St. Patrick: Intimacy with God

Pentecost Six, Year B (July 8, 2012) The Episcopal Church of the Ascension

Sending Us Out Two by Two The Reverend Dr. Howard J. Hess

The Introduction: In recent Gospel readings, the primary emphasis has been upon the actions of Jesus – how he brought a young girl back to life, healed a chronically ill woman, and calmed the sea. So far the focus in Mark has been upon Jesus the teacher, the miracle worker, and the Divine Son of God. But today’s Gospel takes a dramatic turn, shifting to Jesus’ rejection and the disciples’ call to action and risk-taking. Today’s reading clarifies for us that following Jesus Christ requires not only faith, but also action, fortitude, and resilience. In other words, genuine discipleship involves emulating Jesus, not just observing him. And, further, like Jesus, such action will cost us dearly and often will not be supported by the world around us. Instead, it will be fueled by Christ’s power to live within us and enliven our abilities to become effective, vibrant disciples. So, our questions this morning are these: Where have we been as disciples? Where are we now hearing Christ’s call? What might be interfering with that call? And what will be our response to that call?

My memories of my own call to discipleship are very vivid. I was called to ordained ministry as an adolescent, but experienced judgments of other Christians that made me question the validity of my call. However, in unanticipated ways more than twenty-five years later my call was re-ignited. The overwhelming majority of my friends and colleagues were incredulous; some were even disdainful. One of my closest relatives said, “Why are you doing this? (while shaking her head no). You are making a terrible mistake!” Another close friend said, “I cannot understand why you are doing this. It makes no sense to me!” Much to my surprise, a member of my local parish discernment committee said, “Are you sure you are not having a mid-life crisis?” Another committee member cautioned, “Don’t give up your university tenure to become a full-time priest. Stay at the university and, if you must, do your priest thing on the weekends.” And one of the members of the Diocesan Commission on Ministry proposed, “Don’t you think you will help the church more by tithing your significant income rather than becoming a priest?”

Others counseled caution. “Remember,” said the psychologist who administered a battery of tests required in my formation process, “the church is one of the most political institutions on the face of the earth. If you think you are leaving the politics of the university, know that you are jumping from the frying pan into the fire.” Perhaps the wisest counsel was from one of my seminary professors: “Be sure that you are fully called to the priesthood because your life will become harder and lonelier than it has even been before.”

II. Although I didn’t then understand it, in those early stages of responding to God’s call to become a priest, God was teaching me about discipleship through the disparate views and questions of others. As I would learn, the call to Christian discipleship should not be sugarcoated, simplified, or romanticized. There is a high cost to actively following Jesus Christ as his disciple; this cost is very evident in today’s lectionary readings. To illustrate, look at Jesus’ reception when he returned to his hometown of Nazareth. He preached in the synagogue and must have done a good job because the listeners marveled at his words. But the outcome of his preaching was not positive – they essentially ran him out of town. Scholars believe it was not the quality of Jesus’ teaching that offended his former neighbors; rather, it was that Jesus was not fitting into their preconceived definition of the hoped-for Messiah.

Look next at what Jesus did with the disciples after his rejection. He sent them out two by two to minister in his name. They were to preach repentance, cast out demons, and heal the sick. No small tasks there! Not only that, but they were to take no bread, no money, and no extra clothing. They were to be fully reliant upon the grace of God and the kindness of strangers. Further, they were to reject their natural impulses to succumb to discouragement if they were not welcomed; instead, Jesus taught them to dust themselves off and move on.

III. You see, after Nazareth, Jesus changed his model of discipleship. After being rejected in Nazareth, Jesus never again taught in a synagogue. He traveled throughout the countryside and then he directed his disciples to do the same. The application of today’s Gospel is much more radical than we might first imagine. First, Jesus moved outside organized religious institutions to proclaim the Gospel. I believe that Christ is teaching us that even today a higher priority must be given to teaching and enacting the Gospel than to organized religion, political affiliation, and cultural accommodation. You see, as Christians in the western world, we are tempted to retreat comfortably into our beautiful buildings, vestments, and liturgies. But in doing so, we risk losing contact with Christ’s commandment to be active apostles in his name. In fact, the mandate for the Christian disciple is to go beyond the comfort of the known and to venture into new territory with passion and resolve. This often requires that we take considerable risks in Christ’s name and go far beyond what our resources would dictate. It is our passion for Christ that will propel us.

But second, it is essential in the midst of our collective discipleship and discernment that we remember that Jesus sent out his disciples two by two. Each individual disciple was to be supported and challenged by another. Within our Ascension community, Christ not only calls us as a community, a body of believers, Christ also calls each one of us to become his disciple and to enter into partnerships with one another. We must always be aware that we and other disciples with whom we minister will struggle with the clarity and the nature of our calls as well as with the judgments of our friends and neighbors, even family members, who do not understand our commitment to Christ and to those whom he calls us to serve. We must be open to share our struggles with one other; to pray for and support each other; and to share the disappointments and joys we experience as Christ’s disciples. We are to lift one another up as we face the challenges of discipleship.

IV. Conclusion. Any ministry is possible at Ascension if we have the passion to follow Christ together. This morning I urge us not to limit our Christian faith to these or any other set of four walls. I urge us not to give in to the temptation of believing that clergy and parish staff can handle the bulk of parish discipleship and ministry. Our clergy and staff do our best to serve you, but we too are human and will disappoint you at times. The church will do its best to care for you and speak for you, but at one time or another the church will fall short and disappointment you as well. But one thing that will never fail us is the love and guidance of Jesus Christ. He is rock solid and filled with passionate love for us; he calls each one of us by name to minister to others in his name and to do so together. And so, I would urge us today to hang on to the passion of our first love for Christ, minister closely with one another, wipe the dust off when we need to, and venture forth as his empowered disciples. Amen.