Dear friends, Greetings this morning in the name of our Lord Jesus.

            A while back I received a newsletter from a neighboring congregation telling of the possibility of offering what they would be calling a “No Excuses Sunday,” designed to make it easy for anyone to come to church no matter what their excuse. I liked the idea, so I thought I’d share a few of their suggestions. The following seven changes and/or additions were being considered. (See what you think.) In support of a “No Excuses Sunday,” here were some of the ideas:

            #1: Cots would be placed that day in the side aisles of the church for those who say, "Sunday is my only day to sleep in."

            #2: Steel helmets would be available for those who say, “The roof would cave in if I ever came to church.”

            #3: Blankets would be furnished for those who think the church is too cold, and fans be given to those who think it’s too hot.

            #4: There would be TV dinners for those who can’t cook and go to church on the same day and TV’s for those afraid of missing the day’s sporting events while they’re there.

            #5: One section of the worship space would be devoted to trees and grass for those who find God most clearly in nature.

            #6: For that day there’d be hearing aids for those who can’t hear the preacher, and ear plugs for those who would rather not.

            And finally, #7: The sanctuary would be decorated with both Christmas poinsettias and Easter lilies for those who have never seen the church without them.

            Somewhat of a humorous possibility, don’t you think? Maybe you’ve heard of it before. A “No Excuses Sunday,” a day in which no excuse is good enough for staying away. Perhaps we should try it some weekend? What do you think?

            Well, today’s story, taken from the ninth chapter of Luke’s gospel is one that picks up on the same theme. It’s not a story dealing with worship attendance, but one in which the hesitancies, if not the excuses of a number of would-be followers of Jesus are addressed head-on. The difference in the story, however, is that there is no accommodation made for those who bring the excuse, but simply a straightforward laying out of what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ.

            To help set the stage for the lessons today, let’s talk for a moment about the stage upon which the story is set. Two things are going on that are worth mentioning. (And we’ve talked about this before.) One is that Jesus has built up, over the course of His early travels, quite an energetic following. Large numbers of people had begun to follow (and not surprising). He was a good teacher. He was a miracle worker. He had healed the sick and raised the dead. Not long before, (if you go back earlier in this same chapter), Jesus had fed the 5000. One was that many people had begun to follow Jesus.

            And two, in the early verses of the text we just read, Jesus had begun moving toward Jerusalem. Luke tells us that as the time approached for Him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus “set out for Jerusalem.” In other words, He began moving toward the cross. He began traveling toward His death.

            Sit down some time and read through the gospel of Luke. (Take it as a homework assignment for this coming week.) And see what happens from this point on in the story. There’s a definite change in the tone of the gospel, a definitive switch in the priorities Jesus sets for Himself and His ministry. And it’s all because of what He came into this world to do. It’s all because of the priority He gave in His life to saving you and me from our sin.

            That was the setting. One, there was a great crowd of people beginning to follow Jesus. And two, Jesus had just begun a journey that would ultimately lead to His death.

            Now, keep those things in mind as we turn to the story and talk about the lessons we find. Three simple lessons I want to focus on this morning. Three important lessons Jesus wants us to learn. And let’s take them one at a time, one from each of the three would-be followers.

            And so, lesson number one: Jesus calls you to a new life and not simply to a re-shaping of the old. Jesus calls you to a new life, and not simply to a re-shaping of the old.

            This past week we had quite the week here at the church with more than 350 kids on site for our Vacation Bible School. And it was a good week at Avalanche Ranch. The kids learned some important lessons for their young lives about who God is and what God has done for us. They learned that God is real. God is strong. God is with us. God is awesome. And God is in charge.

            Now, for some of the kids it was a reinforcement of what they had already learned. For others, it was the first time they’d ever heard the story. But for all of them it was an important start, lessons worth learning.

            Well, in today’s story, the first man comes to Jesus and says, “Jesus, I’ll follow you wherever you go.” Now, that sounds to me like a good start. I don’t know if he had been to Vacation Bible School or not. But it sounds like he was willing to follow, and that’s where it all begins.

            But remember what Jesus said? He said, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have places to live, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” In other words, “There are no guarantees for the one who decides to follow. There are no earthly promises for the one who promises His life to Christ.”

            I still remember a science experiment we did in the fourth grade. We were trying to fit a number of different items into a jar and we had to figure out how to do it. There were big items and little items and some in between. What we figured out was that the bigger the item, the sooner it had to be placed in the jar. If we put in all the little ones first, there would be no room left for the bigger ones. But if we placed the bigger ones in first, the other ones could fit in between.

            Now, Jesus wasn’t a science teacher, but He understood how it works in life. (And it’s the same principal involved.) If you try to fit in the big things in life after all of the little ones are already in place, it’ll never work. But if you decide what’s important and make that a priority in your life, everything else finds its place.

            Now, that’s not exactly what was happening in the story. But Jesus wanted there to be no doubt. He calls you to follow. He calls you to make Him first in your life. (And He says “I’ll be there for you. I’ll never let you down.”) But you need to follow. You need to make Him first.

