I’ve been using the parallel between Israel leaving Egypt, to our departure from the UMC, and their entrance into the Promised Land, as our joining the GMC. Not to identify the UMC with the Egyptian slavery, or the GMC with the Promised land, but as a means of comparing our Way Forward between the two. Like Israel, having taken their first steps into the Promised Land after their commitment by crossing the River Jordan, we are now looking ahead to our new denomination. We can say we’re followers of our Lord Jesus, but like the Twelve apostles, we have so much to learn and understand about what God wants us to know. It’s about more than just getting to heaven, it’s about building our relationship with God on our journey through life to get to our Promised Land. So, this is an opportunity to honestly examine our faith and our beliefs, on our Way Forward to identify who we are… and whose we are… as we begin this next phase of our Way Forward.
God could have taken the Israelites from Egypt to the Promised Land via the northern route in just a few months. They wouldn’t have had to cross the Red Sea or face the hardships of crossing the desert. But neither would they have seen God’s power to open a path through the Red Sea for them, and close it on their enemies. Seen the fiery cloud lead them by day, and the pillar of fire guard them at night. God’s visible presence. They wouldn’t have known God could feed them with manna, a food that had never been seen or tasted before. They wouldn’t have experienced a water shortage resolved by getting enough water from a rock to satisfy the cooking and drinking needs of several million people for days.
But God had set Israel apart from other nations as His chosen people. He wanted them to experience Him, to know they could trust Him as their God. They had been chosen to be the nation where the Savior would be born, where He would be crucified to pay for humankind’s sins, and be resurrected to triumph over death. And that Israel had been set apart as God’s witness to the world for His plan of salvation. The church word for being set apart is sanctified, or made holy for God’s purposes. The Hebrew name M-Kaddesh, the Lord Who Sanctifies, was used to recognize this nature of God.
As Israel began its way into the Promised Land, God commanded them in Leviticus 20:7-8, “Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am the LORD your God. And you shall keep My statutes, and perform them: I am the LORD who sanctifies you.” Consecration is the transfer of a person or a thing to the sacred sphere for a special purpose or service. The word consecration literally means "association with the sacred". Israel was to prepare itself for God’s holy purpose in the Promised Land. But God, M’Kaddesh, the Lord Who Sanctifies, was the One who would sanctify them when they were ready to trust and obey Him on their Way Forward. .
We can prepare ourselves to be holy, consecrate ourselves, when we honestly repent, and ask for our sins to be forgiven to receive Christ. Then God forgives our sins and sees us as holy, setting us apart for His use, on His path of Sanctification. John Wesley called it the “path to perfection”. We know that we, as humans, can never be perfect, but God continues to perfect us on our Way Forward. When Jesus leads us through the doors of heaven by grace, His grace, not our own merits, we will have reached perfection. But the road of sanctification on the way to perfection, continues throughout our lifetime. But Jesus also tells us in Matthew 7:14, that “small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” Some may start on the road of sanctification, but wander from the narrow road and miss the gate of heaven. We might then wonder what it takes to miss Jesus’ road. It’s not a guaranteed destination unless Jesus is leading us on it.
Our Gospel Lesson shows Peter’s wandering from the road of sanctification. Peter had been commended for his emphatic declaration of Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the Living God. Jesus tells him flesh and blood hadn’t revealed that truth, that His Father in heaven had. But then Peter tries to prevent Jesus from going to the Cross. Jesus calls him Satan, telling him to get out of His way. Despite this lapse, Peter is the natural leader of the Twelve and had been very close to Jesus. At least until the night before the Crucifixion, when Peter denied Jesus three times. Peter has wandered from being set apart as a beloved disciple to feeling guilt and fear in hiding. Alone.
Our Gospel reading takes place after the Resurrection. The disciples had seen Jesus twice, shortly after the Resurrection, but not since. Discouraged, they go fishing, but returning after a night of fishing when they hadn’t caught anything, a stranger appears on shore telling them to throw their nets over the other side. Peter remembers one of his first encounters with Jesus telling him those same words and catching so many fish their boat almost sank. Peter then recognizes Jesus, jumping eagerly from the boat and swims ashore, anxious to reconcile his failure with Jesus.
After breakfast, Jesus walks with Peter, knowing Peter’s guilt and wanting to reassure him. Their conversation is important, but we have to watch their word usages carefully to understand it. Jesus asks him, “Simon, do you love me more than these? Notice Jesus doesn’t call Peter by the name He’d previously given him - Peter, the Rock - but Simon, the name Jesus had first known him by, as if reminding Simon of his failure to be that rock. When asking if Simon loved Him, Jesus uses the word phi-los for love, a deep devotion of total commitment love. He doesn’t question Peter’s faith in Him, which hasn’t wavered, but questions Peter’s love for Him by asking, “Do you love me more than…these? Scholars debate whether His use of ‘these’ is referring to the other disciples – or ‘these’, referring to worldly things. But Peter answers, “Lord you know I love you, but he uses phi-la for love, as in the affection of a close personal friend type of love. It appears Simon is doubting his total commitment to Jesus. But Jesus tells him, “Feed My lambs”. Lambs, as in little lambs, perhaps referring to new believers in His coming Church.
