St. Paul Lutheran Church, Minden, Nebraska
July 19th, 2009
Take The Task. Amateurs All!
Mark 6:36-38 7th S.A.P.
Last Sunday the focus was on children - that when it comes to holiness of living & loving we are all sanctified children of God.
This Sunday the focus is on amateurs - that when it comes to dis-cipleship & following in the footsteps of Jesus we are all amateurs in the Kingdom of God!
There is a show on TV called “American Idol.” I don’t watch it but sometimes early in the morning in my office after my “quiet time” -- when I turn on my computer to check the morning headlines, I will see a headline announcing who was eliminated from the competition on American Idol or who is still competing. While I don’t follow the show, I gather from the show’s popularity a lot of people do.
Someone a lot more familiar with the show than I am writes, “The show features ordinary people who are energized by a dream. They want to become famous. They want to sing in front of millions some day. In fact, the more ordinary the winner on American Idol the more fun it is to see them win.” (End of quote by Will Willimon)
This even goes on in churches. Some churches have a once-a-year talent night, where friends & members gather for a covered-dish sup-per or home-made ice cream, and it gives ordinary people a chance to stand up in front of others and sing or dance or recite a poem or play a musical instrument or lead a pet to do assorted tricks. It’s something some people like to do, some talent they’re good at.
When it’s over, someone usually says “I didn’t know you could do that!” or “I didn’t know you were so talented.” Amateurs! That’s what it amounts to! A talent show is a bunch of amateurs lining up, stepping forward to entertain us, engage us, showing us the reality, the blessing of ordinary people doing something surprisingly well.
Where does this lead us this morning? It leads us into the text before us because the Gospel reading from Mark 6 for this Sunday is about ordinary people, disciples, amateurs, if you will, who when they are sent out by Jesus 2 x 2 & are authorized by Jesus to heal & cast out demons -- and that’s exactly what those “amateurs” do.
Mark writes, “They went out and proclaimed that people should repent. And they cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them . . . then they returned to Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught.”
What is it that’s remarkable, eye-opening, encouraging about all Jesus’ disciples? First, according to what Mark tells us here, it’s the fact that we are all amateurs. Just like those 12 theologically untrained, inexperienced, ever-so-ordinary men who wound up close to Jesus as students, learners, amateurs because Jesus’ wanted them close to Him, because Jesus called them individually one by one to follow Him -- so we too are all amateurs in Christ’s church.
That is to say, when it comes to discipleship, to following Jesus, there is no professional training that you can take, no certification process to follow, no credentials that need to be issued or cards to carry around in your wallets or purses that authorize you to be dis-ciples. The main thing that authorizes you & me to be disciples is Jesus call, “Follow me!” Your job, your background, your piety, your trying to do what’s right, your faithfulness in worship, any special talents or gifts you have, no matter how good or how great, that‘s not what make you & me disciples. It is Jesus’ call.
Discipleship is not to be equated with church membership any more than being human is to be equated with US citizenship. Just as people born in the United States do not sign up to be citizens of the US, so Christians born into the family of God do not sign up to be disciples of Jesus. Being disciples & followers or amateurs are what we are by the grace of God.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a young German Lutheran pastor & theologian imprisoned and executed by Nazis just before the end of WW II, wrote “Happy are they who know that discipleship simply means the life which springs from grace, and that grace simply means discipleship.”
Discipleship is an unvarnished, unpretentious experience of God’s grace. We are all amateurs and we all do have some talent, something we are good at, whether we think so or not.
Secondly, what’s eye-opening, encouraging about Jesus’ disciples as amateurs is that for all their faults & failures, for all of their bungling & messing things up & slowness to learn, those disciples accomplished with Jesus’ power & authority what He sent them out to do. What could have easily started off as “mission impossible” and the disciples had moments like that, in this instance ended up “mission accomplished!”
Amateurs that they were, healing, casting out unclean spirits, teaching, giving their testimony to Jesus and His Kingdom, all of them new to that kind of thing, they did it. They did it even though when you read through the Gospels Jesus disciples are usually de-picted as a bunch of bungling, often inept, and misunderstanding people. There is not one disciple, no not one, of whom it can be said, “He really gets it right.” Even Peter, particularly Simon Peter, was constantly getting it wrong all the way to the end when he denied ever knowing Jesus.
And here we are! Are we any different? Is there anyone among us, myself included, who can say any of us have got this “discipleship” thing all figured out; or that somehow God has revealed to us pastors some higher knowledge by which we understand the great mystery of the Kingdom of God, that we have moved beyond being amateurs, that we know the whole truth of the Christian faith and we are pretty good, pretty accomplished at practicing the Christian faith & following Jesus as He intended. I don’t think so!
What’s interesting when it comes to amateurs vs. professionals in the practice of our religion, ordinary people vs. ordained clergy people, is that the church has traditionally said when receiving the body & blood of Christ in the Lord’s Supper pastors should commune first – not as a sign of privilege or office or expertise, but rather as a sign that the pastor is chief of sinners, still learning & grow-ing, still very much an amateur dependent on the grace of God - like all God’s people who are all amateurs.
That brings me to a third point when it comes to applying the truth of this text. Whether talking about things that need to be done in church or in our own daily lives, it’s remarkable what we amateurs can do when our Lord calls us, instructs us, lays before us the sim-ple yet significant things we have all been called & ordained thru our Holy Baptism to say & do.
Exhibit A would be those twelve disciples who returned, exited, and reported to Jesus what they were able to do. But that was just the beginning. When Jesus took them off to a desolate place for a little rest & relaxation, Mark reports that crowds of people followed & were waiting for them when they arrived. As the sun started to set on yet another long day of teaching & healing, the disciples suggest-ed to Jesus that He send the people away so they might find places to eat in nearby towns. It was a good thought, but what did Jesus say to his disciple? He said, “You give them something to eat.” How much food, how much money were they talking about the disciples wanted to know. Would 200 days wages be enough?
Jesus asked, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see!” Amateurs that they were, the disciples found 5 loaves & 2 fish. Not much. But Jesus took what they had and wonder of wonders, it turned out to be more than enough, enough to feed more than 5,000.
Exhibit B! It IS truly remarkable what we amateurs can do when our Lord asks us “How many loaves do you have?” How many salads, casser-oles, cakes, brownies, or freezers of home-made ice cream can you line up? How many volunteers, parents, members are available to serve as Sunday School helpers, group guides, mentors?
May these questions not be lost on us! One of the most amazing, familiar themes that runs through the Bible is that when God goes looking for people to enlist in his great plan of salvation God doesn’t hire “head-hunters” who’s job it is find the brightest, most successful, most professional or powerful kings, generals, poets, orators, or top of their class graduates most likely to succeed.
Dare I say, there are people right here in this congregation – people without any theological training, people whose personalities have some deep flaws, people who are not the smartest, healthiest people whose memories are not the sharpest, yet here I am, “a man of unclean lips in the midst of a people of unclean lips”, whom Jesus is using for the good of the world, for the good of our community, for working with children & pre-school children, for supporting special ministries to people in need, for going into hospitals and care homes for taking on special projects that require sacrifices and time away from home & family.
All it takes is obeying & following Jesus when He says, “Follow me!”
