"You Can't Steer A Parked Car"

(John 1:29-42)

Rev. Billy D. Strayhorn

INTRODUCTION:

I want to start this morning with a poem from Shel Silverstein's book Falling Up. It's entitled: "HELP!"

I walked through the wildwood, and what did I see

But a unicorn with his horn stuck in a tree,

Cryin', "Someone please help me before it's too late."

I hollered, "I'll free you." He hollered back, "Wait--

How much will it hurt? How long will it take?

How hard will you pull? How much must I pay?

Must you do it right now or is Wednesday okay?

Have you done this before? Do you have the right tools?

Have you graduated from horn-savin' school?

Will I owe you a favor? And what will it be?

Do you promise you will not damage the tree?

Should I close my eyes? Should I sit down or stand?

Do you have insurance? Have you washed your hands?

And after you free me--tell me what then?

Can you guarantee I won't get stuck again?

Tell me when. Tell me how.

Tell me why. Tell me where . . . ."

I guess that he's still sittin' there. (1)

I don't know where I first heard the phrase, "You can't steer a parked car." I think it was from my friend, Bud, but I'm not sure. Anyway, when I heard it, I wrote it down as a good word AND a good sermon title. As it turns out, it's a good summation of this poem, too. It sort of hits the nail on the head. You have to act or you can't get anything accomplished. You get nowhere quick in a parked car. The Taoist founder Lao Tzu put it this way, "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step."

Of course now a days, journey of a thousand miles begins with the kids hollering, "Are we there yet?" But the point of the poem and the phrase is that you can't just sit there if you want to get anywhere. You can't steer a parked car. Or in Biblical terms, "You can't walk on water, if you don't get out of the boat."

This morning I want to look at the characters in this passage and see how they acted. And then relate it to us.

I. JOHN:

A. There were a couple of little girls who went to Church at the Baptist with their Aunt. They had been a number of times but this was the first time they had ever witnessed a Baptism. When they got home, they couldn't wait to tell their mother how different it was from their Methodist Church.

The oldest daughter started, "It was really cool, Mom. They have a swimming pool right in their Church. This guy dressed in white and the preacher climbed in the deep end. The preacher took a hankie, covered the man's face and pushed him under the water."

Not wanting to be left out the youngest daughter jumped in and said, "Yeah, and then the preacher said, 'In the name of the Father, and of the Son, in the HOLE you go.'"

This passage finds us back down by the riverside. This is sort of John's version of the baptism of Jesus. John has been preaching to the crowds, fulfilling his commission to proclaim the coming of the Messiah. And we find out that in the crowd there is Andrew and another disciple. Some have said that the other disciple was John the author of this book. But what is important is that Andrew heard John the Baptist's witness about Jesus. Andrew heard it and he and the other disciple decided to act upon it.

They decided to followed Jesus to see what else they could learn. When Jesus saw them following him, he turned asked, "What are you looking for?" At that moment, I'm not sure they knew.

I think John the Baptist had ignited some spark of hope in them. Hope that filled them with that little kid excitement of Christmas and vacation and birthday all rolled into one. And then it was compounded exponentially by having him point out Jesus. Their hearts were pounding with anticipation and excitement.

They probably weren't even aware that they were following when Jesus turned around and asked this question. You can tell it took them off guard because they sort of went, "Uhhhh, Rabbi, where are you staying?" Not the brightest question ever asked.

But it did lead to a wonderful answer. Jesus said, "Come and see." And they did. They didn't hesitate one bit.

B. Ask Pat and Kay, or my wife and kids. I'm a computer geek. I love the computer and what it can do. I like to read the computer magazines to see all the new hardware and software coming out. I really like looking at all the new computer gadgets. I'll never forget how much I drooled over the first laptops. I thought they were the coolest thing in the world. But at the time, I couldn't justify spending that much money. They were really starting to become popular about the time my wife, Mary, went back to School, so I was pretty sure it was out of the question. Then one day during her second semester, she started complaining about the length of time she had between classes and how she wished she could spend that time more productively. She made the offhand comment, "You know, I sure could use a laptop."

To hear her tell the story, she says I left her spinning in her chair like some cartoon character as I zoomed out of there to buy that laptop. I wouldn't say it was that bad, but I didn't waste much, if any, time either. You could say I left with enthusiasm.

So did Andrew and the other disciple. They didn't hesitate. They didn't do a feasibility study. They didn't gather any more data than what John had already given them. They heard the invitation given by Jesus and they acted on faith. They took that car our of park, got it in gear and let Jesus steer the way.

II. ANDREW:

A. Scripture says that they went to where Jesus was staying and spent the whole day talking with him. Wow, I really would like to know what they talked about. I wish that conversation had been recorded; just like I wish I knew what Jesus told Zaccheus that day they had lunch together. Whatever it was, it was powerful because it changed his life, just like this conversation changed Andrew's life. By four o'clock that afternoon, Andrew was absolutely convinced that Jesus was the Messiah.

Upon making that discovery, upon coming to that conclusion, Andrew took off to go tell his brother, Simon. He didn't leave it in park. He got the lead out, put some umption in his gumption, shifted into overdrive and went to see Simon.

B. Andrew reminds me of a story I read years ago, about a man who was drafted into the army. While in the army he developed a very disconcerting habit. As he walked along each day he kept picking up pieces of paper saying to himself aloud, "That's not it!" He would pick up one piece of paper after another and say, "That's not it. That's not it!" This went on for about six months. His bizarre behavior was finally brought to the attention of his superiors. They ordered him to report to the base psychiatrist.

