Third Sunday after the Epiphany (Year A)
Matthew 4.12-23
St. Gregory’s, Long Beach
Today we hear
Matthew’s account of Jesus recruiting his first four disciples: brothers Simon
Peter and Andrew, and brothers James and John; fishermen all. Most versions of
the Bible refer to this as the “calling of the first disciples.” In the church,
we use the unique language of “call” to describe someone being invited into
ministry. Called, as opposed to being hired, recruited, drafted, or even
volunteered. While “calling” does mean “the vocation or profession in which one
. . . engages,” in religious circles it carries the added meaning of an
“impulse toward a particular course of action especially when accompanied by .
. . divine influence” (https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/calling). Pursuing a ministry because of a sense of
being called by God or Christ. Even though we talk about “being called” or
having a “sense of call,” it is sometimes misunderstood, even in the Church.
Often times, having a “calling” is perceived as being unique to clergy and
religious professionals. But that is only because in our process toward
ordination, we are continually asked about our sense of call and are required
to talk about it ad nauseam.
As we see in our
Gospel reading, the call to follow Jesus, the call to discipleship, is not
exclusively or even primarily a call to ordained or professional ministry. The
life of discipleship is open to all people. The calling to discipleship is open
to all people. It is about serving God and Christ in the midst of our chosen
fields of pursuit. Jesus does not call his disciples to become religious
professionals. He does not call them to be rabbis or preachers or evangelists.
He called them to follow him, to be faithful to him, and to help him spread his
message. He says, “Follow me, and I will make you fish for people” (Mt 4.19).
Actually, a pretty ingenious and non-threatening invitation. He is inviting
them to follow him using terms they can understand, based on their profession
as fishermen. He is conveying the essence of his ministry in terms they can
understand. Terms related to what they already know how to do. Instead of
catching fish, they will help Jesus gather people for the Kingdom of God. If
they had been teachers, he probably would have said “Follow me, and together we
will teach others how to live the Gospel.” If they had been doctors, he
probably would have said, “Follow me, and together we will heal the hurts of
the world.” If they had been engineers, he probably would have said, “Follow
me, and together we will build the Kingdom of God.” You get the idea.
Today’s Gospel, puts
the call to follow Christ in the context of those being called. In ways they
can understand and relate to. No special “churchy” language that can be
confusing to the uninitiated. Merely an invitation to take what we are already
doing in our lives and using those skills and talents that we already have and
are already good at, and using them to work with Christ to spread the Gospel,
to further God’s purposes. That’s a big part of what ministry in the Church is
about—helping people identify their gifts, talents, and passions; and
connecting them with ministries where they can use them in God’s service.
That is one of the
main reasons we have annual meetings. Well, of course we do it because our
bylaws say we have to. We do it because we need to elect new Vestry members and
delegates to Diocesan Convention. That’s all the stuff that is legally
required. But even more importantly, we have annual meetings as a way of
informing our parishioners about the various ministries we are engaged in,
honoring those who are engaged in those ministries, and inviting you to join us
in using your own gifts, talents, and passions to further the Gospel.
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