Sermon
When I got my masters degree in music our recital was our master's thesis, but we also had exams. The exam though was a question of our own choosing that was then approved by our advisor. My question was about how to teach adult beginners to play the flute, given the differences in age, social and emotional development, education, and world view between adults and children. Teaching adults involves much more reframing of current knowledge than with kids.
I am not sure if it is God's big joke, or God's perfect timing, for someone like me to enter into the world of church as an adult beginner. Even now within the church I am an adult beginner all the time. I am on two new presbytery committees this year and I can't even begin to understand what they do without first learning old words in a new way, and acronyms – why so many acronyms!? It sounds charming to talk about how refreshing it is to have a beginners mind, but as the beginner there can be a lot of frustration. The teacher in me, knows that some of the things I need to know need to be actually taught, not just picked up on the fly as time goes by. I know all of the words but I don't know what they mean in the context of our committee work.
I think of this as I read today's text and realize that Simon and Andrew and James and John are soon to become adult beginners. They are so often given the wrong end of the stick in our interpretation of their actions when we read bible stories about them. They were always missing the point of something or making bad decisions. Maybe this was because they were just learning how to live in a completely new way in their same world. The scripture for today though, is an example of the disciples getting it completely right and acting on the overwhelming pull that Jesus has on them. They drop their nets, they leave everything they knew and they followed. That takes a lot of courage and they are taking a huge irreversible risk. And they did it.
When we read scripture it is oh so noble of us to put ourselves in the position of the hero, the one who did the right thing, or if not that, then at least we tell ourselves that we wouldn't have done that “wrong” thing. This scripture gives us the chance to put ourselves in the shoes of the disciples and celebrate our willingness to follow.
But not me. I'm Zebedee.
Wait! Where are you going? We've got work to do! Who is that guy? I'm your father! How is my business going to survive? I'm going to have to hire more hands, and that means less money for our family! Why would you leave me? Why would you take such a risk?!
Someone once, trying to be “helpful” told me I was risk averse. I took it as a compliment! I thought risk averse meant hurt averse. If you are someone who sees the world in terms of what will hurt, what will be bad, it is a helpful skill that feels like something to be proud of, to avoid risks. If we stay away from risks we won't get hurt, we won't inadvertently hurt someone else, we are never seen as mean, people would like us. We can be quite proud of how safe we have kept ourselves and the trouble we don't cause or get into.
That means then that we don't risk leaving the wrong relationships; We don't risk telling someone to stop hurting us; We don't risk losing friends. We don't risk standing up for ourselves. Pretty soon, everything is seen as a risk so we don't do anything. We don't even ask questions. If everything is possibly dangerous, why would we take a risk?
"There came a time when the risk to remain tight in the bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom." – Anais Nin
I am pretty sure Simon and Andrew and John and James had never heard that quote from Anais Nin. I'm pretty sure they have never experienced any of the memes floating around on facebook and other places. They didn't even have examples from the life of Jesus. They didn't know that THEY would become the examples from the life of Jesus. What made them step away from their lives? Nothing was ever going to be the same for them.
There's a big difference between being fishermen and fishers of men. Being fishermen is a lot more than catching fish. There's the risks they take from being on the sea – winds, storms, heavy nets of fish, torn nets. There's the mending of the nets. There's the exhaustion and physical stamina required. One commentator said, you can't be constantly catching fish even if that's your favorite part.
When I started to learn how to play the flute I would describe myself as someone who played the flute. Somewhere along the line though, I became a flute player. These early disciples were people who caught fish and somewhere along the line they became fishermen. I think after this step of following Jesus they were followers of Jesus and somewhere along the line they will/have become disciples.
Playing flute/flute player.
Catching fish/fishermen.
Following Jesus/disciples.
In the first instance, we do the task. In the second instance, our identity has changed. What used to be a task becomes our way of looking at the world.
The disciples had stories from their Hebrew bible from Isaiah and other prophets, the stories about David and promises from God. Stories of God's amazing faithfulness. They probably knew what it meant that John the Baptist had been killed. Maybe when Jesus came and said “follow me” they just felt in their hearts and said to themselves, “I have to do this.”
They also had, in that very moment, Jesus. Jesus who was and is the very being of God in our presence fulfilling the work of God. Jesus was calling them to a future that would usher in the work of God while at the same time being that fulfillment right then and there just by his presence. When Jesus calls us we are being called into a journey that is finished and just beginning at the same time. When Jesus calls us, whether we know it or not, at that moment everything changes. As we recognize a call from God we may very humanly evaluate the risk and reward, ask ourselves if there is any upside, but what we do next changes us. What might begin as a series or collection of new tasks quickly becomes our identity. And like the fishermen, our identity isn't always about doing our favorite parts. We still have to mend nets, weather storms, fear for our lives, and live into an uncertain future. But unlike fishermen, and like disciples, we do all of that risky business with a burning knowledge in our hearts that “I have to do this.”
Being a disciple is not a job that comes with rose colored glasses, shiny new words, and harmless clear headed relationships and easily purchased new insights. I tell my students that every time they make a mistake they are one step closer to perfecting that section, or song. Because the mistake gets their attention so that the next time they come across that measure they have kind of a notification warning light that says pay attention. In the same way being a disciple inherently means we will make mistakes and make bad choices because that's how learning works.
Eventually we will learn that while being risk averse has served us well it can take a back seat now. Thanks for keeping me safe, don't go away completely, but why don't you sit in the back, put your head on a pillow, have a rest. I'm going to use some of my other skills now.
I really want to thank Craig for letting me play flute on the song he sang today, “Walk on Faith.” All that flute stuff came out of his head by the way. If I hadn't had a chance to work with this song so much I might have glossed right over the words. They really speak to us today as we find our nation at a great turning point. Our faith in God at work in us as individuals and in the larger world allows us to take the risk to be part of the hopeful opportunities that are before us. Our fears aren't unreasonable, but we have a chance to look at them differently now.
If you're like me, you can't always understand all the words that are spoken or sung these days because of masks and/or room acoustics or a sound system. So let finish by reading you the words again of the anthem you just heard, Walk on Faith, the song is written by Mike Reid.
Walk on Faith by Mike Reid
We have come to the place in our lives where faith must be stronger than fear.
For if Christ's love is our destination through every storm it must always be clear,
The surest way to get there from here is to…
Walk on faith and trust in Love.
Just keep on putting one foot down in front of the other.
When the valley's so wide, we stumble I stride; everything inside wants to give up.
Walk on faith and trust in love.
Farther on beyond the shadows of our doubt we will live where true love never dies,
Though the road we must travel is uncertain there is a truth in our hearts that never lies.
It is by such grace we are bound to arrive; if we…
Walk on faith and trust in Love…..
Let us pray,