What if Jesus said, “No thanks” when I say to him, “I will follow you wherever you go?”

Reading in Luke 9:57-62 today, I was convicted by Jesus’ response to these three individuals: 

57 As they were going along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” 58 And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” 59 To another he said, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” 60 And Jesus said to him, “Leave the dead to bury their own dead. But as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” 61 Yet another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” 62 Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”

This passage of scripture is one of the main travel logs in Luke. The final travel log in fact. We see that at this time Jesus had “set his face to go to Jerusalem” (9:51). This was more than a journey to the cross, rather it was journey that would take him back to his place at the right hand of God. By this time opinions about Jesus were fairly solidified. Whether for him or against him there was no denying the attention that he had garnered in recent months. He was recognizable and was followed by a large crowd of the devoted and the curious. (This picture reminds me of Forest Gump when he runs back and forth across the country and ends up with hundreds of people running with him. VIDEO CLIP)

The last verses of this chapter take place as a part of this cross country trek. The first man comes before the teacher and says, “I will follow you wherever you go.” Jesus’ response is not, “Cool! Glad to have you.” The Son of God knows the hearts of men. What this man had not grasped from Jesus’ ministry was this: if we follow Jesus, we must be willing to live a life of exile with him. After all, we have no guarantee for tomorrow. Why do we surround ourselves with things in an effort to gain a sense of security in our lives. The writer of Hebrews says, “So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood. Therefore let us go to him outside the camp and bear the reproach that he endured. For he we have no lasting city, but we seek a city that is to come” (13:12-14). 

The second man in the text is told point blank by Jesus, “Follow me.” What an incredible honor! And yet the man turns down the creator of the universe with an excuse. How often do we append the will of God in our lives with “if…then” statements. Why do we bargain with God when our most righteous acts are filthy rags compared to him. We must be willing to write a blank check with our lives. We know that he only wants the best for us if we can only put our self aside then we can focus on work being done for his glory.

The third man has an understandable response. He just wants to tell everyone goodbye, but of course Jesus knew his heart. In his heart this man had serious doubts and he would constantly be doubting this calling. Jesus tells him that anyone who looks back from his work is not “fit for the kingdom of God.” The plowing illustration was, of course, perfect. See, there is only one way that someone plowing a field is able to keep a straight furrow in his field. He has to fix his eyes on a distant point and keep it there. Mountain bikers know what I’m talking about too. You have to look ahead down the trail, because if you look at that big rock right in front of your tire then you are going to nail it. Paul understood this also, “Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:13-14 ESV)

As Amanda and I move into the next phase of international church planting, verses like this humble me. I have to strive for righteousness in my life as well as the life of my family. God requires a genuine resolve to go wherever he leads, and he is the only one worthy of our eternal attention.

Oh God, are we only external disciples? 

Do we understand the gravity of “follow me?” 

If we stood right in front of you and said, “I will follow you, Lord,” would you tell us that we were not fit to do the work of your father?

God help our faith and strengthen our resolve so that we may press on to the goal.