Today, we hear the beginning of the Gospel of Mark, starting after John’s arrest. We learn how Jesus continues from where John the Baptist left off. We hear what Jesus says and does and hopefully we can appreciate what it means for us today.
Simon and Andrew were casting a net into the sea for they were fishermen. Day after day it was the same thing — the same sea — the same net– the same boat. Cast the net, pull it in. Cast the net, pull it in. If you are not casting the net, then you sit in the boat mending the net. That’s what James and John were doing. Casting and mending. Casting and mending. We know about those days, right?
We may not fish for a living but we know about casting and mending nets — days that all seem the same. For most of us life in our “bubbles” has been very repetitive. One day looks like every other. Life is routine. Nothing changes. We don’t expect much to happen. This is our Covid life. We cast the nets. We mend the nets. Casting and mending: to make a living, feed our family, pay the bills. Casting and mending: to gain security and get to retirement. Casting and mending: to stay healthy, to hold our family together, to make our marriage work, to raise our children. Casting and mending: to gain the things we want again someday; health, social connections, going to a movie and a restaurant, planning a vacation — maybe even attending a Buffalo Bills playoff game (hopefully Feb 7th in Tampa)! In the meantime we cast and mend our way through days that sometimes are filled with loneliness, sadness, or illness. Casting and mending are realities of life. They are also the circumstances in which Jesus comes to us — the context in which we hear the call to new life, and the place where we are changed and the ordinary becomes the extraordinary.
Mark explains that Jesus has an uncomplicated keynote speech with four specific messages: “The time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God has come near; repent and believe in the good news.”
“The kingdom of God has come near.” Throughout the Gospels, Jesus talks about the kingdom of God. I think we can never think and talk about it enough. What does the kingdom of God mean for you? What do you think it will be like? Do you want the kingdom of God to come near? For Jesus, the kingdom of God means God is at the centre of life. We are filled with God’s love, and we walk in the light and love of God. We love everyone — we serve everyone — forgive everyone — live in perfect peace with everyone. And this kingdom is here, right now this very minute. It’s as close as your hand: the hand we use to reach out to serve others — to greet others with the sign of peace — to receive Jesus in the Spiritual Communion offered today.
Then, Jesus starts saying exactly what John the Baptist commanded, “Repent.” — Meaning, “turn around, stop what you are doing and go in the other direction. Change the direction of your life.” Jonah called the people of Nineveh to repent and they did. Jesus calls us to repent, too, to stop rejecting God, to stop hurting one another, and to welcome God’s kingdom of love.
Finally, Jesus says, “Believe in the good news, the Gospel.” We are supposed to believe what Jesus says. I think part of us believes the Gospel and part of us does not believe the Gospel. Part of us does not trust God — does not want to forgive those who hurt us or love our enemies or take up the cross of resistance to injustice. But Jesus wants us to believe it completely, to make it come true, to dedicate our lives to his Gospel.
Then Jesus calls these fishermen, saying: “Come follow me and I will make you fishers of people.” They drop everything, leave their work, and follow him.
Today, Jesus says to us: “Drop everything and come after me. Walk in my footsteps and welcome God’s kingdom of love on earth.”
Some days I’m afraid that if Mark were writing about me — when he gets to the part when Jesus says, “Follow me” — Mark would write, “And Terry immediately questioned: “Where am I going? What will I do? How long will I be gone? What do I need to take? Where will I stay?”
Today let’s all pause and reflect on the kingdom of God: the command to repent and the call to discipleship. Let’s ask ourselves: “When did Jesus call me to follow him? When did I drop my nets, leave my boat and start following Jesus? What do I like about Jesus that enables me to leave everything and follow him? How can I repent and take another step forward on my discipleship journey to the Christ?”
Ultimately, it’s about letting go of our own little life so that we can receive God’s life. This letting go happens in the context of our everyday activities; work, school, families, paying the bills, running errands, fixing dinner, relationships, and trying to do the right thing. It happens in the casting and mending of our nets. These are the times and places Jesus shows up and calls each of us into a new way of being and our world changes. It happened for Simon, Andrew, James, and John. It can happen for you and for me.
I hope and pray that we will repent like the people of Nineveh, that we will drop everything to follow Jesus just like those fishermen did and welcome God’s kingdom of love into our hearts and into our world.
-Dcn. Terry Murphy