On the second Sunday after Pentecost, Fr. Matthew Howell talks about the difference between a chicken and a pig when it comes to breakfast, how the first four disciples called by Jesus not only committed to Him by decommitted to many other things, how we must commit to Christ, and how we should go from being fans of God to true followers of Christ. He explains that followers have relationship with the one that they follow, and gives examples of the difference between fans and followers when it comes to church life. He also concludes with a story about Fr. Barnaba (Var-NA-va) Nair, a Fijian priest who recently died but amazingly and suddenly converted to Christianity from Hinduism.
PS: Fr. Matthew forgot to mention that moving from being a fan to a follower is much like St. Paul’s admonition from today’s epistle reading not only to be a hearer of the law but a doer of the law (cf. Romans 2:13). He apologizes for this important omission!
Romans 2:10-16
Brethren, glory and honor and peace for every one who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek. For God shows no partiality. All who have sinned without the law will also perish without the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law. For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law who will be justified. When Gentiles who have not the law do by nature what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law. They show that what the law requires is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness and their conflicting thoughts accuse or perhaps excuse them on that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus.
Matthew 4:18-23
At that time, as Jesus walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon who is called Peter and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Immediately they left their nets and followed him. And going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and he called them. Immediately they left their boat and their father, and followed him. And he went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every infirmity among the people.