Called to peace...
After returning from Church one Sunday a small boy said to his mother, ‘I’ve decided that when I grow up I’m going to be a Vicar’. The mother replied that that was very nice, and asked him why he had decided that. The boy replied, ‘Well I have to go to Church on a Sunday anyway, and I think it would be a lot more fun to stand up and talk than to sit down and listen’ !
This morning’s readings are largely about calling, and about responding to a call, whatever that call may be. In the Old Testament we hear of Samuel (1 Samuel 3:1-10) hearing a voice which he assumes is that of Eli. Eventually Eli realises that the voice Samuel is hearing is the voice of God, and Samuel responds with the words, ‘Speak for your servant is listening’.
Even the Psalm (139:1-11) this morning follows the theme of calling, as we realise the protection of God is all around us. In the Psalm we are given the sense of how God knows us absolutely perfectly – he knows every little detail about us. There is that sense that his constant presence with us is a constant call to respond to the gifts he gives us and the love he shows us.
In the Book of Revelation (5:1-10), a book that’s a little confusing at the best of times, we are left with a message that God, through the sacrifice of Jesus has established saints on earth from every tribe and every language and every nation.
And then finally in the gospel of John (1:43-51) we have the account of Jesus asking Philip to follow him, and Philip then going to tell Nathanael that he has found the saviour promised by Moses and the Prophets.
The idea that God calls every one of us to be somebody and to do something is a very clear Biblical principle, but today I want to think of just one example of calling. It is a calling that applies to every Christian person, and that is to work and to pray for peace and justice everywhere, and it follows on from those words we heard in John’s gospel from Nathanael when he was told about Jesus, ‘Can anything good come out of Nazareth ?’
At this time those words are particularly appropriate. The alleged comments from the President of the United States earlier this week were about making judgements about people from particular places – as we think of those words from the gospel about whether anything good could come from Nazareth, we’re reminded also of the words of Philip who said, ‘Come and see’….
As Jesus came from Nazareth and as people witnessed and have continued to witness his work, his love and his power through the centuries we’re reminded of the danger, in fact more precisely the stupidity and ignorance of making judgements about people based on where they come from… Sadly it seems the American President has failed to understand this at all…
Today of course the Holy Land remains a troubled region and many people in Israel would still echo similar sentiments to those expressed by Nathanael, ‘can anything good come out of Nazareth?’
And our calling as we consider that remark is two-fold. It is to consider our own need to work and pray for peace and justice everywhere, and also our own need to consider how well we practice peace and justice within our own lives.
We have heard for a while now about the conflict throughout the Middle East. For a number of years we have heard of conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. And it's very easy to stand up and think these things are nothing to do with us or that we can do nothing about them, but it is our duty as Christian people to be the body of Christ on earth today, and as such, we must be interested in these things, and we must look for ways of seeking peace everywhere.
We must offer our prayers, but sometimes there’s more that we can do as well. How well do we understand the conflicts, how much time have we put into perhaps writing to an MP or how much have we given to an aid agency helping to alleviate suffering in places of conflict… Any pain and suffering in the world, whether close to home or many miles away, is pain caused directly to God, and just as he wants peace for his people so we must demand peace too.
Obviously any conflict in the Holy Land must be especially poignant to us as Christians, as it must be to members of other faiths as well, because it is occurring in a land we call Holy. On a wider scale than that though, much of what is happening there will have ramifications for people everywhere.
Regardless of the rights and wrongs of the arguments for both sides in that conflict, and there is both some right and considerable wrong on both sides, we must demand peace. The reality is that there are people, many of them innocent, who are suffering…
As Churches, we have a voice which we are called to exercise and use to campaign for peace and justice everywhere, as we seek to build the kingdom of God here and now – a kingdom where right will prevail, a kingdom of peace and justice for all people, a kingdom of no pain, no suffering….
The gospel can never be just an individual gospel, because the message of Jesus was not aimed at one or two, or at a certain culture, but at everyone everywhere. It is our calling to share that in every way we can.
And that leads to the second point I mentioned because how we work for peace and justice for others, can be directly proportional to how well we practice peace and justice in our own lives. We may think we’re small, that by ourselves we are insignificant in the overall scheme of the world, but God doesn’t see it that way at all.
He created us and is wanting to use every one of us. He knows all about us, the good and the bad, the very number of hairs on our head are, we’re told, known to him (and before anyone says it or thinks it, I know that’s easier on some than others !!)
When Philip was called by Jesus he responded with excitement. He found Nathanael, and told him about Jesus. Nathanael made that comment about people from Nazareth, and we don’t know whether it was a joke or a serious remark, but when he came to Jesus he knew that Philip was right – Jesus was the one they had been waiting for...
Today we must constantly strive to respond to the call of Jesus to spread his message of peace everywhere in all kinds of different ways – peace between friends and neighbours locally and much further afield, peace between nations, peace between people of different cultures and backgrounds, peace between different faith groups and peace in the hearts of people everywhere.
So let’s be people who are willing to listen out for the call of God, a call which may come in our minds or from our newspapers or television, or from the voice of someone we listen to, and let’s be willing to respond to that call with words similar to those of Samuel, ‘Speak Lord, for your servant is listening.’
