2nd Sunday after Pentecost
And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. And they straightway left their nets, and followed him.
Who among you, would leave your wife, husband, family to follow a man who invited you to do so. Who will take care of your mortgage, your car loan, the college tuition. Do we have the same faith as that of the men who were first called. There are few who can say yes right off, yet the rest hesitate, they worry. Our Lord knows of our opposition, for He said, “Do not worry about your life!” (Matt. 6:25) For the Father our God takes care of us, so why do we hesitate? Jesus gave us the example of the lilies of the valley and the birds of the air. The Lord said, “Look at the birds in the sky. They do not sow or reap or gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them.” As they are being attended to by God, are we, “of more value then they,” are also being taken care of by God.
Our savior calls each of us to Him. “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28-29) Come to the Lord! “Come and see!” for the Lord is good. (John 1:23)
So when is it the right time to come to Christ and follow Him? NOW!!!
For most of us, from our early years as a child we began our journey to follow Him at our baptism as we received the grace of God. A grace, received at that moment of time, which we need more than any other a time in our lives, His grace in our physical and spiritual lives. So as we grow in our lives physically, we hear that call, “Follow Me” to be reminded of our continued renewal of our commitment to the Lord and His Church. St Paul says, “Behold, now is the acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation:” (2 Cor. 6:2).
Serving God is an opportunity for our salvation and for that of others. Each of us has received and been given the ability to exercise the acts of Love and Charity, to serve those who may be less fortunate, or not. But to share these gifts, the talents, which have been given to each of us to care for so many who are in need. Jesus calls us to serve Him. He calls us with all our faults, strengths and weaknesses. Let us today, either here in Church or in a quiet place at home, examine our lives. Let us ask ourselves how we have responded to His call in our lives. How have we responded or have we fallen short of His plan for us?
The simplicity of Jesus’ words, the call and promise is striking but remains powerless without a decision on our part. If Peter and Andrew merely listened and said, that’s a very interesting invitation. Maybe we should talk about it after fishing season, then, they would not have become disciples of Jesus. Jesus needs for us to take action on our part, to follow him or to remain where we are.
Fr. Stephen Masliuk