“Cost Benefit Analysis”

Mark 1:14-20
Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the good news of God and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.”
As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea, for they were fishers. And Jesus said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of people.” And immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John, who were in their boat mending the nets. Immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him.

As I told the children this morning, we are in Year B of the lectionary cycle and that means that our gospel readings are from the book of Mark. In case you need a bit of refresher on the lectionary– it’s a 3-year cycle that rotates 4 different scripture passages for each Sunday and special occasion, such as Ash Wednesday. For each service, there is am Old Testament, Psalm, Gospel, and New Testament reading and often, “lectionary preachers” choose one of these four passages to preach on. Some churches, like the Anglican or Episcopal Church, read all four texts each Sunday and some churches, like ours, pick and choose. Sometimes, we don’t follow the lectionary at all!

I didn’t grow up with the lectionary or the church calendar or any high-church tradition, so it was all new to me when I first started attending a Presbyterian church in Seattle. At first, I was a bit skeptical, because I knew that meant there were parts of the Bible that no one was focusing on but I have since learned that there will always be parts of the Bible that we forget to focus on. I have found beauty in knowing that the passage that I am reading, or listening to, or reflecting on, is the same passage that the Christians around the country and around the globe are reading as well. I love listening to commentaries and using resources that are based on the lectionary and it makes me feel part of something so much bigger than myself. 

However, this year the lectionary focuses on the gospel of Mark. The gospel of John is split into all three years so occasionally there are passages from there, but for the most part, the gospel passages are all from the book of Mark. I am here to confess that I do not love the gospel of Mark. In fact, it is my least favorite gospel. Part of me was dreading Year B because I didn't want to have to preach on Mark all the time, but the other part of me realized that this is an opportunity for me to dive into and see Mark with fresh eyes. I don't want to be skeptical or cynical about this book. I want to see the story that Mark is telling us about who Jesus Christ is.

Before we dive into today's passage, let's do a brief overview of the gospel of Mark since we'll be reading it all year. Each gospel is unique– both in the story they tell, who they are telling it to, and in the way they tell it. Mathew is a Jewish gospel written to a Jewish audience and it’s filled with Old Testament references to place Jesus clearly as the Messiah of Israel. John couldn’t be more different than the other three synoptic gospels and is all about how Jesus is Fully God. His humanity takes a backseat to his divine nature. Luke reads like opera– dramatic characters, sweeping narratives, and yes, musical numbers! It’s no secret why it’s my favorite gospel. But Mark? Mark is like a Hitchcock film– the tension builds in the reader because you know more than the characters do. You want to scream at the page, just as you might scream at the woman on screen, “don’t pick up the phone!” Mark moves through Jesus’ story so fast he hardly takes a breath. He skips right past Jesus’ birth and begins the story with the proclamation of John the Baptist. In his 16 short chapters, Mark uses the Greek word “immediately” 42 times. It’s only found 17 times the rest of the new testament, for comparison. The story is urgent for Mark and he doesn’t have time for high-brow Greek sentence structure or long sermons or detailed descriptions.

And yet, for all Mark’s speed, if you try to keep up at his pace, it’s like driving 60 miles an hour over speed bumps– you’re going get hurt. As readers, we have to slow way, way down and read not just the text, but what is hovering under the surface. I’ve been wondering if maybe Mark’s lack of detail is what provides us the opportunity to wonder and imagine. Luke and Matthew fill in so many details that we don’t stop to wonder what they left out, but Mark is so quick and leaves so many unanswered questions that it forces us to wonder what else might have happened. How did they feel? What else did they say? Why did Jesus do that? Perhaps the whole gospel of Mark is parable, designed to invoke our interpretation.

Now the last thing you need to know is that there are three stereotypical groups of people in Mark, all of which play an important role. There are the authorities, including the Pharisees and the Romans, who are uniformly opposed to Jesus. There are the crowds, who are just interested in the signs and miracles. And then there are the disciples who follow Jesus and therefore are confused. They know enough not to oppose Jesus and they are for more than just fancy parlor tricks, but they are so confused. I like to call them the “duhhh-sciples” because they just don’t get it. 

So all that brings us today’s story– the calling of the first disciples. If you were paying attention to the scripture reading, you’ll remember that it begins quite ominously– “Now after John was arrested…” no further explanation, for Mark assumes that you know why he was arrested and by whom. It sets the tone from the very beginning that being connected to Jesus is a dangerous business. 

And yet, Jesus seems to pay no notice to powerful people he has already angered. He walks along the sea of Galilee and sees Simon Peter and his brother Andrew at work, fishing in the seat. And Jesus without preamble, explanation, or sales pitch, he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of people.” And immediately they left their nets and followed him. 

Immediately? Immediately? All Jesus said was  “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of people” and that was enough to make them drop their nets? How? Why? It doesn’t end there because next he goes a bit farther and sees James and John over in their boats and immediately calls them and immediately they left their father and the family business to follow him. 

It makes us wonder– why? Why would they follow him so quickly and without hesitation? How was that enough to convince them to leave their life behind and follow this stranger? I don’t know. Maybe it’s the fact that Jesus told me that the skills they had spent their lives perfecting had a greater purpose. They didn’t have to leave behind everything– they brought with them all their life experiences and let Jesus put them to use. They knew how to fish for people and now Jesus will teach them how to fish for people. 

But still, when I think of the cost benefit analysis they must have had to quickly do in their minds, there must have been a benefit so big that it outweighed the costs.  There was something in Jesus that they did not fully understand but knew they wanted more of.

Like I said earlier, the disciples who followed Jesus didn’t really understand him. They were constantly confused– asking questions and misunderstanding the answers. We like to think that Chirstian discipleship is about believing first and then following. We believe and understand and so we choose a life of following Jesus. But that’s what happens in Mark. In Mark, Jesus invites people to follow and then, perhaps, to believe. Having all our beliefs and theologies fully worked out isn’t essential to following Jesus. 

If you feel like you don’t really understand everything about Christianity... If you’re not quite sure if you believe what proclaim in our Affirmations of Faith or if you listen to sermons and feel more confused than when the day began, then know you are in good company alongside Peter, the rock upon whom Jesus would build his church. Like Peter, you aren’t called to believe first, you’re called to follow. It might seem small compared to “leaving your nets” but I’ll remind you that each and every one of you left home to come here this morning. You left your warm and cozy homes and chose to come here instead. You followed the call. You did it. Are you confused sometimes? Sure. Are you uncertain of what Christianity all means? Probably. But that just makes you a follower of Christ. You might feel like being a “duhh-sciple” makes you a failure, but it doesn’t. Being confused is just part of following Jesus, according to Mark! So take heart– you’re doing just fine. We will follow Christ together and we will be confused, but there is something there that makes us want to leave our home, even if just for a morning, to follow him. 

Thanks be to God.