Come and See. Go and Tell.

Jonah is the perfect poster boy for trying to flee God and God's call.  Read Jonah 3: 1-10 to see just how persistent God can be.  After Jonah is dumped overboard from a ship and swallowed by a big fish and then vomited out of the fish through God's creative and saving grace, God comes to Jonah a second time:  "Get up and go to Ninevah to proclaim my message of repentance."  Finally convinced that he can't escape God's call, Jonah does the minimum preaching possible - only to attain maximum results!  Jonah is outraged.

How do we all try to dodge God's call sending us out into the world by diving into our busy calendars, locking ourselves into the demands of work and family, insisting that we have minimum time for service to others?  How do we rationalize that our meager efforts won't make much of a difference in bringing in the kingdom of God anyway?  How do we minimize God with such rationalizations?

In contrast Jesus shows up in Galilee proclaiming the good news (Mark 1: 14-20):  "the kingdom of God has come near; repent and believe in the good news."  In contrast to Jonah's flight in the opposite direction, Simon, his brother Andrew, James, and his brother John, drop their nets - drop everything - to follow Jesus out into the world.  We might ask, "Did it really happen immediately?"  (Mark writes a fast paced gospel with his favorite being "immediately.")  "Or were they discouraged with their fishing careers and were ready for a new direction?"  "What happened to their families as they left town?"

Perhaps Jesus' presence was compelling enough that they not only followed, but they were changed in the course of following.  Being called to come and see - and then commissioned to go and tell - meant that the 4 new disciples were irrevocably changed forever.  Bowing down before Jesus in worship and then proclaiming by word or action what we believe about the presence of the kingdom in Jesus gives us a new identity.

Going and telling is an act of faithful followership.  It's scary and exciting and compelling and a game changer.  It's how we carry our worship out into the world.