Called To Go Deeper

1One day as Jesus was standing by the Sea of Galilee, with the people crowding around him and listening to the word of God, 2he saw at the water's edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. 3He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.

4When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch."

5Simon answered, "Master, we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets."

6When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break.7So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.

8When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus' knees and said, "Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!" 9For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken,10and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon's partners.

Then Jesus said to Simon, "Don't be afraid; from now on you will catch men." 11So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him. - Luke 5:1–11

This scripture passage is a great model of responding to the call to be Disciples of Jesus Christ. It is also a great model for reflecting our theme this morning of “Called to Go Deeper”.

There are several important aspects of this scripture passage.

“He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.”

If you’ll notice here Jesus went and got in to Simon’s boat. He didn’t call for Simon to come to him. He went to Simon and got into his boat to teach. As disciples we are called to meet people where they are.

Sometimes we get too caught up in what we can do here at the congregational building to bring ministry to the people. Now, what we do here IS important. We are the “Community” of Christ and therefore we need to provide opportunities for people to experience a safe, loving, accepting community for all. But also important, dare I say even more important, is what we do outside of these walls. What we do to bring ministry to those in our community. What we do to bring ministry to the downtrodden and hurting members of our community. Those that need the hope and grace of the Ministry of Jesus Christ in their life.

This is something that I have been thinking about lately as it relates to my personal life. As I have reflected on the Call to Go Deeper, I have been prayerfully considering what it means for me to go deeper in my calling as Disciple of Jesus Christ. Please note that I am not referring to my calling as an ordained minister but my calling as a disciple. The term “Disciple” applies to any of us who have made the decision to be baptized and follow the teachings of Jesus Christ. As a disciple we are called to be ministers of Jesus Christ just by responding to the call to follow Him.

The last time that I intentionally reflected on what it mean for me to go deeper resulted in me quitting my job working for a payday loan company 3 years ago and is what lead me to work for the Share & Care House organization. Lately, I have sensed a need to get more involved in the community surrounding our congregation so I mentioned to my boss that if she knows of anyway I could get involved to please let me know. A couple of weeks ago she talked to me about getting involved with the Homeless issue going on in our community. This Tuesday I will be attending the Puyallup Homeless Coalition meeting to further look at the possibilities of me working with those that are homeless here in Puyallup. This would be something that would cause me to step out of my comfort zone and work with the homeless where they are. I can’t do that just from the comfort of my congregation or from the comfort of my home. I will have to step out in faith to respond.

“When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch."

Simon answered, "Master, we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets."

When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break.7So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.

When we think we know the result, when we think we’re done…God is there to say try again. We are called to go deeper in the way we do things. Currently the leaders of the Community of Christ are calling for us to go deeper on a few items in preparation for World Conference this April.

One of which is what it means to be a member of our faith community. We have been told to prayerfully consider and in engage in dialogue over the issue of whether some MUST be re-baptized to be a member of the Community of Christ. Steve Veazey, the president / prophet of our faith movement, presented Words of Counsel to the church last month that included further examination of this issue. Our delegates at World Conference will be making some decisions related to this topic. We have been called to go deeper on what baptism means. On what being a member means.

Another topic that we have been discussing for a while now and the church leadership and people within the church keep telling us to go deeper on is that of Homosexuality and the Church. We are called to go deeper not necessarily to change the opinions of some but to further understand all sides of this issue. One way that we are trying to go deeper is at the Small Group study we are having on Wednesdays at the Richardsons. We started to discuss this topic this past week and will be doing so for the next couple of weeks. We are going to be looking at all sides of the issue so that we can further understand who people feel how they do with this topic. For us to be that safe, loving, accepting community that we are called to be, it does not mean we need to agree with each other but we do need to be willing to respectfully engage in discussions pertaining on the hard topics that are before us. It means that we need to try and understand what each of us believes and why we believe it.

Doctrine and Covenants 162: 4 counsels us to “Listen carefully to the many testimonies of those around the world who have been led into the fellowship of the Community of Christ. The richness of cultures, the poetry of language, and the breadth of human experience permit the gospel to be seen with new eyes and grasped with freshness of spirit. That gift has been given to you. Do not fail to understand its power.

It is for divine purpose that you have been given the struggles as well as the joys of diversity. So must it always be in the peaceable kingdom.”

And maybe the most important part of this passage:

When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus' knees and said, "Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!" For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon's partners.

Then Jesus said to Simon, "Don't be afraid; from now on you will catch men." So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.

Here Jesus calls Simon Peter, with all of his faults, to follow him and be a Disciple. Simon was a fishermen. For the day it was a very common job. Notice that he didn’t pick some one with a big fancy title. He chose an everyday, average person. He chose someone like you and me, faults and all.

To this day all of us are still called to be fishers of people. We are called to be Disciples. Many of us here have already made the decision to live a life dedicated to the teachings of Jesus Christ. Made the decision to be baptized as a public proclamation of that decision. If you haven’t made the decision to be baptized and follow Jesus then I invite you to talk to me or another minister following the worship today. No matter where we are at on our journey….A Disciple who has accepted a call to a particular ministerial office….A youth who just recently made the decision to be baptized….An elderly adult who has lived a life of servitude….A disciple who is unsure of where they are on there journey….or A seeker who is wanting to go deeper in relationship with God and learn more about Jesus’ teachings. Yes, no matter where we are, we are Called to Go Deeper.

Doctrine and Covenants 163:2a says it best, “Jesus Christ, the embodiment of God’s shalom, invites all people to come and receive divine peace in the midst of the difficult questions and struggles of life. Follow Christ in the way that leads to God’s peace and discover the blessings of all of the dimensions of salvation.”.

As you take your emblems this morning, consider God’s call in your life. How are you responding?