Sermon
First Congregational United Church of Christ
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque, New Mexico
The word that immediately popped out of this passage for me was “immediately.” They (Simon, Andrew, James and John) immediately abandoned their nets and followed Jesus.
They walked away from the only thing they knew and followed Jesus into an absolute unknown. They had no idea what they getting to.
Obviously they had not vetted Jesus...very well...or maybe they had. Maybe they did know what they were getting into!! Nevertheless...........
They immediately followed Jesus without a blink of an eye. Now, it certainly can be said that if you or I were in their sandals, we might have done the same thing....after all, fishing for a living was difficult work and even though it may have been a better living than most trades back then – it was a hard day's work day in and day out.
A recent poll I read showed that almost 90% of Americans who are working would change jobs tomorrow if they had a chance – with the same financial security of course.
My dad went to work for Ottertail Power Company – like PNM here in Albuquerque – at the age of 18 and worked for the same company for 50 years.
Today ....... Most young women and men who go to work will change careers at least 7 times before they retire. That’s career changes, not jobs....the number of jobs they will have will be in essence countless.
But let’s get back to these individuals who were making a living fishing.
I wondered this week what they were offered by Jesus that was so appealing? So appealing they didn’t have to think twice?
Was it that they were being offered a chance to live a new life with a new direction?
They must have felt that there must be more to life ......but the risk to change careers had to have been enormous.
The bottom line is that in the eyes of the first century authorities – both religious and political – Jesus was a troublemaker.
I love the t-shirt that says, “Well behaved women rarely make history” and the one that says, “Women belong in the House......and the Senate.”
Jesus was simply “out there” saying and “doing new things” that were upsetting to the established political and religious orders. He offered a first-hand relationship with God that bypassed the religion of ritual that was the Sadducees’ bread and butter, for example.
He ignored the Pharisee’s interpretations about what was acceptable to do or not to do on the Sabbath.
And most troubling of all, he not only associated with the wrong kind of people (sinful and impure) he even ate dinner with them at the hometown buffet.
He was passionate about the least of these and for these reasons these four fishermen left what they were doing immediately to follow Jesus.
The offer was not for more money; in fact there was no income. There would be little or no security. Yet, the offer was so good, they immediately said yes.
Absolutely amazing!
There’s a wonderful story about Clarence Jordan, the southern Baptist pastor and scholar. He lived in Georgia and started an interracial farming community called Koinonia Farms.
Before this Dr. Jordan was a pioneer in the Civil Rights Movement in the 1950's and 1960’s.
He would often preach as a guest in little Baptist churches and would usually not get invited back because of his message of equality for all people of all colors.
On one occasion he had given a sermon that called for our country to stop the practice of segregation.
After the sermon, a lady came up to him and said, “My granddaddy was an officer in the Confederate army and he would not believe a word that you just said about race relations.”
Clarence Jordan smiled sweetly and said, “Well, ma’am, your choice is very clear then. You can follow your granddaddy or you can follow Jesus.”
Clarence Jordan was a lot like Jesus. He was willing to let people hear the hard demands of his message and to invite them to walk away if they found his words too troubling or offensive.
Jesus did not ask or expect anyone to admire him. Rather he invited people to follow him, to imitate him in his commitment to the least and the last, and to place one’s life and passion in the Mystery of God.
The call of Jesus is still to move people from being admirers to followers – to help people sense that the respectable values of the status quo may not be so important after all.
Jesus took seriously the prophet Micah who wrote – “What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God.”
Jesus followed this prophetic voice and put the obligation to fulfill this same call squarely on the shoulders of those who called themselves disciples.
And this is why Andrew, Simon, James and John and thousands after them – men, women and children of every culture have left their fishing nets – their lives – to follow Jesus....to live an authentic life loving God and neighbor.
Pretty good reason I’d say.
Amen.
They walked away from the only thing they knew and followed Jesus into an absolute unknown. They had no idea what they getting to.
Obviously they had not vetted Jesus...very well...or maybe they had. Maybe they did know what they were getting into!! Nevertheless...........
They immediately followed Jesus without a blink of an eye. Now, it certainly can be said that if you or I were in their sandals, we might have done the same thing....after all, fishing for a living was difficult work and even though it may have been a better living than most trades back then – it was a hard day's work day in and day out.
A recent poll I read showed that almost 90% of Americans who are working would change jobs tomorrow if they had a chance – with the same financial security of course.
My dad went to work for Ottertail Power Company – like PNM here in Albuquerque – at the age of 18 and worked for the same company for 50 years.
Today ....... Most young women and men who go to work will change careers at least 7 times before they retire. That’s career changes, not jobs....the number of jobs they will have will be in essence countless.
But let’s get back to these individuals who were making a living fishing.
I wondered this week what they were offered by Jesus that was so appealing? So appealing they didn’t have to think twice?
Was it that they were being offered a chance to live a new life with a new direction?
They must have felt that there must be more to life ......but the risk to change careers had to have been enormous.
The bottom line is that in the eyes of the first century authorities – both religious and political – Jesus was a troublemaker.
I love the t-shirt that says, “Well behaved women rarely make history” and the one that says, “Women belong in the House......and the Senate.”
Jesus was simply “out there” saying and “doing new things” that were upsetting to the established political and religious orders. He offered a first-hand relationship with God that bypassed the religion of ritual that was the Sadducees’ bread and butter, for example.
He ignored the Pharisee’s interpretations about what was acceptable to do or not to do on the Sabbath.
And most troubling of all, he not only associated with the wrong kind of people (sinful and impure) he even ate dinner with them at the hometown buffet.
He was passionate about the least of these and for these reasons these four fishermen left what they were doing immediately to follow Jesus.
The offer was not for more money; in fact there was no income. There would be little or no security. Yet, the offer was so good, they immediately said yes.
Absolutely amazing!
There’s a wonderful story about Clarence Jordan, the southern Baptist pastor and scholar. He lived in Georgia and started an interracial farming community called Koinonia Farms.
Before this Dr. Jordan was a pioneer in the Civil Rights Movement in the 1950's and 1960’s.
He would often preach as a guest in little Baptist churches and would usually not get invited back because of his message of equality for all people of all colors.
On one occasion he had given a sermon that called for our country to stop the practice of segregation.
After the sermon, a lady came up to him and said, “My granddaddy was an officer in the Confederate army and he would not believe a word that you just said about race relations.”
Clarence Jordan smiled sweetly and said, “Well, ma’am, your choice is very clear then. You can follow your granddaddy or you can follow Jesus.”
Clarence Jordan was a lot like Jesus. He was willing to let people hear the hard demands of his message and to invite them to walk away if they found his words too troubling or offensive.
Jesus did not ask or expect anyone to admire him. Rather he invited people to follow him, to imitate him in his commitment to the least and the last, and to place one’s life and passion in the Mystery of God.
The call of Jesus is still to move people from being admirers to followers – to help people sense that the respectable values of the status quo may not be so important after all.
Jesus took seriously the prophet Micah who wrote – “What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God.”
Jesus followed this prophetic voice and put the obligation to fulfill this same call squarely on the shoulders of those who called themselves disciples.
And this is why Andrew, Simon, James and John and thousands after them – men, women and children of every culture have left their fishing nets – their lives – to follow Jesus....to live an authentic life loving God and neighbor.
Pretty good reason I’d say.
Amen.
January 22, 2012
“Immediately”
Mark 1:14-20
“Immediately”
Mark 1:14-20
An open and affirming, peace with justice congregation