Follow Me

January 21, 2018 Mark 1:14-20 Follow Me Third Sunday of Epiphany Year B Come with me, and I will teach you to catch men (people). (v. 17, TEV) Object: a fishing pole Lesson: Good morning, boys and girls. (Hold uppole.) How many of you have seen this before? (Wait for show of hands.) It's a fishing pole, isn't it? I brought it because I wanted to see how much you know about fishing. How many of you have been fishing before? (Let them respond.) What do you need for fishing? (Let them respond.) You might need a boat, the fishing pole, a hook on the end, some bait or worms, a net and lots of patience while you are waiting for the fish. What's the hardest part about fishing? (Let them respond.) For some of you it might be putting the worm on the hook. But for some of you who like to talk a lot it might be the waiting part, because usually you have to be quiet or you might scare the fish away. Why do you think people fish? (Let them respond.) Some people fish for food. They use the fish to eat. Some people fish for fun and to relax. They like to fish because it's quiet and peaceful. Sometimes they catch fish and throw them right back in the water. People fish for lots of reasons. Our lesson today is about fishing. Jesus was finding friends to help him do his work. Some of the friends were fishing. They caught fish for their everyday job. Jesus wanted these friends to stop fishing so he told them, "I will make you fishers of men (or people)." Do you think there are any lakes with people in them to catch on the hook on the end of the fishing pole? (Let them respond.) No, of course not! Did you know that another word for Jesus' friends is disciple? Do you know what the word disciple means? (Let them respond.) Disciple means learner. Jesus' friends were learners. What Jesus was going to teach them was to go fishing in a new way. They would learn by watching Jesus, just like you learn to fish by watching someone else who knows how to fish. They would not catch people with worms and hooks and fishing poles, but with love and kindness. But the one thing about fishing for fish and fishing for people that is the same is the long time of waiting. Jesus was going to teach his friends how to wait and love. As we come to church we learn how to wait and we learn how to love, too. CSS Publishing Co. Mark 1:14-20Common English Bible (CEB) Jesus’ message 14 After John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee announcing God’s good news, 15 saying, “Now is the time! Here comes God’s kingdom! Change your hearts and lives, and trust this good news!” Jesus calls disciples 16 As Jesus passed alongside the Galilee Sea, he saw two brothers, Simon and Andrew, throwing fishing nets into the sea, for they were fishermen. 17 “Come, follow me,” he said, “and I’ll show you how to fish for people.” 18 Right away, they left their nets and followed him. 19 After going a little farther, he saw James and John, Zebedee’s sons, in their boat repairing the fishing nets. 20 At that very moment he called them. They followed him, leaving their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired workers. Common English Bible (CEB) Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible This story is told every year in every gospel because it is the most important part of the story. The day Jesus approached his disciples and invited them to follow me. I love the way Mark tells this story, because it comes very early in Mark’s gospel – in the first chapter. Jesus is inspired by John the Baptist in telling the people to repent. But before he can travel to tell others about the reign of God, he must create a team – a team of followers. This is the story of how he encourages his first 4 followers. The sea of Galilee is a small lake, you can see the other side. But it was a popular lake for the locals. Everyone who wanted to make a living fishing, could be found there with their boats. They would be there everyday, just doing the same thing. Jesus didn’t go the to seminary looking for followers, he went to the common people, doing a common job. He invites them to come and follow me. I always like the way Mark tells a story, because Mark does not beat around the bush – he gets to the point in just a few words. This scripture contains the whole message of the gospel in two sentences. Jesus came into Galilee announcing God’s good news. Now is the time, here comes God’s kingdom, change your hearts and lives, and trust this good news. The whole gospel message. God is near, there is hope that things will get better but in order for you to be a part of God’s kingdom you have to repent and believe. That is a message that everyone in the world can benefit from. But Jesus realized early on that he needed help, he needed others the be trained to tell the message also. He comes to them in their ordinary lives, and invites them to follow me. We should notice that different gospel-writers use a different word for "call" inasmuch as they wish to highlight a different aspect of our Lord's call. Mark uses a Greek word which has the force of "invite"; Luke, a word which has the force of "summon". Mark tells us there is a winsomeness, a courtesy, a gentleness to an invitation; Luke tells us there is an urgency, an imperative, even an ultimatum to a summons. Put together, that call by which our Lord still calls men and women into his company is a winsome invitation which is also urgent, as well as a summons which is yet gentle. Victor A. Shepherd When we invite, we often think that we have to not just ask , but we have to be responsible for the answer, and then make sure that they have a good time when they come. We are hesitant to ask people to come to church, because we are not sure if they will get anything out of it. An invitation is just that – just asking for them to try it out. How does Jesus invite his first four disciples – he says come follow me. Come be with me. The most powerful invitation included a testimony of why it is important to you to come to church. The disciples gave up their lives, because Jesus said come follow me. They saw something in that invitation for themselves. Sometimes it is not what we say, it is who we are that gets people interested. Christ’s Aroma in Our Lives A mother tells how her daughter used to work for a pizzeria, and Mom had the job of picking her up from work every evening. When her daughter would get into the car she'd smell so much like pizza that often times Mom would go back into the store and buy a pizza. When we give our lives to Christ, when we spend time with Christ and seek to live for him; when we let His love, grace and forgiveness cover us, then we'll have Christ's aroma in our lives. His love will spread and shine through us for others to see and breathe in. And when we live like that, our lives become an invitation. And when our lives are an invitation, others will be compelled to seek him and ask questions about our faith. Billy D. Strayhorn, From the Pulpit, CSS Publishing Company, Inc. Unfortunately, it seems that we have gotten out of the habit of inviting people to be a part of the kingdom. Saving the Shipwrecked On a dangerous seacoast where shipwrecks often occur there was once a crude little life-saving station. The building was just a hut, and there was only one boat but the few devoted members kept a constant watch over the sea, and with no thought for themselves went out day and night tirelessly searching for the lost. Some of those who were saved, and various others in the surrounding area, wanted to become associated with the station and give of their time and money and effort for the support of its work. New boats were bought and new crews trained. The little life-saving station grew. Some of the members of the life-saving station were unhappy that the building was so crude and poorly equipped. They felt that a more comfortable place should be provided as the first refuge of those saved from the sea. They replaced the emergency cots with beds and put better furniture in the enlarged building. Now, the life-saving station