Year A Proper 6 Father's Day

[10 years ago] Television News Anchor Tom Brokaw wrote a best-selling, gripping tribute to what he calls The Greatest Generation. It is a collection of stories about the generation that grew up in the Great Depression which was shaken out of everyday life to help save the world by fighting the Second World War on two fronts, and which then immediately undertook the daunting task of rebuilding the economies and political institutions of their own homeland and those of their former enemies.

One of the most important themes that Brokaw wanted to get across is that these were common people who all joined together to face these challenges. It wasn’t just an elite group who made up this greatest generation. They were ordinary men and women who answered the call to serve their country in whatever capacity they were gifted and equipped. Some were on the front lines fighting hand to hand with the enemy, while others were on the home front nursing the wounded back to health. Some heroes humbly received Medals of Honor, while other heroes served nobly in the obscurity of a factory. The Allied victory in World War II and the rebuilding of the war-ravaged world could not have been accomplished except for the full mobilization of an entire generation.

When we read the story of Jesus’ mission of the Twelve, we can also think of them as the greatest generation of the church. They were called out of the hardship of occupation by the Roman Empire, but they went on to fight a battle, not with swords and chariots, but with the good news of the arrival of the kingdom of heaven and a message of transformation. They went on the lay the foundation of the church, and most suffered martyrdom for the name of the Lord Jesus.[1]

On Father’s Day it’s important to remember that the Bible is full of ordinary men-- and women--most of them unlikely and even reluctant candidates. But as a result of God’s call they accomplished extraordinary things. In our Old Testament reading, Moses is the mediator between the people and God, and the one to whom God is speaking. Moses, full of excuses and reluctance, had to be prodded and pushed into taking up the task of delivering the Israelites. A man with a speech defect, a man with no confidence, became one of the greatest leaders and prophets in the Bible.

In Romans Paul makes it clear that those who are justified by grace are not likely candidates either. “The very concept of grace, in fact, makes it plain that anyone who is claimed by God, has no innate claim on God in any way. ‘While we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. . . . God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. . . .For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.”[2] While we were weak, while we were sinners, while we were enemies—God’s grace saved our lives for his own sake. Unlikely candidates indeed.

And then there are the twelve disciples named in our gospel reading. Again, in who’s opinion other than God’s would this band of ordinary men-- businessmen, husbands and fathers--be the ones chosen to change the world. When chosen by God, by Jesus, these men were equipped and transformed, but they aren’t all that different than you and me. Take a look and see if there are any you can identify with any of these 12 men:
· Peter—a businessman who was regularly in a leadership position.
· Andrew, his brother—a person highly sensitive to God’s leading, though overshadowed by his brother Peter.
· James the son of Zebedee—who left a successful family business to follow Jesus but was the first apostle martyred.
· John, his brother—who had a fiery temper but also a profound love for God.
· Philip—never quite one of the inner circle, yet took a leadership role among the lesser-known apostles.
· Bartholomew—known for his outspoken honesty (he is probably the one called Nathaniel in John 1:43-51)
· Thomas—a skeptical rationalist who eventually had one of the most profound theological understandings of Jesus’ identity as the God-man.
· Matthew the tax collector—formerly a traitor to his own people to support himself and his family but became a missionary to them by writing his Gospel.
· James the son of Alphaeus—either younger, shorter, or less well known than the other James [we refer to him as James the Less], faithful throughout his life but never given much recognition for it.
· Thaddaeus (or Lebbaeus)—also called Judas son of James, often confused with Judas Iscariot and didn’t develop much of his own reputation.
· Simon the Zealot—before accepting Jesus as Messiah, a guerrilla fighter who wanted to bring in God’s kingdom by force.
· Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him—love of money and power may have drawn him to abandon and betray even his closest friends. [3]

