February 1, 2004
By Jack Price

"You can't go home again," says poet John Donne.  Everybody knows that true.  Even before Donne wrote it, but Jesus was hot!  He was on fire, "filled with the power of the Spirit."  Jesus was doing really well.  The news about him was spreading everywhere, including his home town of Nazareth.  He was enjoying that rarest and most fleeting of experiences:  being "praised by everyone"!

Knowing "you can't go home again," Jesus prepared for a homecoming.  He was on his way to Nazareth.  You can just imagine the headlines in the Nazareth Star - "Local Boy makes Good" with the lead story:  "Jesus to Teach at Synagogue this Sabbath"!  There was an expectant mood everywhere. 

On that fateful Sabbath day, crowds flock to the synagogue.  The service begins and, at the appointed time, Jesus stands to read the day's scripture lesson.  In the customary way, he is handed the Isaiah scroll and unrolls it to the reading of day.  For us, that would be Isaiah 61: 1-2a.  He reads and re-rolls scroll.  The rabbi would have been so proud.

Jesus then sits down, in the customary way, to provide an oral interpretation, a sermon.  I'm sure one older man turns to his neighbor to say,  "I always knew he'd make good."  With a nod, the neighbor responds, "Yes, a fine young man".  Jesus, in the rabbinic role, waits for the noise to die down.  He waits until all eyes are on him.  The room is ripe with silent, excited expectation.

 "Today."  "Today, this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing."  Heads nod and voices quietly murmur -- "What a profound thing to say."  "Yes, but what does it mean?"  We can ask as well, "What did he mean?"

Israel's history is told in terms of bondage and exodus.  The prophet proclaims freedom from Babylonian imprisonment and exile.  Israel would have heard Isaiah speaking to them, providing encouragement in their exile.  Jesus, however, understood this passage to have three levels of meaning.  First, it reflects the prophet's own call.  "The Spirit is upon me, calling me to ministry:  to bring good news to the poor, to proclaim release to the captives, sight to the blind, freedom to the oppressed, and proclaiming the year of the Lord.

A second level of meaning in this scripture is that it reflects Israel's call as well.  Jesus would have remembered his people's covenant relationship with Yahweh.  Finding meaning in this passage is a matter of perspective.  Israel sees itself as blind and imprisoned, but Jesus reminds them of their calling to those outside the "family of faith."  Isaiah 42: 6-7 makes this clear.  "I have given you as a covenant to the people, a light to the nations, to open the eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, from the prison those who sit in darkness." 

Finally, Jesus hears his own life's calling in the scripture.  His calling is about freedom, release from bondage, and direction in darkness, but not his own freedom alone.  It is the gift of freedom for those who are oppressed, imprisoned, shut out, and cut off. 

God offers a new birth of freedom, freedom to bring freedom to others who "imprisoned;" insight to bring sight to those who need to open their eyes.  It is freedom from bigotry, freedom from isolation, freedom from fear, and freedom from death.  This was the call of Isaiah, of Israel, and of Jesus.  Jesus lived his calling, walked his calling, right up to the cross in a supreme act of faith and love.  He offered himself not to appease a God who demanded sacrifice, but to teach us how to be fully human in the new creation of God.  Jesus knew who he was, whose he was, and where he was going.

What about us?  What is our calling?  The idea of calling for people and for congregations is always wrapped up in our identity and in our story.  We each have our own story.  The stories of the individuals in this congregation are as varied as the number of people in this room multiplied by the significant events of our lives. 

God's personal calling for you is unique to you.  It represents a new direction for your life.  It is something fresh and new and a matter of your personal freedom.  Authentic call always involves some risk and it always feels right for you deep inside, even when it is scary.  As a congregation, our calling is wrapped up with our identity and our story.

Who are we?  The late singer and composer Jim Croce had a song titled:  "I've Got a Name."  Each of us has a unique name, unique in God's ear, unique in God's mouth.  In the same way, this congregation has a name.  We are named.  Actually, we have been named several times:  "Exiles from Broadway Baptist;" "Westport Baptist Church;" and "Crossroads Church of Kansas City."  Who knows what we'll be named next? 

God's unique name for us matches our true identity.  That identity is reflected by names such as:  the Church of "Come as you are;" the "Freedom Congregation of Kansas City," and "God's Church of Sacred Liberty."  As we learn our unique name, we know who we are and whose we are.  We are definitely the Church of the Holy Spirit, living and serving in that Spirit.  We are definitely not Jack Price's church or Bob Rockford's church; definitely not Paul Smith's former church.  We are not even your (the congregation's) church.  We are God's Church.

Our calling is wrapped up in who we are (identity) and where we've been (story).  It grows out of our experiences of betrayal, grief, joy, and accomplishment.  Clearly, this body is called to be church in an authentic way so that:  everyone who comes is welcome "as is," worship is an encounter with the living God, and old answers are questioned.  We are called to stretch boundaries of theological understanding regarding the equality of women and men, the morality of human sexuality, and the cosmic nature of Christ.  We are called to take spiritual growth seriously for adults, youth, and children.  We are called to reflect these beliefs in our community life and governance, and in our decision-making about a church house.  We called to do missions "with others" instead of "to others".

Being Christian, being church, is definitely not an easy calling.  We commit ourselves to living in an uneasy relationship with the world around us.  Ultimate meaning is not found in the "kingdoms of this world" - what author Walter Wink calls the domination system.  The world finds meaning in the myth that we can control scary and chaotic things through force.  The forces of good (us) must defeat the forces of evil using violent means, if necessary.  The message of Jesus is that evil must be resisted only with peaceful, non-passive, and non-violent action.  Nations need self-defense, but where are the limits?  National practices and policies, however, that result in arms distribution to the poor, training of corrupt and oppressive regimes, support for brutal dictatorships, and the finding of our national self-interest in policies and relationships that cause untold suffering for innocent people may make sense for our nation politically.  They cannot be justified in the teaching of Jesus.  As Christians, we have to choose our ultimate loyalty.

How do we know our call and our response is really "of God" and not just our own craziness?  We know when our answers to these questions are all "Yes."  Do we bring good news to the poor and release to the captive?  Are we giving sight to the blind and freedom for oppressed?  Is the Lord's Jubilee proclaimed through us?

Genuine call as individuals and as congregations must be located entirely within the context of the new creation God is bringing to life.  God's new creation is revealed in the life, teaching, and death of Jesus.  God calls us.  God invites us as persons, and as a church, to face our fears and to engage whatever commands our obedience and loyalty in the power of divine love.

Jesus has shown us the need to engage the powers of darkness and evil in our world, and to engage these same powers at work within ourselves.  He has shown us how to engage these in the power of God, but not through violent willfulness directed at others or at ourselves.  Jesus has shown us how to engage these powers actively and non-violently even in the face of "death".  This is what it means to be like Jesus - to be fully human in the new creation.  Are you listening?  In the valley of our shadows (all of them), we need fear no evil, for God is with us.  Do you hear?