became a popular gathering place for its members, and they decorated it beautifully and furnished it exquisitely, because they used it as a sort of club. Fewer members were now interested in going to sea on lifesaving missions, so they hired life-boat crews to do this work. The life-saving motif still prevailed in this club's decoration, and there was a symbolic life-boat in the room where the club initiations were held. About this time a large ship was wrecked off the coast, and the hired crews brought in boat loads of cold, wet and half-drowned people. They were dirty and sick and some of them had black skin and some had yellow skin. The beautiful new club was in chaos. So the property committee immediately had a shower house built outside the club where victims of shipwreck could be cleaned up before coming inside. At the next meeting, there was a split in the club membership. Most of the members wanted to stop the club's life-saving activities as being unpleasant and a hindrance to the normal social life of the club. Some members insisted upon life-saving as their primary purpose and pointed out that they were still called a life-saving station. But they were finally voted down and told that if they wanted to save lives of all the various kinds of people who were shipwrecked in those waters, they could begin their own life-saving station down the coast. They did. As the years went by, the new station experienced the same changes that had occurred in the old. It evolved into a club, and yet another life-saving station was founded. History continued to repeat itself, and if you visit that sea coast today, you will find a number of exclusive clubs along that shore. Shipwrecks are frequent in those waters, but most of the people drown. That's a pretty graphic tale of some folks who forgot what they were supposed to be about. Sometimes I think we are like those folks. It's as if we think Jesus didn't really mean it when he said, "Go fish." We think other things he said are surely important, but not reaching out and bringing people to Jesus Christ. Mickey Anders, Go Fish I remember the two women who visited one Sunday and got very upset at this sermon on inviting others. They did not feel comfortable insisting that others come to church. Fisher's Of Men, Witnessing Most of our witnessing is likely to happen in passing moments of conversation--those occasions when we show, in relatively minor ways, who we are and to whom we belong. I think of a suburban woman who was playing tennis with her good but quite secular friends. In a conversation break between sets she began referring to something she had read that morning. It would have been easy to say, "I read something this morning ." Instead, with no attempt at piosity, she simply introduced one word: "In my devotional reading this morning." It was not a major soul-winning engagement. It was, however, a true sowing of seed. By a word, she had opened the door for some further conversation. Perhaps our greatest problem in becoming Christ's fishermen is that we are not enough in earnest to grasp the opportunities that come to us; or we are so possessed of the idea that we must say something dramatic and far reaching that we fail to say the small, immediate and potentially significant thing. To put it in the language of our lesson for the day, most of us really don't act as if we even have a call to "fish." We're out in the waters of human need every day, but we don't seem to know it. The issue is not that we should become more aggressive about sharing our faith. It is that we should be more sensitive to the needs of the world around us, and more sensitive to the subtle prodding of the Holy Spirit. The two sensitivities are wonderfully intertwined. To be sensitive to the Holy Spirit must mean that we will be more sensitive to people and their pain; to be more sensitive to people ought to make us more open to God and his purposes. J. Ellsworth Kalas, Reading the Signs, "From Empty Nets to Full Lives," CSS Publishing Company How Do You Know You Are Called? How do we know we are called? How do we know to what we are called? An age-old question to which a wise minister and author has given us an answer worth pondering. Frederick Buechner, in his book, "Wishful Thinking," says it well. He says that a good rule for finding one's vocation is this: Our special mission in our life is usually A. That which we'd love most to do and B. It is work that the world most needs to have done. Buechner says that if we really get a kick out of our work, we have probably met requirement A, but if that work is writing TV deodorant commercials, chances are we haven't met requirement B. If our work is being a doctor in a leper colony, we probably have met requirement B, but if most of the time we are bored and depressed by doctoring, the chances are we have not only bypassed A, we probably aren't helping our patients much, either. Buechner concludes: "The place God calls us to, is the place where our deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet." Brent Porterfield and Brett Blair, www.eSermons.com Jesus didn’t go to the seminary to get specially trained people, we went where the people were, he approached them in their everyday lives. And he just invited them to come and follow me. To become disciples of Christ- to do what Christ would do in your situation, to get to know God, by having a relationship with Christ. His First and Last Words to Peter Jesus lived three years with his disciples. They went everywhere together and did everything together. They ate, slept, and breathed the life of Jesus and yet it was difficult for them to make the transition in their minds from a Messiah who would be a mighty King of Jews to a Messiah that would die for the sins of mankind. But Jesus never wavered in his mission. Throughout his entire ministry among the people and his training of the disciples he held in his heart this hope: That Peter along with the rest of his disciples would lose their earthly ambitions and become feeders of sheep--fishers of men. The very first words of Jesus when he and Peter met at the waters was, "Follow me, and I will make you a fisher of men." His very last words to Peter, again down at the waters of the Sea of Galilee, and after his resurrection, were, "Feed my sheep, Follow me." From beginning to end this is the mission of the Church. Brett Blair,www.eSermons.com Are you ready to follow Jesus? Additional illustrations…… A Job and A Ministry Do you have a job in this church and this community . . . or do you have a ministry? There is a difference! + If you are doing it because no one else will, it's a job. If you're doing it to serve the Lord, it's a ministry. + If you're doing it just well enough to get by, it's a job. If you're doing it to the best of your ability, it's a ministry. + If you'll do it only so long as it doesn't interfere with other activities, it's a job. If you're committed to staying with it even when it means letting go of other things, it's a ministry. + If you quit because no one praised you or thanked you, it was a job. If you stay with it even though no one seems to notice, it's a ministry. + If you do it because someone else said that it needs to be done, it's a job. If you are doing it because you are convinced it needs to be done, it's a ministry. + It's hard to get excited about a job. It's almost impossible not to get excited about a ministry. + If your concern is success, it's a job. If your concern is faithfulness, it's a ministry. + People may say "well done" when you do your job. The Lord will say "well done" when you complete your ministry. + An average church is filled with people doing jobs. A great church is filled with people involved in ministry! + If God calls you to a ministry, for heaven's sake (literally) don't treat it like a job. If you have a job in the church, give it up and find a ministry! God doesn't want us feeling stuck in a job, but excited, fulfilled, and faithful in a specific ministry. May God bless and empower us as disciples of Jesus Christ, called