The Invitation

Isaiah 6:1-8    In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lofty; and the hem of his robe filled the temple. Seraphs were in attendance above him; each had six wings: with two they covered their faces, and with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew. And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory.” The pivots on the thresholds shook at the voices of those who called, and the house filled with smoke.

And I said: “Woe is me! I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; yet my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!” Then one of the seraphs flew to me, holding a live coal that had been taken from the altar with a pair of tongs. The seraph touched my mouth with it and said: “Now that this has touched your lips, your guilt has departed and your sin is blotted out.” Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I; send me!”

John 3:1-17    Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. He came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.” Jesus answered him, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be astonished that I said to you, ‘You must be born from above.’ The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” Jesus answered him, “Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things? “Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen; yet you do not receive our testimony. If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. “Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.

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There are all sorts of rules related to invitations.  Rules that may seem confusing and mysterious to us, although there are books on etiquette you can read that will tell you all you need to know.  

Recently we received an invitation to a family wedding.  In fact, Kim and I received one invitation and each of our children received a separate invitation, letting them know they were invited and that they were invited to bring a date.  We all appreciated that the invitations made that clear, because it’s a question that feels awkward to ask.

The invitation included several cards in it.  One was a response card with a self-addressed stamped return envelope, so we can rsvp.  Another was an invitation to a pre-wedding dinner and another was an invitation to a post-wedding brunch, each of these including instructions for how to rsvp, by phone or email.  I appreciated all the detail because it was a complicated affair and we surely would have been confused and made mistakes without the clear instructions.

Not every event requires such formal invitations, fortunately.  But one thing is always true – an invitation wants a response.  Or, in the French, repondez – s’il vous plait!

In our scripture readings today we hear invitations.  In the story from Isaiah, the prophet is confronted with a vision of God that is so overpowering all Isaiah can think of is his own unworthiness.  “Woe is me!” is his reply.  But then the invitation is made explicit to him: Whom shall I send?  And the prophet replies, “Here am I; send me.”  He says yes; he accepts the invitation.

It’s a “call story,” of which there are many in the scriptures.  The call stories show us how God now and again reaches down and chooses someone for some work.  Each of the prophets of Israel is called by God, each of the disciples is called by Jesus. 

But it’s not very clear whether Nicodemus is called, is it?

He approaches Jesus in the dark of night, probably wanting to avoid being seen by others.  He was a Pharisee, after all, one of those who stood opposed to Jesus’ teaching.  But the fact that he comes at all is a response – a response to what he has seen and heard and felt.  Something about Jesus has touched him, and he responds to that by coming.

However, the conversation between the two men begins to look like a disaster for Nicodemus.  He is too literal-minded and fails to understand what Jesus is saying to him.  I am not without sympathy for Nicodemus, because it almost seems as if Jesus is being deliberately obtuse.  He might have helped Nicodemus out a little bit more.  But as it worked out, Nicodemus seemed to get more confused each step of the way, and he retreated, back into the dark.

He was not sure what he was being invited to and he didn’t know how to respond.

I wonder how many of us receive a call, an invitation, we don’t understand and don’t know how to respond to.

When I was a young woman I would sometimes be filled with a powerful sense that God was calling me to something.  I had the seraphs and the smoke and the Holy, Holy, Holy part – not literally, of course; I just mean a clear sense of the grandeur and power of God – but I didn’t hear the voice saying, “Whom shall I send?”  I didn’t get the invitation.

Not until some years later, anyway.  One day I did hear the voice, and the invitation clearly had my name on it.  Now it was up to me to respond.  So at last I knew what I was invited to.  At last, I could respond.  That didn’t make it easy, but at least I knew.

We often use the word discernment to describe the process of listening and trying to hear and understand the call, the invitation God sends out.  Our church nominating committee works together to discern who among us God might be calling to serve as elders and deacons.  Then they approach certain individuals and ask them to prayerfully discern whether God is, indeed, calling them, inviting them, to serve. 

It is entirely possible that you didn’t know that’s how the process works.  I think the nominating committee should consider sending out engraved invitations to the men and women they ask to serve – to let them know the distinction of this invitation. 

Those who have served on the committee know it is not easy work.  There is not a simple process to follow, although there is a temptation to simplify it by going through the membership book, alphabetically, and checking off names as you call them.  There is no blueprint for making this work; it requires faith and trust.  It absolutely requires the Holy Spirit; by the power of the Holy Spirit we hear the invitation.

Last Sunday, we heard the story of Pentecost.  On that day the apostles received the Holy Spirit and they were empowered to speak and share the good news. This was their invitation into the life of the Church – a powerful invitation.  And by their response this was the beginning of the church.  The Spirit invited, the Spirit enabled them to respond.  Without the Spirit there would be no church.

I don’t just mean that the Spirit was necessary to launch the church; the Spirit is necessary every day to sustain the life of the church. 

By the power of the Holy Spirit we can hear the invitation and respond to the invitation. 

On Trinity Sunday, we can try to explain the trinity – which I sometimes have tried to do, foolish as I am.  But I believe it might be more fruitful on this day to contemplate the Spirit, and how the Spirit works, inviting us into the fellowship of God.

Once I took a confirmation class on an overnight retreat during which they were supposed to write their joint statement of faith.  All went pretty well; there was one argument about some wording, but by pausing for prayer, and to take some deep breathes, we worked through that.  And then they were pleased to show me what they had accomplished.  They had a beautiful statement with only one problem I could see: there was no Holy Spirit in it.

They simply didn’t know what to say about the Spirit, so they left the Spirit out.  The problem is, though, if we leave the Spirit out we are leaving ourselves out.  We need the Spirit to hear the invitation, and we need the Spirit to respond to the invitation.

Some people say the best explanation of the trinity, if we must explain the trinity, is to say there are a father and a son in a relationship, and the Spirit is the love that flows between them.  And this love that flows between them is so bountiful it overflows and creates, sustains, and enlivens the world and all who are in it.

That gives us a different way of seeing it and thinking about it, doesn’t it?  A helpful way of seeing how the Spirit is important in our faith and our lives.

On that dark night Nicodemus visited Jesus, he was given an invitation into the life of the Spirit, into the fellowship of God.  Perhaps it wasn’t as clear as some invitations are.  When Jesus stopped at the lakeshore and called out to Peter and Andrew, “Follow me,” there was no mistaking it for an invitation.  And so they dropped their nets and followed him.  Others would be invited to follow, some would say yes and some would say no.  Perhaps not give an outright no, but offer several excellent excuses for why they could not come.

In the case of Nicodemus, the invitation was not so clear, nor was the response.  Nicodemus walked away into the darkness saying nothing.  But this is not the last we will see of him. 

Some invitations knock you off your feet with their directness, and their demand for a response.  Other invitations are subtle, taking some time and care to discern.  I think most invitations we receive from God are of the subtle variety.  That is why it takes the communal discernment of the nominating committee to extend the invitation to serve in a leadership capacity.  Then it takes the prayerful consideration of those who have been chosen to discern whether they are also hearing a call.  Finally it takes this whole congregation to affirm the call.  And today we ordain and install into leadership those who have affirmed and been affirmed. 

But let us remember that although there are many particular calls, the call into the fellowship of Christ is universal.  It’s in this conversation with Nicodemus that Jesus utters those famous words: For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.  And in this we may hear the invitation we have all received.  God sent the Son as an invitation to life, to love, to peace.  Through the Spirit we may say yes.

May you say yes.