Homily, Between Sundays
Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany, Year B, 2024
Good Shepherd Episcopal Church
Tequesta, FL
The Rev. Derek M Larson, TSSF
Today’s Lectionary Readings:
In the name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.
A wire stretched across Tallulah Falls Gorge. One thousand feet hight. Half a mile across. And at the top on one side stood one of the greatest circus performers of all time, Karl Wallenda. The year is 1970, and Wallenda, in the sight of 30,000 people watching in person and more on television, takes a step out onto the wire. It’s only 2 inches across, and wind gusts are blowing up to 20 miles and hour, but calmly and carefully he crosses, one step in front of the other. Over the course of 18 palm-sweating minutes, Wallenda walks, he stumbles once, but catches himself, and just for good measure does two head stands over the gorge, until finally he makes it to the other side, to the roaring applause of his audience, thus going down in history as one of the best tightrope walkers in history.
Watching someone walk on a tight rope like that is captivating isn’t it? They start from one solid place and the whole time you are cheering for them to reach the next solid place, but the magic is out on the wire, the real magic happens between the solid places.
I wonder if something similar is true of the mission of the Church. Each Sunday we come through these doors for encouragement and spiritual rejuvenation, each Sunday we come through these doors to stand on the solid ground of our liturgy and sacraments, but you know, perhaps the real mission of the Church happens outside of these doors—perhaps the real mission happens between Sundays.
That’s exactly what we see in our gospel passage this morning. It picks up right where we left off last week with Jesus and his four new disciples worshiping together at the synagogue in Capernaum. But whereas last week’s passage happens on the solid ground in the synagogue, this week’s passage takes place out on the wire in the community. Out amidst people’s homes with all of their pains, needs, and hopes. Jesus meets them there.
It starts with the healing of Simon’s mother-in-law, but word spread quickly about him, and by nightfall, the passage says “the whole city was gathered around the door.” And that’s where Jesus met them. Not in the synagogue, but outside of the synagogue. And so he met the needs of each person who came late into the night.
Early the next morning, despite presumably being quite tired, Jesus arises before anyone awakes and finds a deserted place. Having walked the wire through the night with people in their needs, Jesus seeks out a solid place where he can rest and pray. But before long the disciples come to him and name again before him the needs of the community, “everyone is searching for you.” And so Jesus goes out into the world again, out from his solid place and onto the wire.
What this passage tells us is that prayer is important. It begins and ends with prayer. Jesus prioritizes prayer. He prioritizes entering the temple to worship and despite being up late into the night, he prioritizes starting his morning in prayer. The solid ground of prayer is the heart of Jesus’ life. But as important as it is to set aside time for prayer, Jesus also knows that his prayer will lead him out into the community to fulfill his mission. It is between the solid places of the synagogue and morning prayer where the real mission happens.
You know often when we think of “church” we only think of Sundays. We think of the sound of the organ and the taste of bread and wine. We think of homilies, prayers, and offering plates. But the church isn’t something that just exists on Sundays, the Church exists everyday. And while Sunday worship is the heart of what we do—the solid ground we seek out to bring us strength and encouragement—the real mission of Church happens between Sundays. It happens outside of these doors, out on the wire in the middle of the city in the midst of the needs of our community.
I once attended a church that had this beautiful mosaic of Jesus above the doors at the back of the church. And when I came in through the doors and sat down in a pew and participated in the service facing the altar, I had no idea it was there behind me until the very end of the service when the altar party and the choir processed out and walked right under it. And immediately my eyes widened at the sight of it, not only because of its size and beauty, but because I realized it was an image of the great commission when Jesus says, “Go. Go into all the world and make disciples.” And in that moment despite having come to church to see Jesus, I realized Jesus was telling me go. Go out there. That’s where the mission is. And then I heard it audibly in the words of the deacon, “Go in peace, to love and serve the Lord.”
The doors through which we enter the church, after worship are also the doors through which we enter the world. And while the whole city may not be gathered right at those doors as they are in our gospel passage, the whole city is out there. And it needs us.
Think about the pain and suffering that exists in our world. Think about people’s needs and longings. The hunger they feel in their bellies. The loneliness they feel in their hearts. The pain they feel in their bodies. Our community needs us. It is not enough for us to stay on the solid ground of this place, Jesus is calling us out onto the wire.
Now, we can and should do this individually in our personal neighborhoods and communities, but we at Good Shepherd do a whole lot together. Together we support our food pantry which provides groceries for hundreds of people each week. Together we provide meals and support the ministry of St. George Table in Riviera Beach which serves many without homes in Palm Beach County. Together we offer financial and volunteer support to El Sol, to Cross Ministries, to South Florida Haiti Project, to Warfield Elementary School, to so many places that are out on the wire doing the work to which Jesus calls us, meeting the needs of those in our community.
And this week is the perfect week to renew our mission in that work. Can I sound like a commercial for just a moment?
Joining the ranks of Barnum and Bailey, the Ringling Bros., and the high-rope walking Wallenda’s Good Shepherd Episcopal Church brings to you, Artie’s Party: The Greatest Outreach Event on Earth. An annual fundraising event of food, entertainment, and a silent auction, Artie’s Party raises money for our parish’s annual support of ministries meeting the real needs of those in our communities. When you purchase a ticket, make a donation, or bid on an auction item, you are joining Jesus out on the wire, in service to others. Join us on Friday at Artie’s Party.
Okay, commercial is over. But in all seriousness, the real purpose of this event is to do the work Jesus is calling us to do. To meet the needs of others, outside of the walls of this church.
Sundays are important. Our prayer and worship is important. It is the beating heart of our community and connection with God. But the real mission happens with Jesus out there on the wire. The real mission happens between Sundays. Amen.
Thoughts on Faith 