to be in the ministry of this church and community. Amen. Michael D. Powell _______________________________ Call Can We See God? Some time ago I read the story of a young boy approaching his slightly older sister with a question about God. “Susie, can anybody ever really see God?” “Of course not, silly,” came the response. “God is so far up in heaven that no one can see God.” Some time later the boy approached his mother with the same nagging question, “Mom, can anybody really see God?” More gently his mother answered, “No, not really. God is a spirit and dwells in our hearts, but we can never really see God.” His mother’s answer was somewhat more satisfying, but still the boy wondered. Not long afterwards, the boy’s grandfather took him on a fishing trip, and the two had a great day together. As the day was winding down, the sun began to set with unusual splendor. The grandfather was enrapt by the beauty, and the grandson was aware of a deep peace and contentment etched upon his grandpa’s face. “Granddad,” the boy began, a bit hesitatingly. “I wasn’t going to ask anyone else, but I wonder if you can tell me the answer to something I’ve been wondering about a long time. Can anybody ever really see God?” The grandfather sat in thought for a few moments, then said simply, “Grandson, it’s getting so I can’t see anything else.” Joel D. Kline, Faith Is a Verb

Children of Abraham

March 12, 2017 We are children of Abraham Genesis 12:1-4 Lent 2 Imagine that you are going on a long journey – we are all going on a long journey, - we are going to divide up into groups, some of us are going to the artic, some of us are going to antartic, some are going to climb mount Everest. All of these are pretty long trips. We all need to get together and plan our journey together. What do we need to know before embarking on a journey? What do we need to take with us and what needs to stay behind? What is the one thing that we need from home on such a long journey to comfort us? What problems might we encounter on the journey? How are we going to get there, what is the cheapest way to get everyone to their destination? Lent is supposed to be a journey – a long journey from to faith for us. But nevertheless we all go on a journey in order to get to easter. Lent is our time to take some time to plan how we are going to get there. I think that is why we are going to continue to look at the book of Geneses today. The first 11 chapters of the book talk about the creations story and the first family of Adam and Eve. Chapter 12 is the story of another first family – Abram and Serai. Most important it is a story about a long journey that they must take. God comes to Abram and encourages him to leave home. Most people today never go any further than 50 miles away from the place that they were born. So the fact that God was able to get a 75 year old man and his 65 year old wife to just pull up and leave is a big deal. They did not go by themselves, Abram’s dad also went along, and his nephew. But what was it that made a 75 year old man just pick up and leave everything that he knew, all of his family, the life that he led and just walk away and start wandering around in the desert. It was his faith, his willingness to trust God even in the midst of the unknown . It was a faith that was so strong that we now call him the father of 3 faiths. Today more than 60% of the people in the world are either jewish, Christian, or muslim. And we are all called children of Abraham. The scripture from romans points out that we are not genetically related to Abraham, but we all inherited his faith, and more importantly, we all inherited the promises of God that God made to Abraham for following him. For being willing to take a long journey. I am reminded of the journey that many of our forefathers made. One of the best books that I ever read was the warmth of other suns – by Isabel Wilkerson. She follows the journey’s of four individuals who were born in the south, and traveled north, west, east to a new life. The title of her book comes from a poem from Richard Wright – I have been looking for the longer poem, but this stanza says- I was leaving the south to fling myself into the unknown… I was taking a part of the south to transplant in alien soil, to see if it could grow differently, if it could drink of new and cool rains, bend in strange winds, respond to the warmth of other suns and perhaps to bloom. I am reminded of the story that my cousin just told me last week of my uncle, her father. Who grew up on a farm, my grandmother rented a house on that farm. When he grew up, and more than likely all throughout his teenage years, he worked on that farm. My grandmother was a maid, so she was never home with them. But as he grew up, he became a sharecropper, and worked from sun up to sun down on that farm for little of nothing. He married early in life, and the owners of the farm wanted his wife to work as a maid, and my uncle insisted that we was more than willing to work as hard as he could for them, but his wife never would have to work. And as they began to have children they wanted a better life for them. So when the opportunity presented itself to move to Illinois and work in the factory he took it. As a matter of fact, not only did he leave, but all of his brothers, male cousins, and other male relatives all relocated to Peoria, IL. My other uncle retired from caterpillar as a very rich man. What was it that made them all leave their mother, their life, - Langston Hughes says it in a poem one way ticket – I pick up my life And take it with me And I put it down in Chicago, Detroit, Buffalo, Scranton, Any place that is North and East— And not Dixie. I pick up my life And take it on the train To Los Angeles, Bakersfield, Seattle, Oakland, Salt Lake, Any place that is North and West— And not South. I am fed up With Jim Crow laws, People who are cruel And afraid, Who lynch and run, Who are scared of me And me of them. I pick up my life And take it away On a one-way ticket— Gone up North, Gone out West, Gone! They wanted a better life for their children! They did not want their children to suffer the way that they did. My mother is 20 years younger than her brothers. But when she became an adult, she followed them- for many of the same reasons. We all heard the Ben Carson quote this week where he said that slaves were immigrants. I was going to try to give him the benefit of the doubt, but there is no saving him. As he talked about slaves coming here on slave ships as immigrants so that their children could have a better life. But that is just stupid and wrong. I was going to say that maybe he got his timetable wrong. The great migration was the story of former slaves wanting a better life. I even have an article from the 1917 Englewood Methodist Church newsletter entitled the negroes - which talks about all of the black people coming to the south side from the south. I am still looking for the article from 1920 entitlted “The Negroes are coming” at least they talked about how they needed to welcome them and be open and understanding. My point for this morning is that long journey into the unknown are not strange, not even for us. As I do my family history, I have relatives that remind me that my family history does not begin and end in Arkansas. That before they came to Arkansas, they came from somewhere on the east coast – when the crops started to fail in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia – many farmers and their slaves moved to the delta states where the soil was better. And they came to the coastal states because they came off of boats from parts of Africa. Not that far from where Abraham would have wandered. So we are a long, long long way from home – in a new land, doing things in a new way – still practicing the same faith that Abraham practiced, still worshipping the same God, most importantly still keeping the same promises. The LORD said to Abram, “Leave your land, your family, and your father’s household for the land that I will show you. 2 I will make of you a great nation and will bless you. I will make your name respected, and you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, those who curse you I will curse; all the families of the earth will be blessed because of you.”