“Why don’t you want what you need?”: a sermon for the SIXTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST (20 JULY 2025)
Free to choose. You’ve probably heard the old expression: “You can lead a horse to water…but you can’t make him drink”. Ultimately, it’s up to the horse – does it desire to drink? At the beginning of the Gospel of John, Jesus asks a simple but very profound question: “…John the Baptist was standing with two of his disciples, and as he watched Jesus walk by, he exclaimed, “Look, here is the Lamb of God!” The two disciples…followed Jesus. When Jesus turned and saw them, he said “ What are you looking for? ” (John 1.35-38) What do you want? This question becomes a theme for the whole Gospel. As Jesus encounters different individuals, their response to him reveals what they truly desire . Jesus is the light – the light that attracts those who desire truth, life and God, while repelling those who desire power, status and human approval. “The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the...