The Best Part of a Gift Is Sharing It

From Baptism to Calling

In our reading today from Matthew, we see Jesus walking along the side of the lake. Not all that long ago, He was at the River Jordan with John the Baptist. John was baptising people into God's kingdom. Jesus saw this and went to the river, and John said, "I can't baptise you. You should baptise me." He knew who Jesus was and who He was going to be. He didn't think he should be baptising Jesus. And Jesus said, "No, you need to baptise me." So he did.

Here is Jesus — baptised in the river by John and ready to go. But that's not going to be easy. Often, when something good happens, something bad follows. Maybe something bad happens and something good follows. That's how life is. And it's how you handle this that makes a difference in your life.

Fighting Temptation in the Wilderness

Jesus had been baptised and it was really good. John was happy. For Jesus, it was also really good. But then something unexpected happened. Jesus was tempted. He could have had everything He wanted. All He had to do was give in to temptation.

That's not what He wanted. He had things to do — people to save and to heal. He had to fight temptation. And to fight temptation, He went into the wilderness for 40 days and 40 nights. That's a tough time. I reckon I could do one day and maybe one night in the wilderness. I would get very hungry, very thirsty, and very scared. So no wilderness for me!

But Jesus did this — going into the wilderness to get ready for the work He had to do. He was bringing God's word to the people, to us.

Come Follow Me

And so here He is, walking along the side of the lake, and He sees a boat with two men fishing — Simon and his brother Andrew. He says to them, "Come follow me and I will make you fishers among people."

"What does that mean?" they said. "To go fishing for men? To get a fishing rod, some bait, and go fishing? Maybe we'll catch some people!"

What He was really saying was: "Come follow me and we will bring God's word to all the people — to bring joy and forgiveness to the people, to bring them back to God."

The Mars Bar Lesson

Now, I've got to tell you honestly — I love chocolate. In fact, my favourite chocolate is the Mars bar. And I've got one here, and I'm going to eat it all by myself. I'm not going to share it because I'm greedy. Why should I share something that is so good? If I've got something that's really good, I want it all for myself.

If I gave you some, and you some, and you some, then I'd have nothing left for myself. That sounds sensible, right? I'll eat this all by myself. That will be good. And when I'm finished, I'll look out and see all of your faces and see how sad you are. And then maybe I'll think, "I should have shared my Mars bar with you."

The Joy of Sharing God's Love

That's what Jesus is saying to the men on the boat. Jesus has this wonderful gift, and the best part about a gift is when you share it with others. That's the best part — when you give a gift and you see that look of joy on the person's face.

If I share this Mars bar with you and look at your face, I see your joy. You are getting something good, and I am sharing in the joy that you have.

That's what Jesus gives to these men — the gift of God's love and of God's grace. These men came off the boat and joined Jesus in His ministry, and they shared His love. And these men went on to share God's love with others.

Today, God's love has been shared with us. And like this Mars bar, if I share it with you — if I share the joy that I have, if I share God's love with you — I share in the joy that you have.

Open up your heart and let the world come in. And share your joy.

Amen.