Third Sunday after Pentecost
Now It’s Their Turn
People have told me that they attend Sunday morning worship for a variety of reasons. Some go for the music, and some go for the sermon. Some go for the sense of community, and some go to be “reset for the week ahead.” Gathering together for worship is indeed a precious thing for those reasons and many more, but it just the first step in living out the gospel.
Jesus made a habit of gathering his disciples together during his ministry. After a period of healing, teaching, and traveling, he pulls them close once again. They are probably marveling at Jesus’ amazing works, feeling incredibly blessed to witness his touch firsthand. After all, we still sing about those lessons and miracles that surely would have wowed these disciples. As they sit together, eager to rest up and see what Jesus will do next, he has something else in mind.
Now it’s their turn to go out into the world and do the work. They are no longer spectators, watching Jesus do his thing; they are equipped and instructed to do the same.
When we gather together to sing about Jesus, to pray to him, and to share stories about him, it is a life-giving and energizing thing. One cannot help but be motivated and inspired to remember his life in community with family and friends. Our Sunday morning joy, however, is more instruction than it is celebration. Jesus brings us here for much more than songs of praise and cups of coffee. We are here to prepare. We are here in order to be sent out into the world to continue Jesus’ ministry.
May we leave this place with our eyes set on the work we have been equipped by Christ to do.
James Heroux, pastor, Freedom Moravian Church, Appleton, Wisconsin