Introductions

This sermon was heard at the First Presbyterian Church in Berryville, Arkansas on January 20, 2008, the Second Sunday of Ordinary Time.

Isaiah 49:1-7
Psalm 40:1-11
1 Corinthians 1:1-9
John 1:29-42

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable to you, O Lord, our rock and our redeemer. Amen

Sir Henry Morton Stanley was an extremely resourceful man.[1] Born in a family that would have been comfortable on The Maury Show, he was initially raised by his grandfather. After he died, Stanley went to live with cousins. Sent from there to a workhouse for the poor, at fifteen he became a pupil-teacher in a Welsh Anglican School. At eighteen he immigrated to New Orleans where he fought on both sides of the American Civil War.

He soon began a career in journalism; visiting mines, reporting on conflicts with Native Americans, and joining an expedition to establish the course of a river. He even organized an expedition to the Ottoman Empire that landed him in a Turkish prison, but somehow talked himself out of jail receiving damages for lost equipment.

Stanley was eventually retained by James Gordon Bennett, founder of the New York Herald, who was impressed by Stanley's exploits and by his direct writing style. He became one of the Herald’s overseas correspondents and in 1869 was instructed by Bennett's son to find the Scottish Presbyterian pioneer, medical missionary, and explorer Dr. David Livingstone, who was known to be in Africa but had not been heard from for some time.

Stanley and his expedition traveled to Zanzibar in March 1871. The expedition through the tropical forest became a nightmare. Imagine plodding across African tropical jungles, crossing over 700 miles, fighting disease and insects, losing porters and supplies daily in this mess. Nine months later, a full three seasons including a tropical African summer, these two men meet. Finally Stanley found Livingstone on November 10, 1871, in Ujiji near Lake Tanganyka in present-day Tanzania, greeting him with the now famous, “Dr. Livingstone, I presume?”

Now, no one can ever know exactly was what was said. Stanley destroyed his diary pages from these days and Livingstone made no mention of these words in his journals. But in the English language, I can’t think of a more famous introduction. This has become the stuff of legends. To this day most of us know this classically understated introduction, “Dr. Livingstone, I presume?”

Greetings and introductions are how we present our selves to others. Some times we introduce ourselves by where we live or what we do. Sometimes we introduce ourselves by who our parents are or where we were born. This piece from John’s gospel is loaded with many different introductions.

John begins by introducing Jesus to those who are around him. He says, “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” How’s that for an introduction, you’re walking down the levee and suddenly your cousin, the guy in camel hair, introduces you to everyone within shouting distance, using words from Exodus. “Here comes the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”

Using this image, John invokes the purpose of the Paschal lamb, the lamb slaughtered and eaten at the Passover. The lamb whose blood was placed around the doors of the sons and daughters of Israel so the angel of death would pass over their homes. John’s disciples along with the Sadducees, Pharisees, scribes, lawyers and pretty much everyone else at the river would have known exactly what John meant.

Then John tells the assembly “This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’” This seems mysterious as introductions go, but no more so than the introduction to the gospel itself, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.”[2]

Separately, these words are mystifying, together they explain one another. Since Jesus was in the beginning with God, of course he came before John. And born about six months after the Baptist, Jesus has been since before the beginning. Again, in words the assembly would understand, John introduces Jesus to the world.

Then John says something we don’t expect, “I myself did not know him.” This is odd because they’re cousins for crying out loud. Of course they knew each other. But there’s knowing; and there’s knowing. Of course John knew who Jesus was, but when John saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove and remain on him, only then did he truly know.

By these sayings; Jesus ranking ahead of John, Jesus coming before John, and John not knowing Jesus, we come to know who the Baptist is. John introduces himself to us. We know that he is not the Messiah, but rather the one who comes before him. John is not God; rather he comes as a witness to testify to the presence of the Son of God. He can do this because he knows first who he is. Not only does John see, he testifies. Not only does John know, he shares. Not only is John called, he responds.

Often when we talk about sharing the witness of the Lord with someone we think of an intimate very personal setting, but this is not John’s proclamation. As spectacular as these words are, these first introductions are public, not private. These words are a shout to the world. John is like a ringmaster crying out, “Ladies and gentlemen and children of all ages.” He is telling whoever will listen. But John’s introductions are heard and followed by individuals responding to the word.

This introduction is heard as a personal invitation by two of John’s own disciples. When they were introduced to Jesus, they leave their Rabbi John and follow the new Rabbi, Jesus. And follow they did. They physically got up and pursued Jesus as he made his way from the Jordan.

Next, Jesus turns around seeing two men following him and asks, “What are you looking for?” That’s a loaded question, isn’t it? Does he ask it like he feels uncomfortable with them following? “What are you looking for?” Or maybe he asks them like he all ready knows? “What are you looking for?”

