Listen to this sermon here.
Jan 24th, 2021
ANNOUNCEMENTS
– Ash Wednesday Service with the Baltimore Area Ministerial Association
– Current Prayer Requests are online or in telephone
CENTERING
For today’s centering of ourselves for worship, we’re going to focus on our bodies. I like this centering right before bed the most. It helps me feel relaxed, centered, and ready to sleep because it reduces the stress and anxiety and tension I feel.
We’ll start by focusing on our toes. How do they feel? Wiggle them. Can you see them? What do they look like? Do you remember rough housing with siblings and trying to make them smell your toes? Have you ever tried to pick something up with your toes, or write with your toes? What a weird word – toes! Thank you, God, for toes.
And now we move up to knees. Knobby knees, and chubby knees. Knees that ache. Bending knees. How do your knees feel? Can you get down on them still? Are they swollen, hairy, numb, itchy, scabbed? Knees for praying. Knees for kneeling. Knees for gardening. Knees with a silent k, how strange. Thank you, God, for knees.
And hips. Feel your hips. Hips that bore children. Hips that bore heavy loads. Hips that swing, carrying us place to place as we walk. Hips that ache. Hips that sashay in dance. Try rolling your hips, moving him. Try putting your hands on your hips. Can you feel your hip bones? Thank you, God, for hips.
And backs. Broad backs and curved backs. Think of your back muscles, stretch them, relax them. Backs that carried books in school and backs exposed to sun while swimming, or haying, or lying out. Your spine inside your back – that cradles your spinal nerves. Your spine at your brain – where you, all of you, were knit together by God one cell by one cell at a time. Thank you, God, for backs.
And shoulders. Shoulders for crying on. Shoulders that stretch. Take a deep sigh. Feel how your shoulders roll. They connect to your neck. Do you wear a necklace? Can you feel your shirt tag? Roll your neck. Feel the way it bends and flexes. Beautiful necks, necks like turkeys, necks that disappear into second and fourth chins and necks thin with every tendon showing – all necks flowing with blood, with oxygen, with food, with water, with thoughts. Thank you God, for necks.
And now our heads. Picture your chin. Your nose. Your eyes. Your hair. How is your mind, your soul, your thoughts? What races there – think them – and then let them evaporate out of your breath by breath… … … … … God we give you the following worries… … … … God we give you the following joys … … … … God we give you the following sorrows … … … … God we give you the following gratitude … … … … God, we thank you for our heads. And we come, head to toe, knee to shoulder, stretched and limber and ready to follow you wherever you lead us. Come into our worship today gently guide us by the hand. Amen.
Please check our private facebook page for prayer requests, or telephone or text me. I’ll gladly keep passing them along.
SCRIPTURE
Our first reading is Jonah 3:1-10. Jonah has been doing everything he can to avoid the call of God. He doesn’t want to fish for men in Ninevah. He even is fed to the fishes… but he comes back because God saves him. And now Jonah reluctantly telling only tiny portion of the town that they need to change… but a huge (comically huge) response follows. Jonah, we know, is upset God is so merciful. Someday, he’d like to see less mercy… but he begrudgingly admits he rather likes the mercy for himself.
The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time, saying, “Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you.” So Jonah set out and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly large city, a three days’ walk across. Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s walk. And he cried out, “Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” And the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth. When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. Then he had a proclamation made in Nineveh: “By the decree of the king and his nobles: No human being or animal, no herd or flock, shall taste anything. They shall not feed, nor shall they drink water. Human beings and animals shall be covered with sackcloth, and they shall cry mightily to God. All shall turn from their evil ways and from the violence that is in their hands. Who knows? God may relent and change his mind; he may turn from his fierce anger, so that we do not perish.” When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do it.
…
Mark is the book of immediately, of no minced words, of a quick story. And quickly, we are told John the Baptist is arrested – and in response, Jesus immediately picks up John’s words. The reign of God is here. Repent, and believe in the good news! Immediately, people respond to Jesus and do just that.
Mark 1:14-20
Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.”
As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, “Follow me and I will make you fish for people.” And immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John, who were in their boat mending the nets. Immediately he called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and followed him.
SERMON: Fishing: Not Fun for Fishes
I’ve been told that being “fishermen of men” is a good thing. It’s what you do when you evangelize – go out. Fish for Jesus. Bring them in. Gather up everyone in God’s net. Jesus calls the reign of God like a net that catches everyone: Mathew 13: 47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and caught fish of every kind; 48 when it was full, they drew it ashore, sat down, and put the good into baskets but threw out the bad. So go! Go fish! Bring in netfuls for Jesus! Cast our your fishing lines!
