In our reading from Exodus we hear about a mission impossible: Good morning, Mr. Moses. I
am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob... I
have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry...Indeed, I
know their sufferings. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to go to Pharaoh and
bring my people out of Egypt.
Too bad for Moses that in the biblical account God didn’t really give him a choice, because
Moses most certainly would have declined. This was way out of his comfort zone. And he gives
five reasons why - Who am I? I’m not good enough. When that didn’t work he changes tactics. I
don’t know enough. What if someone asks me something and I don’t have the answer?
Further along in the story beyond our reading today Moses continues to put up resistance, I’m
telling you, God, no one is going to believe me, which morphs into, Haven’t you noticed I don’t
have the skill set for this - I’m a terrible public speaker and, when he sees he’s getting nowhere
Moses gives up and pleads, O Lord, just please ask someone else!
But God’s not having any of it. Nor does God take this opportunity to build up Moses’ self
esteem by telling him what a great guy he is, what qualifications actually make him a good
choice for the mission. God doesn’t do this because it really doesn’t matter. The success of
God’s mission doesn’t rest on who Moses is and what Moses can do. Rather the success of this
mission rests fully on who God is and what God can do. I will be with you, God tells Moses.
Because that’s what matters: that’s what makes all the difference. The only reason that Moses is
able to accomplish the mission impossible of bringing the Israelites out of Egypt is because God
is with him.
Now as people of faith we know that Moses is not the only one who is called to be an agent in
God’s mission to set people free – free from various bonds so that they may live a full and
abundant life. We, too, are all called to participate in that mission. Like Moses, though, we’d
strongly prefer to fulfill God’s mission within the bounds of our own comfort zone. Unlike
Moses, when we get a sense that God is calling us to engage in something that feels like a stretch
or risky even, we offer our well-reasoned excuses and are able to choose to not accept the
mission.
Take Invitation Sunday, for example. Believing that God wants everyone to know Her, the
leadership of the church, Fr. David, Emily, the Vestry, and I, are asking everyone to invite
someone to church on the 17th. If you are a typical Episcopalian, that’s way out of your comfort
zone. There’s plenty of excuses we could give to not accept this mission. Moses offered five -
that’s nothing. Our Vestry came up with no less than 24 reasons why it is so hard to invite
someone to church! (This is not to put down the Vestry in any way. They did an excellent job of
giving voice to what we all might think, but not want to say.) Here’s a sampling: I don’t want to
be rejected. It may damage my friendship. I don’t want someone to think I’m a Bible-thumper.
What if they ask me something and I don’t have the answer? An invitation is an intrusion - faith
is a private thing. That’s just five reasons. I have a list of the 19 others in my office and I bet you
could come up with a few more to add to it.
But before you completely dismiss this mission of invitation I have a story to tell you, it’s part of
my story. I grew up in a nice home with good parents, but church was not our thing. I did have
plenty of friends who went to church, but I don’t recall ever being invited to join them. Little did
they know that I really wanted to see what church was like. Something inside of me longed for a
more meaningful relationship with God than I could generate by myself. Now I knew I could
always go on my own: the church doors would not have been locked. But I didn’t. It wasn’t until
I graduated high school that an acquaintance of mine - I still remember his name, Scott Webb -
invited me to his church and it changed the rest of my life. Up until then I’d had a bit of a
spiritual life. I believed in God. I prayed sometimes. But when I came to church I felt more
connected. The church community offered a place where my spirit could be nurtured and grow.
It was a place for me to question and learn and serve and be challenged. Ultimately, Church
offered me meaningful and sustaining ways to know more fully the love of God and the love of
God’s people. Scott Webb and I had been acquainted for over six years. I don’t know why after
all that time he invited me to church one day, but I will always be grateful.
I’m sure there are people in the same situation I was right now in each one of our lives. God is at
work in their hearts stirring up the desire for a deeper spiritual relationship. And God calls us
just as clearly as he called Moses to get out of our comfort zones in order to be an active agent in
God’s mission. Go, Jesus says at the end of the gospel of Matthew - Go and make disciples of all
nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. That
verse is known as The Great Commission. I want to highlight to you that it’s a co-mission
because, like Moses, we do not do it alone. God is with us. The very last sentence of The Great
Commission is, Remember I am with you always, to the end of the age. The success of God’s
mission, as impossible as it might seem, does not rest on who we are or what we can do -
therefore our excuses are irrelevant - but rather who God is and what God can do. And we know
our God is Love itself. And that Love is at work in all human hearts so that all might know they
are beloved and live in the fullness of relationship with God - a relationship which sets everyone
free.
Your mission, therefore, if you choose to accept it, is to offer someone an invitation to church.
Take a moment now or later and ask God who is the person in your life that is being prepared to
be invited. When you get a sense of who that person is simply open your mouth and dare to let
nine words come out, “Would you like to come to church with me?” Whether that person says
yes or no, that’s God’s part of this co-mission. It’s fine if the person turns you down because
God will use your invitation to sow a seed in their heart. Upon offering the invitation your
mission is complete - the “win” is in the ask. God handles the rest. I am choosing to accept this
mission. What about you?
No comments:
Post a Comment