Making Disciples of Jesus Christ

A sermon from the third Sunday after Epiphany - "Making Disciples of Jesus Christ."

This sermon manuscript comes from part three of a sermon series that engaged the mission statement of Bethany Lutheran Church.  Our mission is - "Being, Living as, and Making Disciples of Jesus Christ."  This sermon is about the finale of the statement - "Making Disciples of Jesus Christ."

Matthew 4:12-23
 
Now when Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee.  He left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, so that what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:
 
“Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali,
    on the way by the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—
 the people who sat in darkness
    have seen a great light,
and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death
    light has dawned.”
 
From that time Jesus began to proclaim, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”
 
As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen.  And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.”  Immediately they left their nets and followed him.  As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them.  Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him.
 
Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people.

    The last few weeks we have been engaged in a sermon series that explores our mission statement.  It’s been two weeks, so we ought to have it down by now, but just to get our minds going this morning, let’s remind ourselves of this statement.  “Being, living as, and making disciples of Jesus Christ.” 
    Pastor Casey guided us through the first two movements of our mission statement, “Being,” and “living as.”  Two weeks ago, for the first movement, he talked about who we be, our identity as disciples of Jesus Christ - drawing energy and a sense of call by what God has already done for us in baptism.  Who God has created and redeemed us to be.  Who we be as children of God. 
    Last week we explored what it means to live as disciples of Jesus Christ.  Living as disciples is once again grounded on our baptism.  We heard from John’s Gospel about how Jesus invites us to “Come and see.”  Come and see how Jesus lives and moves in this world.  No threats, no strings attached, just an invite to come and spend time with Jesus.  Come and see.  Come and look.  Come and experience who Jesus is and was and will be in our midst.  By spending time with Jesus we begin to hear who Jesus names us to be in this world and where he is calling us to go.  Both of these movements -“Being” and “Living as” - lead us into the finale. 
    Today we finish out our mission statement.  Knowing that we are God’s people, followers of Jesus Christ, called to come and see by Jesus, shaping our lives by his life, we now move on to the final movement, inviting others to join the story.  We are called to make disciples of Jesus Christ.  To share the good news we have received with those we encounter and invite them to join us on the journey.  We have an example from Matthew this morning, of what it looks like to invite others to join the story. 
    Today we hear the call of the first disciples.  A familiar story from Matthew.  After returning from the desert, and upon hearing that John has been arrested, Jesus senses that kingdom of heaven is on the move and begins his ministry.  He packs up and moves to Capernaum, in Galilee, and goes to work. 
    We have no clue how long Jesus is in Galilee before he gets started.  The paint could still be drying on the wall of the main street office, but Jesus is to be found down at the docks - where the people are.  When calling followers, its important to be where the people are.  And that’s exactly where we find Jesus.  Jesus is where the people are.  Right in the midst of their lives and the conversation.  He first approaches Peter and Andrew - who might have been engaged in a debate over the absurdity of the super bowl being played in an outdoor stadium… in February… in New Jersey.  Or perhaps they are caught up in chatter sparked by the local paper’s letters to the editor.  In the midst of their everyday lives that Jesus meets them.  And he simply calls them to “follow me.”  No catchy phrase, no gimmicks, no purpose driven - be your best you now - catch phrases,  no promise of eternal life, just “follow me.”  And they follow.  They drop their nets and follow Jesus.  Their lives would never be the same. 
    Next Jesus finds James and John with old man Zebedee.  Old man Zebedee might be complaining that his 401k took a hit over the last month.  Or the brothers may be engaged in a debate over the prices of fish in the stock forecasts.  And its right in the midst of these everyday conversations that Jesus drops in.  With a simple call they too drop their nets.  Leaving their father and their jobs behind, they set off with Jesus.  Their lives would never be the same.
    This is how the movement of making disciples continues, in the following of Jesus.  The movement of discipleship continues with following.  These first disciples seem to set the bar pretty high.  They literally drop everything thing that they are doing to follow Jesus.  They leave behind family and friends, homes and jobs, to take up the life of a disciple.  It seems like almost too much.  When faced with this colossal mountain to climb, the journey wears us out before we can get started.  But that’s not how Jesus wants it.  Jesus wants us to join in the story.  He wants us to follow. 
    If we flip the pages of Matthew’s story of Jesus, we find all kinds of disciples.  There are many who follow who are not one of the twelve.  The great crowds of ordinary people, lepers, a Roman centurion, loyal women who stick with Jesus through the horror of the cross and are the first to witness the resurrection.  These ordinary people continue the story of Jesus by following.  They pass the story down and spread the Gospel to a new generation.  This word comes to us again today.  And right where we are in our lives, we are invited to join the story of Jesus.  Perhaps thats why we are here this morning, because we have been swept into the story of God’s love active in our world.  We have heard the call to follow and share the story of Jesus Christ with our lives.
    People become disciples because of the power of Jesus’ life.  We follow because somehow his words and his love have crept into the cracks of our lives and found their way to our very being.  We are captivated and drawn into the story of the Gospel - the story of God’s love for the world.  It’s completely unlike anything the world can offer us.  In the story of Jesus we find God who challenges the power of death in our world.  Jesus loves the outcast, heals the sick, sets the oppressed free.  He acts in a way that we could not create had God not acted in our world.  The story of Jesus lives on in our midst today because ordinary disciples have been sharing it for generations.  And we have been drawn into that legacy. 
    We make disciples by sharing the story.  By sharing the story of the life changing love of God with those we encounter.  We follow Jesus to where he is already at work in our world and we share the story.  With our hands and feet, we share the story. With our lives we share the story.  And it all starts will the call from Jesus - “follow me.”
    Will you come and follow me, Jesus calls, and the hymn writer John Bell pleads.  Will you come and follow me where the sick and lonely are in need of comfort?  Will you come and follow me to the bedside of the person struggling with cancer and remind them that they are loved and that they are not alone in this world?  Will you follow me into tense conversations where people are stripped of their dignity and will you see them and engage them as children of God?  Will you come and follow me as the kingdom of heaven comes anew into the world around us?  Will you share the story of God’s love with your lives?
    That’s how disciples are made.  By sharing the story of God’s love.  That’s how it has happened for generations.  That’s how Jesus started his ministry.  That’s the finale of our mission statement.   
    We remember who we be as children of God.  We come and see what Jesus is up to.  We follow him to where he is already at work in our world.  And we tell the Gospel story. 
    Children of God, may you be blessed this week as you share the story of Jesus with those you meet.