January 18, 2015
Second Sunday After Epiphany
Rev. Amy Welin:
Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening . . .
Have you ever needed an expert to help you resolve a problem? At St John’s, I lean on Cindy and Tony, and on Dave and Don, and sometimes we need to call the experts. Expertise has its merits.
This week, the RePurposing Task Force met with a representative of the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), which helps local non-profits build communities where people can thrive. The woman who met with us has experience as a developer, and she had many insights to share with us. We were grateful for her expertise and her questions, and we think that we will benefit from exploring some options for development of our property. We hope that she will connect us with other experts, who can assist St John’s in securing a future here.
Have you noticed that in the Bible, when God wants something done, God does not call on the experts?
Samuel is a child, given by his mother as an apprentice to the priest Eli. He is like an acolyte who sleeps in the sanctuary. Samuel is so young that he “does not know the Lord,” and Eli and his corrupt sons are not teaching him well. The Lord needs someone to speak the divine word to Israel, and chooses the child Samuel as a prophet. Samuel is a holy child, but he is not very experienced. Samuel grows up and continues to serve the Lord, the prophet who functions as a priest, a seer, a military leader and a judge in Israel. How does this happen? Well, the scriptures tell us simply that the Lord was with him. And Samuel said and did great things for God.
In the company of God, ordinary people receive the gifts that are necessary for leadership.
The men called by Jesus to be apostles are not experts. Andrew and Peter are not theologians or philosophers. They are fishermen. Philip recognizes Jesus as the messiah, not on the basis of his advanced learning but because his heart is open. Philip calls Nathanael to Christ from his hangout beneath the fig tree, which begs the question of whether he was employed at all. We readily acknowledge the importance of the twelve apostles, but their qualification for this ministry clearly is not based on their expertise. All they did was to say “yes” when Jesus asked them to follow him. As Jesus promised, they saw great things in his company. (The next story in this gospel is Jesus’ miracle at the wedding at Cana). They too did great things for God, because they received the grace they needed for leadership.
I have been thinking a good deal this past week about the civil rights movement. I was ordained a priest on 15 January, which is Dr. Martin Luther King’s birthday. Looking backward, we can certainly point to the prophetic role of the leaders of the movement, like Dr. King, who worked tirelessly and risked imprisonment, harassment, and finally death to protect the human rights of people of color. Dr. King’s vision of civil rights was inspired by the biblical stories of Israel’s struggle to be free of oppression and by his understanding of the role of the prophet. As a minister, he was something of an expert in these matters. But the energy of the civil rights movement was not derived solely from the expertise of its leaders. There was a groundswell of ordinary people who were inspired to rise up and to defeat tremendous injustice. Students and teachers, Jews and Christians and agnostics, educated professionals and blue collar workers all heard a voice calling them to establish righteousness. Who equipped them for their work? In my heart of hearts, I am certain that it was God. Ordinary people spoke and acted prophetically, and they saw great things happen.
In human history, God has called many ordinary people to do extraordinary work.
This has not changed in our own time. God continues to call ordinary people to say and do great things, not because they are experts, but because they are many. The work of God is too important and too far-reaching to be left in the hands of the experts. Expertise has its merits. But experts, by definition, are few in number. Instead, God calls regular people, and gives them what they need.
Where will we be when God asks us so do something? The scriptures suggest the time will be in the middle of ordinary life. At work, like Peter and Andrew. Hanging around, like Nathanael. I was in the middle of working and raising a family. Where will you be? Most of us are pretty busy living our ordinary lives. But God could need you to do something new, something important, something prophetic. Are you listening?
How will we recognize the voice of God? The scriptures suggest all we need to do is pay attention. Samuel the boy struggled to identify the voice that called him. As soon as he recognized the source, he listened. Peter and Andrew, Philip and Nathanael were not geniuses, but they were open-minded enough to realize that God speaks in the person of Jesus – even though he is from Nazareth. Are you listening?
Today’s gospel is calling all of us to follow Jesus, not because we are experts at religion, or even because we are perfect. God call us because we are many and by our baptism we are made holy enough. God invites us to spend time with Jesus as our teacher, to go on mission for divine purposes and to do faithful ministry. God will give us everything we will need. Jesus promises that we shall see signs and wonders.
And so I ask you, as I ask myself: Can anything good come out of Waterbury?
When God calls, how shall we answer?
I hope our answer is yes.
Speak, LORD, for your servants are listening . . .