January 25 2026 Epiphany 3
Isaiah 9.1-4 Psalm 27.1-10 1 Corinthians 1.10-18 Matthew 4.12-25
It is interesting that our Gospel tells us that after Jesus travelled to what some might see as the ‘backwaters of Capernaum and Galilee’, it was here that he found and called the first of his followers. Peter, Andrew., James, John. And he proclaims the coming kingdom of God and invites all who hear him to repent, or to put it another way to turn around, so they can receive the kingdom. And he shows the nature of the kingdom by his teaching, preaching, and healing.
This morning I would like us to explore this sense of calling that flows through this passage. John the Baptist answered God’s call on his life when he called all to a baptism of repentance, and that call eventually led to his imprisonment. Jesus calls these fishermen to become a different kind of fisherman, a fisher of people, to catch people with the net of God’s grace; and his call to those around him was to perceive and become part of God’s in-breaking kingdom.
The thing is, we all have a call by God on our lives. Kenji is being baptised today and in this baptism he is being affirmed as one of ‘God’s children’ just like the rest of us. Next week, I will be commissioning the parish council, as they affirm their call to serve in this role. But ordination, parish council, and other leadership roles, are not all there is to being called by God. Every one of us are called by God to ‘share’ who you are for God, and who God is for you. What you do on a daily basis, or more specifically who you are, has a strong and important connection to what you believe, and that is what call is all about. But God’s call is not just about ‘doing’ something; it is more about ‘being’ something, being a child of God. And some might say, you have to ‘be’ before you can ‘do’; ‘being’ makes ‘doing’ possible.
John knew he had been called by God to ‘prepare the way’ for the coming Messiah. And he fulfilled that call even at the risk of imprisonment. These four fishermen did not even give a second thought when called by Jesus, they immediately left boat, father, lifestyle, to follow Jesus. They heard a call to ‘be’ more than they could even imagine. After all, what the heck does ‘fishers of people’ mean? But they see that Jesus sees something in them, something of value, something of worth, and they honour that vision by following him. And let’s not kid ourselves, in all likelihood they had no idea where they were going, what they would be asked to do, all they knew was that Jesus called them to be his disciples, and they trusted that the rest would reveal itself when the time was right.
Today, we will baptise Kenji as ‘child of God’, in the same way that you and I were called, at our baptism, to be children of God. And even if you struggle to work out what being ‘child of God’ means, we can know that God values and honours and loves us, and if we remain open to being children of God, we will, over time, learn what it means and find all kinds of things to do in response to this call. And most of that doing, most of our living out our calling in word and deed, will come through our relationships. No matter how God uses you, it is important for us to remember that before God calls us to do, God first calls us to be. To be God’s beloved children, knowing that the rest will follow.
And that call is not just for us as individuals, it is also for us as a community. Before we, as a congregation, as a community, can do anything, we first need to be. God calls us, congregationally, to be the gathering of God’s beloved children, God is calling us, collectively, to be places of welcome and acceptance. To be sanctuaries where God’s word is taught and proclaimed, and where all find healing.
It is very tempting, given all the anxiety in our world, to want to do something, to respond to the needs around us, to respond to ….. But before we can respond, before we can do, we first need to be God’s beloved children and let that grace-filled identity seep into the deepest parts of ourselves.
So I invite you to hear the call, know that you are called, and know that you are valued, and loved, and honoured, and that as ‘beloved child of God’ you can be the person God sees, and in coming to know that, you will be ready and able to do all that is in front of you.