Sometimes you have to wonder what Jesus was thinking (and by the way, it is okay to wonder such things because I am confident that his thinking was way, way beyond ours!).  

After the incarnation—the very presence of God entering the world in human form—we find Jesus ready to usher in a new era in human and divine history.  This is the pivotal moment when he is about to flip the world upside down and in the process bring about the very Kingdom of God.  Our lectionary texts over the past few weeks have focused on how he approaches the beginning of his ministry.

So what does he do?  How does he start this ministry of radical reclamation of God’s creation?  He sees a couple of guys mending nets down by the wharf and says “Follow me”.  And they do.  They drop everything and follow him.  That’s it.  

In some ways this seems like kind of a let down.  I mean, where are the ranks of angels to invade this world and set things right?  Where are the bolts from heaven to blot out humanity’s transgressions and restore justice?  This is it?  Calling fishermen?  Untrained, uneducated fishermen?  This is his plan?

Yes, this is his plan.

It may seem like a strange way to run a railroad, but it’s God’s way.  God has a long history of enlisting amateurs to do God’s work.  In Jesus, God shows up and says: “I am going to change this whole creation.  I’m going to redeem the present and radically re-arrange the future.  And guess who’s going to help me pull it off?  Amateurs.  Amateurs like…you.”  

You see, the story of the calling of the first disciples is your story.  You don’t have to have any special training to do God’s work of building a new reality in this world.  You don’t need any special talent.  All you need is a heart to hear Christ’s call: “Follow me.”  

That call to follow is an invitation.  Not everybody gets that invitation so it is a privilege to hear it.  It is also scary to hear it.  Consequently, we may not drop everything like those fishermen.  We may hesitate.  We may stumble as we try to catch up to Jesus who is already moving forward.  But the first step is to hear that call: “Follow me.”  

Do you hear it?  It is a call to a great adventure.  It is a call to step into the fray.  It is a call to stand somewhere and not be tossed about by the storms of life.  It is a call to make a difference.

A bunch of rank amateurs.  That’s what we are.  And that’s just who God wants.  Think about it.  Isn’t it the case that the most profound acts of kindness and compassion, healing and justice—the hallmarks of the Kingdom of God–happen by means of people who don’t get a lot of play in the press?  Who do their work often very quietly?  Who live from their heart more than from their head?

So don’t worry if, when it comes to the Christian faith, you feel like an amateur, like you don’t know enough or don’t fit the part.  The fact is, you’re just the one God is looking for.  

Do you hear Christ’s call?  “Follow me.”  Why not take a chance and see where he’s going?

See you in church,

–Rev. Dominic