Maintaining Balance

Matthew 4:18-25

18 As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the lake—for they were fishermen. 19 And he said to them, ‘Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.’ 20 Immediately they left their nets and followed him. 21 As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. 22 Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him.

23 Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people. 24 So his fame spread throughout all Syria, and they brought to him all the sick, those who were afflicted with various diseases and pains, demoniacs, epileptics, and paralytics, and he cured them. 25 And great crowds followed him from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and from beyond the Jordan.

The passage we have just read feels like it has two parts – the calling of the first disciples – and Jesus’ growing reputation as a preacher and healer. On the one hand the tight circle of people who are learning from him and on the other hand the crowds. These are put together this way so that we notice this dichotomy – this seeming split. Jesus walked this tension between training an inner circle and addressing the needs of the crowd. In the gospels of Mark and Matthew it is particularly noticeable.

There is a truth here for us as well. The church needs to walk this line, this balance. On the one hand the church needs to pay attention to feeding the committed, those who want to follow Jesus deeply. We see this in study groups and prayer groups, places where people grow in the faith. Places where the insiders feel safe and nurtured. But the church also has a call to speak to the wider “crowds”, to people who are drawn by the Spirit of God to things the church is doing – those who “happen” to come through the doors on a Sunday, those who show up surprisingly at Messy Church, those who call during the week asking for help. The church is called to be a place where those who are not insiders can also find a place where they can learn and discover who this Jesus is.

The church struggles with this balance – because if it focusses too much on the insiders, then there is little opportunity for those not on the inside to find a place where they can start to learn about Jesus. But if the focus is entirely on the crowds, then those who want a deeper life in Jesus feel like they are not finding the nurture they desire.

It takes great wisdom to do both of these things, and as we read through Matthew, we will see Jesus trying to keep these in balance.

PRAYER:

God of grace, we rejoice that when we were outsiders you invited us in. We confess that sometimes we are not pleased when you spend your time inviting others into your care and grace. Give us hearts that welcome those you are drawing into your kingdom. Amen.