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January 23, 2011 | 8:00 a.m.

More than Just Tagging Along

Victoria G. Curtiss
Associate Pastor

Psalm 27:4–9
Isaiah 9:1–4
Matthew 4:12–23

The aim is not imitatio Christi, to imitate Christ, but sequentia Christi, to follow Christ—that is to situate ourselves in history as Jesus did. He wants us to live our history, not his; to love our enemies, not his; to see our signs of the Kingdom, not his.

Ernest T. Campbell

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In the front of the sanctuary of St. Mark’s Presbyterian Church in Tucson, Arizona, where I once served as co-pastor, there is a large, beautiful wooden cross that fills the front and has been the focal point for worship for many people. But probably few have found as much meaning in it as a little girl did about thirty years ago. Her name was Tracy, and her preschool class was taking a tour of the sanctuary. Her church school teacher pointed to the cross and asked, “Who knows what that is?” And this bright-eyed, enthusiastic child raised her hand and proudly said, “I do. That’s a T for Tracy!”

She was not that far off. We are each called to make our own journey of faith, which has our own initials on it. Jesus said, “Take up your cross and follow me.” It’s familiar to most of us. Yet we may hear a different phrase. We may hear “take up Jesus’ cross.” We let Jesus’ journey be a substitute for our own. We think more about how God confronted and embraced Jesus than we recognize how God is confronting and embracing us. Dr. Carl Jung said, “The imitation of Christ will forever have this disadvantage: We worship a divine model embodying the deepest meaning of life; and then out of sheer imitation, we forget to make real the profound meaning in ourselves.”

Following Jesus is not the same as imitating him. Jesus lived in a particular time in history different from our own. He had a role in God’s plan for our salvation that was unique to him. His ministry tapped special abilities and authority not shared by everyone. We are not Jesus Christ. We are not called to imitate him. We are each created in God’s image in our own unique way, in our particular time in history, with our own particular call to embody God’s saving love. Imitating anyone else—even Jesus—is not what we are called to do.

Rabbi Ray Zussye put it this way:

I am about to face the Holy One, blessed be God, and justify my sojourn on the world. If God will ask me: Zussye, why were you not like Moses? I shall respond, because you did not grant me the powers you granted Moses. If God will ask me: Zussye, why were you not like Rabbi Akiba? I shall respond, because you did not grant me the powers you granted Rabbi Akiba. But the Almighty will not ask me why I was not like Moses or why I was not like Rabbi Akiba. The Almighty will ask me: Zussye, why were you not like Zussye? Why did you not fulfill the potential which was Zussye? And it is for this question that I tremble.

Following Jesus is not the same as imitating him. Nor is following Jesus the same as believing in him. Ernest T. Campbell, former pastor at Riverside Church in New York City, recalls reading along in a book by Salvadoran Jesuit, Jon Sobrino, called Christology at the Crossroads. Then suddenly, Campbell says, the author “blew most of my theological ducks out of the water.” It was because of this question that Sobrino raised: “Are you following Jesus, or believing in Christ?”

Most of us have been asked at some point if we believe in Jesus Christ. What is usually sought is an affirmative response to some long-cherished doctrines the church carries. But how often have you ever been asked if you are following Jesus? It’s an important question. The Greek verb for “follow” (akaloutheo) is found eighty-seven times in the Gospels. Following Jesus is a dominant theme in the New Testament. Yet answering the question if you are following Jesus can get to be expensive. You can believe and not change a thing. But following will change your whole life. As Ernest Campbell puts it, following Jesus affects your lifestyle, your attitudes, your values, your actions, your surrender (Ernest T. Campbell, “Are You Following Jesus or Believing in Christ?” August 1981, p. 20).

Following Jesus gives us a moral frame of reference. We are guided by his teachings and the way he lived his life. But we do not have explicit advice or direction about many of the issues that face us in our day. We can’t run to Jesus in person or even turn to the Bible and find clear answers. What we are expected to do is wrestle in prayer and significant reflection with the question “Is this action or direction or decision consistent with the spirit of Jesus? Will what we are thinking of doing take us in the direction that Jesus is going?”

Following Jesus means pursuing the path he leads you to take. This requires turning to the Holy Spirit for guidance and then trusting and obeying that direction. Prayer is essential for us to listen for God’s word and find the courage and strength to follow what we hear.

