Follow Me | Sermon for January 22, 2023

Have you ever found yourself wondering if we as a church are good enough? Ever wondered whether God has plans for our future, or whether God is truly calling people like you and I to be part of Jesus’ mission of transforming the world and building God’s kingdom? If so, take a look at this week’s reading from 1 Corinthians 1:18-31. 

In this sermon, we hear the reassuring promise that God chooses the foolish and weak to work through. God makes foolish the wisdom of the world. The source of our life and purpose is Christ Jesus, not anything we have to offer. Jesus calls unlikely people like you as disciples. What an amazing gift! 

Today’s Scripture readings are 1 Corinthians 1:18-31 and Matthew 4:12-23. I found helpful Working Preacher’s commentary for this week from Warren Carter.

With two congregations, I’m shuffling the lectionary readings around a bit for a few weeks so that I can preach the same annual meeting sermon at both congregations. So, this sermon was preached at CTK on January 22, and at Living Hope on January 29. Here’s the podcast audio and service livestream  from Christ the King on the 22nd.

Powered by RedCircle

Come Holy Spirit, and light our hearts with the fire and the joy of your love. Amen

Last week, we heard how Andrew and Simon met Jesus. You can go back and watch online if you didn’t hear that story, or read the first chapter of John when you get home.

But the short version is that Andrew was already a follower—a disciple—of John the Baptist. One day, John pointed out Jesus as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, and Andrew went to follow him. But on the way, Andrew went to find his brother Simon and told him, “I have found the Messiah.” He did the greatest thing one person can do for another, introducing him to Jesus.

Today, we move ahead in the story. John the Baptist has been arrested, and Jesus is beginning his own ministry, proclaiming that the kingdom of heaven is near.

In this small corner of the Roman empire, in this nation oppressed by foreign rulers, to God’s people sitting in darkness, God’s light is dawning. God is at work.

Matthew frames his message by reminding his Jewish audience of their history. Centuries earlier, in the time of the prophet Isaiah, Israel had been under foreign attack. The situation seemed dire, but God acted to rescue them.

Now, in Jesus’ day, Matthew tells us God is acting again. Jesus is bringing God’s kingdom into reality. Even though God’s prophet John has been arrested, even though the empire looks strong, the kingdom of heaven has come near.

The same is true for us today, another two millennia later. As messed up and broken as this world is, God’s promises are still true. As much as we go against God, sinning and ignoring God’s call, God’s kingdom continues to break in. God forgives us, and God continues to be present in the darkness, in the midst of the world’s suffering, walking with us through every challenge this world throws at us. This is the good news Jesus spends his life proclaiming.

And in this story, he calls others to join him in his proclamation. One day, Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, and he called two brothers to join him, to come and follow him and join him in proclaiming the good news. And here’s something I didn’t realize.

Remember, according to John, this isn’t the first time Andrew and Peter have met. Some people argue that Andrew and Peter have two completely different call stories, that Matthew and John are telling different stories and we shouldn’t take both of them as literal, historical fact.

But I don’t see why they can’t both be true. Jesus is making his home in Capernaum by the lake, and Capernaum is not a very big place, maybe 1,500 people. I’ve lived in a town about that size. Most people are pretty familiar with each other.

I think it’s quite reasonable that Simon and Andrew have met Jesus before, as John says they did. They know he’s a local rabbi, a teacher with a message from God. Maybe they’ve even heard him going around town proclaiming the kingdom of heaven has come near. Perhaps they’ve heard him speak in the synagogue; we know he’s in the habit of doing that.

So perhaps it’s not a big surprise when they see him walking there down by the sea of Galilee. This is a normal day for them as fishermen, working down by the lake, casting their net.

And then Jesus changes everything. He says to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.” And here’s the miraculous part: They do it! Immediately, Matthew says, they left their nets and followed him.

On some level, sure, they already knew Jesus was the lamb of God, the messiah. They were familiar with him, they’d heard what John the Baptist said about him. But that knowledge didn’t really change their lives.

I think that’s true for a lot of people in this world, even people in our church, right?

Whether you consider yourself a Christian or not, if you live in the United States, or really in most parts of the world, you’ve heard of Jesus. Everyone knows he was someone special. Some people even have good intentions of learning more about him at some point, seeing what faith in Jesus has to offer. But it keeps getting pushed down the list. Everyday life gets in the way. We have jobs to do, people to take care of.

Faith in Jesus becomes more of an abstract concept, something to be observed from a distance, maybe wave as Jesus walks by.

