- 1st Reading – Isaiah 6:1-2a, 3-8
- 2nd Reading – 1 Corinthians 15:1-11
- Gospel – Luke 5:1-11
I have a confession to make. I’m not perfect. In fact, I’m probably far from it. But I imagine I’m in good company. I doubt that anyone here is perfect either. And that makes today’s readings perfect for us. All three of today’s readings show how God calls all of us to be disciples —– even with our imperfections. Isaiah in our first reading, declared to the Seraphim: “Woe is me; I am doomed. For I am a man of unclean lips, living among a people of unclean lips.” That could probably also be said of any of us in today’s society. Paul in our second reading felt unfit to be an Apostle because he had persecuted the Church of God. and Peter in our Gospel reading said, “Depart from me Lord, for I am a sinful man.” All of these people felt unworthy of God. They too were far from perfect. But we know what their lives turned out to be like; how God used each of them to fulfill his purpose.
It seems hard to believe that Deacon Harry and I were ordained almost ten years ago, and it’s been fifteen years ago that we had begun the deacon formation program. Our first couple years in formation all of us deacon candidates went through a lot of testing; psychological, emotional, personality assessment. We all spent many hours lying on a couch talking to, who we called —— “the good doctor”. By the time we were done, I imagine that we all had some pretty thick files proving we were far from perfect. But again, I think we are all in good company.
Many of the Old Testament prophets felt unworthy, beginning with Moses, who asked God, “Who am I”, to lead your people. Most of the Apostles proved they were far from perfect. Like we heard from Peter in our Gospel today. Peter also, later denied Jesus three times at a most critical time. Matthew, as a tax collector would have been one of the most despised in the community. Thomas was skeptical of the Risen Lord until he saw him with his own eyes. All of the Apostles on occasion argued among themselves about who was the greatest.
The actions of the Apostles are typical of human nature, but thankfully that doesn’t matter to God. It should give us hope, because if they could go on to accomplish great things for the Lord, then so also can we. We are each called by the Lord at our baptism and then sent out at our confirmation to be his witnesses. No one can say they are unsuitable. All of us feel unworthy, at some times; but as Paul said, God makes us worthy. Reconciliation wipes away our past failures. And God’s grace sweeps away all our deficiencies; as he did for Isaiah, Peter and Paul.
There is another quality That Isaiah, Paul, and Peter all had in common, and that is the willingness to do God’s will and the readiness to follow his directives. Isaiah, once his lips were cleansed, responded to the voice of the Lord asking, “Whom shall I send?” with the immediate response, “Here I am, send me.” Peter and his fellow fishermen, we are told “left everything and followed him.” And Paul threw himself into God’s work with so much zeal that he worked harder than all those who were called before him. But Paul quickly points out, “It is not I, but the grace of God that is with me.” Merely acknowledging that we are unworthy does not make us into people that God cannot work with. We must make ourselves available to God and be ready and willing to go out there and do as the Lord directs us. The readings today tell us that no matter how futile our efforts may appear to be, God chooses to work through our efforts and will accomplish his purpose, if we respond to his call.
When I entered the deacon formation program fifteen years ago, I didn’t know much about the deaconate, I just knew that I was being called in this direction. People who know me well know that I’m generally a quiet introverted type of person. And when I found out That deacons often preach, I said “No Way” I was ready to back out. I thought God was definitely fishing in the wrong sea. But God had me on the hook and wouldn’t let me go. A phrase that someone in our program kept repeating that kept me going was, “God doesn’t call the qualified. He qualifies the called.” That was true for the Old Testament Prophets. It was true for Jesus’ Apostles and it’s true for us today. I don’t know if I’m qualified yet, but here I am fifteen years later and preaching a homily, on average, two to three weekends a month. In fact, between here and Holy Family Parish in Glennallen, I’m right now in the middle of preaching seven weekends in a row. Certainly not what I thought I was getting myself into fifteen years ago.
I’m not saying that everyone is called to be a prophet or an Apostle, or a priest or deacon, or to even be involved in some Church ministry, although that would be great. I’m just saying we need to be open to God’s call and accept whatever God is asking us to do.
One of my favorite quotes is from St. Frances of Assisi who said, “Preach the Gospel always. If necessary, use words.” What he means is that we preach the Gospel most effectively, when we live the Gospel. The best way to bring others to know God, is to let God’s power and presence shine through our own lives. That’s certainly not easy in today’s society. But we can do it, if we let God work through us and empower us. Isaiah, Paul and Peter are great examples for us to follow.
We’ve answered the call to come here today to listen to his word and receive the Eucharist. Let’s pray that if we hear God’s call of “Whom shall I send”, we’ll have the courage like Isaiah to answer, “Here I am Lord. Send Me.” The Lord will see to it that he renders you fit for the job that he wants you to do, just as he did with Isaiah, Peter and Paul.