Following Jesus means traveling the journey of faith in a similar relationship to God as Jesus had. I always thought Jesus came to reveal to us what God our Parent is like. But perhaps Jesus came primarily to show us what it is like for us to be God’s sons and daughters. Jesus didn’t have all the answers. He let the mysteries of life and death, evil and suffering and joy stand and made responses, not answers. Jesus lived without a known future. He lived with dependence upon God. Or another way of saying that is he lived with independence of all that is not God. His allegiance was to God alone. His call to the first disciples meant that they needed to leave their boats and nets and fishing career—at least for a time—to follow Jesus. Our call to follow Jesus may or may not mean leaving our relatives or career or hometown. But to follow one whose life ended on a cross does mean that following Jesus will have a cost. Following Jesus is more than just tagging along. Following Jesus may require courage on our part. It often means letting go of what we most desire or prefer in order eto be open to what God is asking of us.

A good friend of mine who lives in New Orleans recently visited me. She told me about the influx of volunteers who have come to New Orleans since Hurricane Katrina devastated many houses. Without volunteers from many churches and other groups, the city would certainly not have been rebuilt as much as it has been. However, some volunteers are a mixed bag. She knew of one woman who was asked to do some vacuuming, because that was what was needed that day. She responded, “I could have vacuumed at home! I came here to build a house!” Which led my friend to wonder, “Who is this volunteering really for? Whose needs are really being served?” We may determine what we think it looks like to serve God or our neighbors and actually not be following what God is truly calling us to do.

We don’t need to go looking for ways to love our neighbors. If we follow Jesus, we will be drawn to our neighbors in need. As pastor Eugene Bay put it,

Following Christ today means facing up to, and not walking away from, the problems and pains of our society: the homeless, the hungry, and the hopeless, the children who are abused and the aged who are neglected, the teenage girls who are having children, the teenage boys walking into schools with guns, the people who are dying of AIDS, the prisons that are chock full. Any who take seriously Jesus’ entreaty “Follow me” will not be able to ignore these contemporary versions of the least and lost, the sinners and outcasts, whom Jesus said he came to seek and to save. Those who follow Jesus will have to ask themselves, “What are my responsibilities as a Christian for these neighbors?” (Eugene C. Bay, “Follow Me,” preached at Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church, 21 January 1996)

Ernest Campbell posed some challenging questions for himself and for us:

If I’m following Jesus, why am I such a good insurance risk?
If I’m following Jesus, why when I have done my giving have I so much left over for myself?
If I’m following Jesus, why do my closets bulge when so many are unclothed?
If I’m following Jesus, why do I have so many friends among the affluent and so few among the poor?
If I’m following Jesus, why do I have so much privacy in a world that is starved for love?
If I’m following Jesus, why am I tempted to overeat in a world where so many beg bread?
If I’m following Jesus, why am I getting on so well in a world that marked him out for death?”
(Ernest T. Campbell, “Are You Following Jesus or Believing in Christ?” August 1981)

If I’m following Jesus why do missiles and guns make me feel more secure?
(Bryan Sirchio, lyrics from “Follow Me [87 times])

It’s a lot easier to believe in Christ than it is to follow Jesus.

The good news is that we are not alone on the journey. Jesus said, “Follow me.” He walks along in front of us and beside us. When we are lost and confused, he is there. When doubt and fear overtake us, he calms us. When we are swept up in grief or despair, he shines hope. His solidarity with us is what empowers us to follow him on a journey that lasts a lifetime. Jesus’ accompanying us each step of the way is what frees us to venture forth wherever he may lead.

Thomas Merton wrote a beautiful prayer with which you might identify, as I do. Let us pray:

My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going.
I do not see the road ahead of me.
I cannot know for certain where it will end.
Nor do I really know myself,
and the fact that I think I am following your will
does not mean that I am actually doing so.
But I believe that the desire to please you
does, in fact, please you.
And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing.
I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire.
And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road,
though I may know nothing about it.
Therefore, I will trust you always
though I may seem to be lost, and in the shadow of death
I will not fear, for you are ever with me,
and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.
Amen.

Sermon © Fourth Presbyterian Church