hear, know, follow

The Collect of the Day for this coming Sunday is deep.  It wades through the Gospel lesson with it convulted dying and rising stuff rather well and, I think, breaks down discipleship into three easy to swollow steps.  (Of course each step is life changing and hugely dangerous).

1) Hear - Romans 10.14 asks the obvious quesiton - how can they believe in him of whom they have not heard.  The first step toward the kingdom of God is hearing about the kingdom of God from the King of Kings himself.  This can happen by way of the still small voice of God, the booming tenor of a preacher, or the word of scripture - among other ways.  This step 1 is also, kind of, step 4 - as the hearer becomes the speaker who tells the Good News.

2) Know - with Pentecost comes the Spirit and with the Spirit comes the ability to discern between the wisdom of God and the wisdom of the world.  With that ability we are able to hear what God has in mind for us over and above the tempations of power, wealth, etc. that the world offers readily (with a price, of course).

3) Follow - once the Spirit has helped us determine which door is opened and which path we should persue, it is up to us to get up and walk.  To follow the Lord down the path of his choosing by doing good works, by telling the good news, by continuing to listen, know, and follow down a new road when the time comes for change.

Three easy steps that take a lifetime to perfect and an open heart to even begin.  Easy, yes.  Simple, not at all.