Fifth Sunday after Epiphany

There’s a lot to like about the Gospel of Luke. It’s got the Christmas story that we all know and love. It’s got a lot of the stories that we love to hear over and over, like the story of the prodigal son and the story of the good Samaritan. Clearly, Luke is a great story-teller.

The story we have for today is no exception. But if we really want to be able to understand Simon’s faith journey, we have to go back a bit in the Gospel of Luke. It’s not entirely clear from Luke’s account when, exactly, he begins collecting followers and who those followers might be.

Part of the problem is that there are some narrative holes in Luke’s story. So, for example, we read in Chapter 4, verses 14-15: “14 Then Jesus, filled with the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee, and a report about him spread through all the surrounding country. 15 He began to teach in their synagogues and was praised by everyone.” (Luke 4:14-15)

Immediately after that we have the story from a couple of weeks ago, of Jesus teaching in the synagogue: “16 When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, 17 and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him.” (Luke 4:16-17) In that same scene, he goes on to say, “Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, ‘Doctor, cure yourself!’ And you will say, ‘Do here also in your hometown the things that we have heard you did at Capernaum.’” (Luke 4:23) ‘Do here also in your hometown the things that we have heard you did at Capernaum.’ The problem is that, according to the narrative we have thus far from Luke, Jesus hasn’t been to Capernaum yet! Then in verse 31 we finally read, “31 [Jesus] went down to Capernaum, a city in Galilee, and was teaching them on the sabbath.” (Luke 4:31) Jesus then heals the man with the unclean spirit, and we’re told, “37 And a report about him began to reach every place in the region.” (Luke 4:37)

I suspect that it was somewhere between the time that Jesus first arrived in Capernaum and when he healed the man with the unclean spirit, that Simon became aware of who Jesus was and that, by the time of the healing of the man with the unclean spirit, he was a regular follower of Jesus. I say this because immediately after that line about the “report about him [reaching] every place”, we are told that “38 After leaving the synagogue he entered Simon’s house.” (Luke 4:38) They go to Simon’s house, so clearly there’s already some sort of established relationship there. It’s then that Simon’s mother-in-law is healed by Jesus, after which: “all those who had any who were sick with various kinds of diseases brought them to him; and he laid his hands on each of them and cured them. 41 Demons also came out of many, shouting, ‘You are the Son of God!’ But he rebuked them and would not allow them to speak, because they knew that he was the Messiah.” (Luke 4:40-41)

All of that finally brings us to where we are in today’s reading. Today’s reading is important for a couple of reasons. First, it’s important because it’s the climax of Simon’s journey from mere observer and follower of Jesus to being a believer in Jesus. A climax which occurs only after Simon himself becomes the subject of Jesus’ amazing power. We know that Simon and Jesus already know one another. So, it’s not something that happens just out of the blue, when Jesus hops into Simon’s boat and asks him to put out from the shore, so that he doesn’t get forced into the water by the crowds that gather more and more closely to Jesus, pressing in continually. They already have a relationship! I would even go so far as to say they know one another quite well. But Simon is not yet a believer. True, when Jesus says to Simon, ““Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch” (Luke 5:4), Simon responds, “Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.” (Luke 5:5) Simon uses the term “Master”, but that’s not a religious term. While it connotes respect for one in authority, it has no hint or connection to a sense of divinity. And it’s out of that sense of respect that Simon, at Jesus’ behest, undertakes what he surely thought was a fool’s errand, to go out and fish some more, even though their nets returned empty the whole night before. The pivotal moment is when Simon sees the tremendous haul of fish. “8 But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, ‘Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!’”

As I said before, this final scene in the story is important for a couple of reasons. First, again as I’ve already said, it is the culmination of Simon’s journey from hanger-on or interested party to believer.

Second, it’s important because, for the first time, we see a human being perceiving and declaring Jesus’ divinity purely through his relationship and encounters with Jesus. As opposed to the title “Master”, “Lord” has very definite religious and divine implications. It’s true that others have spoken about Jesus as being the Messiah or the salvation of the world, but it’s important to note that the individuals who said those things were either: 1) Angels, people who heard it from Angels, 2) people whom we are told are in the presence of the Holy Spirit, like Mary and Elizabeth and like Simeon, in the story we heard last week, and 4) The demons whom Jesus casts out. All of them creatures of the “spiritual realm” if you will. But here, for the first time, we have a profession of Jesus as Lord inspired by the power of God being exercised by and through the person of Jesus. And all because Simon has not only witnessed the power of God working through Jesus in others, but because he has now also witnessed that power for himself.

So why spend so much time going through all this? First, it’s a pretty good model of faith development. We see the journey of someone who is tangentially related, to being more directly involved when his mother-in-law is healed, to experiencing conversion when he directly encounters the power of God.

