I am thankful that he doesn't gloss over the call to follow Christ.
Jesus never said the road was easy. He said we must forsake all to follow Him.
"He said to another man, "Follow me." But the man replied, "Lord first
let me go and bury my father." Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury
their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God. Still
another siad, "I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say
good-by to my family." Jesus replied, "No one who puts his hand to
the plow and looks back is fit fot service in the kingdom of God."
Luke 9:59-62 NIV
These verses always leave me a bit confused and bewildered. These men seem on the surface that they have good intentions and a loving commitment to their families, isn't that honorable, aren't their reasons good? But God sees the heart. He knows the man who wants to bury his father is neglecting the necessity of now. If obedience is not immediate it is not obedience at all.
When I ask my own children to do something, they know I expect them to do it "all the way, right away, and with a happy heart." (Don't Make Me Count to Three by Ginger Plowman) The expectation is that they must do the task, whether it is brush their teeth or make their bed or put their shoes on, immediately. We don't know if the man's father in this verse was very sick or already dead, but we do know that this man wanted to delay following Christ. Don't I do the very same thing, He impresses on my heart a command and I just put it off or think I will get to it after I have done the laundry or played with the kids. This is disobedience. He does not call me to obey when I feel like it, or when I get around to it, the call of obedience comes now and I must act now. This man did not know His chance was now to follow Christ, for the Lord was on His way to Jerusalem, to give His life on the cross. He didn't have a couple weeks to wait around for his father to die, if he wanted to follow the Savior while he walked this earth the moment had come.
Christ's call is not easy. . .
"Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man
has no place to lay his head.
Luke 9:58
His example does not show Him giving all to work 40 hours a week to use the money he earned on a big house or expensive clothes. His example does not show Him sitting on a couch at the end of every day. His example shows sacrifice in every definition of the word. His example shows a man doing the work of the eternal. His example shows immediate obedience and complete submission to the will of the Father in every step along the way. When we follow Him we are to walk the road of sacrifice. We are to put our hands to task, diligently doing the work of the Gospel. Following Christ means following the will of God in the daily little things and in great circumstances.
Today, I will choose to follow Him. . . to walk in His ways. . . to sacrifice all for the cause of Christ.
I am counting my blessings today. . .
161. A faithful and wise pastor
162. Small group fun and fellowship
163. Ice Cream Socials
164. Sermon Notes
165. Sweet Sunday School teachers who paint with little ones
166. A day of rest
167. Dimpled girl in seaside dress
168. Cats who follow you on walks
169. The peace of His promises
we also have recited to ours to obey " all the way, right away and with a happy heart". I forget when I was convicted that I don't always obey God the way I was teaching my kids to obey me. Nor was I serving the way I was teaching my kids to obey me....
ReplyDeleteI love that being a parent opens my eyes to attempting to be a better child of God!