Except, the more I’ve thought about this analogy, the more it has disturbed me. I’m a fisherwoman. And fishing is usually pretty fun for the person fishing. There’s nature, there’s the excitement of getting nibbles… of landing the big ones. Its refreshing to watch the herons and turtles and … life, just being alive.
Fishing really is horrific for the fish. It’s violent and death-dealing for the fish. Fish are yanked out of their environment. They’re promised a tasty worm, but it is bait. Inside of it is a sharp hook. That hook won’t let them go. It rips them into an area they cannot breathe. They then either are hacked apart and become bait for other fish, or they’re gutted and become food, or if they’re lucky, they suffocate awhile and then are tossed back into the water.
I mean, no analogies are perfect. The reign of God isn’t a net. But like a net. The disciples of Jesus aren’t actually fishing men. It is like they are fishing for men.
But what did Jesus mean by this phrase? Did Jesus say it as a pun all light-hearted “Come, let’s go fish for men, you fishermen!” Or did Jesus say it as … an angry warning, “Come, now is the time. We fish men.”
I’m… not so sure.
We know Jesus was steeped in scripture. The culture he was in was steeped in scripture. Everyone knew the stories of scripture forward and backwards. Rabbis, the teachers, knew the stories well enough to draw across multiple books and scrolls to address the hardest, thorniest issues. Jesus is a rabbi – not by professional training, but by calling and the anointing of the Holy Spirit of God upon him. Many of his words and lessons are rooted deep into the scriptures he inherited. Maybe he meant fishing as it is used in those scriptures.
The Prophet Jeremiah heard the word of God in Jeremiah 16:16 saying, “I am now sending for many fishermen, says the LORD, and they shall catch them; and afterward I will send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain and every hill, and out of the clefts of the rocks.” In other words, Jeremiah heard God say God is going to fish all the bad people out and destroy them. Hunt them down. Flush them out. Fish them out.
That’s fishing in a scary context.
The Prophet Amos says, Amos 4:2: “The Lord GOD has sworn by his holiness: The time is surely coming upon you, when they shall take you away with hooks, even the last of you with fishhooks.” [You] “who oppress the poor, who crush the needy,” …. In other words, the over-fed, over luxurious, over indulgent God shall send woes against and will fishhook catch every last “cow” and see these who refused to come to God in the good nor the bad are punished.
It’s again…. Evildoers, be aware, God is coming. And God’s angry.
So we turn to the Prophet Ezekiel 29:4. He hears a prophecy for the Egyptian Pharaoh, “I will put hooks in your jaws, and make the fish of your channels stick to your scales. I will draw you up from your channels, with all the fish of your channels sticking to your scales.” This prophecy against Pharaoh came because Pharaoh claimed he owned the Nile, and that Pharaoh made the Nile. God’s desire to drag out the Pharaoh like a fish from the Nile and lay the fish in the desert to flop, die, and be ate by wild animals.
Prideful, vain, thinking of yourself as God be aware… God is coming. And angry.
The wisdom of Ecclesiastes 9: 12? “For no one can anticipate the time of disaster. Like fish taken in a cruel net, and like birds caught in a snare, so mortals are snared at a time of calamity, when it suddenly falls upon them.”
Fishing is unanticipated disaster for the fish. A cruel net. A calamity. A woe.
Finally, Jesus would have known the Prophet Habakkuk (1:16-17) The enemy brings all of them up with a hook; he drags them out with his net, he gathers them in his seine; (That’s another name for a big net.) so he rejoices and exults. Therefore he sacrifices to his net and makes offerings to his seine; for by them his portion is lavish, and his food is rich. Is he then to keep on emptying his net, and destroying nations without mercy?” In other words, the bad guys thrive off of war.
