“The Harvest is Plentiful, But….”   ( Return to Sermon Page)

June 15, 2008

Mt. 9:35-10:14                         

           Like every good leader, Jesus gathered others, taught them and then deployed them to expand and continue his work.  He looked around and there was just too much to do.  So he instructed those first disciples in the how of doing ministry.  He had already taught them the content: what to teach, how to heal, how to reach out to those in need.

          Conditions then and conditions now are not that different.

Then Jesus looked around his world and said: This is what I see:

Ø      The people are harassed and helpless; they need guidance.

Ø      They need to be led to goodness and mercy

Ø      They need to be fed with the milk of human kindness

and the grace of God Almighty.

The world has changed a lot since those days, but the human condition remains pretty much the same; new circumstances perhaps, but old brokenness. 

People still have a hard time getting along; 

People feel harassed and helpless, in need of guidance.

People have a hard time forgiving themselves or others,

          and violence of every kind, some of it very subtle, is acted our everyday

          Christ still says:  Who will help me?

The harvest is plentiful, but there are few of us here. 

Let us pray to God that more people can be found to teach, to preach, to heal.

Lord send us to those whose hearts are willing to hear the good news.

Because the harvest is plentiful, there is a tremendous need,

but not everyone wants to hear about the saving grace of Christ.

And truth to tell, even we, who love God, believe in Christ, and want to be willing,

know in our heart of hearts that we have lots of other things to do.

          We have lots of questions about how to do it.

We have major reservations about sticking our noses in someone else’s business.

          We have several hundred excellent excuses why we can’t, won’t, don’t—now.

                   Later maybe.  Catch me on a good day. 

          What are we waiting for?

So friends, let’s get ready.  Let’s equip ourselves to be about Christ’s ministry.

We start right here (point to self). 

We don’t stop there; we don’t wait until we have it all together inside,

but as Christ’s disciples we’re not afraid to name our own woundedness,

to address our own healing even as we offer the healing love of Christ to others.

We work at becoming self-aware so we don’t visit those wounds on others;

          Self awareness leads us to have a deeper compassion for others.

Center your life on Christ.      Attend to your own faith.        

So we begin with recognizing that we ourselves are an on-going spiritual project. 

Then identify the arena where we have the best opportunity

to witness to our faith, to make a difference in another person’s life,

to be about Christ’s work of preaching, teaching, and healing. 

Is it at home or at school?  Is it in your neighborhood or social group? 

Where do you need to widen your circle of contacts,

open up to new ideas about who needs to be included in this outreach,

who needs to hear about the love of Christ?

To be sure, God has something to say about the location of our ministry. 

More than one person has noticed that they started out to be involved in one area and find that they are moved to another; started out to do one thing and suddenly, they’re in charge of a work they had no idea was to be theirs!

          We do not wait to become the perfect person, or to have 100% certainty about where we should serve; look around and start somewhere.

Wherever it is that we are called to serve, family, neighborhood, across the world,

we are in need of the same equipment.

Make prayer and holy listening a daily ritual.  In order to stay centered,

we must be continuously listening and learning: to God and one another.

Look for signs of God ahead.  If you are on the right path, God will lead you and send you signals about continuing.

Work with compassion: compassion is the foundation of all God’s work.

Work as a partner in community; it’s not a solo expedition.

Rid yourself of unnecessary baggage: old prejudices, closed-mindedness;

responsibilities that are no longer necessary, but that you have trouble letting go.

Be ready to take some risks. 

Don’t risk your neck, but move beyond your comfort zone.

Work at good communication.

          Jesus gathered folks from all walks of life; he taught them all that he could.  He sent them out to change lives—all those who would receive him.

          There is nothing more awesome than being a part of someone’s life change.

If you want to make a difference, start with where they are.

          That’s what Jesus did.

That’s what Christ does with us.  Christ starts with us where we are …..

          with our need for healing

          with our willingness or ability to be a witness for Christ

          with the circle of influence or impact we can make. 

Christ is calling.  The harvest is plentiful, the time is ripe, people are as desperate and as needy as ever.  Who will go to them?