Over the next few weeks I want to encourage us to explore discipleship and how we might grow and strengthen our faith. If anything I have learnt over the past year, its that when people see the difference they want to find out more. They are curious as to the how and the way. In the beginning some take the mickey - including family. But as the difference becomes more obvious then they are interested to find out more. We can inspire and encourage others to join with us because there are visible positive results. Those who do join in have to make their own choice though because each person is responsible for what they learn, or eat, or do. Just as going to McDonald’s doesn’t make you a burger, joining a gym doesn’t make you fit. You have to commit and make your own effort, your own decisions.
Today I want to encourage you to assess where you are on your faith journey. It is a good place to start, because it is when we acknowledge where we are, that we can make decisions about how to move forward in faith.
It is a time of honesty - a time to be honest with yourself and with God.
It can be a time of challenge because you might not like what you find.
It is can be a time of empowerment because you realise how far you have come. You might think that in terms of faith that you haven’t grown that much, and yet when you think of the times where you have resisted temptation, or overcome some time of hardship, or when doubt has almost wiped you out, that mustard seed of faith has never gone.
If we are to commit to turning our lives around - whether it is healthy living, eating well, getting fit, reducing our carbon footprint, developing our spiritual life of prayer or bible reading, improving our minds - we need to know what it is that we need to do. So we can’t shortcut this process of discipleship.
Looking at the story from the Gospel today, John knew who he was and where he stood in the story and mission of the faith. He doesn’t speak from a place of self-pity, but a place of confidence. He knew that the one who came after him, would surpass him. We have to ask ourselves where do we place Jesus in our lives? And this isn’t so much about putting God first, but actually about recognising that God is in all things and through all things. God is part of our daily life, part of our family, part of our friendship circles, part of our working life, our commitments.
John knows that Jesus is the Lamb of God, and gives him his place. And from this knowledge that he shares with those who follow him, Jesus has his first two disciples who follow him. John points the way to the Messiah in such a way that Andrew is able to tell his brother Simon that he has found the Messiah.
As a Church, especially one facing such change and decline, where conversations of linkages, unions and closures, of cutting staff and the minister retirement cliff, shrinking congregations, resources and finances can cripple our outlook, we need faith. And it can’t be a faith that is built on the sandy ground of reshaping committees and governance, but a faith that is built of the cornerstone - that is Jesus Christ himself. There is a place of reshaping, for thinking of others and building a church community that is focussed on the right things. But at the heart of any change and transition in a church is you. Each and everyone of you.
If you want to know how healthy we are as a church, it isn’t the number of bums on seats on a Sunday morning, or indeed how much money in the bank, it is the faith that resides and grows within you. How do we measure that? How do we nurture our seeds of faith? That is the million dollar question. It is your faith and how you point the way to the Messiah, like John the Baptist that is our measurement. However, to do that, we need, like John to know the Messiah.
It is easy to accept who we are at a superficial level. We get comfortable with who we are, even if we wish that we were taller, shorter, smarter, richer or whatever. Yet if we dig down below the superficial level to what really matters to us, what do we find?
I want to plant some seeds of discontent amongst us...because seeds of discontent motivate us to be uncomfortable, and when we get uncomfortable we make changes. There are definitely times when being comfortable is a must, wearing the pyjamas of faith are necessary. Even Jesus took his disciples on retreat.
This is a time of discontent and we are going to need to strengthen our faith, be convinced of the fact that God is here, that we are his people in this place and we have everything we need to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ. We know that these are dark times for the Church, but the light shines in the darkness and the darkness hasn’t put it out. Arguably, this is the time when the fields are ready for harvest.
That is the Great Commission - that we are to go and make disciples. However, to make disciples we need to be disciples. I have made more disciples for WW than arguably I have made for Christ. Certainly before I got involved with WW, nobody got involved with it because of me. Obviously, I never truly know how many seeds I have planted for Christ, for it is God that makes them grow.
Where are you at? Is your faith something that informs your daily life? How you treat people? What you buy in the shops or who you vote for? How you communicate with those who annoy you? Faith isn’t just about worship or reading God’s word or volunteering at the Foodbank. It is a way of life, it is our life. And this isn’t about comparing with others because telling St. Peter at the Pearly Gates that you were better that Mrs Smith isn’t going to cut it.
However, before you think I am judging you - I’m not. I have to assess my faith, my commitment to be a disciple as well as my commitment to make disciples. I am far from having this sewn up.
Thankfully, I know that I’m not in this by myself. Firstly, Jesus is our teacher, Rabbi. We learn from him by reading his word, by prayer, by contemplation and by getting out there and doing it. We grow and mature as we grow in trust, because God is faithful, even when we are faithless. Paul writing to the Church in Corinth which was as messed up as many a church family is today, praises God for their faith and tells them they have every spiritual gift they need. Everything we need is at our fingertips, just sometimes we need help to make sense of it, to embrace it.
I always knew about healthy eating, portion sizes and all that jazz. But I needed help to make sense of it, to embrace it. Nowadays I don’t need the same level of support because it has become a way of life. We know so much but sometimes we need the help and guidance of others more experienced, or more knowledgeable or just willing to make mistakes with us. Sometimes we win big, other times we feel like total failures. But we don’t quit! Once we commit to this we might find we go on to far greater amazing things for and with God than we ever thought possible.
Jesus’ disciples went through the highs and lows of discipleship. From great praise to deep lows, from profound teaching to getting out there and trying it from themselves, the disciples went through it all. But they didn’t quit - even Peter who denied Christ three times became the rock upon which the church was built.
So today I want to assure you that God loves you. There is nothing in this world or the next that can separate us from the love of God found in Jesus Christ. Assessing your discipleship is to motivate you - rather than stagnate. We don’t know what we don’t know. So ponder it this week - be aware of how your faith impacts the choices you make, the words you say, the behaviour, the time you spend with God...
Whatever this season of discipleship brings to light for you, let me know, constructively so that you can be supported in this journey. You are not alone, for we are in this together and ultimately God Himself will provide.
The author of the Message version shares Paul’s words from 1st Corinthians like this:
Just think—you don’t need a thing, you’ve got it all! All God’s gifts are right in front of you as you wait expectantly for our Master Jesus to arrive on the scene for the Finale. And not only that, but God himself is right alongside to keep you steady and on track until things are all wrapped up by Jesus. God, who got you started in this spiritual adventure, shares with us the life of his Son and our Master Jesus. He will never give up on you. Never forget that. Amen.
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