[a] That is seven promises that we live in when we have the faith of Abraham. The Promises of God Are True Tom Long says that while he was at Princeton, he went to a nearby Presbyterian church that prides itself on being an academic, intellectual church. Early on, he said, he went to a family night supper and sat down next to a man, introduced himself, told him he was new, and said, "Have you been here long?" "Oh yes," the man said. "In fact I was here before this became such a scholarly church. Why I’m probably the only non-intellectual left. I haven't understood a sermon in over 25 years." "Then why do you keep coming," Tom asked? "Because every Monday night a group of us get in the church van and drive over to the youth correctional center. Sometimes we play basketball, or play games. Usually we share a Bible story. But mostly we just get to know these kids and listen to them. "I started going because Christians are supposed to do those kind of things. But now I could never stop. Sharing the love of God at that youth center has changed my life." And then he said this profound statement. "You cannot prove the promises of God in advance, but if you live them, they’re true, every one." During this Lenten season how are you living the promises of God? Where is it that God is calling you to go? Our ancestors came from a very long way for us to get where we are – but we still have a long way to go – especially in our hearts and souls. The genesis story says that when Abram set out – that not only was he75 years old – but he had not children. His wife was barren. So when God said come follow me – he had nothing to lose – but he had nothing to gain. When God started making these promises to him about becoming a great nation it meant nothing to him personally because he did not have any children of his own. His future was barren, he was not even thinking about the next generation and his legacy because there was no way that he was ever going to have a future. But this is how amazing God is – he created a future. In the beginning God created adam out of nothing – but he created Abraham’s future out of barreness. Suddenly no hope – became hopefulness! No future became a bountiful future; everyday routine because a lifechanging adventure. Imagine looking at your life one day and seeing absolutely nothing and the next day looking at the same place and seeing a gold mine. The journey that we have to go on now – is a spiritual journey. A journey within our hearts and souls. It is up to us to take those 7 promises and to create a future of hope and fulfillment for those who are yet to come. A story from Yugoslavia tells of four angels who witnessed creation. The first angel observed God’s handiwork in awe and said: “Lord, your creation is beautiful! How did you do it?” That’s the worldview of a scientist. The second angel observed in awe and said: “Lord, your creation is beautiful! Why did you do it?” That’s the worldview of a philosopher. The third angel observed in awe and said: “Lord, your creation is beautiful! Can I have it?” That’s the worldview of a materialist. Finally, the fourth angel observed in awe and said: “Lord, your creation is beautiful! Can I help?” That’s the worldview of God’s faithful. (8) That is the kind of obedience that God honors. God told Abram to leave his home and God made Abram a promise and an assignment—that he would be blessed and that he would be a blessing. May we be blessed and may we be a blessing to others as well. Amen. Other illustrations… Lane Alderman, Asking All the Right Questions “I was leaving the South to fling myself into the unknown . . . I was taking a part of the South to transplant in alien soil, to see if it could grow differently, if it could drink of new and cool rains, bend in strange winds, respond to the warmth of other suns and, perhaps, to bloom” ― Richard Wright “One-Way Ticket” by Langston Hughes I pick up my life And take it with me And I put it down in Chicago, Detroit, Buffalo, Scranton, Any place that is North and East— And not Dixie. I pick up my life And take it on the train To Los Angeles, Bakersfield, Seattle, Oakland, Salt Lake, Any place that is North and West— And not South. I am fed up With Jim Crow laws, People who are cruel And afraid, Who lynch and run, Who are scared of me And me of them. I pick up my life And take it away On a one-Gone up North, Gone out West, Gone! “It poured rain the day I left. But I was filled with excitement, a strange sense of taking wing. I didn’t know where I was going, but I knew what I needed. I needed a new land, a new race, a new language; and although I couldn’t have put it into words then, I needed a new mystery.” (John Fowles, The Magus, (Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 965, pg. 150) Children’s sermon… Object: A cap Boys and girls, How many of you like to wear caps? Some people do and some people don't. I read somewhere that if your feet are cold, you should put something on your head. That didn't make sense to me until someone explained that your body works extra hard to keep your brain warm. It will even let your feet freeze in order to keep your brain warm. That is why a cap is so important on a cold day. But why does the body work so hard to keep the brain warm? Your brain is the most important part of your body, isn't it? What do you do with your brain? That's right, you think. That is also where you see and hear and feel. Your eyes let in light, but it is your brain that turns that light into a picture. Your brain is by far the most important part of your body. Your brain is where you dream. It is where you dream at night--some of those dreams can be scary, can't they? And it is where you day dream during the day. Do you ever dream of what you will be some day? Do you dream of being an astronaut or a policeman or a teacher or a mommy or a daddy. Dreams are important. Dreams help us have a road map of where our lives will some day lead. Some of those dreams come from God. In fact God has a dream for your life. Did you know that? God has a dream for you--a dream in which you will grow up to be the kind of loving, honest, courageous person that He has created you to be. He dreams that you will be like His Son, Jesus. Gee, we have dreams and God has dreams. Wouldn't it be great if the dreams were the same? Then someday we could be all God means for us to be. Dynamic Preaching, Collected Sermons, by King Duncan

Follow Jesus

January 26, 2014 Psalm 27:1, 4-9 Matthew 4:12-23 “Follow Jesus” Third Sunday of Epiphany Year A Tools of the Trade I think that we all have them – for me it is pens. I have collections of pens all over the place at home and at church. As a writer, I never want to be caught anywhere without a pen. For me they are the tools of the trade. For a carpenter it might be tools, for a crafter it might be yarn, for a teacher it might be books. Tools of the trade are more than just tools, the represent our identity, our sense of being. You never lend your tools to other people – they have to get their own, you keep them in a place where you can get to them when you need them, and you never get rid of them, no matter what you hold onto them. For Peter, Andrew, James and John their tools of the trade would have been their nets. As a fisherman, a net was something that you held onto for dear life – because it was your life. But one day a strange man walks by and makes an even stranger request – follow me – and just like that, they give up their nets, their identity, their family and everything else. The bible never says if Jesus knew them ahead of time, it never tells us what it going on in their lives at the time, it doesn’t even tell us if Jesus had to say anything else to convince them. But it does tell us that they did walk away from their lives and follow Jesus to become fishers of men. Jesus tools of