"Come, after me . . ."
Matthew 4: 12-23
The Word: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/012223.cfm
We seem to constantly hear the measure of success in our national economy is the rate of employment or unemployment. Whether up or down either encourages or worries us. While the number of people at work in a decent job and a respectable living wage lends dignity to a person we know that fulfillment as a human being demands more than just a place to work. There is a deeper need we should answer – that for meaning and purpose - something more to follow and something greater than ourselves.
In the time of Jesus, a job or career track was not
something you applied for through a job interview or searched for on the
internet, prepared for through a college education, or any other way in which
one may find work today. Such a way of life was non-existent.
In ancient Israel, work was passed down from one
generation to another through one’s father to his son(s). Whatever the trade was, carpentry, fishing,
farming, there was no expectation you would advance to a higher level. The vast majority of people simply lived day
to day. And this was the prevailing atmosphere that Jesus encountered within
the Galilee region. Yet this northern region of Israel was also a crossroads of
world travel. It was a Gentile region populated by the very poor and also
historically a region of mixture between Jew and Gentile. Here Jesus chose to
begin his public ministry.
Our first reading from Isaiah speaks of: “. . . the land
of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali . . .” which in itself really means nothing
to us. However, in the history of
ancient Israel, one thousand years before the coming of Christ, this was the
far northern region overrun by the Assyrians. A land where the twelve tribes
of the Jews were dispersed far and wide in exile. The darkness of Assyrian conquest had nearly destroyed
this culture but now a new light has arrived.
A hope is fulfilled in the coming of Jesus as the light of the world and
here our Lord begins his public ministry announcing that “the kingdom of heaven
is at hand.”
Jesus begins along the Sea of Galilee and calls to
himself a new leadership which will reunite the twelve dispersed tribes of the Jews
in the twelve apostles and his new world order according to God’s design: the
kingdom of heaven.
So, he calls Andrew and Peter, James and John, away from
their familiar surroundings to set out in a new direction under his direction
to be his disciples: “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.” It is Jesus gathering an action plan for the
future and he invites these four to be among the first to help him implement a
new vision for all humanity. In fact, the whole ministry of Jesus was to gather
to himself those who would be his followers. God comes to unite the divided. God
calls these men; he chooses them for discipleship. They hear his voice and
instantly drop what they are doing. We
see their reaction described as “at once” and “immediately.” So,
their response to the Gospel event today is inspiring.
Called away from one of the most stable works of the time
they are now invited to discipleship by Jesus, these men illustrate an
eagerness that is surprising. Jesus calls us to be his followers; he seeks us
out and invites. For these men they could have responded in one of two ways.
The suggestion of discipleship could be seen an intrusion into their plans for
the future, or they drop what they are doing, leave those plans behind, and
follow Jesus. But it is God who calls.
So our Lord essentially makes an offer: Come after me. What
did he offer them? Our Lord did not
offer them a book of instructions, or a map to follow, or a promise of riches
and fame. He offered them himself and
there was undoubtedly something about this teacher and wonderworker that
compelled them to respond as they did.
Would you do the same?
What does Jesus call us away from and where are we
called to? Does discipleship demand a complete abandonment of all attachments
both familial and material? The call may
be radical, or it may be situational. In
other we are called by Christ to be a light shining in darkness. Our baptism
marks us for Christ through the sign of the cross and washes away the guilt of
original sin making us among the band of his followers. In essence we are
called away from the world with its empty promise of fame, wealth, power and
prestige and to give ourselves to the greater promise of the kingdom of God.
Yes, we must leave behind certain ways of living and
attachments that distract us from the Gospel, but we must do so in the time and
place we find ourselves; in the varied vocations we live and as witnesses to
God’s promise of redemption and freedom from those powers that bind us: the lure
of riches, fame, and ego satisfaction.
As disciples of Christ, we cannot see ourselves as the
center of the universe but as those called to sacrifice and service to
others. With Christ as our center and
focus we find the freedom to preach, heal, teach and lead others along the way. We are called to unity and away from
division. We are called to servanthood
and to proclaim the gospel of the kingdom of God both in public ministry and in
the daily circumstances of everyday life.
It is the convincing manner of how live and move in the world that will
bring others to see both the demands of Jesus that bring us a freedom to
follow.
To hear the call of Jesus and to find him in a personal
encounter in prayer, in the sacraments, in the suffering, and ultimately to see
him present in the Eucharist and then to go out on mission to transform a world
by the faith he entrusts to us. Called
away from all that is not of God and called to all that is of him. In this way the light of Christ can shine
through us in the land of darkness. In the many tasks and moments of daily
life, let’s not miss the call that Jesus offer us and set out more fully in his
way: “Come, follow me.” Imagine our Lord
is standing before you as he looks into your eyes with those words of invitation.
Almighty ever-living God,
direct our actions according to your good pleasure,
that in the name of your beloved Son
we may abound in good works.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
(Collect of Mass)
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