Readings
- Matthew 9:35–10:8[9–23] Disciples Called and Sent
- Exodus 19:2–8 A Kingdom of Priests and a Holy Nation
- Romans 5:1–8 Rejoicing in Hope … and Suffering
Introduction – the Importance of Names
Names can be powerful things when they are given to us with care. How many parents have agonised over the right name for a child, as yet unborn – unknown but full of hope? And, amongst friends, nicknames tell us something about how our friends see us and our place in the group. Surnames may say something about our place in society, a trade, location, or parentage.
In scripture, names have always carried meaning, throughout the old testament and the new. Amongst the disciples, James and John were known where they came from as ‘the sons of thunder’. One wonders what this says about how their friends saw them. Yet John came to see himself in later years as ‘the beloved disciple’. Simon, for all his impetuousness and volatility, was named Peter (Rock), by Jesus, and became so in the early church.
Revelation tells us that those who is faithful in Jesus will receive a new name, that is not given or known by others, but a personal gift from God himself known only to the one who receives it (Rev 2:17). Imagine that, a name that is not about who we are in our community, or who we have come from, but all about who we are to God himself.
In our Gospel reading today, we have the names of the twelve followers that Jesus called to him and sent out before him; twelve disciples, who become apostles, representatives of the one who sent them. Whatever they had been – tax collectors, zealots, fishermen etc. – they were now his disciples. They had received a new name. And now, the way that they are received by people will be treated as if the people had received or rejected Jesus himself.
In our old testament reading, the people are called a ‘Treasured Possession’, ‘Priests’ and ‘Holy’ (set apart for God). And in the epistle, we are called sinners whom God has loved. Names are important, and what God calls us is most important of all. Let us pause and look again at what God calls us.
Called
Jesus had many who followed him in various ways. The crowds followed him about, perhaps intrigued or entertained. Some followed him out of a need to be healed or set free. Some followed him in order to test him. And some had left everything behind to follow him.
Chosen and Called
But all of those who truly followed him were first called by him, and none more so than the twelve disciples whom he called apostles. We see this truth in this passage as these twelve are called out from the rest of his followers as disciples. But we could also have seen it in the way each of them was called, one by one, to leave their old lives and follow him.
This has been the pattern of God’s way of salvation since Abraham and even, you might argue, since Adam, whom God called into being. So, Jesus can say to them in the upper room, “you did not choose me, but I chose you” (Jn 15:16). And Romans tells us
“And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.” (Rom 8:30)
A Liberating Blessing
This is a glorious truth that has blessed and sustained Christians through the ages … He chose. Whatever choice we made was in response to his first choosing, so it depends in his choosing not ours. But those whom he chose he also called; and he called them to be, and to become … something new.
In the normality of this world we are all called into being, by our parents, by the friends and community in which we live, by what we do. And we also call ourselves into being, as we pursue our own vision of who we are, and who we can be.
So, for example, John was called one of the sons of thunder, and may have lived up to that reputation. But as he followed Jesus call, he came to see himself as – and to be seen by others as – the beloved disciple. What does it do to you when you leave behind a sense of thunderously imposing yourself on life and come to know above all other things, that you are loved by God?
Or, Matthew, who was known to everyone – and judged by them – as a traitorous tax collector. He would become a father figure to many as he shared his master’s words in the Gospel and the growing churches for which it was first written.
Christ in You
And, what of us … what of you? Who are you? Each one of us, he has called, one by one, name by name. Part of our discipleship is allowing him to name us, to call us into being who and what he wants us to be. The Holy Spirit is at work in us so that Christ is formed in us (individually and together). Christ is the pattern and goal, but he is calling you to be ‘Christ in in you’. A name he gives to you, alone.
Nevertheless, since Christ is the pattern, there are some names that we share.
Treasured
So, God says to the people he called out with Moses – “you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples”.
Among all his possessions
To make it more clear, he says “all the earth is mine”. It is not as if we are his possession and the rest of the world is not. We are not God’s people in that way. All people are, in a real sense, God’s people. They are his whether they reject him or ignore him. We need to remember this in all the divisions and denigrations of racism and nationalism (or whatever) that beset our world. Every single person is God’s, made by him and for him.
With No Intrinsic Value
And amongst all these, God has not chosen the brightest and best, the wisest, strongest, or most skilled.
“For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.” (1 Cor 1:26-39)
But, though there is nothing in us that deserves it, God has called us Treasured. Out of all his possessions we are, in Christ, his treasured possession. For me, that says more than that God loves me. We can love people that we don’t like. We are called to love our enemies. But God calls you treasured – cherished, rejoiced over.
Whatever the world says, whatever your heart says, this is what God calls you!
God’s Eternal Choice
And we are Treasured by the one who sees all things. At his command, Jesus called twelve disciples, knowing that more than one would betray him. But only one was choses as a betrayer. Peter and the others were chosen as treasure.
We may have let him down, and may disappoint him in the future. We may have given him every reason to regret his choice and calling. But he has determined that we will be his treasure, so that he sanctifies all whom he calls, and he glorifies all whom he sanctifies. And, if we can begin to feel what it means to be treasured, to be called a joy and crown, by the one who made all things, perhaps we can begin to find – in him – the way to become what we are called.
