This week and next, we will remain in the Revised Common Lectionary before moving into our next series. This Second Sunday after Pentecost includes texts that remind us that God’s presence and call can rarely be described as expected or ordinary. (Side note: this season is often called “ordinary time” because it is a long season counted by ordinal numbers, not because it is common or uneventful.)
Abram isn’t young when God calls him to leave everything he knows. Matthew isn’t the kind of person anyone would expect the Messiah to call and equip for ministry. Both of these Biblical figures respond to their respective calls even facing significant unknowns. At La Jolla UMC, we place and intentional emphasis on responding to God’s presence in our lives. Responding to a sense of call is an essential part of our whole response.
Genesis 12:1-9 (CEB)
1 The Lord said to Abram, “Leave your land, your family, and your father’s household for the land that I will show you. 2 I will make of you a great nation and will bless you. I will make your name respected, and you will be a blessing.
3 I will bless those who bless you,
those who curse you I will curse;
all the families of the earth
will be blessed because of you.”4 Abram left just as the Lord told him, and Lot went with him. Now Abram was 75 years old when he left Haran. 5 Abram took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all of their possessions, and those who became members of their household in Haran; and they set out for the land of Canaan. When they arrived in Canaan, 6 Abram traveled through the land as far as the sacred place at Shechem, at the oak of Moreh. The Canaanites lived in the land at that time.7 The Lord appeared to Abram and said, “I give this land to your descendants,” so Abram built an altar there to the Lord who appeared to him. 8 From there he traveled toward the mountains east of Bethel, and pitched his tent with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. There he built an altar to the Lord and worshipped in the Lord’s name. 9 Then Abram set out toward the arid southern plain, making and breaking camp as he went.
Matthew 9:9-13 (CEB)
9 As Jesus continued on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at a kiosk for collecting taxes. He said to him, “Follow me,” and he got up and followed him. 10 As Jesus sat down to eat in Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners joined Jesus and his disciples at the table.
11 But when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
12 When Jesus heard it, he said, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor, but sick people do.13 Go and learn what this means: I want mercy and not sacrifice. I didn’t come to call righteous people, but sinners.”
Consider these questions:
- How old was Abram when he left Haran (Gen. 12:4)? If you are younger than seventy-five, imagine leaving everything behind to follow God’s invitation at the age of seventy-five. If you are seventy-five or older, what do you think would happen if you leave everything behind at this age?
- What would your reaction to such a call be? What might you do if God calls you to do something that requires you to change the way you live?
- Jesus said “follow me” more often than he said “believe in me.” What is the difference? How do you describe “following Jesus” and “believing in Jesus?”
- Hearing a call from God is not something reserved for the clergy. As United Methodists, we understand and affirm that all persons are called—all who want to follow this path, all who want to become disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. It might be a call to a place, to a task, or to a way of living. Have you felt a call from God to do certain things? How might you fulfill God’s call to ministry in your everyday activities and relationships?