Year A Baptism of our Lord WED 2023 Staying on Task

 Year A Baptism of our Lord WEDNESDAY, 11 January 2023

St. James the Less Episcopal, Ashland, VA

“Staying on Task”

Collect: Father in heaven, who at the baptism of Jesus in the River Jordan proclaimed him your beloved Son and anointed him with the Holy Spirit: Grant that all who are baptized into his Name may keep the covenant they have made, and boldly confess him as Lord and Savior; who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.

Mark 1:29-45

As soon as they* left the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told him about her at once. He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up. Then the fever left her, and she began to serve them.

That evening, at sunset, they brought to him all who were sick or possessed with demons. And the whole city was gathered around the door. And he cured many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.

In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed. And Simon and his companions hunted for him. When they found him, they said to him, ‘Everyone is searching for you.’ He answered, ‘Let us go on to the neighboring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also; for that is what I came out to do.’ And he went throughout Galilee, proclaiming the message in their synagogues and casting out demons.

A leper* came to him begging him, and kneeling* he said to him, ‘If you choose, you can make me clean.’ Moved with pity,* Jesus* stretched out his hand and touched him, and said to him, ‘I do choose. Be made clean!’ Immediately the leprosy* left him, and he was made clean. After sternly warning him he sent him away at once, saying to him, ‘See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.’ But he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the word, so that Jesus* could no longer go into a town openly, but stayed out in the country; and people came to him from every quarter.

Good morning.

I love this passage from Mark. It has so many Mark hallmarks. Jesus immediately doing things. Jesus running away to pray all the time. Jesus healing and teaching. 

When we are doing big and important things, it is imperative that we stay on task and be about the work given to us to do. If we do not do that, everything else falls apart.

When I was a teacher, that was so often the case. “Rock, can you add this…” Or, “Rock, when you have homeroom, can you make sure…” Because it came from our head of school, it was hard to say no. And often I found a way to say yes when I could. That is the kind of team player I am. But if we do not keep the main thing the main thing then everything else falls apart. Mission creep derails us from our primary, even our necessary objectives.

My main task as a priest is to lead this sacramental worship of this parish, and to structure and ensure the worship of this community. There is SO MUCH MORE that I have to do, that I am privileged to do, but if it prevents me from doing the main thing then something is wrong.

As the priest of St. James the Less, there are some things only I can do. That is why I am here to perform these sacramental functions for you. Period.

Jesus came to proclaim the Gospel, the Good News, and if he let things distract or interrupt him from that, his purpose for coming down from heaven would have been corrupted. 

In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed. And Simon and his companions hunted for him. When they found him, they said to him, ‘Everyone is searching for you.’ He answered, ‘Let us go on to the neighboring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also; for that is what I came out to do.’ And he went throughout Galilee, proclaiming the message in their synagogues and casting out demons.

Jesus was attracting all kinds of attention. Sounds good, right? But his task was not to establish an outpost to which people thronged. He was to be about going out and spreading the message throughout Galilee, and then on up to Jerusalem itself.

And then we carry it throughout Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and then the “uttermost parts of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)

Had Jesus not done what he did, and to the extent and breadth of his work, would we even be here today? I hope so. I pray so. But that is why staying on task, doing the main task before the side adventures is imperative.

This comes to mind only because we are beginning this conversation. We are having to find new and alternative revenue streams. This is taking up bandwidth with our leadership and with me. But even while these conversations are so important, they are a side task at best. There are sermons to write every week. There are people to visit. There are prayers to be said. There are meetings to attend. There are articles to write. But first and foremost, I and all of us, need to be about the Gospel of ministry that makes us a church. Anything else and we are a social service agency at best. A club at worst. We are the Church of Christ. Let that never be in question. Amen