3rd Sunday after Epiphany, January 25, 2009 “Series B”
Grace be unto you and peace, from God our Father and from our Lord, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Let us pray: Dear Heavenly Father, we have gathered hear this morning because you have called us through your Son, Jesus the Christ, to worship and praise you for your gift of grace. We are here, not because we have searched for you, but because you have searched for us and claimed us as your own to do the work of your kingdom. Through the power of your Holy Spirit, give us what we need to do the work to which we have been called, and to this end, strengthen us in faith. This we ask in Christ’s holy name. Amen
Dr. David Granskou, one of my professors in New Testament studies at seminary, believed that in order for us to truly grasp the human dynamic of scripture, we have to be open to the humor contained in the Gospels. His contention was that we often approach reading scripture with such a serious desire to learn the Word of God, to have these sacred writings inform our faith, that we often fail to understand the human context in which they were written.
Our Gospel lesson for this morning is one of those texts in which Dr. Granskou would urge us to see the humor of the situation. In fact, it is a text which could supply Bill Cosby with enough material for another recording in the tradition of his interpretation of “Noah and the Ark.” Just think about our lesson, with an open mind to the humor it conveys.
Following the death of John the Baptizer, Mark tells us that Jesus began his ministry, proclaiming that “the time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is near…” Then Mark asks us to picture Jesus, strolling down the beach along the Sea of Galilee, perhaps taking a respite, or contemplating upon the direction his own ministry might take.
But as Jesus walks along the shore, he notices two men preparing to go fishing. Now these were men of strong stature, who had a great love for the sea, preparing to cast their nets into the water, and then settle back for a few hours of soaking in the rays, before the sweat of having to retrieve their catch. It was their daily routine, their means of earning a living.
But their daily routine was about to change. For into their lives walks Jesus, this man whom they had never seen before, who calls out to these two men of the sea to “come and follow him, for he will make them fish for people.” And now, we encounter the humor of this text. If I might borrow a word from Bill Cosby’s rendition of “Noah and the Ark,” these two brawny men of the sea simply say “Right!” And they immediately drop their expensive nets to float away tot he sea, and fall into formation behind this stranger.
From there, the three of them walk further down the beach, apparently not even speaking with one another, until the stranger spies two other young men of the sea, who are mending their nets with an older man, who happens to be their father. Then Jesus, this stranger walking down the beach, calls out to the two younger men, but not to their father, with the same invitation. And without hesitation, or explanation, these two men say “Right!” They drop their nets for their father to mend by himself, and fall into line behind the others as they continue to stroll down the beach until they are out of sight.
Now one might think, out of common appreciation for the trade of fishing, that the first two men who fell in line behind this stranger, would have told the father of the second two, that if he would just walk down the beach a ways, in the direction from which they came, he would find a net that didn’t need to be mended. But no, they were just so awed by this stranger that they dropped everything, including their common sense.
I can just hear Bill Cosby’s “Right!” echoing through my mind as I read this text. The truth is, our Gospel lesson from Mark, when taken literally, is quite strange, if not down right humorous. It is certainly a different picture of the calling of the Jesus’ first disciples than that provided by John’s Gospel, which we encountered last week.
In John’s Gospel, the Baptizer pointed Jesus, attesting to his divinity, and encouraged his own disciples to follow Jesus. Then, after spending time with Jesus, two of his disciples go and invite their brothers to come and see if Jesus might not truly be the Messiah. John’s Gospel seems a little more believable, since his first disciples come to follow Jesus in a more rational means.
Yet although John’s Gospel may make more sense to us, we can not ignore our lesson from Mark. According to Dr. Granskou, whenever we encounter a text that seems to deviate from the norm, particularly if it humorously deviates from what we consider to be common sense, the chances are the author is asking the reader to look beyond the ordinary, and consider something unique. Dr. Granskou also believed that the meaning of the text must encompass the humor, not try to explain it or make excuses for it.
For example, on of the commentaries that I read on this text tried to do just that, by suggesting that the reason these four men left their nest was because they were bored or restless, and not able to be their own person. They may have felt trapped into the fishing profession, because that is what their fathers had done. And when Jesus came along, calling them to a new venture, they followed him, hoping for a new life, free from the one they felt trapped in. Thus, this commentary ended with the idea that what Jesus really does in his call to discipleship, is to set us free to be our own person.
To me, the remarks of this commentary seem to be influenced more by our modern philosophy of individualism, than by the text itself. I agree that no one wants to be pushed around, overwhelmed or controlled by another person. But I think that it is a reach to conclude that these first four disciples of Jesus fell in line behind this stranger on the shore, because they didn’t feel free to be themselves. For why would someone who wanted to break away from a life that they felt stifled them, do so at the command of a stranger who said “Follow me, and I will make your fish for people.”
I believe that there is a more profound meaning to our text, than that these four individuals wanted to be their own persons. Mark’s story of Jesus passing along the sea shore, calling them to drop their nets and fish for people, may be a moment of sheer wonder and God’s grace in action. Mark tells us nothing about the inner life of these men. We do not know if they are restless or tranquil, bored or satisfied in their life. But the humor of Mark’s Gospel tells us that these details are not important
These first four disciples of Jesus were not called because they had somehow let it be know to God that they were not “fulfilled” as fisherman. Nor were they called because they had somehow made themselves desirable or competent to be Christ’s disciples. In the humor of his Gospel, Mark simply tells us that these brawny men of the sea, made a decision to follow Jesus the Christ, which was the more important than their occupation, or even their ties to their father and family.
I believe that through the humor of Mark’s Gospel, he is telling us that it really doesn’t matter what is going on in our lives at the moment, or how up or how down we might feel. God calls us to follow Jesus the Christ, to be his disciples, and to follow him throughout our life.
“Follow me,” Jesus said to those on the shore, “and I will make you fish for people.” Mark makes it sound so humorous that at this simple invitation, four grown men, seamen at that, men used to hard work, hard language and hard play, would drop their nets, and follow Jesus.
Well, as goofy as it seems, and as humorous as it is, this is the same summons that comes to us all. Each of us are called through our baptism to follow Jesus, to become his disciples and to fish for people, to invite others to join us in knowing the saving grace of God. Isn’t humorous, that God calls us, to follow Christ, to be his disciples, through a rite called baptism, which most of us experienced before we even knew what was happening to us?
This is what the humor of Mark’s Gospel brings alive for me. Just as these fishermen had no clue what the call to follow Jesus meant for their lives, neither did we at our baptism, whether that took place as an infant or as an adult. Nevertheless, we have been called, and through the gift of God’s Spirit, we follow Jesus, sometimes faithfully, sometimes not. But we follow, because we have been called.
And no matter how naïve we are, when we begin our journey to follow Jesus, when we commit our lives to that journey, God’s Spirit will lead us and equip us for an adventure that is far more enriching than even our work or family. For in his humor, Mark tells us that call to follow Jesus is more important than anything else in all our lives.
Amen.
