God’s Call…A Lifetime Journey
John 1:43-51
The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.” Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him about whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth.” Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” When Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him, he said of him, “Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!” Nathanael asked him, “Where did you get to know me?” Jesus answered, “I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you.” Nathanael replied, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” Jesus answered, “Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than these.” And he said to him, “Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.”
Psalm 139 is one of my favorite psalms because it so beautifully and intimately describes the psalmist’s relationship between himself and his Creator. Even as he is formed in his mother’s womb, God’s eyes behold his unformed substance. Within God’s book are written all the days of his life even before they exist. It is comforting to think that is true for each one of you, as well as, for me. God dearly loves us and wants to be in relationship with us so deeply that when he searches us out, he knows everything about us. He knows when we are sleeping and when we are wake. He knows our thoughts and even our speech before it is uttered. Now some may find it disturbing to be hemmed in by God. But think of it as being enclosed in divine reality. God lays his hands upon each one of us and we are enveloped by God’s love. In response to God’s love for us and all of creation, the questions to ask ourselves are: How do I use the days that God has given me? How is God leading me? And, to what is God calling me right now? Today? Because God knows us through and through, we are called to do his work according to the gifts he has given us. As we journey along life’s path we grow mentally, emotionally and spiritually and the innate gifts God has given us develop over time.
When he was growing up, my brother John wanted to be an artist. My parents were not pleased about this choice of vocation. But John was relentless in his desire. He began drawing and painting colorful atomic mushrooms. I have to laugh, because in my opinion they were really ugly! But over the years with fortitude and determination, my brother became a phenomenal artist. He paints beautiful oil and acrylic realistic scenes, as well as, abstract line drawings. I asked him to draw me an abstract picture of the emerging church that its bubbling up around us and it its hanging in my office.
The point is we accrue and develop gifts and talents we learn along the way. Life is a constant discernment process. God’s call on our lives is a lifelong journey and although some of us are called to be or to do a particular thing for many years. Others of us have been called to do many different things over the course of our lives.
As many of you know, the later has been true for me. All of many different professions has led me to where I am today. In fact they have prepared me for where I am today—a degree in music education, a business career heading up a computer services department for an investment banking firm, a master’s degree in teaching while raising a child, and a master’s of divinity. Ultimately, God has led and called me to ministry at Good Shepherd. Where God’s call will lead me next? Who knows? God’s call is the journey of a lifetime.
Take Samuel for example. Samuel’s mother, Hannah was unable to bear a child. So distraught about her shame, she prayed to God to conceive a child. If God opened her womb, she promised that she would dedicate her child to God. Well, as you know, God did grant her petition and she gave birth to a baby boy, who she named Samuel. When he was weaned, she took him to the house of the Lord and presented him to Eli, the priest.
Now in those days, Israel was weak, a community which was in moral chaos, engaged in brutality and practiced undisciplined religion. Israel did not have the capacity or the will to free itself from its troubles. Furthermore, the Israelites no longer relied on to God to lead them. Eli was a terrible priest. He had become old and dull. He didn’t control his sons who served as priests under him. They abused the sacrifice by eating the best parts that were to be given to God. They also abused the women who were serving and guarding the entrance to the tent of meeting. Instead of disciplining his sons, Eli spent much of his time sitting on his throne. For his ineffective parenting and failure to effectively judge, God pronounced judgement on the house of Eli. In other words, God thought it was time for change. But God knew who he would call. It was the child Samuel.
So our text tells of the call of Samuel. Samuel who is to take the place of Eli as a prophet. The call of Samuel is a very well-known Bible story taught in Sunday school. Samuel hears God’s voice calling Samuel, Samuel and he replies, Here, I am! He thinks Eli is calling him. But, Eli says, it isn’t me! Go back to sleep. Again the boy hears his name being called: Samuel, Samuel. Again he goes to Eli, and says, Here, I am! It happens a third time and finally Eli gets it. It is the Lord who is calling Samuel. So he tells him, go back to sleep. If you hear the voice again, answer, “Speak, Lord, your servant is listening.”
Samuel does what he is told and the Lord now comes to him calling Samuel, Samuel! As Samuel listens, the Lord tells him that Eli’s will be punished. Ultimately, over time, God prepares Samuel to replace Eli. And it is Samuel who anoints Israel’s first kings, Saul and the great King David who brings order to the kingdom. For Samuel, God’s call is a lifetime journey.
Last week our lesson’s spoke of Jesus’ baptism and God’s call on Jesus’. In Jesus’ baptism we see the beginning of Jesus’ life journey. And this week we begin to see the call of Jesus’ disciples. Two of John the Baptist’s disciples are standing with him, one of them being Andrew. As Jesus walks by, John identifies Jesus as the Lamb of God. Andrew finds Simon Peter and tells him that they have found the Messiah and he brings Simon to Jesus.
Jesus finds Philip. And the amazing thing is that even before Philip finds Nathanael and brings him to Jesus, Jesus has already seen Nathanael. Jesus knows Nathanael.
As Melina Quivik puts it, “Both Philip and Nathanael encounter a rabbi who makes huge and wondrous promises. In today’s gospel lesson, Jesus promises those who become his disciples that heaven will open with angels ascending and descending.” Quivik goes on to explain, “the church, in essence, becomes a community that welcomes people to enter into a mystery of heaven and angels and insight from God.”
For us, God is close at hand and can’t be avoided. God intimately knows us, whether we like it or not! And God calls us to do things we never could imagine we could do. Over our lifetime journey, God continues to nurture us, groom us, call us and invite us to be his beloved people and to make this a better world, as he did Samuel and Jesus’ disciples.
God is calling each one of us.
To what is God calling you?
Are you listening?
In Jesus name, Amen.