Text: Mark 1:29-39

Distractions

This gospel is like life: it has a lot of distractions.

There are lots of details we could run down; tangents we could explore: These new disciples, their mom and her mysterious ailment, the demon possession.

This gospel, on the other hand, is actually about the gospel.

It is about moving, finding, and proclaiming the good news to people that need it.  And this is no easy task.

It starts with Jesus’s baptism, the calling of the disciples, Andrew and his brother, Simon (Peter) go first, and then they get moving.  For these new disciples, it is a sprint.  They are off, trying to keep up with this guy who zags when they expect him to zig.  He doesn’t just talk about stuff, he gets right into it.

No wonder the disciples never know what’s going on.  We wouldn’t.  We don’t.

Not one about demons!  Please, can’t we pick a different one…

To get a handle on it, maybe we should look at one of those tangents: the demons.

Jodi-Renee Adams, in her reflection on this gospel, writes this candid response:

Demons wig me out. I’ve spent the last few years trying to avoid having to form a theology, philosophy, or even an opinion of demons. I’ve tried even harder to avoid being one of “those” evangelicals who prays that Satan would keep his grimy mitts off of the sound system or out of the weather during the youth group ski trip.

None of the people in the synoptic gospels know who Jesus really is or where he’s going.  Only the demons. And when they threaten to reveal the truth, he shuts them up.  The disciples aren’t supposed to know what Jesus is up to, and neither are we!  This is why it’s hard!  We have to trust and follow Jesus where he’s going.  We’re to follow Him.  We’re to zag when Jesus zags.

Adams continues by arguing that the gospel isn’t just about understanding Jesus intellectually, but personally, at a gut level. Proclaiming the Good News is reflected in Jesus’s speaking and healing (reconciling).

The way, then, is not drawn out like a script to follow, but a pattern: a way of being.

Getting to know you!

Since I’m new here, I’d like to get to know the people of St. Paul’s and our diverse talents.  A show of hands:

1. Who here is creative/artistic?
2. Who writes well?
3. Who are our pray-ers? (public and private)
4. Who are our strategizers?
5. Who are our lovers?
6. Who are our stallwarts?  (people who are a part of everything)
7. Who haven’t raised their hands?

Awesome!  We just formed our

1. Worship team
2. Communication team
3. Prayer team
4. Planning team
5. Newcomers and Pastoral Care team
6. Fellowship team
7. And some free agents

Don’t worry: I’m only half kidding.

Jesus has given us an opportunity to follow Him and St. Paul’s has an opportunity to find out what that means: proclaiming the Good News in words and actions and through all these other gifts.

And I am incredibly thankful to be participating in that ministry with all of you.