Below is the first in a series of sermons this month looking at God's Call - as part of It's Your call - This sermon was preached in Blarney Church on Sunday 9th September at 11am Holy Communion Service.
Reading Judges 6:11-18
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of all our hearts be now and always be acceptable in thy sight O Lord our strength and our redeemer. Amen
I wonder what comes to your mind when you hear the word - Call - in relation to God?
Is it something like - ordination, Lay reader or some other post in the church?
We have somehow clericalised and mystified what should be something that needs to be talked about more openly than it is, we as a church need to be much more open about what God might be saying to people.
This month the Church of Ireland has launched a new website and resources talking more openly about Call - under the theme of - its your call on the website these words are written …
Vocation isn’t just about being ordained – ordination is not for everyone.Indeed, many of the Church’s ministers are not ordained.
Youth and children’s ministers, evangelists, readers and many chaplains are generally not ordained, and are collectively known as lay ministers who serve alongside the ordained.
While the Church is keen to foster vocations to the ordained ministry, there are many ways in which to serve the Church.
If you are wondering what God wants you to do with your life and are keen to explore further the various stages in discerning your call, you will find it helpful to speak with your Rector or local Diocesan Director of Ordinands. They can encourage you, as you prayerfully discern what area of ministry God is calling you to.
What area of ministry might God be calling you into?
Whoever you are, whatever life stage you are at … there are things for you to do. He has plans for each one of us … beyond what we think or imagine.
Having said all of this I want us to look at the passage for this morning - and look at one specific call - the call of Gideon - a man who is scared, questioning and realistic about his weaknesses
Let’s take these in turn
Scared - This guy is threshing wheat in a wine press - That fact might be overlooked - I certainly didn’t see too much wrong with it when I first read it but when we dig a bit deeper into the culture and practices of ancient Israel
Normally, a person would thresh wheat on a wooden threshing floor, using a threshing sledge pulled by oxen. The floor would be in an exposed place, usually the top of the hill, so that the winds would carry away the lighter chaff and leave only the heavier grain. Only the very poor would have so little grain that they would beat it with a stick, and even they wouldn’t do it in a winepress, which was usually sheltered. But these weren’t’ normal times. Gideon was acting as he was, cautiously beating out a few sheaves of wheat in a sheltered winepress under a tree, because he was desperately afraid that the Midianites would confiscate his meager supply. (Hearts of Iron, Feet of Clay, 96)
He’s in fear of his enemy - fear is an emotion which makes us look inward and causes us to loose confidence and depend on ourselves alone.
What’s interesting in this passage is that - his visitor - his heavenly visitor says to him “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.”
He’s not a mighty warrior at this point - he’s a scared guy looking out for his own needs.
Questioning - Gideon then questions this visitor -
if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our ancestors told us about when they said, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian.”
What Gideon is saying is something which we might say from time to time - We’re abandoned, where is the Lord?, all of these crazy things have happened to us - how can the Lord be with us - is he taking a holiday - Lots and lots of questions. Yes things need to change - we can’t go on the way we are going - all I can see is destruction, all I can see is desolation - where is God?, the enemy is having a field day with all of this stuff.
But rather than being absent … actually he is there with his people and is raising up leaders - yes the leader might need to change, yes the people are struggling with the situation they see in front of them - maybe even the leader is quaking in his or her boots but they need to recognise that God is open for a dialogue - are we prepared to dialogue with Him?
Gideon is scared, he’s questioning and he’s realistic about his weaknesses … or his perception of his weaknesses - yes it may be excuses but it also might be that he needs these things addressed - they are real impediments to him moving forward, to understanding his own identity and the way he views himself and the way others view him.
These things are really important to Gideon in the wine press - look at what he says … how can I go … my clan is the weakest, and I am the least in my family.
The Lord promises him I am with you … I’ll sort it out
Each of Gideon’s issues are addressed
His fear is met with a fresh call - mighty warrior
His questioning is met with an opportunity to change the question - no answers rather a mission - and a further question - Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?
His realism is met with fresh perspective and a promise
None of us are going to have the same call as Gideon, actually none of us are going to have the same call as each other - we’re unique each and every one of us is unique
But I suspect we all have some level of fear
We live in an anxious world - we do have fear about things - the future, the present, the past, our health, our family circumstances, our finances … whatever it may be - we’re not threshing in a winepress but we may be keeping our heads down in fear of something - I wonder what that is for you? What would make you have courage beyond the limit of what you can see at the moment.
Child of God, Preacher, Woman of God, Man of God, Daughter / Son of the King of Kings,
Yes there is something in these things - You are more than you think you are. Your identity is more than is on your Public Service Card, driving licence or bank account.
Then there are the questions - those questions we all have - those questions about how God is at work, how he is working those plans out when seemingly they don’t make sense to us as we live through them. Perhaps we might discover some of the answers to them as we live out our call - that’s what we find out - actually the way God works is in partnership with humanity - with individuals who are prepared to place themselves in his hands - Gideon is raised up and we see how he actually fulfilled his calling as a mighty warrior.
How do you get beyond the questions? - am I not sending you? - listen to the Lord’s question again - am I not sending you? - yes things are tough, yes things are scary - but might not you be the one the Lord is sending to get the work done?
Whatever age we are, whatever is on our hearts … might not the Lord be sending you right to where we are going
His realism - he is weak, his people are weak, but he can be used - if God is with him
How amazing is that - and how amazing are we - you and I we need to begin to think actually God, the God of the universe is with us - we can dream big dreams of how he can use us - he can use every single one of us right here
Look again at what Gideon is saying - he is using the excuses we all use from time to time - I’m not a leader, I couldn’t be - I’m only a local, I’m only a farmer, my family are not anything
Whilst preparing this sermon I was reminded of something I went to as a teenager - an event where I first received God’s call to ordination - It was a reminder that God has called me into his church - it wasn’t dramatic, but it was definite - I wonder what he could be calling you to do.
Whatever life stage you are at - there’s more to be done! His perception of himself - was one thing - his reality was something completely different
If you are fearful today - Know God’s peace as the baseline of your relationship
If you are Questioning stuff - that’s OK you are in good company but don’t let your questions stop you - he might just ask some questions of his own!
Don’t let your perception of yourself stop you from hearing the what God thinks of you and what he has in store for you.
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