Before and After

1 Samuel 3:1-10; John 1: 43-51
January 14, 2018
First Presbyterian Church, Sterling IL
Christina Berry


John 1:43-51
The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee.
He found Philip and said to him, "Follow me."
Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.
Philip found Nathanael and said to him, "We have found him about whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth."
Nathanael said to him, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?"
Philip said to him, "Come and see."
When Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him, he said of him, "Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!"
Nathanael asked him, "Where did you get to know me?"
Jesus answered, "I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you."
Nathanael replied, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!"
Jesus answered, "Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than these." And he said to him, "Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man."

Yesterday, we had our annual officer training. We’re required, as Presbyterians, to have a time of education and training for the officers of the church – elders and deacons – and we’re required to have one meeting a year when the Session and Deacons meet together. We do that all at once, early in the year, so we can start the year off well. I always enjoy our annual officer training.

In our congregation, over the last 174 years, the work of church leadership has changed quite a bit. For example, it’s only been over the last forty years or so, that this congregation started having women in leadership. Before that, all church leadership was male. Then God called a couple of brave women, like Dessie Snavely, to serve on the session, and the congregation elected them. After that, it became routine for women to serve on the Session.

Before I came, called to be your pastor, there had never been a female head of staff in this church. After I was called, a female head of staff didn’t seem so strange. Well, I might seem strange, but the idea…you know….

Whenever God does something new like that, calling someone into service, there’s always a before and after. Before God called Samuel, things were not going well in the temple up at Shiloh. Eli, the high priest, was getting on in years, and wasn’t as spry as he once had been. He didn’t see well, and the work was getting harder. Eli had two sons that he’d hoped would step into the role of priest, but they were, frankly, just dreadful men. They regarded the temple as a sort of personal enrichment scheme, and they had no regard whatsoever for the holiness of their task.

Samuel was only a child, brought to the temple by his mother, dedicated to the service of God long before he could give any thought to it. So before God called Samuel, the future looked pretty bleak. Eli must have been wondering what in the world was going to happen, because those sons of his were not just disappointments – they held the temple worship in absolute contempt.

But AFTER God called Samuel, everything changed.
After God called Samuel, the future was bright.

Samuel couldn’t possibly have known the role he would play in the future of Israel. He couldn’t have imagined that he would anoint the first king of Israel, and the second – first Saul, and then King David. He didn’t know exactly what it was that God was asking him to do. Samuel only knew that Eli, whom he loved and trusted, had instructed him in how to answer the call of God.

Neither of them even realized at first that it was God!
It took God a few tries to get through to them.
But when at last Eli and Samuel could see the truth that night,
Samuel simply answered: “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.”

The characters in our gospel reading took a little while to answer, too. Jesus had already called Andrew and Peter, and then he called Philip. All Jesus said was “follow me,” and Philip was in. Not only that, but Philip went and found Nathanael. He was all excited!
“We found him! The one prophesied! Jesus, son of Joseph from Nazareth!”

Nathanael must have snorted!
Nazareth? Are you kidding me? Nazareth?

But when Nathanael and Jesus meet, Jesus recognizes Nathanael, in a way that had never happened before. And after Jesus says “I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you,” Philip is all in!

Funny how that happens.
Before you hear God’s voice, you’re asleep, you’re in the dark.
After you hear God’s voice, and you recognize the calling,
you are awake and alert and ready to hear what God has to say.

Before Jesus sees you, really sees you,
you’re not even sure if you really believe who he is.
After all, Nazareth is….well… I don’t want to say the word,
but certain people who live in at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
might liken Nazareth to…well, a toilet.

Before you meet Jesus,
you might think that there are some people,
from some places,
who are not even worthy of the most basic human respect.

After you meet Jesus, you see who he is, and what he came for,
and you realize that loving God means loving others – all others,

After you meet Jesus, you follow him,
and there are things you are going to see
that defy the powers of imagination.
You turn from doubter to devotee, from agnostic to adherent.

Before, we don’t see and hear God’s work in the world.
After, we come and see, we see who Jesus is, and we hear God’s voice.

In a little while, we are going to ordain and install those who have been called to service in this congregation. Every year, a committee on nominations meets to discern who God might be calling to serve as Elders - members of the Session – who lead and govern, and as Deacons, those who provide nurture and care for the congregation.

Every year, they pick up the telephone and call those people whom they believe God has already called. Sometimes it is like Samuel – the phone call comes like a strange voice in the darkness. The person may not recognize that call as coming from God. Sometimes it is more like Philip – the voice of Jesus says, “Follow me,” and the person responds with Yes! And sometimes the process is more like Nathanael – the call comes, the person is invited to come and see, and they are reluctant, not sure they are called at all, and it takes a while.

In any case, there is always a before and after.
Before we are called, we have no idea what we can do.
Before we are called, we may have no idea of what we might do.
Before we are called, we are not certain that we are cut out for the job.

After we are called, if we answer,
we find out that we are given all sorts of abilities we didn’t know we had.
After we are called, if we answer,
we learn to participate in God’s vision of hope for the world.
After we are called, we see that we are just the person God wanted.

Most of us don’t get mystical experiences
of God speaking to us in the night.
Most of us just get a phone call, or an invitation, or a little nudge.
Many of us might have a hard time pinpointing the moment we met Jesus,
and he saw who we were, and he asked us to follow, and we did.

But every single one of us is called to God’s service, whether in the church or some other part of our lives, and every single one of us will be changed by that call,
and after we answer, nothing will be as it was before.

All we have to do is come and see.
All we have to do is lean forward into the darkness,
ready to follow without knowing where,
and say simply and boldly,

“Speak Lord, for your servant is listening.”

Amen.