Footprints or Footsteps

John 8:31-36

Then Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, “If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” They answered him, “We are descendants of Abraham and have never been slaves to anyone. What do you mean by saying, ‘You will be made free’?” Jesus answered them, “Very truly, I tell you, everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not have a permanent place in the household; the son has a place there forever. So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.

Jesus said to those who were following him, “Keep walking in my footsteps no matter where they lead you.  You’ll find that it is in the WALKING… that you’ll really experience genuine living.  That’s the truth.  WALKING… that’s the way you’ll be free!”  

“But,” we say, “we’re literally standing in a set of your footprints right now, while you’re talking to us.  When you tell us to ‘walk in my footsteps’ we don’t know what more you want?”  Then Jesus said, “Look, yes, you’re standing in a set of my footprints right now which is great.  AND I’m trying to WARN you to be very careful not to mix up Standing in my Footprints with Walking in my Footsteps.”

 “I know you guys,” says Jesus.  “You’ll stand there just a bit too long and you’ll start to feel comfortable.  That spot will become familiar.  It will become ‘what you’re used to’ and you won’t want to move.  That one spot will become a place you want to go back to when life gets crazy.  You’ll even start defending that one spot as being the BEST spot… some of you will even start calling it the ONLY spot… the spot will become something you will fear to loose.”

“You’re my followers.  I love you all.  That’s why I’m warning you,” says Jesus, “because I know human nature.  You’ll stand there in that set of my footsteps so long, that without knowing it, you’ll end up standing and not following.  You’ll end up stuck in a place that I once was, but not where I am any longer.  That’s why I’m trying to tell you it is in the WALKING that you have life.”    

Jesus knew, that we humans like what we have become used to.  We humans fear what we do not know or have not yet experienced.  Sometimes what we’ve become used to is a good for us, like a regular morning walk or drinking lots of water.  Other times what we have become used to is harmful, like an abusive spouse, prejudice, or never ending war.  Rarely, however, will we ever take the time to honestly… honestly reflect on whether its good for us or not, we simply hold onto what we are used to and reject what we do not know.

Taking the time to honestly reflect on whether we are still walking on the WAY or if we have become stuck in just one spot is, at least in theory if not in practice, the point of Reformation Sunday.  It is supposed to be a day to honestly reflect on our faith practice and ask ourselves, “Is what we are doing, and how we are thinking now, and the way we are living now, really, truly, and genuinely still MOVING us in Jesus’ footsteps toward the life God created for us to live?  Or could it be that, because we humans like what we are used to, that we’ve come to confuse familiarity with abundant living… to confound recitation with genuine confession… to mix up the warm and fuzzies with the fire of the Holy Spirit? 

That is what Reformation Sunday is supposed to be about.  Ironically, we being humans who like what we are used to, mostly spend Reformation Sunday not examining where we are in the present, nor asking for insight into where we are called to go next.  We mostly spend Reformation Sunday looking back to where we were, way back when Martin Luther put words to a popular beer drinking song and nailing theology questions to a door.  

“Very truly, I tell you,” said Jesus “the longer you stand still in the same spot, the more addictive that spot gets.  You end up a slave to standing in that one place.  BUT, if you keep moving.  If you keep walking in my footSTEPS and don’t stand too long in my footPRINTS, you’ll be free and stay free, indeed.  Amen.