1 Discipleship is Costly St. Paul s United Methodist Church Warrington, PA Yr. B 17 th Sunday after Pentecost/in Kingdomtide 1 (James 3:1-12; Mark 8:27-38) September 16, 2018 Irving Cotto, OSL Introduction It is a known fact that the first Christian did not call themselves Christians. Also, Jesus never gave his disciples a particular name. The word Christian which means those who follow Christ, or who belong to the party of Christ, came about more as a derogative term meaning little Christs or those who belong to the party of Jesus as just one more variation of Judaism. Nevertheless, throughout the new testament, Christians are known as the saints of God the word saint or the Greek word, hagios means consecrated. Thus, those who have been set aside for a holy purpose, or a holy mission. Moreover, a community endowed with a royal priesthood (1 Pet. 2:9, 10). It is precisely in the city of Antioch that the followers of Jesus were first called Christians. (Acts 11:26). But, prior to that, Christians were called, people of the way. In other words, people whose life s purpose was centered on following a new path. Jesus has said, I am the way, and the truth, and the life, no one can come to the Father except through me. (Jn. 14:6). And those very first Christian faced opposition, persecution and death as a result 1 [or 20 th Sunday in Ordinary Time]
of their unwavering surrender and commitment to this new path, this new truth, and this new life found in Jesus. But it also points to the fact that the followers of Jesus are people on the move, going where their Lord leads them, and making a difference wherever that mission takes them. It is because of those first Christians many of which died for this faith, that you and I have had the chance to know Jesus and embrace his message. TS: The reading of today s gospel lesson takes us to an honest conversation Jesus started with his disciples as they were walking toward other villages. He takes this time to put before them a critical question, Who do people say I am? (v. 27). He wants them to pay attention to the surrounding interlocutors, people who had opinions about him, as people who have concerns, needs, questions, and anxieties for which they want an answer and a solution. (think about today s interlocutors, real, or imagined ) So, it s almost like telling his disciples, pay attention...listen to what people are saying about me. A great deal of our public witness, before family, friends, and even foes, involves paying attention, listening, and listening with respect, with a real intention to understand where people are coming from. You see, sometimes, we are too quick to ask questions and then we go ahead and answer them for people, before they ve even had a chance to 2
express their views and to let us know that in many instances they do have a sense of God, of faith, and of Jesus Christ as savior in their personal lives. This text ought to keep us from prejudging, or from controlling the conversation. It forces us to listen, and then get a better understanding of people s spiritual richness or their spiritual poverty. It makes us better communicators of God s love, when we try to understand before we speak. The disciples replied, people say you are John the Baptist, you re the prophet Elijah, you re another prophet (v.28) etc. And then Jesus turns the question to them: What about you? Who do you say I am? (v. 29). This is a crucial moment; he raises a question for the believers, of all times: What is your view, what is your opinion about Jesus? At the intellectual level, at the emotional level, who do you think Jesus is? Peter, didn t wait a second, he immediately replied, You are the Christ. (v. 29). His answer was rather quick, perhaps without any serious reflection on what that affirmation meant, until Jesus explains the meaning of his mission and the final outcome. Once Jesus explains more thoroughly what is involved in his Messiahship, (Heb. 9:22). and his divine sonship, suffering, death by crucifixion, Peter could not accept the idea of a crucified Jesus even when he was told that Jesus would rise from the dead on the third day. In fact, he takes Jesus aside, and counsels him to avoid the cross, to perhaps keep a low profile, we don t detail that sidebar, (v.32) but it must have been intense and 3
daring, when Jesus scolded Peter by seeing the voice of Satan in his suggestion; he said to Peter, Get away from me, Satan! You re seeing things merely from a human point of view, not from God s. That s when Jesus as he usually would do, takes advantage of the moment to train and widen his closest followers, the disciples, a lesson or two concerning the path they have been invited to follow. It was in fact a new lesson on discipleship. He brought the crowd surrounding him to come closer to his disciples: If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me (v. 34). The lesson is this, following Jesus means submitting ourselves to an ongoing process of learning on the journey, everyday facing new challenges, but especially letting Jesus be at the very core of our most personal choices. I bring to your attention to the life of two servants of Christ. Two modern examples: -Saint Teresa of Calcutta formerly known as Mother Teresa; the Albanian-Indian nun who became a missionary and in 1950, the founder of the Missionaries of Charity. Known by her radical service and compassion to the poor, the orphans, and the homeless. Witness and missionary work resulted in 4,500 sisters, active in 133 countries, worked with people suffering from leprosy, tuberculosis, AIDS. -Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a young German Lutheran pastor and theologian wrote a book called, the Cost of Discipleship, and another called Life Together. Both of these books among many others, highlight for us the demands and joys of following Jesus and belonging to the community of Jesus. He himself paid a huge price for his ultimate obedience to the gospel. 4
Born in Breslau, Germany in 1906, he decided to study theology and become a professor. After completing his doctorate, he eventually visits the United States, and teaches at Union Theological Seminary in the 30 s. Soon after, in 1933, Adolph Hitler is elected chancellor of Germany. As Nazism takes a hold of that country, Bonhoeffer, faces a dilemma; is he to stay in New York teaching, and living a rather prestigious life, or returning to his country and join others who want to resist an ideology that was bringing much pain to innocent people? And so, he opted to go back, and eventually is found guilty of conspiring against Hitler. He was a young promising pastor who all he wanted was to serve people, be obedient to his calling. However, his sense of obedience to the Gospel, and his love for his nation, caused him to take a position toward, the truth, and against evil; he had served as a pastor in Spain, Dietrich had been involved in teaching in an underground seminary. Further involvement in raising the voice of Christ caused him to be accused of plotting with others-the assassination of Hitler. He was put in prison for two years after which he was executed by hanging. But he left behind a vivid example of what it means to take the path of discipleship seriously. So then, what exactly is discipleship? The formation of a disciple as a student, a learner, a follower of a teacher. Choosing Christ above all as Lord of all. 5
It means completely and sacrificially giving of ourselves to the Savior, to the point of placing all other pleasure, priority, and projects under the Lord Jesus. Discipleship is an ongoing process of maturing in the faith, learning to follow in the footsteps of the one who died for us and learning to love him more, and not being ashamed of being ridiculed, or rejected by others. In this morning s gospel text, Jesus announces for the very first time that he is the Son of Man who will endure much suffering and even death, 6 because of his total surrender into the arms of the One who sent him. He has proposed in his teaching and with his own life, a different perspective of what it means to be a Messiah. It is not about recognition, and awards, it s not about standing out, it is not about privilege, adulation, or neutrality. On the contrary, it s about paying the price to pick up our cross, allowing ourselves to be molded and shaped by the gospel, it s about stepping in footsteps of Jesus. Are we willing to confess Jesus publicly as many times as it is required of us, and then are we willing to help silence any voice which threatens to discourage our work on behalf of those who are in need of justice, compassion, freedom, and peace, all of which can be found personally and collectively through our walk with Jesus. DISCIPLESHIP IS COSTLY! Prov. 27:6;