Nothing to Sell--January 26, 2023

Nothing to Sell--January 26, 2023

"As [Jesus] walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea--for they were fishermen. And he said to them, 'Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.' Immediately they left their nets and followed him." [Matthew 4:18-20]

Talk about burying the lede, right?  Here we have the divine Son of God, the Messiah for whom Israel has been waiting for centuries, the Prophet Greater Than Moses, and the announcer of the very Kingdom of Heaven and the Reign of God--and his invitation to a pair of guys working for the family business is, "Follow me, and I'll make you fish for people"?  That's it?  

Jesus is about to summon these two on a life-changing--and world-changing--adventure, which will include miracles, signs, and wonders, not to mention confrontations with the powers of evil, and all he says to pique their interest is, "How about some more fishing?"  Simon and Andrew, along with the others who would join Jesus' community of disciples, would be sent out to places all over the world, challenge the Empire, and even witness resurrection from the dead--and the only preview Jesus gives is a riff on the day-jobs they already have? That's so... underwhelming, so... nonchalant.  It's such a stark contrast to the world of non-stop hype in which we live.  And I guess that's what makes it so perfectly fitting for Jesus.

Jesus doesn't have to brag about how "great" his ministry is going to be, or about how important he is.  He doesn't belittle or look down on the labor that Simon and Andrew are already doing, either--he doesn't say, "What a pitiable waste of a career you are stuck with--why don't you come with me and do something important?"  And he doesn't try to make his invitation sound better by making it exclusive--there is no audition process or tryout, and he doesn't say, "We only have a limited number of spots, so I'm only accepting the best of the best to be my disciples."  Jesus doesn't insinuate that "everybody is talking about me and my movement, so if you want to be popular, too, you'd better support me."  

There isn't even a promise of a spot in the heavenly city, or of real estate along one of those streets paved with gold.  Jesus certainly could have mentioned any of those things, and he wouldn't have been lying--unlike the offers of the Tempter in the wilderness, Jesus actually has the power and authority to give those perks to anyone he might wish to.  He could have even casually let it slip that people would be naming churches after likes of "Saint Peter" and "Saint Andrew" for millennia to come, if only they would just come and follow him now.  All of that would be true, and all of it could have been part of the sales-pitch.  

But that's just it--Jesus doesn't do the hard-sell, because he isn't selling anything.  No hype is necessary when you actually have the goods. And Jesus doesn't need to belittle or mock people in order to puff himself up or make his call to discipleship sound more exclusive or impressive.  That's because Jesus' call to follow is a call to be drawn into Jesus' love, and genuine love doesn't need to puff itself up with boasting.  Genuine love is more interested in listening to other people and meeting them where they are than in persuading everybody how "great" I am.

Sometimes it seems to me that the church in twenty-first century America has fallen for thinking we are here to sell something, and that therefore we have to use classic sales tactics to get people to "buy."  We end up marketing churches and finding our "niche" or our "demographic" and trying to elbow one another out of contention while we compete for worship-service attenders and congregation members.  You end up with lots of polished signage, ads, social media postings, and pamphlets, but less and less love that looks like Jesus.

The same happens when Respectable Religious Folks turn the gospel into a deal--say the right words, pray the right prayer, do the proper list of churchy things, and then you've secured your spot in the afterlife.  That's just not how Jesus does things: he simply offers life lived alongside him, convinced that is what brings us most fully to life.  Maybe Jesus knows, too, that when you sound like you are selling something, whether it's vacuum cleaners, used cars, or religion, you come off sounding like you're more interested in what you can get from would-be buyers than in their interests.  And Jesus hasn't come to "get" anything out of us, but rather as the fullest expression of God's self-giving for us.  That's what love does, and that's why love doesn't need to brag, hype, advertise, or posture.  Jesus doesn't try to "wow" would-be followers with big talk or grand promises because he isn't looking for sales from customers--he's building a community for disciples.

In so many ways, it all comes back to what Jesus says at the end of John's Gospel when he tells his disciples on his last night with them that he intends for people to recognize us as his followers by the ways we love.  Jesus just models that from the start, gathering people without bragging or boasting about how great he is or how awesome other people will think they are if they join his club.  He just offers his presence and to share the journey--he offers the way of love.

I wonder how many times in our lives we get sucked into thinking we have to sell something--our churches, our faith in Jesus, or even friendship with us--when what people most deeply need is just genuine love that invites people to share the journey.  What could it look like to be genuine with people that way?  Who might it point you toward in this day?

Lord Jesus, enable us to love people genuinely, like you have first loved us.