            How many times have we talked about this before? People who are doing all kinds of things in life (and they’re all good and they’re all important), but they’re doing them backwards. Their priorities are turned around.

            And so they try to take Jesus (the most important part) and fit Him into an already busy and committed life. But it doesn’t work. And it doesn’t work because they’re not really following. And they’re not really following because it’s all been turned around.

            The lesson is if you take your life as it is and try to fit Jesus in, it won’t work. But if you answer the call to follow and make that a first priority in your life, then everything else will find its place.

            Now, that first man in the story wasn’t necessarily trying to fit Jesus in, but Jesus wanted him to know what following was all about. And so He said, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have places to rest,” but if you try to find your security in this life first and then follow, it’ll never work. Commit yourself to following, He says, no matter what follows, and you’ll find your security in Him.

            Lesson number one: Jesus calls you to a new life, and not simply to a re-shaping of the old. Lesson number two: There’s no putting off until tomorrow the calling that comes to you today.

            Again, remember the story. A second man comes to Jesus and Jesus calls him to follow. But this second man says he’d first like to go home and bury his father. Remember what Jesus said? He said, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”

            Now, I have a book in my office titled “What to say when you don’t know what to say.” It’s a book for those giving pastoral care. It talks about times of grief and mourning and hurt, and it talks about what’s helpful to say and what’s not.

            Now, I’ve never been one to question Jesus, and I don’t want to start with this particular passage. But I looked through that book in my office, and the encouragement Jesus gave to that second man was not to be found in any of the chapters. In fact, some of the chapters spoke directly against the kind of advice Jesus gave.

            And so what’s going on in the story? Well, it’s hard to know exactly what was happening, whether this man’s father was sick, or was soon to die, or whether it was simply an excuse not to follow. Most likely, what was not happening was the fact that this man’s father had just died. Chances are if he had just died, Jesus would have given a much different response. The odds are this man’s father may not even have been sick. The truth is we don’t know for sure.

            What we do know is what Jesus said. And what we do know is so often what people do. You know how that works. “I’ll follow you Jesus, but let me first raise my kids and get to a point in my life when I have more time.” Or, “I’ll follow you Jesus, but I’m moving up in my career and can’t afford to spend much effort anywhere else.” Or, “I’ll follow you Jesus, but right now I have a mortgage to pay and a few bills to take care of, but once they’re paid off, then I’ll be able to give.”

            Now, I don’t know if this is hitting home with any of you here today or not. (I don’t know where the discipleship rubber hits the road for you.) What I do know is that if it’s not hitting the road, then you’re missing out on what it means to follow.

            Too many people put off until tomorrow the discipleship call that comes today, because something else in their life appears to them to be more important and more pressing at the time. The truth is that there’s nothing more important and there’s nothing more pressing than the call we’ve been given to live (beginning today) as disciples of Jesus. Lesson number two: There’s no putting off until tomorrow the calling that comes to you today.

            And lesson number three: If you want to move forward, you need to stop looking back. Now, where do we start in talking about the many ways in which people look back on life? Some people look back on their mistakes and let the things that have dragged them down in the past continue to drag them down in the present. Some people look back on their successes, so much so that they lose sight of what God is calling them to do in the years ahead. Some people look back on their decisions and wonder if they’ve made the right ones. Some people look back on broken relationships and can’t conceive of starting again.

            In the story, there was a third man who was called by Jesus, but who wanted to first go back and say good-bye to his family. But Jesus tells him that, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”

            This morning, as you know, we move into the month of July. In just a few days we’ll be celebrating our nation’s independence. It’s a day when we remember the freedom we have in this country and the many reasons we have to give thanks to God. But when it comes to the Christian life (and that’s what we’re talking about this morning) and to what it means in this world to truly be free, as Christians we don’t celebrate our independence, but our daily dependence upon Christ.

            Years ago there was a marvelous hymn in the old red hymnal that was not one of the easier ones to sing, so when we switched to the green hymnal that was probably the reason it was dropped. But the words were good, and they spoke of a truth we dare not forget. The first verse went like this. It said:

            Make me a captive, Lord, and then I shall be free.

            Force me to render up my sword, and I shall conqueror be.

            I sink in life’s alarms, when by myself I stand;

            Imprison me within thine arms, and strong shall be my hand.”

            My friends, the passage today is one that pulls no punches. Jesus is as direct in speaking about discipleship in today’s text as anywhere else in the Bible. And at first glance, it might appear to be overwhelming. After all, who among us is fit for the kingdom of God? Who among us has never wondered or questioned or looked back?

            The good news today is that we follow the One who never did look back. Luke tells us that Jesus “set out for Jerusalem.” He turned His face toward the cross. And He did it for you and for me.

            And so it is that our Lord continues to call even today. Not perfect followers, but one’s perfected by what He’s done. Not unwavering disciples, but ones whose wavering has been washed clean. And not people who have everything in life together, but who together (in Him) have everything in life they need.

