"About Time"Dr.
James L. Mayfield
January 26,
2003
Text: Matthew 4:18-22 As Matthew tells the story, Simon, the one Jesus later named Peter, and his brother Andrew were fishing, when Jesus invited them to be his disciples. James and John were mending their fish nets, when Jesus invited them. Into the midst of their busy lives, Jesus came and presented them with a choice, an option, an opportunity. And just as it was then, so it is now. Into the midst of our busy lives the grace of God comes. Into the midst of our overcrowded schedules the Christ comes offering us the option of choosing his priorities or choosing the priorities that are currently controlling our calendars. Christ does not wait until we are in the right mood to offer us the possibility of new life. In the midst of our being busy, the grace of God comes just as Jesus came to Simon and Andrew, James and John, offering us the opportunity to fulfill the potential God sees in us. And just as Simon and Andrew, James and John were not forced to follow him, we too are free to turn down the offer and continue doing what we are doing, trying to be what we want to be. All too often, this is just what we do. We turn down the offer. I suspect that sometime it is because we did not really hear the offer. We were so focused on what we were doing, we were insensitive to the options God's grace placed in front of us. When I was in seminary, I joined with four of my friends, and we rented a house rather than staying in the dorm. Because of differing schedules, each of us prepared our own breakfast and lunch. But we tried to have our evening meals together, and we took turns preparing the food. Sometimes with I am reading or writing, I can be so focused I am unaware of others calling me. One evening I was sitting on the edge of my bed, reading the sports section of the paper, when I glanced down and saw the paper I was reading was on fire. My friends were tired of my being so focused I did not hear them calling to supper, so a couple of them had quietly come into my room and set the newspaper on fire. It is quite possible, perhaps even probable, we have been as I was, so focused on doing what we are doing we are deaf to the invitation God's grace is offering. Simon and Andrew, James and John were busy, but they were aware of the invitation, and they not only accepted the invitation, Matthew tells us they responded immediately. Simon and Andrew immediately left their nets to follow Jesus. James and John, immediately left their boat and their father and followed Jesus. They did not postpone or procrastinate. Jesus extended the invitation to follow him, and they did. When I am aware of the claims God's grace is making on my life, more often than not, I say something like this: "Well, I know that is what I ought to do; in fact, it is what I would like to do, but first, let me ..........." It is not difficult for any of us to come up with many good reasons for postponing our acceptance of Christ's claim on our lives. Jesus came to where Simon and Andrew, James and John were busy. He invited them to follow him, and immediately they did. Why? Why did they accept the invitation without any hint of postponement? It would make a little more sense if they were men who were dissatisfied with what they were doing. I can understand making a hasty change when I am unhappy or dissatisfied. But there is no evidence these men were unhappy as fisherman. There is nothing in the story that even hints that they might have felt they were wasting their lives as fishermen. It was and is a honorable endeavor, to labor to provide food for one's family and in the process provide food others. There is no evidence they were bored or felt trapped in an endless, empty routine. In fact there is evidence they enjoyed fishing. So, why did they leave fishing to follow Jesus? If we enjoy what we are doing, if we are a success in what we are doing, it will take something beyond success to cause us to change. I suspect that was also true for Simon and Andrew, James and John. What was it? What is the invitation that Christ offers not only when we are dissatisfied with our lives but also when we are enjoying our lives? There is a clue in the last sentence in the passage we read today. "Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people." Whatever else this means, it means Jesus was offering the people not merely the healing of their bodies, but also hope for their lives. There were other healers in the land. But what made Jesus special, even unique was that he also proclaimed the good news of the kingdom. Obviously, he was talking about the kingdom of God, but what is the kingdom of God? God's kingdom, the kingdom of God, is wherever God reigns. God reigns wherever God's will is done. That is the essence of God reigning; is it not? If God's will is being done, God is reigning, and wherever God reigns, there is the kingdom of God. The passage we read today says, Jesus went through the area proclaiming the good news of the kingdom. When God reigns in our lives, the potential God sees in us is fulfilled. Matthew tells that from the time Jesus began preaching, his message was: "Repent (change your way of living), the kingdom of God, the kingdom of heaven, is at hand." This is the good news: God being in charge of our lives is very near to us; it is as close as our next decision, as close as the next choice we must make. Living as God intends us to live is very near. God's reign, God's kingdom is at hand. This is the good news of the kingdom. We can be the persons God sees it is now possible for us to be, and that possibility is at hand. This does not mean we will be able to do whatever we want to do. But it does mean, we can be the persons God intends us to be. In the midst of the circumstances in which we find ourselves, by the grace of God, we can fulfill the potential God sees in us. And when we live as God intends, our living does make a difference -- whether we are aware of it or not. Like Simon and Andrew, James and John, we can be the persons God intends us to be, and in being the persons God intends, we will find our fulfillment. The Christ went where Simon and Andrew, James and John, were busy in their labors. In the midst of their busy lives, he invited them to follow him. And without any procrastination, they followed him. They immediately followed him, not because they were dissatisfied with their lives, but because somehow, someway they were of aware of the fantastic opportunity they were being offered -- an opportunity not unlike those God's grace frequently places in front of us. It is the opportunity to become and be the persons God intends us to be. Into the midst of our busy lives with our overcrowded schedules the Christ comes, offering us the opportunity to choose to follow him. God, help us be aware of the opportunities your grace places in front of us and deliver us from our tendency to postpone our obedience to your will. Amen Pastoral Prayer Let us thank God for the gifts and blessings we have received. We have come here with a variety of concerns and problems. Let us ask God for guidance and help. God, thank you for your long suffering patience with us humans. Help us turn away from the pride and fear, the selfishness and anger that cause us to make matters worse. Help us set aside our laziness and our tendency to procrastinate that keeps us from doing the good we know we should. Help us keep our focus on Christ rather than focusing of what our neighbor has or on what our neighbor has done. Help us let go of old resentments and nagging desires for revenge. And God, help us let go of all the ways we condemn ourselves. Help us forgive ourselves, at least as easily as we forgive others. And God, deliver us from evil. Deliver us from all that which threatens to distort and destroy - around this planet and here in Austin. Deliver us from the kinds of hates that motivated vandalism in a local synagogue this week. God, help us never contribute to evil - either by what we say or do or by our silence and lack of action. God, help us live as Jesus was teaching us to live when he taught us to pray: "Our Father ...."
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