WE ARE CALLED…TO RELATIONSHIP
Isaiah 49: 1-7
John 1: 29-42

           By way of a roadmap…I want to let you know that for this week and next, we are going to be exploring God’s call to us—what God is calling us to be and do. As we do this, I think it is in order to provide a definition for us. We use the word “call” or “calling” quite often in the church and usually just assume that everyone knows what we are talking about. I am defining “call” as an invitation from God or a Divine request; an invitation by God to be a part of God’s work in the world. Often, it is thought that only those in vocational ministry—pastors, missionaries, those whose life’s work is in and with the church—have been called by God. Before we go any further, I want to dispel that thought! God has called each of us; God has invited each of us to be a part of what God is doing in this world.

           As we examine our Scripture passages for this morning, we see evidence of God calling, inviting, persons into God’s work. We aren’t going to spend a lot of time on the text from Isaiah, but I want to lift that up as an example of God calling ordinary people. It its original form, this passage was LIKELY to be heard as a calling of all of Israel to be God’s servant. It was likely an invitation that God, through the prophet, issued to the entire nation of Israel to be the servant of God. As we look at this passage through the lens, with the knowledge of, the New Testament, we can see this passage as perhaps a prophetic call of Jesus to be the Servant of God. Nonetheless, it is a “call” story; a story of God inviting humans into God’s activity in this world.

           As we jump forward to the passage from John, we again see God’s invitation in play. John the Baptist is/was widely recognized for his calling from God. Although the text doesn’t explicitly say so, John’s words and actions give a clue as to his calling from God: he was called to prepare the way for the Messiah whom God would send to Israel. He knew that he was not the Messiah, as some suspected, but rather part of God’s plan in revealing the Messiah to Israel and to the world. Within this same text, we see two disciples also given a calling. At first, their calling is simply to “come and see” where Jesus is staying. As we will discover in just a bit, their calling was something more than just “coming and seeing”.

           What we see in these passages are different people, each with a different calling. Despite the differences in the callings, though, those callings have one thing in common—they are predicated on a relationship with God. The calling each of the “characters” received was only able to be realized and lived out within the context of their relationship with God. It was only by and through their relationship with God that Israel could be a servant of God. It was only within the confines of his relationship with God that John could point to Jesus as the Lamb of God and answer the questions the Jewish authorities posed to him. These things, vital parts of God’s work in the world were only accomplished through a relationship with God. At this point, however, I want to leave Isaiah and John the Baptist and focus our attention more clearly upon those whom the text calls disciples.

           The text tells us these men were disciples of John. From this statement, we can make the assumption that they already had some sort of relationship with God. It was most likely a relationship that was influenced by and enhanced through the message of John the Baptist. So...they are already relating to God in, most-likely, a meaningful way. Then Jesus bursts onto the scene! It is more than likely that these men were, like most Jews of their day, waiting expectantly for God to fulfill the promise to Israel of a Messiah. When John pointed to Jesus and started proclaiming Him as the Lamb of God, the curiosity of these disciples was sufficiently aroused for them to follow after Jesus.

           What happens next essentially paves the way for them to receive their calling from God. We don’t know how closely behind Jesus they were following, but Jesus suddenly turns around and calls them out. He basically asks them, “Why are you following me?!” And so, perhaps fumbling for an answer, they ask where Jesus is staying, where he is teaching. And Jesus invites them to come and see. On the surface, Jesus is inviting them to see where he is staying; at a deeper level, the invitation is to come and go deeper in their relationship with God. They were invited to stay with Jesus. We don’t know what happened in the course of that late afternoon, evening, and, likely, late into that night. What we do know was that it was sufficient for them to believe Jesus was the Messiah and to others about it.

           This calling of the disciples is the same calling each of us have been given by God. I’m guessing, by virtue of your presence here, each of us have some sort of relationship with God. Each of us, without a doubt, has a different kind of relationship with God. Our relationship is based on factors that are different for each person. Just like each person’s calling is different, so too is each person’s relationship with God. But, just like a calling, each relationship has a few commonalities. The first commonality is that a relationship with God is invitational in nature. God invites us into relationship. God initiates the relationship. God speaks to our soul and tells us of God’s desire. However, the response and the establishment of the relationship is up to us. God does not force anyone into a relationship. There is no, “You and I will have a relationship whether you want it or not!” Instead, God says to us “I would love to have a relationship with you, and if you feel the same way, then let’s join together.”

           In addition, our relationship with God is empowering. Our relationship, similar to that of John and Israel, is the driving force behind our fulfillment of what God desires of us. It is virtually impossible for us to live into God’s invitation to us unless we are in relationship with God. I can say this because, invariably, God’s invitation to us is going to be beyond the scope of human strength, courage, knowledge etc. When God invites us to be a part of God’s work, we CANNOT do it by ourselves. Fully accomplishing what God invites us to do and be is only possible with the help of God.

           Just like the disciples, we too are invited to go deeper in our relationship with God than we are right now. Where is God calling us to go deeper? It is different for each one of us. Perhaps that invitation is to go deeper through enriching our prayer life. Perhaps the invitation is to delve deeper into Scripture. Maybe the invitation is to know God deeper through service to others. Maybe the invitation is to simply “come and see” how Jesus is the Messiah, the Savior God has sent into the world!

           Friends, one of God’s deepest desires is a relationship with each one of us. Not merely a relationship like that of acquaintances, but a relationship that is so intimate where nothing of God is hidden from us and nothing of us is hidden from God. We have been invited to be a part of God’s life and to see what is doing and see what God can do. Here, then, is the overarching question: Will we open ourselves to this kind of relationship that continually goes deeper and deeper? Are we even willing to go deeper, or are we content to remain just where we are? AMEN.

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