Then Jesus asks Peter a second time, “Simon, do you love me?” again calling him Simon, and using the word philos love as devotion and total commitment. Simon’s response is the same, although he seems annoyed by Jesus’ repeated questioning of his love, and says “You know I love you, but again using the phi-la word for love to mean affection for a personal friend. This time Jesus tells him to “Take care of my sheep” as a shepherd caring for Jesus’ flock.
Jesus, still calling him Simon, questions his love a third time, but this time echoing Peter’s use of phi-los love as a personal friend. Peter, saying Jesus, since He knew all things, knew he loved Jesus, but still using the word meaning love as a close friend. And Jesus repeats his command, “Feed My Sheep”. Jesus has questioned Peter’s love three times, the same number of times Peter had denied Him. But each time, telling Peter to care for His sheep, reassurance that Jesus had not rejected him, and, despite having wandered from that path, Peter was still sanctified, set apart for Jesus’ holy purpose. But Peter would never again wander from that path, becoming the disciple to feed 3000 of His lambs, new believers at Pentecost. He would die a violent death, crucified, upside down, but while testifying boldly about Jesus. Peter never lost faith that Jesus was the Messiah, and despite his failure, remained sanctified.
By contrast, In our Epistle Lesson, James would appear to be saying that Peter’s faith without works was dead. Faith does nothing to help a brother or sister in need, and therefore is meaningless. If that is indeed the case, the road to perfection has become even narrower for those with faith perhaps, but without works. Paul, however, advocated that faith was sufficient, showing that God saw Abraham as righteous because of his faith and trust, and then made His covenant with him for descendants and the Promised Land. Afterwards, God had Abraham circumcise his family as a seal of God’s sanctification, his being set apart to be the father of many nations, even a legal ancestor of the Messiah. But James is actually saying that true faith will reveal itself by works. Abraham’s faith resulted in his even being willing to sacrifice his own son, Isaac, and remaining on the path of sanctification, despite his later failures.
Thankfully, we are sanctified by our faith, and despite our failures, can remain on His path toward perfection. Sincere faith that naturally results in works. Just as Jesus questions to Peter after his denials, He asks us “Christian, do you love me?” If we truly answer Yes, truly love Jesus for who He is and what He has done for us, we will show our love by our deeds. As believers, we are set apart, not just to declare our love, but to feed His sheep. In his epistle, James also writes, “For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen.” Saying we love God, without feeding His sheep, takes us off that road by ignoring His purposes for our sanctification. Even Satan and his demons believe in Jesus… know He comes from the Father… and know His power… but do not feed His Sheep.
But the road of sanctification is not an individual journey. Tom T. Hall’s song, “Me and Jesus Got A Good Thing Going” epitomizes that misbelief. The singer is saying he is responsible to Jesus alone, and that his religion is the good thing between him and Jesus. Nothing could be further from the Truth. Jesus established His Church so that we can nourish each other. That’s the good thing. Feed His lambs, the new believers in Christ. Feed His sheep, brothers and sisters with us in church, sharing His love and encouragement within, and beyond, our walls, and loving those who don’t know Him so they see Christ in us. The road may be narrow but it’s still wide enough to accommodate all who are sanctified, working together to bring others to Him through us who see Him through us. But let’s look deeper at feeding His sheep, beyond simply putting food on people’s plates, or clothes on their bodies. Those are wonderful social principles, accomplished by even just putting money in the offering plate. But that will only allow people to survive, not thrive in the Kingdom of God.
Feeding His lambs is really about nourishing children on the Word of God, not exposing them to the immoral junk food of this world. When we allow the world to feed our lambs on ideas that life is not sacred, that killing the unborn because they ignored God’s commandments is right, or allow video games to fill their minds with violent thinking, we end up with hatred, mass shootings, and racist philosophies. Our Hymn of Preparation gives us an answer to many of those problems. Happy the home where God is there, where all the children hear His fame, and parents hold him dear. Lambs being fed on the Word of God.
Feeding His sheep is caring for His flock, teaching others about Christ, showing them He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. But feeding them is not only through diets of theology and doctrines, but by living by the Word of God, being nourished by Him every day of the week, not just an hour in church. We feed others by what we do when we’re not in church, hopefully not by why we’re not in church. Our lives testify to our doing what Jesus stood for, and by seeing God working in our lives.
We’ve been led to a new opportunity to worship under a new denominational banner, but it’s still the church of Jesus. We may see our path in our rear view mirrors strewn with litter and junk, but our road ahead is still clear. God told the Israelites coming into the promised land to consecrate themselves and be holy. This is our opportunity to do that, joining with other Christians who have joined to live by the Word of the Lord, hold His Word as sacred, and ensure His lambs and His sheep are being fed properly. But it’s important to take notice of last part of that verse from Leviticus 20. For I Am the Lord who sanctifies, M-Kaddesh. Amen