And let’s be ready and confident to shout out that we have a message that is both relevant and life changing and full of hope and peace for the present and for the future. AMEN
This morning’s readings are largely about calling, and about responding to a call, whatever that call may be. In the Old Testament we hear of Samuel (1 Samuel 3:1-10) hearing a voice which he assumes is that of Eli. Eventually Eli realises that the voice Samuel is hearing is the voice of God, and Samuel responds with the words, ‘Speak for your servant is listening’.
Even the Psalm (139:1-11) this morning follows the theme of calling, as we realise the protection of God is all around us. In the Psalm we are given the sense of how God knows us absolutely perfectly – he knows every little detail about us. There is that sense that his constant presence with us is a constant call to respond to the gifts he gives us and the love he shows us.
In the Book of Revelation (5:1-10), a book that’s a little confusing at the best of times, we are left with a message that God, through the sacrifice of Jesus has established saints on earth from every tribe and every language and every nation.
And then finally in the gospel of John (1:43-51) we have the account of Jesus asking Philip to follow him, and Philip then going to tell Nathanael that he has found the saviour promised by Moses and the Prophets.
The idea that God calls every one of us to be somebody and to do something is a very clear Biblical principle, but today I want to think of just one example of calling. It is a calling that applies to every Christian person, and that is to work and to pray for peace and justice everywhere, and it follows on from those words we heard in John’s gospel from Nathanael when he was told about Jesus, ‘Can anything good come out of Nazareth ?’
At this time those words are particularly appropriate. The alleged comments from the President of the United States earlier this week were about making judgements about people from particular places – as we think of those words from the gospel about whether anything good could come from Nazareth, we’re reminded also of the words of Philip who said, ‘Come and see’….
As Jesus came from Nazareth and as people witnessed and have continued to witness his work, his love and his power through the centuries we’re reminded of the danger, in fact more precisely the stupidity and ignorance of making judgements about people based on where they come from… Sadly it seems the American President has failed to understand this at all…
Today of course the Holy Land remains a troubled region and many people in Israel would still echo similar sentiments to those expressed by Nathanael, ‘can anything good come out of Nazareth?’
And our calling as we consider that remark is two-fold. It is to consider our own need to work and pray for peace and justice everywhere, and also our own need to consider how well we practice peace and justice within our own lives.
We have heard for a while now about the conflict throughout the Middle East. For a number of years we have heard of conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. And it's very easy to stand up and think these things are nothing to do with us or that we can do nothing about them, but it is our duty as Christian people to be the body of Christ on earth today, and as such, we must be interested in these things, and we must look for ways of seeking peace everywhere.
We must offer our prayers, but sometimes there’s more that we can do as well. How well do we understand the conflicts, how much time have we put into perhaps writing to an MP or how much have we given to an aid agency helping to alleviate suffering in places of conflict… Any pain and suffering in the world, whether close to home or many miles away, is pain caused directly to God, and just as he wants peace for his people so we must demand peace too.
Obviously any conflict in the Holy Land must be especially poignant to us as Christians, as it must be to members of other faiths as well, because it is occurring in a land we call Holy. On a wider scale than that though, much of what is happening there will have ramifications for people everywhere.
Regardless of the rights and wrongs of the arguments for both sides in that conflict, and there is both some right and considerable wrong on both sides, we must demand peace. The reality is that there are people, many of them innocent, who are suffering…
As Churches, we have a voice which we are called to exercise and use to campaign for peace and justice everywhere, as we seek to build the kingdom of God here and now – a kingdom where right will prevail, a kingdom of peace and justice for all people, a kingdom of no pain, no suffering….
The gospel can never be just an individual gospel, because the message of Jesus was not aimed at one or two, or at a certain culture, but at everyone everywhere. It is our calling to share that in every way we can.
And that leads to the second point I mentioned because how we work for peace and justice for others, can be directly proportional to how well we practice peace and justice in our own lives. We may think we’re small, that by ourselves we are insignificant in the overall scheme of the world, but God doesn’t see it that way at all.
He created us and is wanting to use every one of us. He knows all about us, the good and the bad, the very number of hairs on our head are, we’re told, known to him (and before anyone says it or thinks it, I know that’s easier on some than others !!)
When Philip was called by Jesus he responded with excitement. He found Nathanael, and told him about Jesus. Nathanael made that comment about people from Nazareth, and we don’t know whether it was a joke or a serious remark, but when he came to Jesus he knew that Philip was right – Jesus was the one they had been waiting for...
Today we must constantly strive to respond to the call of Jesus to spread his message of peace everywhere in all kinds of different ways – peace between friends and neighbours locally and much further afield, peace between nations, peace between people of different cultures and backgrounds, peace between different faith groups and peace in the hearts of people everywhere.
So let’s be people who are willing to listen out for the call of God, a call which may come in our minds or from our newspapers or television, or from the voice of someone we listen to, and let’s be willing to respond to that call with words similar to those of Samuel, ‘Speak Lord, for your servant is listening.’
And let’s be ready and confident to shout out that we have a message that is both relevant and life changing and full of hope and peace for the present and for the future. AMEN
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