Therefore, God speaks a vow against these fishers of men: Habakkuk 2:6-16: “Alas for you who heap up what is not your own!” How long will you load yourselves with goods taken in pledge?7 Will not your own creditors suddenly rise, and those who make you tremble wake up? Then you will be booty for them. because you have plundered many nations, all that survive of the peoples shall plunder you— because of human bloodshed, and violence to the earth, to cities and all who live in them. “Alas for you who get evil gain for your house, setting your nest on high to be safe from the reach of harm!” You have devised shame for your house by cutting off many peoples; you have forfeited your life. The very stones will cry out from the wall, and the plaster will respond from the woodwork. “Alas for you who build a town by bloodshed, and found a city on iniquity!” Is it not from the LORD of hosts that peoples labor only to feed the flames, and nations weary themselves for nothing? But the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea. “Alas for you who make your neighbors drink, pouring out your wrath until they are drunk, in order to gaze on their nakedness!” You will be sated with contempt instead of glory. Drink, you yourself, and stagger! The cup in the LORD’s right hand will come around to you, and shame will come upon your glory!
In other words – that’s a lot of curses for people who purposefully take advantage of others who are drunk; curses against people who get rich off of the poor; and a lot of curses against those who profit from war. God is coming.
I… couldn’t find any positive cases of fishing used as an analogy in the scriptures Jesus inherited. All of them were violent imagery. Be aware. God is coming. And God is not happy with all your sinning.
This really fits into Jesus’ context. John was preaching the reign of God comes soon, repent – say you’re sorry – and change your ways before it is too late. When John is captured and silenced for preaching, Jesus begins by saying The Reign of God is NOW – now is the time. Repent – change – and believe.
And to his disciples, it’s time to go fishing men.
That’s a real serious threat.
This isn’t let’s go make believers of all nations. This isn’t a call to throw out the wide net and gather all people into the reign of God… this is a promise, a testimony.
God is here NOW in a brand new way. And there’s no hiding. Every single person is fished out of whatever protection they’ve set up to avoid consequences – every defense of a high paid layer, a castle full of guards, a hierarchy of yesmen – all the power and wealth and influence in the world isn’t a strong enough defense. God’s gonna get ya. (In the words of Johnny Cash) And we all get judged.
The seine, the net, gathers in all the fish. Everyone gets brought in. The good are kept. The bad throw out. Out where? The nets were on land. So out into the desert like Pharaoh to be ate by wild animals?
These are terrifying images!
These are powerful images – just the kind of images the oppressed Judeans needed. Each and every leader they began to have for themselves was killed by the puppet kings set over them by occupying Rome. Each and every prophet killed. Each uprising met with greater and greater violence. Who wouldn’t want to think of God coming after King Herod like God did Pharaoh? Who wouldn’t want to picture sudden calamity befalling the rich, powerful, and comfortable who were keeping the rest of us poor, weak, and miserable?
Jesus’ words are call to a… revolution. Simon the Zealot would be proud. These disciples have no idea yet the revolution Jesus calls them, and calls you and I to, is not a revolution of blood and death and paying evil for evil. They don’t yet know he is speaking of a sudden calamity of the soul. They don’t yet know the kingdom of God isn’t a physical place, but a way of life. A way of dying. A way of living again. A way of continuing beyond death. These are nuances and teachings that are developed as they walk with Jesus. These are teachings and nuances we learn as we live in community following Jesus.
Ched Myers, (Binding the Strong Man) writing on fishhooks as representative of divine judgment, writes, “Jesus is inviting common folk to join him in his struggle to overturn the existing order of power and privilege.” It’s the call then and the call today: It is – now is the time. Stand up! Stand up! And let’s shake the foundations of this world.
Shake them! No more predatory loans. No more paying to have your check cashed. No more bank fees on bank fees. Shake the foundations – we refuse a dog-eat-dog foundation to our society. We demand a society with a foundation of community.
Overturn the order of things. No more shall elected officials be white, male, straight, Christian, and from money. Elected officials shall represent the diversity of the people who elect them! White and black, Asian and First Nation, female and male and more; a plethora of religions and from homes with four garages and from living homeless in garages.
Privilege is redefined. It is a privilege to sit with the mourning, to comfort the sorrowful. It is a honorable and glorious duty to pick up trash and bathe the infirm. It is a respected and highly valued job to scrub toilets and work drive through food joints. To be a servant, to work for others, is to be a king or queen among humans.
Jesus’ call is a revolution in how to live. How to die. How to BE at all times and places. How to BE the presence of God to others. How to BE in the reign of God now. How to BE a force of good and hope and strength in a world so often a chaotic ocean of hurts, evils, and injustices.
Come and fish. Come and join me in changing everything. The time is now.
Amen!
Pastor Whitney Bruno Sermons 