Holy
We are called Treasure, and we are Treasured. But we are also called Holy.
Holiness speaks of God’s uniqueness, in goodness, purity, power and wisdom. But the root meaning of the word is about separation. So, God in his holiness is not like us – he is certainly not made in our image – he is different, set apart, holy. And when God calls us holy, we too are set apart, to be his people, to bear his image.
Abraham: Called Out … to be a Blessing
So, from Abraham and his children, God called out a people for his won possession. They were part of the same overall people group as their neighbours, but they were called to separate themselves and live differently as God’s people. They were given religious markers – including circumcision, clothing & food – to mark them as separate. But the heart of their separateness (their holiness) was there love and worship of God alone and their moral way of living.
They were not entirely separate. They were to live among the other peoples surrounding them. But they were to have a different hear, and a different way of life from them.
Ultimately, from Abraham’s first call, they were to be a blessing to those amongst whom they lived. This was not an exclusive isolation. They had a duty to strangers and especially refugees. And what they were called to be was meant to be seen by the nations, who would wonder at the God who gave them such laws and instructions
And we also, in Christ
And when Christ came and the gentiles were included in this calling, some of the religious markers were fulfilled and left behind. We are no longer called to be circumcised physically, to avoid certain foods, to dress in a certain way, or to worship in a particular place or way. Now Christ is being formed amongst all the nations and cultures of the world. But the heart of our call remains the same, God has called us out from what and where we were to be his.
So, what does this mean for you and for me?
Christian British or British Christian
Fundamentally, it means that we belong to God in Christ. Whatever else we may also be in our relationships (husband, wife, parent, child, neighbour etc.), or in our nationality (British, Cornish or whatever), in our occupation (people always ask ‘what do you do?’), or even in our own identity – whatever else we are, first and fundamentally we are Christ’s.
So, if we are British and a Christian, are we a Christian British person or a British Christian person. The English language emphasises the last adjective as fundamental, so I would say that I am a Christian who is also British – a sort of dual nationality in which my fundamental identity is Christian.
New Person, New Roots, New Identity
This also means that I am a new person in Christ. I may have been a sinner, but now I am freed from sin and a new person (2 Cor 5:17). I may have been abused in my childhood, but now I am freed from any claim that abuse has on my identity, I am new in Christ.
When God calls you Holy, it is a liberating thing. You have been called out and set apart. So now you are free to live in wholeness and fulfil all God’s calling for you
But it is a freedom that does not entirely detach you from what you have been. Because God wants you to be a blessing. So (for example), if you have been abused, that abuse no longer defines or controls you, but you may have a special ministry to share with the abuses – to comfort with the comfort which you have been comforted with in Christ (2 Cor 1:4)
Sent
Which leads to a final part of our new calling and name. We are Called to God to be sent out by him. Just as the Twelve were called by Jesus to be sent out. The Apostles are special case for what is a general calling for all Jesus’ disciples.
Our Gospel reading records the calling of the twelve who were called Apostles – a word which means a representative, sent in the place of their master. But Jesus called other disciples and sent them out (Lk 10:1). And all of us are sent to make disciples (Matt 28:19)
Sent and Called
And as we go, we will discover that being sent is not merely a part of our calling, one aspect only. As we go, we will discover more of what it means to be called.
So, Jesus tells them not to take extra possessions. We are called to God in Christ and now belong to him, set apart and holy, and he is the one who now looks after us. So, going without extra supplies and resources, we will discover how much we are treasured as God supplies our needs.
And, whilst we are sent out as sheep amongst wolves, we will discover – in Christ by his word and Spirit – wisdom to overcome all their wiles. God will reveal Satan’s devices to us so that we are not left unaware and vulnerable. And, when we are tested by courts or kings, we will be given the words we need.
We cannot rejoice at being called and given a new name, or at being set apart and treasured, without also being sent and going as he directs us. Without the obedience of going, we ill not truly discover what our calling and new name is, or how set apart and treasured we are.
Called for Glory
Ultimately, we are called to be what Adam and Eve were made for – to bear and display the image of the God who made us. We are called for display –
- to be for the praise of his glory (Eph 1:12)
- a display of God’s wisdom (Eph 3:10
Just as God has delighted to display his glory in the extraordinary variety and beauty of the physical creation, even more he has purposed to display his deeper glory of wisdom and truth in a people that he has called and made (rescued and re-made). We should not be surprised that we are sent and called to go out into our communities and world rather than hide away. God wants his grace in us to be seen.
A New Name
Who is like God, and who is like the Son who he has given to be our saviour, and the Spirit whom he has lavished upon us in his grace? He has chosen us when we rejected him. He has called us when we were not looking for him. He has treasured us when we were less than worthless; loved loveless sinners. And he has given us a new name, a new calling and purpose, to the praise of his glorious grace.
Let us finish this morning with words from Romans (Rom 11:33-12:2)
“Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! “For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor?” “Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?” For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.
So, may each of us, brothers and sisters, by these mercies of God, present our bodies as a living sacrifice, each one of us called holy and acceptable to God. What other worship can we give? Let us not be conformed to this world, as we have been called out of it. But may we be transformed by the renewal of our mind, as we obey his call and so discern his will in all its goodness and rightness and perfection.