They ask “Teacher, Rabbi, where are you staying?” Jesus invites them to come and see. No mention is made in John’s gospel about what happened that night. What we can imagine is that on this night, this special night when the first two disciples stay with Jesus, they are introduced to a way of life they will share together until their last supper.

But before the three left together, Andrew went to find his brother Simon. Andrew introduces his brother the to revelation that the Messiah has come.

The next day, Andrew brought Simon to Jesus for a proper introduction, but Jesus takes the initiative and makes the introduction instead. “You are Simon son of John. You are to be called Cephas.” Cephas is the Aramaic word for Peter. If you will though, the literal way to translate this name is Rock; maybe even Rocky. In a stunning reversal, Andrew doesn’t introduce Simon to Jesus; Jesus introduces Simon to himself. Jesus knows Peter will be the rock, so the Messiah introduces Simon to Peter, the man he is and the new man in Christ he will become.

John the Baptist introduces himself as the one who testifies about Jesus. John introduces Jesus to the world and to his disciples. John introduces Jesus as the Lamb and who precedes all others. Then Jesus and two of John’s disciples are introduced to each other. The stakes are raised as Jesus introduces them to a taste of what it will be like to be his disciples. But first, Andrew introduces his brother Simon to the fact that the Messiah has come. Finally, marvelously, Jesus introduces himself to Simon and then in an amazing turn Jesus introduces Simon to Peter.

John points the way for everyone to know Jesus. Andrew responds to John’s prompting and tells his brother about the Lamb who will take away the sin of the world. We are fortunate, we have heard these stories. We know the Lamb who is the Christ. We know Simon who became the Rock upon whom the church was built.

Our reading this morning invites us back to a time before we knew, a time when we were like John and Andrew and Simon, not knowing who Jesus really is or what that means for our lives, but aching to know more. We need to be like them, and marvel in the wonder and mystery of the new thing the Messiah does.

We need to be like John, know the prophecy and see Jesus when he appears. We need to be like John, and know who Jesus is when we see the Spirit light upon him and stay. We need to be like John and proclaim the name of Jesus to a weary yet hungry world.

We need to be like Andrew; once he is shown the Son of God he follows like a lamb follows its mother. The ewe leads her lamb and provides what it needs to live. We need to be like Andrew, and once we hear the voice of the one follow and eat the good food of the Lamb of God.

We need to be like Andrew and the unnamed disciple and follow Jesus into a new life of discipleship, even when we have no idea what that may be like. Even in times like in this passage when scripture doesn’t even tell us what their first discipleship experience was like.

We need to be like Andrew, and introduce the Lord to our brothers and sisters. In the light of danger and insecurity, we need to speak the name of the Lord and announce he is the Messiah, the Anointed, the Lamb who takes away the sin of the world, the Son of God.

We need to be like Simon, and become Peter. We need to know who we are and when the Anointed makes us something new, we are to leave the old behind and embrace the new creation in God. And yes, we are bound to be like Peter who never made it easy on himself or his Lord. Yet from his rocky discipleship, he becomes the rock.

We need not only to be available; we need to make ourselves available to those in this world who need to hear the name of the Lord. We need to cry his name from the river and from the rocks. We need to cry the name of the Lamb who takes away the sin of the world to the modern-day Sadducees and Pharisees, the scribes and the experts in the Law. We need to cry his name in our homes with our families. We need to tell the world that may never have heard the name of the Lord who he is and that he makes all things new. Jesus has introduced himself, we need to continue to make the introduction to the world.

The important first step to making the introduction is to listen first as the Lord introduces himself to us in scripture and in prayer. Then when like Simon Peter, as the Son of God introduces us to ourselves, we are to respond to the new life in Jesus Christ.

A couple of weeks ago this part of the Body of Christ ordained and installed new Elders to the Session. In the Presbyterian Church it is usual that in baptism, confirmation, ordination, and installation; the children of God are referred to by their first names alone. The reason for this is wonderful and glorious. The reason for this introduction is that in the church we share the same last name. We are the children of God and by this miracle of grace the family names we carry are an earthly convention. The Lord does not need them to know whose children we are. We are the children of God.

So let us be introduced to Jesus again, sharing in the newness and the wonder of the days following his baptism. Let us listen. Let us follow. And let us share. And in the grace and forgiveness of our Lord Jesus Christ, let us share signs of God’s peace and wondrous love with one another.

The grace and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.
And also with you.[3]

[1] Stanley and Livingstone biographical information taken from Wikipedia articles: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Morton_Stanley and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Livingstone both retrieved January 18, 2008.
[2] John 1:1-2, NRSV
[3] These two sentences are a common liturgical formula.