Mark 1:14-20 Before seminary, about sevenyears ago to be exact, it was right after a vestry meeting that I was invitedinto the clergy’s office for a chat. Atthe time, I was serving on vestry and as treasurer of the parish so, it was normalfor the pastors and I to have such meetings. The tone of that night’s discussion was a bit different, a bitforeboding. The pastor, with a veryserious and solemn demeanor, looked at me and said, “Becky and I have beentalking and we have something very important to ask you.” “Yes,” I said. “Have you ever felt that you werecalled to ordained ministry?” Myresponse was immediate and unfiltered, “are you crazy?” The words flew out ofmy mouth fast than my hand could cover my lips. Too late, but my question was an honest one. Were they crazy? Did they know what they were really asking? Little did I know that as a result of this briefmeeting, my life and the life of my family would soon change dramatically andnever be the same again. In a span twoyears, we wound up risking our livelihoods, the house we owned and loved, thefriends we had around us for years, and the spiritual home we had found. The call to discipleship for me was risky andvery honestly, downright scary. Thecall to discipleship for all Christians and not just clergy, is one that can beforeboding, fear-provoking, and yes, the call to “Come follow Jesus,” does comewith certain risks.
“Riskis the potential that a chosen action or activity (including the choice ofinaction) will lead to a loss (an undesirable outcome). Almost any human endeavor carries with its somerisk, but some are much more risky than others.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Risk) Two sets of brothers, Simon, Andrew,James and John were men who had a lot to lose. They worked with their families in the business of fishing. The trade was good, the fishing abundant, andit was an honorable living. The work washard, but for them, in comparison to other first century Palestinians, theirlives were comfortable. Suddenly oneday, a young upstart Rabbi came strolling along the shore and with not aninquiry, but a command, said to them, “Come follow me.” With one invitation, Jesus changed their livesand the lives of their families forever. The four men did have a choice though. They could have said, “No, things are good the way they are. We are comfortable and we like what we’redoing now.” How many times have we feltlike answering the call to discipleship in that same way. That is not what the four brothers did rather,they dropped their nets, left who they were before behind, and they followedJesus. Why would they do that? Why would anyone leave everything to followJesus? The only answer I can give, theonly answer I had when the invitation came to me, was that I want to follow theone who loves me despite my brokenness and my failures. I want to follow the one who loves when loveis not deserved or warranted. I want tolearn to love as Jesus loves.
Jesus’life, death, and resurrection is the revelation of God’s great love for us; alove so great that he gave himself up to death for us. “There is no greater love than to lay downone’s life for one’s friends.” (John15:13 NLT) That is not just risky by theworld’s standards, it is downright foolish, but discipleship to the world’sstandards is foolishness. The life ofdiscipleship is both foolish and risky. Risktaking for a disciple means letting go of who it is we have been, and living infaith and anticipation about who it is that God is calling us to be. A seasoned stock analyst was speaking onMSNBC the other day about the unstable markets, the ongoing threat ofrecession, the recent housing collapse, and how right now, it may not be thebest time to go and make risky investments. He recommended to viewers that it’s better to invest in low-risksecurities. The analyst went on toadvise that investing in some mutual bonds and T-bills, rather than upstartrisky bold endeavors is safer, but there is little or no return. This is not foolish investment advice,especially for some of us who are watching our portfolios dwindle, but when itcomes to following Our Lord, He does not call us to participate in a form alow-risk discipleship. Christ calls usto take risks in this walk of faith, to trust in the abundance of God, to stepout in faith and walk the path of bold discipleship. Christ says, “Come, follow me; Come, befoolish; Come, take a risk.”
Bold discipleship is not thetime for us individually and as community to circle the wagons, draw back on thedreams and visions of God, and hold on tightly to God’s abundance as if we werewaiting for something. We need to step out in faith. We need to pray boldly for God’s vision forus as a community. We need to stretchthe bounds of mission and ministry, to actively do what is absolutely necessaryand beyond and thus, become a people transformed as recipients of and instrumentsof transforming grace. I believe thecall to discipleship is a call to build the kingdom, to bring others to thelove of Christ, to fling wide the doors, to take risks, and in all of this, totrust God. There was a man whom I knewseveral years ago, who owned a beautiful vintage WWII fighter plane that henever flew. Rather, he stored it in apristine hangar where each week he polished it, pampered it, and gazed at itsoverwhelming splendor. A friend stoppedby one day and asked, “Jim, are you going to take the old girl out for a flightthis year or not?” “No, not going to doit,” he said, “it’s too risky to take her up.” “What a shame,” said his friend. Another friend stopped by, asked the samequestion and received the same reply. This time, the friend answered, “You know, that old bird is made to fly,to soar above the crowds, to roll, to climb, and dive. She was designed to be daring, venturesome,and exciting to see and to fly. You aremissing out on joy Jim. There are alwaysrisks when we choose to live into that for which we were made.” The inherent risks of discipleship are real,but they are not to be feared. We needto embrace the uncertainty and prayerfully trust in God’s vision for us.
At aleadership conference two weeks ago, I listened to clergy from parishes anddioceses from all over the Episcopal Church. They all shared stories about bold, fearless communities that weretaking risks to build the kingdom. Iheard about vibrant, growing parishes where mission and ministry and committedspirituality was at the heart of their common life together. One of those leaders celebrating their story,was me. In our breakout sessions, I sharedthe story of St. David’s and how we take risks in this community, how we stepout in faith, how we answer the adventuresome call to discipleship. I shared with others how we in this faithcommunity are builders of the kingdom, not merely maintainers. As builders, Jesus calls each of us, “Come,follow me.” The Kingdom of God is near usright here and right now and that is risky stuff, but the return is overwhelming,the return is God’s abundant grace. Inall we do we need to take a little risk, be a little foolish, step out alittle. In our commitment to prayer andstudy we need to take a few more risks. In our love for each other and those whom God sends our way, we need to take a few more risks. In our commitment to mission and ministry inthis community and beyond, we need to take a few more risks. In our commitment to grow the kingdom bothspiritually and numerically, (yes numerically) we need to take a few morerisks. Christ calls us to leave our nets,or whatever binds us, behind. Christcalls us to leave behind our old selves and to live fully into the daring,adventuresome, and Spirit-filled people to which we are called. “Come followme” is our Lord’s invitation, our Lord’s command. Come take the risk and together in Christ, wewho are empowered by the Holy Spirit, will soar boldly on the wings of God’s grace.
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