Ordinary men, not much different than us. Real men, with real strengths and weaknesses, with positive character attributes, and real foibles, failings and faults. And see how God transformed them. Remember Peter, always sticking his foot in his mouth, an outspoken leader but didn’t quite understand the program. Peter, who betrayed the Lord. And this same Peter preached on the day of Pentecost and 3000 people were baptized!! One of the most remarkable things in the bible is the transformation of the disciples presented in the gospels—to the power houses many became in the book of Acts—truly something substantial occurred, transforming their lives.
This same transforming power is available to us, every day of our lives. “Christians are everyday people who have been called to advance the kingdom of God in an alien and hostile world. We are the church, the body of Jesus Christ, some of whose service results in external and public honor, while others carry out their service in the humility of obscurity. But each individual is vitally necessary to the functioning of the church in the world.”[4]
We are all called to be disciples, and even to be missionaries to our families, friends, and neighbors, even these things are sometimes hard to do. But when God transforms our minds and our hearts, our lives will have an impact on those around us. God uses ordinary people doing ordinary things in an extraordinary way—a way that reflects God’s light into the world around us. A way that shines with Christ’s own light. A way that looks a little bit different than the way the world might do things.

God can and will transform us from the inside out, and he can and will transform relationships between fathers and children, husbands and wives, children and parents. There is no higher calling than to live out our lives in a Christian manner, and in our own families. On this Father’s Day, we honor especially the role of fatherhood, ordinary men with an extraordinary responsibility. In President Bush’s Father’s Day proclamation he said,

“Fathers play a unique and important role in the lives of their children. As mentor, protector, and provider, a father fundamentally influences the shape and direction of his child's character by giving love, care, discipline, and guidance. As we observe Father's Day, our nation honors fatherhood and urges fathers to commit themselves selflessly to the success and well-being of their children. And we reaffirm the importance of fathers in the lives of their children. Raising a child requires significant time, effort, and sacrifice; and it is one of the most hopeful and fulfilling experiences a man can ever know. A father can derive great joy from seeing his child grow from infancy to adulthood. As a child matures into independence and self reliance, the value of a parent's hard work, love, and commitment comes to fruition. Responsible fatherhood is important to a healthy and civil society. Numerous studies confirm that children whose fathers are present and involved in their lives are more likely to develop into prosperous and healthy adults. Children learn by example; and they need their father's presence as examples of virtue in their daily lives. A child's sense of security can be greatly enhanced by seeing his parents in a loving and faithful marriage." [5]

A biblical scholar named D.A. Carson wrote a book about his own father, a pastor. Here’s what a reviewer had to say:

Tom Carson was a pastor in the province of Quebec in Canada from the 1930s to the 1970s. He spoke at no major conferences, wrote no seminal work, and never pastored even a mid-size church by American standards. Yet it is clear from his son's profile that he was an exceptional man. He was a faithful husband, a devoted if quiet father, a dogged servant of the church, and a passionate witness for Christ. I never met him, but I know him. He is the man who can be found in countless little towns and hamlets across the country--no, across the world--who labors faithfully for the Lord in an unspectacular but steady fashion. Unlike many of us self-promoters, he's not in ministry to make a name for himself, but to glorify his God. [6]

On Father’s Day, may all fathers—and all of us--seek nothing more, and nothing less, than to glorify our God. Let us pray for all the fathers represented here today:

God our Father, in your infinite wisdom and love you made all things, and caused us to be in families. Bless these men present today, that they may be strengthened as Christian fathers, following your example of Fatherhood. For some of these men, being a father has come easily and naturally, and we praise you and thank you for that. But for others, it’s hard and they are wounded. Lord, hear our confession of sin, of failure, of ignorance. Help us all to forgive our own fathers for their faults and failings. For these men here today, I pray that the example of their faith and love will shine forth in their families. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, help them to love the mother of their children, and to be shining examples of a life lived to glorify you, our God and Father, through Christ our Lord, Amen.

[1] Wilkins, Michael J. The NIV Application Commentary: Matthew, p. 402.
[2] http://www.predigten.uni-goettingen.de/predigt.php?id=1023&kennung=20080615en
[3] Wilkins, 406.
[4] Ibid., 403.
[5] http://www.fathersdaycelebration.com/fathers-day-prayer.html
[6] http://consumedblog.blogspot.com/2008/03/when-ordinary-is-extraordinary.html