            Three simple lessons, important to learn: Jesus calls you to a new life and not simply to a re-shaping of the old. There’s no putting off until tomorrow the calling that comes to you today. And if you want to move forward, you need to stop looking back.

            And so come and eat. Come and drink. And don’t look back, because it’s all been done for you. Amen.

So Elijah flees to Sinai, and then God, after giving him some R&R, gives his first gentle nudge in verse 9:

And the word of the LORD came to him: "What are you doing here, Elijah?"

Elijah, what are you doing here, away from your post? And Elijah replies:

"I have been very zealous for the LORD God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, broken down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too."

"I am the only one left," he says. Have you ever felt that way? Have you ever felt like you were God's only ambassador in a foreign land? The only one really aware of what God could do in a place or a situation? Maybe in school; maybe that freshman year in college; maybe on your job. "Lord, you've brought me thus far; and now I feel that I'm the only one here who knows you." We live in a tough culture, and even pastors and congregations can sometimes feel, "Lord, we're the only ones left. And we feel so alone, so insufficient for the task, so unprepared." But of course it's true! We are insufficient for the task. It's always true. It's just that sometimes we actually recognize this - and recognize that it all depends upon God working through us.

In verses 11-12, God encourages Elijah in a most dramatic yet understated way. First, he tells Elijah to go out and stand on the mountain. This is Mt Sinai, remember? Perhaps Elijah remembered God's first appearance to Israel in Exodus 19, where we read that Sinai:

was wrapped in smoke, because the LORD descended upon it in fire; and the smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain quaked greatly. And ... Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder.

And now again, in the days of Elijah, God unleashes the power of a storm on Mt Sinai. And then the surprise. God comes to Elijah not in the fire of the burning bush, not in the earthquake of the giving of the law, not even in the wind and storm associated with Baal. Rather, Elijah hears a "gentle whisper;" the RSV says a "still small voice." And what does God say? He simply asks again, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" And Elijah gives the same answer. In a sense, nothing has changed. But in another very profound sense, everything has changed. The first time, God replied, "Go out and stand on the mountain." Now, in verse 15, he finally says, "Go back."

"Go back the way you came, and go to the Desert of Damascus."

And then the details. Elijah had fled Jezebel after confronting the prophets of Baal; now God sends him back not merely to confront false prophets but to anoint kings. He is sent back to anoint a new king of Syria and a new king of Israel. Jezebel will soon be toast. And soon we see faith in flight in a new sense. Not flight as in fleeing but flight as in liftoff, as in becoming airborne again. Elijah goes back, revived and restored, not because he finally pulled up his socks but because God pulled him up, lifted him up, set him back on his horse as it were, and said, "OK Elijah, once again, go out in my name. As I sent you before, so I send you again."

And I can't help but think of the double message of Jesus to the woman caught in adultery in John 8. Jesus saves her from her accusers, saves her from being stoned to death. And then, when all the others have left in shame, he turns to her and says, "Now go; and sin no more." Go. You are free; you are not condemned. But then the second part: "and sin no more." That second part is crucially important, my friend. In Christ, you are free; you are not condemned. You are free of the burden of your past so as now to live for the future God intends for you. And for Elijah, that was ever so slightly turned around. Not "Go, and sin no more," but rather "flee no more, and go." Flee no more, and go back to your post.

Elijah had fled, fled to Sinai, where he found not the thunder of God's law - as he might well have expected - but rather the patient voice of God's mercy: God's restoring forgiveness, encouragement and - yes - God's call then to return to his post. To return to where he should be. To return to God's purpose for him and for Israel. What about us? For us, the foundation, on which we stand and to which we again and again must return, is the cross. There we meet God in Christ, in Jesus the crucified, through whom our sins are forgiven and who then calls us not to "Go back to Damascus" but rather to "Come, follow me."

Listen for that voice, my friend. It's still to be heard today, that voice that comes to you and to me not only as Sinai's thunder - though at times we need that - but also as a patient "Why are you here?" And then, "Come, follow me." You may hear that voice in reading scripture, in the worship service and its hymns, perhaps even in this sermon. And you may hear it as you pray and suddenly sense God leading you away from the old and into something new. That's what happened in the life of the demon-possessed man in today's Gospel lesson, too. And he, too, got sent back as Jesus told him, "Return home and tell how much God has done for you."

For much of what God does in our world he has chosen to do through his people, through you and through me. That might trouble you at first - God use me? Maybe at first your faith will take flight as did Elijah's; perhaps our faith at first flees - in a group of friends, on a campus, in a meeting at work. But God works even with wavering uncertain people like you and like me, so that your faith can take flight in other ways - gaining liftoff, becoming airborne. God may not call you to be a whistle blower like Elijah; you'll probably seldom face a profound threat like the real Jezebel. But God will still often ask, "Why are you here?" And the risen Jesus still sends us and says, "Return home and tell how much God has done for you."

Amen