the trade were his relationships- his connections to the hearts of people. The message of Matthew is to help us to understand that the Kingdom of God is at hand. Jesus is trying to help us to see the kingdom and to see clearly that God is in our midst. What is so important that these men would just walk away from their lives? The promises of God – light, salvation, a stronghold. They had a chance to become disciples to the most distinguished teacher of all of the world – the Son of God. But at that moment none of that was obvious to them – they were just following the voice of God. Rob Bell is a pastor from Michigan. In one of his sermons, he talks about what it takes to become a disciple of a dinstinguished disciple. You were expected to start studying the bible at age six, and work at remembering it my heart. Only the best and brightest students were invited by a rabbi to study. There were very few who made the cut. These men were adults who had gotten into their family trade. So they weren’t the best of the best – and yet Jesus saw something in them that would make then disciples- they were willing to follow when asked, just because they were asked. In John 15:16 jesus explains 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last— We can be grateful that Jesus is still choosing disciples – he chose you and me so that we can bear fruit. He wants us to be fishers of men – to develop relationships, to show love, to spread the world – that the kingdom of God is at hand – and God is still looking for people to come and follow him. Modern Disciples as fishers of men I think that sometime we have lost sight of what it means to follow Jesus. We follow ourselves, but we don’t invite others to follow. We are not fishers of men. I think that what we don’t realize is that Christ is not asking us as disciples to do anything that he did not do himself. We focus on the story of how the disciples dropped everything. But we don’t realize that Jesus did the same before. He was born in Nazareth, his family trade was carpentry. And he left all of that behind and moved to Capernaum in order to be by the sea – what did he know about fishing? Only what God taught him. Giving up today for tomorrow I often wonder, how many of us as modern disciples are willing to give up who we are today in order to become who we need to be tomorrow. We are too busy holding onto who we are today for dear life, to even listen to what God is telling us about the future. Over the weekend, I have been thinking about how I keep holding onto a lot of activities, and tools, and my understanding of life. When I have been doing one thing for awhile, and this year I am not asked to repeat that activitiy. I feel like a failure. But if I keep holding on the old activities, there is no space to get new activities. If I am holding on to the past for dear life, then how is the future ever going to seep through? Repent! A Whole New World Is Headed Straight at You! "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near!" That is what Jesus says (plagiarizing his cousin John) in Matthew 4:17. In his wonderful commentary on Matthew, Frederick Dale Bruner paraphrases this, "Move, because here comes the whole new world of God!" The verb translated as "is near" is the same word Jesus uses later in Matthew when he sees Judas in Gethsemane and says, "Here comes my betrayer." So when Jesus says in verse 17 that the kingdom of heaven "is near," he means it's coming straight at you! If you're crossing a street and see a garbage truck barreling down on you, you may well say, "Hey, look out!" (or words to that effect). Jesus' words have that same urgency. "Look out! Move! A whole new world is headed straight at you!" As Bruner says, every word that comes from Jesus is nuclear. These words are urgent and the implications of this kingdom's approach are immediate. If someone yells "Watch out!" when you're crossing a street but then you just stand there, something is going to happen to you and it's probably not going to be good. Jesus' point is the same: you can't hear him tell you that the kingdom is approaching and then just stand there like a statue with your hands in your pockets. You need to repent, literally to turn around, so that you're ready to embrace this kingdom, so that you can hop onto the kingdom instead of getting crushed by it as it rolls right over you. Scott E. Hoezee, Comments and Observations The kingdom of God is near. They say that Psalm 27 is David’s prayer while he was trying to escape the wrath of Saul. His prayer was that God would be with him all of the time. Verse 1 says the Lord is my light and my salvation. If I have God them whom shall I fear. Verse 4 says that I will ask to live in the house of the Lord forever. – the house of the lord is not in heaven – but here in earth. They say that this is a psalm for a funeral – but it is a psalm for life. Life in the house of the lord is living in Christ, with Christ, for Christ, under the protection of Christ. As long as we have Christ, what do we have to fear? LUTHER ON FEAR Martin Luther made this interesting observation in his Table Talk: "God and the devil take opposite tactics in regard to fear. The Lord first allows us to become afraid, that he might relieve our fears and comfort us. The devil, on the other hand, first makes us feel secure in our pride and sins, that we might later be overwhelmed with fear and despair." Source: From a sermon by Anthony Zibolski, "Overcoming fear and anxiety" 2/20/2009 As disciples we have to tell others that the kingdom of God is at hand. Turning Toward the Light A little boy named Bobby entered his first science fair in second grade. Because his Mom has a green thumb, they decided to experiment with the growth of plants. He took two small green plants and placed one on a sunny windowsill and the other in a cardboard box. After a couple of weeks, Bobby checked on the two plants. The one on the windowsill had grown a couple of inches and had vibrant green leaves. The one in the box had actually grown a bit, but it had lost all of its green color, becoming almost white and its leaves drooping. Thinking that the plant might die, Bobby cut a hole in one side of the box, like this, and set the box, with the plant inside, by the windowsill … with the hole facing toward the incoming light. Well you know what happened … but Bobby was so excited by this discovery! Yes, over the course of a few weeks, the plant began to grow out through the hole! And, a couple of weeks later, it turned to grow up toward the light and even blossomed! The plant that had been in gloomy darkness … and was all but dead … had seen a great light, it turned toward that light and blossomed! Well, Matthew wrote … after the crucifixion and the resurrection of Jesus Christ … and therefore with the full realization of who this man of God was … he wrote that the Light had certainly dawned on the people by the sea, the kingdom of heaven had definitely come near; it had dawned and come near in the person of Jesus Christ … in the personified love and power of God that makes people … different … alive! Robert K. Schneider, Follow the Maker. Adapted by Brett Blair,www.Sermons.com If you have truly seen the light – how hard is it to help others to see the light for themselves. We have to provide a space for others to see that life is so much better in the light of Christ. Commentary Jesus lived three years with his disciples. They went everywhere together and did everything together. They ate, slept, and breathed the life of Jesus and yet it was difficult for them to make the transition in their minds from a Messiah who would be a mighty King of Jews to a Messiah that would die for the sins of mankind. But Jesus never wavered in his mission. Throughout his entire ministry among the people and his training of the disciples he held in his heart this hope: That Peter along with the rest of his disciples would lose their earthly ambitions and become feeders of sheep--fishers of men. The very first words of Jesus when he and Peter met at the waters