The psychiatrist asked, "What is wrong with you? What is the problem?" The man had a baffled expression on his face as he said, "What problem? I don't have a problem." The psychiatrist said, "Well, there's got to be something wrong with you. It has been reported to me that you keep going all over this base picking up pieces of paper and saying, 'That's not it, that's not it!" So, tell me, just what is it you are looking for?"

The man said, "I don't know. I just don't seem to be able to find it". The psychiatrist consulted some of his colleagues, then told the man, "I think your problem is serious, and I'm going to give you a medical discharge from the Army."

When the psychiatrist handed him the discharge papers, the man jumped up and shouted excitedly, "This is it! This is it! This is what I've been looking for!" (2)

When Andrew left Jesus to go find his brother, he left with that same kind of enthusiasm and excitement. He was excited about the news. He was excited about his discovery And he went to tell Simon. And when Andrew found Simon,, his first words were, "We've found the Messiah!"

III. PETER:

A. Now Peter must have been a seeker just like Andrew. He may have been a reluctant seeker but a seeker nonetheless. The reason I say that is because he didn't question Andrew. He came running up to Simon with this excited expression on his face and in essence said the same thing Jesus had to said to him. "Come and see. We've found the Messiah big brother. Come and see."

And Simon, who would soon be Peter, just like his brother Andrew, just like John the Baptist, didn't hesitate. He took that car our of park, got it in gear and let Andrew steer the way.

B. Simon followed Andrew who led him to Jesus who changed his name to Peter and in so doing changed his life. Now Peter could have remained Simon. And Simon could have remained a simple fisherman. If he had left that car in park. But I think Peter knew intuitively then, what he would come to know first hand later: "You can't walk on water, if you don't get out of the boat."

Peter and Andrew caught a glimpse of something, something that they knew was important and would not only change their lives but change the world. And it filled them with wonder.

There was a group of Geography students who studied the Seven Wonders of the World and at the end of that section were asked to list what they each considered to be the Seven Wonders of the World. Though there was some disagreement, the following got the most votes: Egypt's Great Pyramid, the Taj Mahal, the Grand Canyon, the Panama Canal, the Empire State Building, St. Peter's Basilica and China's Great Wall.

While gathering the votes the teacher noted that one student, a quiet girl, hadn't turned in her paper yet. So, she asked the girl if she was having trouble with her list. The quiet girl replied, "Yes, a little. I couldn't quite make up my mind because there were so many."

The teacher said, "Well, tell us what you have, and maybe we can help." The girl hesitated, then read, "I think the Seven Wonders of the World are to touch and to taste, to see and to hear . . . " She hesitated a little, "and then to run and to laugh and to love." (3)

Peter and Andrew were filled with a wonder like that little girl. A wonder not at man made items, but a wonder at what God had created, what God had planned. And the object of that wonderment, of course, was Jesus.

IV. US:

A. Jesus is the object of our wonderment, too. When we come to him we hear the same question he asked Andrew, "What are you looking for?" We're all looking for different things. Things like: acceptance, unconditional love, hope, endless grace, forgiveness, a future, affirmation, friendship, a sense of belonging, a second chance, redemption. While we're all looking for different things, and all those different things can really be summed up in one thing. We're all really looking for a Savior.

B. A preacher sent his parents a microwave one Christmas. They were excited. Now they could be a part of the instant generation. However, when his father unpacked the microwave and plugged it in, they were stumped. They couldn't figure out how to work it. Within seconds, this microwave transformed their smiles into frowns! Even after reading the directions, they couldn't make it work. Two days later, his mother was playing bridge with friends and confessed her inability to get that microwave even to boil water. She told her friends. "I really don't need better directions to get this darn thing to work. I just need my son to come along with the gift!"

"When God gave the gift of salvation, God didn't send a booklet of complicated instructions. Instead God sent his Son." (4) And in the giving of his Son, God makes it possible for all of us to be filled with the wonder and joy of faith. And to find what we're really looking for, a Savior. The Son of God, himself, invites us to "Come and see." He invites us to take the car out of park, get it in gear and let him steer the way.

CONCLUSION:

John was telling Andrew. Andrew was telling Peter. Later, Peter would tell the crowds and call us to tell as well. You might say there was a lot of telling going on. But everyone who heard had to make up their mind to do one thing. And so do we. When Jesus invites us to "Come and see" we have to decide whether we're going to get the car out of park or not. So, what will it be? Will you try to steer a parked car? Or will you "Come and see" what Jesus has to offer? That's the invitation. Will you "Come and see"?

This is the Word of the Lord for this day.

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Bibliography

1. FALLING UP: Poems and Drawing by Shel Silverstein (New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers, Inc., 1996) p. 146.

2. King's Treasury of Illustrations, Disk Version, Emotions. (Seven Worlds Publishing, Knoxville, TN)

3. Parables, Etc. (Platteville, Colorado: Saratoga Press), July 1989

4. Pastor Clifford Stewart of Louisville, Kentucky

Other References Consulted

"They Shared What They Knew", a sermon by Richard Fairchild, 1999.

SermonWriter for Jan 17, 1999, by Richard Niell Donovan

Barclay, William, The Daily Study Bible, "The Gospel of John"

The Clergy Journal, May/June 1998, Volume LXXIV, Number 7, (Logos Productions, Inc., Inver Grove Heights, MN)