I suspect that was true for Andrew and Simon. Until Jesus called them. “Follow me,” he invited them personally. Imagine how shocked they must have been. Following a rabbi, a teacher as a disciple was a prestigious thing to do, but it was only for the best and brightest, the people with potential. Andrew and Simon were fishermen. They’d missed their chance. They knew what their life was going to hold. They didn’t see how God could use them.

And then Jesus called them. Their head knowledge about Jesus moved to their hearts. They received a new purpose. They realized the message of hope, the promise that the kingdom of heaven is coming near, they realized it’s for them. It matters for their lives.

Jesus says, “Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.” Andrew, and Simon, and then a few verses later James and John, they all hear Jesus calling them, and they drop their nets and follow. They join in the mission.

Now, hopefully we all know fishing for people doesn’t mean baiting a hook so we can reel people in and yank them up into the boat. It doesn’t mean we’re going to lay out nets in the street so we can drag people into the church.

Actually, if we’re thinking about going that direction, I wonder if we could re-slope the parking lot and the sidewalk, so when it gets icy, people will just slide on in…no, that’s not what we’re called to.

Jesus is saying that his followers are called to share the good news and bring people to him. It’s the evangelism word we talked about last week. The problem I have with this analogy is that sometimes people use it to justify any means necessary to hook people in, even if that means filleting and deboning and skinning them. Even if it means promising people things we know aren’t true, like that if you follow Jesus, all your problems will go away. You’ll be released from your addictions, and the problems in your marriage will be fixed, and you’ll probably win the lottery. All you need to do is give your life to Jesus.

No! We just heard Jesus talk about God’s people sitting in darkness, in the shadow of death. The kingdom of heaven has come near; God’s light is dawning, but that doesn’t mean faith is easy. Let’s not mislead people; following Jesus gives meaning and purpose to life, and it means Jesus will be with us, sustaining us in the trials, but it does not automatically mean earthly success or prosperity.




Or there are training courses you can buy about evangelism that will tell you how to go out into the community and make “friendships” for the purpose of leading them to Jesus. That’s not any better – no one wants to be your “evangelism project.”

Keep praying for people, but don’t turn them into a project. We all know people already who need to know Jesus; we don’t need to deceive people into friendship for an ulterior motive.

As I’ve wrestled this week with this image of fishing for people, I’m wondering, what if the reason Jesus used this image of fishing is because he was speaking to fishermen, and they could understand it?

Perhaps part of Jesus’ point is that the skills we have are the skills we need. It should go without saying, but you don’t need to be a fisherman for Jesus to call you. I personally hate fishing – I think it’s really boring, and in the best case scenario, you end up with a fish you need to clean.

The reason Jesus calls these four men is not because they’re fishermen, but because they’re willing to follow. They are willing to drop their nets and go with Jesus on this adventure, to join in God’s mission. As we sang, they’re willing to step out into the great unknown.

If you have that willingness, God can use you whether you’re a teacher, or a carpenter, or a janitor, or a pastor, or a factory worker, or a homemaker, whether you’re 92 or 6 years old, whether you’ve been a Christian your whole life, or you’ve just heard Jesus’ call last week.

In 1 Corinthians, Paul says God makes foolish the wisdom of this world. Jesus calls people with no credentials, other than a willingness to follow.

I love verse 26. Paul says, “Consider your own call, brothers and sisters: not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth.”

Basically, none of you are very good at this. You’re not the sharpest tools in the shed, you’re untrained, in fact, you’re kinda foolish. I wonder what Paul would say about us. Too tired, too traditional, too arrogant, too unfocused, too timid (and that might be just me).

“But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, things that are not, to reduce to nothing things that are, so that no one might boast in the presence of God.” If we’re honest, we know we can’t take credit for any people we catch with our fishing. It’s all up to God, and God chooses to call us. We just get to follow and let God work through us.

We just get to share our testimony that in the darkness of this world, God is still faithful. God is still active. Jesus is calling you. And if that sounds like a foolish claim to make in the face of the evidence around us, maybe we’re on exactly the right track.

Let’s pray.
Dear Jesus, thank you for calling us, as foolish and misguided and incompetent as we are. Thank you for inviting us to not just stay on the sidelines and observe, but to get involved in the work you are doing. By your Holy Spirit, make us brave, willing to drop our nets and follow, to let go of the fears and doubts and excuses and all the things of this world that hold us back, and to take the step of faith to follow you and proclaim the good news of your kingdom’s coming. Be with us on the journey. Amen