1 Corinthians 1:10-18: 1:10 Now I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you be in agreement and that there be no divisions among you but that you be knit together in the same mind and the same purpose. For it has been made clear to me by Chloe's people that there are quarrels among you, my brothers and sisters. What I mean is that each of you says, "I belong to Paul," or "I belong to Apollos," or "I belong to Cephas," or "I belong to Christ." Has Christ been divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, so that no one can say that you were baptized in my name. I did baptize also the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else. For Christ did not send me to baptize but to proclaim the gospel--and not with eloquent wisdom, so that the cross of Christ might not be emptied of its power. For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
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 road 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 fishers. And he said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you fisher of 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 all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people.
The two lessons read today are like bookends to discipleship, and flexible bookends, at that. The lesson from Matthew recounts the calling of the first followers of Jesus. The letter to the Corinthians is an admonition for the new followers to get their act together and start getting along. Imagine that, a church where there are quarrels between parishioners!
So, given these two examples of how disciples are called and how they behave, what can we say about discipleship? In a nutshell, what does discipleship look like?
First of all, discipleship needs a focus. In this case, that focus is Jesus. So let’s say a few things about him, not too many, as we only have a limited time together. Jesus was on the move. Born in Bethlehem, escaped death by going to Egypt, returned to hometown Nazareth, and, in today’s passage, relocating to Capernaum, to fulfill an Old Testament prophecy. So here he is, fresh out of the wilderness after dealing with all manner of temptations, ready to begin his public ministry. He starts with this message: Whoa! Turn Around! You are going the wrong way. Danger! Turn around and see God’s loving arms, open wide, welcoming you home!
He says this, or something like it, to Simon Peter, his brother, Andrew, and to James and his brother, John. And whether they hear the call through their reception by Jesus’ lips, or see the call by the countenance of Jesus’ face, they respond, immediately, and follow him.
Second, discipleship is not monolithic. Not all disciples look alike, even when the focus is the same. We all know that people who follow Jesus or who walk on the Jesus Way are a multifarious conglomeration of folks. No two look alike, even with all the historical pressure for Christians to say the same things and believe the same things. Look at the Apostles, for example. Peter was always missing the point and denied his association with Jesus when things got rough. James and John asked for special seating in the next life. And to the point of discipleship gone astray, in today’s lesson from Paul, we get a glimpse into the contentious life of the Corinthian church. Paul has to pull rank and say, cut that out!
So, given these bookends, what more can we say about what discipleship looks like? I get a daily devotion from the Center for Action and Contemplation, written by the Franciscan priest, Fr. Richard Rohr. He wrote this on Friday, and I think it helps with the question at hand.
What, then, does it mean to follow the call of Jesus?
History is continually graced with people who somehow learned to act beyond and outside their self-interest and for the good of the world, people who clearly operated by a power larger than their own. Consider Gandhi, Oskar Schindler, and Martin Luther King Jr. Add to them Rosa Parks, Mother Teresa, Dorothy Day, Óscar Romero, César Chávez, and many unsung leaders. Their inspiring witness offers us strong evidence that the mind of Christ still inhabits the world. Most of us are fortunate to have crossed paths with many lesser-known persons who exhibit the same presence. I can’t say how one becomes such a person. All I can presume is that they were all called. They all had their Christ moments, in which they stopped denying their own shadows, stopped projecting those shadows elsewhere, and agreed to own their deepest identity in solidarity with the world.
I like the part where Fr. Rohr says, most of us are fortunate to have crossed paths with many lesser-known persons who exhibit the same presence. Who might you name? Who for you has been a disciple who has lived a life or made choices which inspired you and pointed you in a better, more healthy, more fulfilling, more true and just direction? I name my mother, Emma Ruth Eaton as one of those people. She taught me how to love others, how to be honest, and how to be generous. She survived husbands dying too soon and a husband who lost his way. She didn’t talk a lot about Jesus or God, but lived a life that exemplified faithful service. I can name many more, and I trust you can, as well.
Some folks will say that a disciple of Jesus will be able to know certain things about the Bible, or about church history, or about Christian theology, or explain Christian worship, or define the Trinity (good luck on that one!), or claim Jesus as one’s Lord and Savior and know what to say when asked, Are you saved? Or Are you born again?
I think we miss the mark when we place too many things in the way of discipleship. When Jesus was asked what was the heart of the Jewish Law, he said, Love God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength, and Love your neighbor as yourself. This, he said, sums up all the law and all the teachings. Paul talks in his letters about the Fruit of the Spirit, the Spirit of God made real in the life of Jesus. The fruits are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. I find that these scriptural passages are full of wisdom and practical guidance. If we are able to use them as our guides we will look like disciples, even as we will look unique and exactly as we were created to look.
What does a disciple of Jesus look like? She looks like the pastor who travels to a frigid Minneapolis to join with other faith folk and witness to a way that welcomes the stranger. He looks like the youth director at a church camp who helps a teenager make sense of his sexual identity. They look like you and me, trying to figure out how the life and story of Jesus directs our path forward in a world with confusing choices. In fact, discipleship looks like us, as we look in a spiritual mirror and ask ourselves, not what would Jesus do, but how does God want me to live. That is what discipleship looks like.
I return to Jesus’ instruction to turn around, for which the word “repent” is often used. What will we see when we turn and how will that impact our understanding of discipleship? I trust we will see ourselves in God’s eyes, know who we are and whose we are and celebrate the freedom of new and abundant life.
I will close with a prayer by Thomas Merton.
My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following Your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please You does in fact please You. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that, if I do this, You will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it. Therefore I will trust You always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for You are ever with me, and You will never leave me to face my perils alone. Amen.