July 1, 2007 - Proper 8 Luke 9:51-62
The Rev. Stephanie E. Parker


(Please note that this is a re-creation from memory of a sermon given without notes as opposed to a transcribed copy of the oral presentation. If you note any minor differences this is the reason.)


Proper 8 Luke 9:51-62
The Rev. Stephanie E. Parker


The Hokey Pokey

"To another he said, "Follow me." But he said, "Lord, first let me go and bury my father." But Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God." Another said, "I will follow you, Lord; but let me first say farewell to those at my home." Jesus said to him, "No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God."


As I began the process of engaging this troubling and challenging Gospel, I found myself being haunted by an eternal and existential question:

What if the Hokey Pokey is what it's really all about?

I mean is the Hokey Pokey such a bad template for life's deep challenges? The formula is simple enough-you know how it goes...You put your right foot in you put your right foot out...you do the Hokey Pokey and....

I've actually heard some TV evangelists offer such a formula for becoming a follower of Christ...for becoming a disciple. You say some formulaic words, the community rejoices and BAM, just like that all of your troubles and worries are over-you can expect smooth sailing and prosperity all the way now! Have you ever heard those promises?

But this is problematic for me because I've never found following Christ to be so easy. And when we hear what Jesus is saying to us today I find it very hard to think that following Jesus is going to be so simple. Jesus tells us the true cost of Discipleship.

Jesus has set his face toward Jerusalem. From this point on in Luke's Gospel everything Jesus does is done with the understanding that his destiny is in Jerusalem and most likely death will be the price he pays for fulfilling his mission.

In the weeks ahead Jesus will tell us time and again of the high cost of Discipleship-of what it really means to follow Jesus. Even his closest followers still do not really get it. James and john want to call down fire and destroy the Samaritans who rejected Jesus, but Jesus rebukes them because they have a gross misunderstanding of the nature of his power and his mission as well as who they are as Christ's disciples. They still believe the road ahead is filled with glory, power and fame---an early version of the "prosperity gospel" sometimes sadly preached today.

But Jesus wants us to really know the cost and follow him not because of what we perceive we will gain, but because we understand we have a part to play in bringing about God's mercy, justice and compassion. Jesus has already faced great opposition and increasing persecution by the religious and political authorities and he tells his followers they should expect much of the same.

Jesus tells us that the demands of participating in the kingdom come will quite possibly challenge our highest and best loyalties. I do not believe it is Jesus' intent that his followers should forsake family responsibilities, but he demonstrates with his words the potential for exceedingly difficult choices if we choose to follow.

This is what is behind Jesus' comment about being "fit for the kingdom of God." This is no finger wagging condemnation of those who wanted to look back nor do his words speak to some idea of moral fitness. Jesus is teaching us that we must be prepared for the demands---we would not climb Everest without understanding the danger and demands would we-what guide would ever put people at risk in such a way----certainly not Jesus as he guides us into Discipleship.

We have modern Disciples who've understood the cost: MLK, Dietrich Bonhoffer, Nelson Mandela, Bishop Tutu, the Evangelical who lost his church when he had a change of heart about the church's view on Gays and Lesbians-the cost is not always death, but the cost can be very high.

But what all of these people seem to grasp was another of Jesus' teachings---almost a riddle really: in order to gain your life you must be willing to lose it for the sake of the kingdom.

I believe all of these people knew that to turn away from the difficulty before them would mean that their rest of their lives would be lived as one-dimensional shadows. Once their heart had been pierced by God's love they could do no other besides participate with God's hope for humankinds freedom from persecution, injustice and oppression. These were not simple or easy choices.

So how does it begin? How do we ordinary people become "FIT" for the Kingdom of God?

Well, with all due respect to the TV evangelist, I think it happens gradually in little but distinctly measurable steps. It starts with a hunger to have our lives mean more---to understand who God created us to be. So then we search for a church and we find one that speaks to us---one that tells us of how much God loves us just as God created us---we hear wonderful words we never thought we would hear.

And then the hunger builds and we want to volunteer for something or be involved in a ministry so we join the altar guild and come to a hot church to get it ready for the Sunday's services the Saturday before. We volunteer to read, fold bulletins or we come to Bible Study. We think about SOS and plan to be there on Fridays to help out.

And then before we know it our whole selves are consumed by this hunger to love and serve God---not just part time, but all the time. We start to think about how we can be instruments of God's justice, mercy, and kindness and then all of our decisions start to include thoughts of God and what God desires. And then one day we wake up and this becomes central to our very being-we are totally God's person-our relationships are formed and transformed by this.

Everything we say and do in our lives, with our families with our friends and coworkers are all influenced by the love and light of Christ---we are FIT for the kingdom-and we simply cease to count the cost---the tough road of discipleship gives us so much joy that nothing---not even the threat of death or loss or even the challenge to what we thought were our highest loyalties can keep us from following Jesus along the Way.

So...in the end it seems like maybe the Hokey Pokey IS what it's all about! We start with the arm and the leg and before we know it...You put your whole self in...you do the Hokey Pokey and you turn yourself around...THAT'S WHAT IT'S ALL ABOUT! Amen



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