was, "Follow me, and I will make you a fisher of men." His very last words to Peter, again down at the waters of the Sea of Galilee, and after his resurrection, were, "Feed my sheep, Follow me." Brett Blair, www.Sermons.com Peter understood the invitation to salvation in his life and in others – what about you? Let us pray….Amen. Fishers Of Men by Mark A. Hultquist Passage: Matthew 4:18-22 • Lectionary: Epiphany 3 Item 1 of 21 | Back to Results Text: Matthew 4:18-20 As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake for they were fishermen. "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." At once they left their nets and followed him. Materials: A stick with a string and fishing hook attached and a regular fishing pole and tackle box filled with supplies. Message: Do any of you want to go fishing? When I was growing up my dad would take me fishing in two different places. The first was a lake where my uncle had a cabin. We would fish on Saturday mornings and catch little sunfish and other kinds of fish, all very small. But in the summers we would go deep sea fishing in the ocean and then we would catch the bigger fish - haddock and cod and sometimes even sharks! One of the things you learn very quickly when you go fishing is that you have to use different kinds of equipment, depending on the type of fish you want to catch. If I wanted to go fishing today and all I had was this stick with a string and hook on the end, do you think I would be very successful? I might do okay in a small pond trying to catch those sunfish, but that is about the best I could do. So if I wanted to go after the big ones, what would I have to do? Right! I would need a better fishing pole, and the right kind of lures to attract the fish. With all the right equipment I would have a much better chance! One day when Jesus was walking along by the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers who were fishermen, Peter and Andrew. He said to them, "I will make you fishers of men!" Jesus meant he would teach them to tell people about how great God is and how His love can change their lives! They followed Jesus for three years to learn how to do that. The Bible also says that you and I are called to be fishers of people. That means we also need to learn how to tell others about God. In order to do that we need to be growing in our faith. If the most we can say about God is that He exists, we will not catch many fish. However, if we spend time learning about God, and growing in our faith so that people see Jesus in our lives, then we are like this kind of fisherman who is ready for whatever might come along. We will be prepared to answer people's questions about God and to reach them where they are, so they can come to know Christ. God wants to make us into that kind of fishers of men! FROM A MUSTARD SEED, Mark A. Hultquist, CSS Publishing Company, 1996, 0-7880-0847-1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Follow Me There was a field covered with freshly fallen snow. A father and a son enter the field. As they walk across the field, you notice that the father pays no particular attention to where he is going, but his son, on the other hand, follows directly behind, making a special effort to step in his father’s footprints. After the two have crossed the field, you notice that there is only one set of tracks visible in the field, although two had walked across it. The Christian life is that way. In our daily walk we ought to be following Christ's example. Whether in times of suffering, sorrow or need, whether in times of health, joy, or abundance--if someone were to observe the snow-covered fields of your life, would there be one set of tracks, those of Christ? Or would there be two sets, one belonging to Christ and the other distinctly yours? Michael Green, Illustrations for Biblical Preaching, Grand Rapids: Baker, 1993, p.53. Adapted _______________________ A Moment of Decision In his commentary William Barclay notes the significance of Jesus' move from Nazareth to Capernaum. He says, “There was a kind of symbolic finality in that move. In that moment Jesus left his home never again to return to live in it. It is as if he shut the door that lay behind him before he opened the door that stood in front of him. It was the clean cut between the old and the new. One chapter was ended and another had begun. Into life there come these moments of decision. It is always better to meet them with an even surgical cut than to vacillate undecided between two courses of action.” William Barclay Recently, I was listening to a teacher by the name of Rob Bell and he spoke on the selecting process that Rabbis would use to choose their disciples. At the Age of 6, children would begin to learn the Torah, this training was called Bat cipher, from 8 to 10 they would have the torah by heart, memorized, (Gen – Deu) by the end of bat-cipher, most kids would go and learn their family trade, but the best of the best would advance to the next level, the ones with the most natural ability would then memorize (Gen to Mal), after this the best of the best of the best would then apply to a rabbi to become his disciple. A disciple does not just want to know what his Rabbi knows, but he wants to be like his rabbi, and do what his rabbi does. Different rabbis had different sets of interpretations, which were called a Rabbis’ yoke. So you would then apply to the rabbi, the rabbi would grill you, the rabbi wanted to know if this kid can do what I can do, can he spread my yoke, but after the rabbi grills you, he might say you love god and knows the torah, but he is not good, then he would say go learn your family business, but if the rabbi thought this kid has what it takes, he is the best of the best of the best, the rabbi would then say come follow me, you would then leave your family, friends and your synagogue and village and you would devote your entire life to being like your rabbi, learning to do what your rabbi does, this is what it means to be a disciple. All this has huge implications to Jesus. In the gospels, we see Jesus calling Peter and Andrew to come and follow him. If they are fishermen then they are not following another rabbi. That means that they are not the best of the best. The Bible says, they dropped their nets and followed after Jesus. Of course they would have done that because in those days rabbis were the most honored and respected people. Picture this, Jesus, a Rabbi, is walking along the beach and says come and follow me. What He is really saying, you can do what I can do, you can be like me, then the story continues, with the men fishing with their fathers That means they are learning there families business and that means they did not make the cut, they were not considered the best of the best to any other rabbis. But Jesus tells them that He chooses them and they did not choose Him (john 15). A rabbi chooses his disciples on the basis that they have the potential to be like him. God believes in us, you know. The question is what about Jesus’ faith in us, He must have faith in us because he tells us to go and make more disciples, what if He actually believes that we can be like Him and live like Him. Jesus has faith that you can follow him and be like him, he believes it and that is what the foundation of our calling should be based on. May you believe in God and may you come to see that God believes in you. That is, why He chose you! A. Dr. Karl Menninger, a world-famous psychiatrist, was answering questions after giving a lecture on mental health when one person asked, “What would you advice someone to do if he felt a nervous breakdown coming on?” Most people expected the doctor to say, “Consult a psychiatrist.” Instead he said, “Lock up your house, go across the railroad tracks, find someone in need, and do something to help that person.” B. this psychiatrist knows that those who serve others have less mental and psychological problems. The best way to bring on a heart attach or a mental, emotional breakdown is to think about yourself all the time.

