began is wracked by hatred and war. Thousands have died at the hands of hateful people. There is war in Afghanistan and rumors of war in India and Pakistan. We have closed the century of the Holocaust. Our cities are marred by drugs and violence. In our homes, husbands still beat on their wives, children are exploited and abused, marriage has all but lost its sanctity in the culture.
Has the world lifted all out of poverty? Is there equity and justice? Is there peace? Has hatred and division between people and races give way to unity and understanding? Have we gotten our money’s worth out of the gospel of Jesus Christ?
Only a fool would make the case that in the past 2 thousand years, the world has achieved even the smallest measure of perfection. These problems continue because evil is still afoot in the world . . . because humanity, charged with the stewardship of creation, is not yet fully redeemed. Because the self-interestedness of humanity seeks glorification in selfish and destructive ways. To wit, Enron.
Now, isn't that an uplifting start for a Sunday morning! But those are the questions that persist, the realities that persist. Those are the confusing and frustrating and frightening tendencies that the world cannot seem to break.
This is the news. And when we reflect on the good news, we hold one against the other and we ask, how are we doing. But I think we have to pause in our thinking here, because it is full of traps.
We cannot measure the grace of Christ by sins of humanity. They are the wrong questions. It’s the wrong math. You cannot measure the grace of Christ by the collective sins of humanity.
It reminds me of the television commercial that says we measure success one investor at a time. The grace of Christ is measured one baptized Christian at a time. Because evil exists, and humanity stumbles and tarries does not make the believer any less a member of the body of Christ, any less loved by God, any less a member of the community of saints. That is the good news the Jesus began to speak in Galilee.
The measure of Christ is not the presence of evil, but the presence of grace. We know that in our lives, we know that in our families, we turn to it in times of trouble. The good news, against the news, is that Christ comes to us, comes to the world in spite of evil, in spite of human failure. The good news is that because of the persistent love of God, Christ come to redeem and love us.
Now, when Jesus had begun his ministry with the good news that the kingdom had drawn near in his very person., it was then that he called upon his disciples. Jesus called upon others to enable this ministry of grace and love, to bring the good news. Now, what’s clear in our gospel story today is that Jesus did not turn for this to the most righteous, those recognized as the most learned, the most profound in their faith. Jesus went to those who were listening. Common people. Chosen by Christ. So, the question cannot be, have we gotten our money’s worth out of the gospel. It’s not our money, not our investment. Christ made the investment.
We can never forget the singular importance of this truth, of Christ coming to us as we stand by the seashore going about our business, not drawn by our righteousness, not drawn by our purity, but propelled by the love of God. Christ investing himself in us and in the world. If we can understand that, we can understand so much better what it means to follow him.
Jesus called disciples to enable the ministry, common people to enable the message of love and redemption. I don’t suppose that we all can take literally the path of the disciples and abandon all that we have built, all that we are responsible for for the benefit of the gospel. Some do, God bless them. Not all of us can be like the sons of Zebedee who left their father and the hired men in the boat thinking what in the world is going on here. It is enough to speak that message in our lives and our actions.
Those of us who are called to be followers of Christ, those who have been marked and chosen in our baptisms, those of us who have received this grace, we small voices are called to speak the good news in spite of the news. To bear the hope. To be voice of grace against those loud winds of pain and destruction. That is our vocation these days. If Christ had wanted the powerful to bear this message he wouldn’t have canvassed the shores of Galilee, but the confines of the temple at Jerusalem or the courts of Rome. He didn’t do that. He chose the common. That’s us today. The message of the gospel is that we are the hope bearers.
Jesus called disciples to enable his message of grace, the good news. That has not changed or become less important in our time.
That can be a little intimidating when the news is so big, the evidence of our disunity and failure looms so large. But recall again that Jesus chose common people to bear his message of grace were small and common people, fishermen, tax collectors. That is Christ’s construction formula. That this profound message of love that changed history is borne by those by those who don’t normally make history, but will.
And it is intimidating that the news seems beyond our ability to change it, but let’s remember that it is Christ’s investment in us, working through us to speak grace against these forces. . . and Christ will do Christ’s work. God will do God’s work.
In my vocation before the ordained ministry, as you know, I was a reporter, a journalist. I did hard news. One of the fundamental tenets of good journalism is that you write a good lead. It presents the heart of the story, and then the rest of the supporting materials follow in response. If you were inattentive or undisciplined, you would bury the lead, find that you had left it for the third paragraph. That is bad technique and and editor will correct it.
Those of us who bear the good news, should never bury the lead. Our lead to every story is that God so loved the world that he gave his only son . .. and then everything else can follow . . . and such a lead can’t help but influence the rest of the story.
Follow my lead, says Jesus . . . For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that even as war breaks out around us, there are those who will seek healing and forgiveness. . . . and God so love the world that even as marriages fail and children are hurt, they will not be abandoned. Wholeness again beckons. For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son that even as our streets are rocked with violence, there will be peacemakers rise up and speak in his name for reconciliation.
For God so loved the world, for God so loves the world. The good news, the gospel of the Lord.
Copyright (c) 2002 by Pastor Robert J. Rasmus