Second, and more to the point for this particular sermon, it also serves as a pretty good model for evangelism. Congregational growth isn’t something that magically happens all by itself. Nor is it something that God magically does for us. Meaningful, significant congregational growth happens one way, and one way only. It happens through the intentional efforts of those who feel that Calvary has something to offer others. But not just any old something. What we have to offer is an amazing community. What we have to offer is a safe space, where people can be vulnerable and honest. Regardless of who or what you are. When we enter the space, the labels come off. Here we are simply siblings in Christ. We may not agree on all things, but we do our best to be accepting and inclusive of all people. What we have to offer is a place where people can have a powerful experience of God’s love and presence. What we have to offer here is the opportunity for someone to experience a deep and abiding sense of meaning in their lives. And meaning is something that everyone, and I mean everyone, is looking for. And the more disconnected our culture becomes in general, the deeper, the more profound that desire for meaning becomes.

So, when we’re talking about evangelism, using the model of Simon’s journey, it’s not so much about what we do, it’s more about what we don’t do. It’s not up to us to convince someone that God is real, and that Jesus really did die and was raised again. If you look at our story, nobody tried to convince Simon that Jesus was the Messiah. Simon came to that conclusion all by himself, through his own personal experience of the power of God. So, we don’t have to try and convince or convert anyone. That’s Jesus’ job! And Jesus generally speaking, is pretty good at that kind of thing! Jesus drives out demons… Jesus heals people... Jesus tells people things that nobody else can know about them… Jesus brings the wine to the party…  Jesus raises the dead. So, we don’t have to worry about any of that. Jesus is perfectly happy doing the things that Jesus does, and it’s perfectly fine if we simply let Jesus be Jesus.

 What we need to do is really much simpler. Remember, Simon started out just by hanging out a bit with the Jesus crowd. We just need to provide an opportunity, an invitation for someone to simply come into contact with our community here. You don’t even have to invite them to church, unless of course you think that’s the approach that a particular person might need. Instead, how about inviting someone to come to the mother-daughter dinner with you. And no, don’t ask them to pay!! How about inviting them to come to the men’s brisket blowout? Or the Fall Festival? Or the Christmas Market? Or Top of The Hill? Or the Blessing of The Animals event?

And if they accept your invitation, great! Then invite them to another. And then another. Just like Simon started hanging around Jesus when Jesus finally showed up in Capernaum. You’re not forcing them to participate in something, you’re just asking them to come hang out, to experience the atmosphere of the congregation and to get a taste of the caring and compassion that’s on offer here.

The next step then is for them to be a little more directly involved. After Simon was hanging out with Jesus for a while, he became a little more directly involved with Jesus. Jesus comes to Simon’s house and heals his mother-in-law. So, you’ve got this friend or acquaintance who’s been coming to some different events. The next step may be to invite them to help out with something. Instead of inviting them to just show up for something, invite them to participate! “Hey, I know you really love coming to the Christmas market. We could really use an extra set of hands this year. Would you mind coming to help out for a couple of hours? “I know you loved the wiener dog races last year. Would you be willing to help out with the registration?”

The final step is to invite them into a closer and intentional encounter with Jesus. But of course, that’s not what you say to them. Because that would probably come across as a little weird and off-putting. Simon’s pivotal encounter with Jesus happens after Jesus asks if he can use his boat to speak to the crowds, and then invites him to once more put out his nets in deeper water. Simon is skeptical, but he goes along with it, because of his respect for Jesus in the relationship they’ve developed thus far. Jesus doesn’t invite Simon to participate in a miracle, but simply to come along for the ride for a bit. So, once your friend has helped out a couple of times with something, invite them to come sit with you at worship. If that feels a little awkward to you, think about doing it during one of the major holidays when a lot of people who don’t attend worship on a regular basis decide to go to church. “Hey, are you doing anything on Christmas eve this year? Why don’t you come sit with us for the service at Calvary. It’s a beautiful service.” “What are you doing on Easter Sunday? How about you come sit with us at Calvary and then we can have dinner together!” “You should see what we do next week for Holy Humor Sunday! It’s the best! It’s the most fun I’ve ever had in church!”

Clearly, what we’re talking about here is a long-term strategy. Evangelism and faith development strategies are always long games, because it takes time to develop a relationship. It doesn’t matter if you’re talking about a relationship with another person, a relationship with a congregation, or a relationship with Jesus. It doesn’t have to be complicated. It doesn’t have to be particularly intense. But it does need to be intentional.

We can always count on Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, to do what he promises to do, which is to draw others into relationship with himself. That’s not our job. All we have to do is to show someone else that the door is open, invite them in, and let Jesus take care of the rest. And when we do that consistently, and in a spirit of love and compassion, I promise you that we will see results that will astound you. 

So let’s imagine a different ending to this story: When they had done this, they brought in so many people that their pews were beginning to break. And they ended up having to build a bigger church.  AMEN