LAKE JAMES
NORTH CAROLINA
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LAKE JAMES NORTH CAROLINA
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Proper 9 C + July 8, 2007 + St. Paul’s Church, Lake James + In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. How do you think you would be apt to react if you were offered a job where neither the amount, nor even the source of your income would be clear? The job would involve travel, but no information as to where you would go, how long you would be expected to stay there (wherever “there” was). In fact, there would be a big question as to whether you’d be welcome at all when you got there! How would you like to accept that sort of job? Do you think you’d even apply for it? In the Gospel for today, we heard the instructions given by Jesus to a group of seventy people, people who would shortly be sent in teams of two to the towns and villages of the area. Their job was to prepare the inhabitants of those communities for the visits Jesus would soon be making to them. Jesus told the 70 Disciples not to worry about how much money they had, or would earn, not to spend time and energy planning where they would stay, or even how they would get fed. “All that,” he said, “would be taken care of.” Their job, their responsibility, was to be found in two things: first, they were to heal the sick, and second, they were to tell anyone who would listen that the kingdom of God was coming near. In the words of the Prophet Isaiah, they were to make ready a path for the Lord – in contemporary terms, they were the “p.r” – the public relations folks getting audiences primed to hear the rabbi from Nazareth when he hit town. You have probably heard today’s Gospel many times, but have you ever stopped to wonder just who those 70 people were? Where they came from? How they were selected? Why they were willing to undertake what most people would think was a risky job at best? Let’s consider the first question first. Who were the 70? We can assume that Jesus didn’t just walk up to the first people he met on the street and ask them to go on a mission in his name. Whoever the 70 were, they were certainly people of faith and commitment, probably people who had already shown in various ways that they could be counted on. On the other hand, they were not what we might think of as “professional missionaries,” nor had they had years of seminary training. In his instructions, Jesus made it clear that he was neither guaranteeing them rapt audiences, nor was he supplying what salespeople might call “sure-fire leads to prospective customers.” There was no promise that their mission would be easy, or even pleasant! Instead, Jesus said “I am sending you as lambs among wolves.” (If you had to make a choice between being a lamb or a wolf when the two animals met, which do you think would be safer? Which would you prefer to be?) Today’s Gospel provides a vivid example of Jesus telling his followers to go out and put their faith into action, to make that faith meaningful by sharing it with others. Not just with carefully chosen, already-interested prospects who had sent in postal reply cards indicating that they wanted a Christian salesperson to call on them. No, the 70 were told to go into the towns and villages in the area simply because they were the population centers of the region, places where people lived – all kinds of people – and all needing the good news of the Gospel, even though they didn’t know it. Again, who were the 70? I can tell you who they weren’t! In last Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus was on his final journey to Jerusalem and, just as in today’s reading, he had sent followers ahead to prepare his way. They had entered a Samaritan village where they were not welcomed, so they left and went to a different village where the people were more receptive. Do you remember that, in last Sunday’s Gospel, two men came up to Jesus asking to join him? One of the two would come but only after he had made the rounds at home, saying goodbye. The second man also wanted to join up, but not until his father died. Each man was saying “I’ll be a disciple when my schedule is free, when there is nothing I think is more important to do first.” In other words, following Christ was on their list, but not at the top. The two men were not bad people – in fact, they were probably quite good men, people you and I would be apt both to like and admire if we were to meet and get to know them. It s just that God wasn’t their top priority! And perhaps, at least at times, God isn’t ours, either! In any case, it’s rather likely that neither of those two men were chosen to be among the 70. The people Jesus selected would have been those for whom following Jesus meant more than anything else. More than having an extra coat in case of rain, more than knowing how much money they would earn as missionaries, more than knowing how long they would be away, or even where they would sleep each night. If we try to translate that into our lives, into our priorities and the values by which we actually live, we may feel somewhat uncomfortable. The realities I have described were not then, nor are they now superficial or unimportant concerns. I doubt that it has ever been very simple or easy to put Jesus and His service ahead of all else, to give absolute precedence to the faithful following of the Lord, especially when there are so many other claims on our love, time, and energy – so many others which are truly legitimate and important claims on us, even if, truth be told, they are not on a par with following Christ. So, let me pose a second question – not just who were the 70, but what does it matter to us here at Lake James in the beginning of the 21st century? It’s one thing to read or hear about things which happened far away and long ago in the distant past, but quite a different matter if that Bible message is supposed to have any kind of connection with us and our appointment calendars! Consider this: one thing the 70 had in common was that each of them had been called by Jesus to a particular ministry – but so are you! Every Christian, whether lay or ordained, is called to ministry, and for most, that ministry includes being a missionary! Does that sound frightening? What is being a “missionary?” It is simply the reaching out to others who don’t know, or who don’t believe in the Lord, reaching out with the good news of God’s love. True, each of us needs to reach out in ways which fit who we are, and which fit those to whom we are witnessing. God calls us – the real you and the real me, and that includes not only our strengths but our weaknesses. God does not expect us to be people we are not, or to do things we cannot do. We are simply to use the gifts God has given us to help others come to know and love Him. Not everybody is, or needs to be a preacher, or a teacher, or a singer. Not everybody needs to be a scholar. We just need to be ourselves. That’s true for individuals, but also for parishes. Some churches witness to the glory of God by the sheer size and magnificence of their buildings – I think of the great English and European cathedrals as well as the Cathedral of Sts. Peter and Paul in Washington, St. John the Divine in New York, and Grace Cathedral in San Francisco. Some churches reflect the glory of God through the beauty of the liturgies and the excellence of their music, such as the Church of the Advent in Boston or Saint Mary the Virgin in New York City. Others, like our own St. Paul’s Church, reflect God’s love and warm welcome to all through the quality of parish life as a caring community of faith. Each parish, as with each individual, has its own gifts – gifts given by God to be used. Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, what are your gifts, and how are you using them in the Name of Christ? One thing we can be quite sure of: just as there were so many people in the Holy Land some 2000 years ago who didn’t give much if any thought about God or the Christian faith, so, in many ways, the same is true in our culture today. Jesus cared enough about the people of his time that he sent out 70 disciples. Jesus still cares about people – the people of our time, and so, just as he sent disciples then, he sends disciples now. Only now, the disciples are us! One last time: who were the 70? They were Christians who not only loved their Lord, but cared enough about other people to be willing to share their faith and love. In that, rather than in how they did what they did, the 70 seem to me to be a wonderful model for us. Think about that, pray about that, and then, ask yourself, what might you be willing to do about it?
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This page last modified on Friday, April 11, 2008 09:40 PM |
