Some further thoughts on Jesus’ calling of his disciples

Matt 4:18-22

I have always been amazed at the swiftness with which Peter, Andrew, James and John responded to Jesus’ call. O.k. it was Spirit inspired, but from a human perspective it was an amazing human decision. One, frankly, that I envy.

The irony that I find in my life is that the “faith” decision has never seemed difficult. Partly, I believe, because my parents and theirs had walked the same path. It was the “normal” path to follow. It was path that grew from a very age. Faith, worldview, ethics and the like have been, on the whole, the “easy ” decisions.

The choices I find difficult are the day to day choices. What calling should I (have) follow(ed), what decision should I make about both important life choices and minor ones. It is these I find that leave me to-ing and fro-ing. There are no snap decisions here!

However the joy is, whatever decision I make in the latter category, it is the first, faith, that gives me a comfort and calmness, that no matter what choices I make, God is always in control.

Still, I envy Peter’s ability to make a life changing, career changing, snap decision!

As parents and teachers we often try to instill self esteem in our children. “You are valuable”, “Your are unique”, “You are special” and so on. And there is some truth to each of these. However, to a large degree they are only half truths and these half truths can be dangerous because they can feed our human arrogance and self obsession that already dominates our age. Just note all the advertisements that push the idea that “You are the most important person in the world.” This goes directly against the Christian message of “loving the other” and service; agape love.

If you search the Scriptures for the phrase “in Christ” it becomes obvious that the apostle Paul uses this extensively. For example in Romans 8:1 “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Paul tells us that our esteem comes not from self but from faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The value we have as human beings is directly linked to the being and actions of Christ. He is the foundation of our value and purpose as a human being.

So when we tell our children they are special we should not leave out the foundation of that    value. It is Jesus who paid for us and redeemed us. Or to put it more bluntly, esteem outside of Christ is self delusion.

Day by day, dear Lord, of thee

three things I pray:

to see thee more clearly,

love thee more dearly,

follow thee more nearly,

day by day.

Last night my wife and I went to see “Midnight in Paris.” It was “Back to the Future” for arty types. Like most Woody Allen films it was (in my humble opinion) a trifling diversion. The film left me with one lasting thought however, and that is, there is a human tendency towards nostalgia – a longing to look back at the past through rose coloured glasses and wishing it to return.

Christians suffer from the same syndrome. “The churches were fuller then.” “People lived Christian lives.” “Faith was respected in those days.” … and so on. We hearken back to a golden era when we perceive life to have been better.

The Christian faith, however, has never been a backward looking faith. From its roots in the Old Testment it is a forward looking faith. The people of God in the OT were to look forward to a land, nation, city and messiah.  Now we are to look forward to a new heaven and earth, the realisation of the kingdom,  and the return of the king. God commands us to be active in preparing the the way for the king’s return. We are encouraged to look forward in hope, anticipation and faith. Jesus’ return will not happen by facing the past, but rather by knowing the past, we face the future as we also know he will come from that direction.