One of the scariest things I’ve ever had to do was tell my extended family that I was going to become a priest. You see my call didn’t emerge until I was in my mid 20’s and happened while living far away from my extended family. I didn’t grow up always knowing I would be a priest. You see my call emerged in the midst of really good things happening to me at the church I was attending while at the same time trying to figure out what to do with my life vocationally- I was one of those kids who graduated with a degree but didn’t know what I wanted to do. My family knew I had started attending church again after a 10 year hiatus- but they didn’t know the depth of the changes that had occurred in my life as a result of my re-discovering my relationship with Jesus. So when the time came to tell them I was quite nervous— I worried that they might think I was crazy?
Ultimately though just about everyone was supportive and that the priesthood was something they could see me doing.
What was funny were some of the responses Chrishelle and I got as we told our family.
One of the Chrishelle relatives said to her, “Really, is Sean still going to like baseball?”
My grandfather, a devout Roman Catholic, said something to the effect of “Do you think God might be calling you to be a deacon in the Roman Catholic church.”
My sister’s response was the funniest. I remember it as if it were yesterday. We were standing in her kitchen and I said to her, “I think i’ve figured out what I want to do with my life. I think I am being called to be a priest.”
Except that wasn’t exactly how I said it when I got to the word priest I kind of mumbled. I said it a little like this, “I think I am being called to be a priest.” She looked at me kind of funny and said “you think your called to be a prostitute.”
Well that obviously broke the ice.
Today we hear the story of Jesus coming home to Nazareth. He’s been to the Baptist—he’s been anointed by God—he’s been on a religious retreat- forty days with Satan in the wilderness and now he’s home to announce to his family and friends just exactly what he’s going to be up to- he wants to tell them about his call.
He chooses the synagogue to make his announcement. He’s lecturing that day and he stands up to read from scroll of the prophet Isaiah.
He reads from the the scroll these words
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.”
He then rolls up the scroll and sits down and announces – I’m the guy Isaiah is talking about I am the one to bring good news to the poor, I am the one to proclaim release to all who are captive- to heal the blind- to let the oppressed go free.
In some way he lays out his ministry description—this is what I am called to do—this is whom I called to work with--
So here is Jesus at the beginning of his earthly ministry announcing these are the things I’ve come to earth to do—here is my ministry description. to bring good news to the poor, to release the captive- to let the oppressed go free.
It is very clear that Jesus sees his ministry grounded in something we call social justice. – It’s very clear that Jesus works tirelessly for the oppressed, the voiceless, the poor and those who live and operate on the fringe of society.
Think about the many folks who Jesus interacted after day people on the fring – lepers who have been forced to live in colonies where no one can touch them – and yet Jesus goes there. Prostitutes who are about to be stoned-- Jesus stands in way and says things let those without sin cast the first stone. Foreigner’s, like the Samaritan woman, the gospel writer tells us that Jews despise these- but Jesus is a different he offer to this foreigner, the Samaritan --this despised woman a drink of living water.
Jesus quite clearly understands who he is, what he is to be about, who he has come to serve but what about us? If we were to sit down and write ministry description about our lives and what would be on it and who would it include. Would some of the people that Jesus mentioned be on our description, would the poor, the oppressed, the captive, be on our ministry descriptions? Why or why not?
If Jesus is called to minister to those people, aren’t we as followers of Jesus meant to minister and be in relationship to the same folks.
When I look at the world it’s pretty easy to get overwhelmed by all the different folks who seem like they could use a hand up or could use voice crying out for them.
[Just this week I was at one meeting on Tuesday that the guest speaker shared with us the plight of trafficked humans-did you know there are more human slaves today and than there were for the entire 300 years of slavery several centuries ago- Something like 27 million human slaves—and they are right here in our backyards t. then two days later to St. Paul’s in Harris to listen to a presentation on the Say yes to education initiative in Buffalo on education and working to provide quality college education to students in buffalo who really have no hope for education. These are just two under served populations that need us to work for them.]
There are lots of folks who crying out for justice— lots of folks who need to be liberated from poverty from abuse, from exploitation. What are we to do when the needs seem so overwhelming—there are so many people who need the kingdom to come—what are we to do-when it looks like it might never make a dent.
You’ve probably heard the story of the starfish that one day washed up on one of our seashores there were literally hundreds, maybe even thousands of starfish about to die because the tide receded and they were trapped on the sand with no way to make it back to the ocean. One man who was walking the beach that day began tossing the starfish back into the ocean- this man was approached by another man who said why are you bothering- you can’t save them all—the man stopped tossing for a moment and looked down at the starfish in his hand and said it matters to this one as he tossed that starfish back into the sea and continued his work.
I would like to challenge think about just one a group of people or one a cause that interest you or you are curious about. Maybe your curious about the plight of refugees or your not so sure about the death penalty or mass incarceration, maybe you have a heart for the poor or maybe your interested in global warming or eco-justice. I then would invite you to learn some more about that particular group or issue—become better educated about the plight of your fellow humans facing some sort of difficult-- I think that’s first step to put folks in our sights in making a dent. Simply learn about those folks—tell someone about the folks or cause you learn about. You could google something, you could—you could attend a community meeting, you could watch a documentary. Who could you learn about?
We as followers of Jesus carry this thing around with us we call hope- hope that God is breaking into bad news, hope that God is making a new way, and hope that kingdom is now. We carry that hope not only for ourselves, but we also carry it out those doors for the other.
It was very evident from that passage that Jesus knew something about himself— he knew what he was called to do—but he also knew that the Spirit of God went with him 2 times we are told that the spirit is upon him--- that his life was saturated by God’s spirit.
Ladies and Gentleman God’s spirit is upon all of us—we can change the plight of our fellow human beings because God saturates our lives with his Spirit.
Who will you include on your ministry description? Jesus included the poor, the disenfranchised, the captive?
What about you? Who’s on your list?
AMEN
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