Twice as Much as what you Got

2 Kings 2:1-14 Luke 9:51-62 June 30, 2013 6th Sunday after Pentecost Twice as Much as you Got Year C Introduction Step on a Crack Do you remember the saying when you were little, Or maybe I should say that I remember when I was little, we would play this game - Step on a crack, you break your mother’s back. And we would walk down the sidewalk, trying to avoid all of the cracks in the sidewalk. We lived in a brand new subdivision, with brand new sidewalks. So it was pretty easy to walk without stepping on a crack. The only cracks that really existed were those neat creases that sectioned off the sidewalk. But as time went on and the sidewalk became a little more worn more cracks started to pop up in the sidewalk. And as I got a little bit older and I in a bit more of a hurry to get where I was going, I stopped taking the time to watch out for the cracks in the sidewalk as I walked down the street. I probably missed a lot about life, when I stopped paying attention to the cracks in the sidewalk. Because the cracks in the sidewalk can tell a lot about life, about the path that sidewalk is leading to and the journey of the people who walk that pathway. Cracks in the sidewalk are a lot like the times of transition and change in our lives. On one side of the crack is the place that you have just come from, and on the other side of the crack is where you need to be to continue on your journey. Some cracks are expected and manufactured like the creases that mark the squares in a sidewalk. But most cracks, just sort of appear out the wear and tear of life, creating their own pathway. Some crack are so small that there is not way that you can avoid stepping on them, and others are so big that it takes some effort to jump over them. Some are filled with dirt and debris. And there are others that you can look in and get a glimpse of God’s progress growing in the most unexpected place. It could be a blade of grass growing in the crack, a weed, or even a pretty flower making it’s way in the world – setting its roots, and creating it’s home in a place where you wouldn’t expect, but God has made full use of. Yes, a crack in the sidewalk is a lot like the transitions and changes in our lives. This is a time of transition Transitions are the times in our lives where we take account of where we have been, and we strive to go forward to where we need to go. It is also a time to witness the unexpected growth and beauty in our lives. Some transitions we know and expect, birthdays, graduations, most weddings. And then there are those that develop with the wear and tear of life. You can’t prepare for. All transitions bring with them a mix of emotions – fear, grief, hope, celebration, sadness, joy. And all transitions in our lives are a special time for us to get a glimpse of the unexpected beauty of God. They are time for us to witness the kingdom of God growing right before our eyes in a way that we may have been too busy to notice on our journey through life. Beginning of scriptural lesson The end for Elijah, the beginning for Elisha We are going through a transitional time in the life of our church. A time to look at our life, and to separate what happened in the past with what will happen in the future. It is a good time for us to hear the story of Elijah and Elisha. This week Elijah is facing a – the end of his ministry- the time when he must really say goodbye and pass on his work to allow those he anointed to continue into the future. I love Elijah, he is one of my biblical heroes. And I love this story of how he passes his ministry onto his protégé Elisha. I can relate to Elisha’s passion to learn, as he tells Elijah that he wants twice as much power to serve God. Elisha probably doesn’t realize it, but Elijah is testing him all of the time to see if he is worthy. To see if he is able to handle the power that he is asking for. Is he asking for this power for himself or to be able to serve God? Elijah tells Elisha that if he is aware and present when God comes to take Elijah away, then he will indeed inherit his double portion. Elisha does indeed get to witness the heavenly horses and chariot arrive out of the sky and take Elijah away. In the midst of the transition of power from the old to the new- Elisha gets the chance to see an amazing glimpse of the heavenly power of God. It is a picture that he probably holds in his mind forever. It is not everyday that we get to see the glory of God in our lives at work. Elijah remembers to leave the mantle which protects and empowers a prophet for Elisha to use in the future. Elisha goes on to continue to work of God and to help the people of his time. Having witnessed god at work for himself, he know that Elijah is not dead, and what he did has not disappeared- it is the inspiration behind all future work. Transitions are chances for us to take account of our lives. They are times for us to witness for ourselves the wonder of God’s presence in our lives. They are times to look for the mantle – the new responsibility that we have been given to carry on the work of others. Transitions are times for us to realize that the past is never dead and gone, but it has gone to a place to inspire us to move forward. When we are able to be present and aware for transitions, we are changed by the event. We are given the power that we need to bring the future into being. Is this story just about passing on the mantle When we hear the story, we think that the obvious lesson for us is the importance of passing on the mantle of responsibility. Our church is much like many churches, we have an older congregation. We have many who have been faithful to the church for years. Many who want to pass on the mantle- but find that there are not many behind them to pass the mantle to. Sometimes like Elijah, they feel all alone in their mission. Elijah always struggled with feeling isolated and alone in ministry. He had to search for God’s presence in his work. We have to be in constant prayer for our mission and for God to raise up a new generation. Elisha’s double portion But today I don’t want to focus on Elijah – but on Elisha. Elisha asked for twice as much power as Elijah had. 1 kings is the story of Elijah, 2 Kings is the story of Elisha. If you read the two, you will find that Elisha really did twice as many miracles as Elijah. He got his double portion. Elijah struggled always with being alone, even to the very end, he wanted to be alone when God came to get him. Elisha was a people person. He lived in the city, he had not just one protégé, but many, he was connected to a seminary and everything that he did – he did in community. Today I want to talk to the Elisha’s of the church. We have to remember that sometimes life is not so much about wanting to be a good leader, but it is about wanting to be a good follower. Elisha was the type of person that Jesus calls all of us to be. The people who strive to live and do what it best not for ourselves, but what is best for all of the children of God. We are called to live as a community of faithful followers of Jesus. Hide and Seek Do you remember playing "Hide & Seek" when you were a child? You would close your eyes and count to a hundred if you were "it" while all the other kids would run and hide. And then when you reached a hundred, you would yell, "Ready or not, here I come!" Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem whether they were ready or not. For thousands of years, the Jewish people had been counting the passing days thinking they were ready for his coming, and then when he came they ran to hide and never really came out to welcome him. Rosemary Brown, Hide and Seek Jesus enters into a new ministry – that as we look at luke for the rest of the year we have to remember. Jesus realizes that it is time for him to follow his destiny. Scripture says that he sets his face upon Jerusalem. As he prepares to follow God to the cross, he also prepares his disciples – things are not going to be easy. There will be sacrifice and pain in following. But that you have to have the passion of Elisha in order to serve. Sometimes I struggle with having to put Christ first in everything in life. Deithrich Bonhoffer said that salvation is free, but discipleship – choosing to follow jesus with all of your life can be costly. We are called to follow Jesus in all that we do – there is no such thing as living a Christian life, without Christian service. We have to place God’s kingdom first. My final story – is a different kind of Elijah story. It is a story about his inspiration. The inheritance story Hyrkanus was a happy man. Every morning, he awoke with joy in his heart and he said his prayers every day. He has everything, a wonderful house, lots of land, plenty of food. The greatest gift that God could give a man he had. He had lots of sons. And he was thankful that all of his sons were on the farm with him working with him. Well after they had all grown and had families of their own, they all worked on the farm with them. He was happy because they were farmers just like their dad. Hyrkanus would keep watch over is sons. One day he noticed that his youngest son Eliazer was not working. When he talked with his son, Eliezer confessed that he did not enjoy working on the land. Hyrkanus asked his son what he would do if he could do anything else, the son confessed that he wanted to study the bible and get to know more about God. He wanted to devote his whole life to studying God. The father dismissed the young man’s dream and reminded him that is place was with his family and with the land. But Eliezer could not dismiss his dream. He could not eat, drink, and he certainly couldn’t be productive tilling the land. One day Elijah came to him in a dream and asked what he desired. He told Elijah his dream. He told Eliezer that if he really wanted that more than anything that he should go to Jerusalem without delay. Eliezer left the very next day without even saying goodbye to is family. He studied under the best teacher. When the father found out that the son deserted his family, he vowed to take away his inheritance and to disown him. But in order to do that – he had to go to Jerusalem. In Jerusalem he was invited to the house of the greatest rabbi. He sat next to his son, who was a student, but he did not even recognize him. The son was invited to teach from the torah. All were amazed at is teaching, even the father. It was not until the rabbi point out that he recognized his son. He needed to confess that he came to Jerusalem to disinherit him, but instead he would disinherit his other sons for encouraging him. Eliezer said no, that the work that each did was of value. If had had desired to be a great farmer and he prayed, god would have granted him that. If he had desired riches, he could have prayed and god would have granted him that, instead he prayed to serve god with all of his heart – god granted him that – and he was indeed blessed. And we too are indeed blessed that god listens to the prayers of the faithful. This is a true story – not a fable of someone who desired to be a great follower of a great leader. When we follow – Jesus leads us- blesses us and hears the prayers of our hearts. Amen. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Discipleship Occurs Only In Community Very few people are expert in anything all by themselves. They need a supporting community. Do you know a good musician who was not trained, nurtured and sustained by the music community? Show me an athlete who achieves excellence all alone, apart from the athletic community. Very few wise men become so without the accumulated wisdom of the centuries as expressed in colleges and universities and libraries. Medical people are more like ensembles and symphonies than soloists. What business tycoon does it all on his own without dedicated experts in finance, engineering, personnel, and marketing? Excellence requires participation in, and support of, a community of like-minded people. Likewise in the church -- a forerunner of the new kingdom. Very few achieve Christian maturity all by themselves. Seldom is the Bible studied diligently without the aid of scholars and teachers. Rarely are people led to generosity by their own impulses. Maurice A. Fetty, The Divine Advocacy, CSS Publishing Company Don’t Look Back Frankly, none of us are going to make the cut to follow Jesus. Our desires for soft pillows and comfortable beds, for fulfilling family and social obligations, will frequently have higher priorities than following Jesus -- especially following Jesus all the way to the cross. We might be willing to give up some evils in our lives to follow Jesus, but to give up all these good things -- to put them as a lower priority than Jesus? That is radical discipleship, but Paul writes about doing this in Phil 3:4-11. He considers all his past, good, religious deeds as "rubbish". Perhaps the image of putting one's hand to the plow and not looking back (or driving forward in a car while not looking out the back window) refers to looking back both at all the very good things in our lives (and in a congregation's life), like family and friends, comforts and satisfactions, "successful" programs; but also all the sins in our lives, which have been forgiven by Christ. We can neither wallow in our past sins nor boast of our past successes if we are to be fit for the kingdom of God. Brian Stoffregen, Exegetical Notes __________________________