Key Verse: Jesus replied, “No one who puts his hand to the
plow and looks back is fit for service in the Kingdom Of God.”
Luke 9:62
It’s an easy game that we play with ourselves. “I’ll get
around to it, but first I need to…” We stack so many promises into tomorrow. But I ask you, what if tomorrow never comes?
There’s a song from the musical, “Little Orphan Annie,” that
says, “tomorrow, tomorrow, I love ya, Tomorrow, you’re only a day away.”
Tomorrow, I will do what I know I should do, after all, “it’s only a day away,”
but today is for me. Today I will earn a living and provide for myself. Today,
I will do what I want to do. Tomorrow, I will begin the life of sacrifice. Tomorrow,
I will live for You, Jesus.
Earlier, Jesus had talked about counting the cost and He had
lost many of His followers for His truth in advertising. Today’s message is
similar, only Jesus is targeting specific people with specific stumbling blocks
that they really need to consider if they truly want to follow Him.
First there is a man that Jesus refers to as, “a teacher of
the law.” Wow, most of these men were critics, but here’s a man who claims he’s
willing to change, give it up and follow Jesus. You would think that Jesus
would embrace the man and say, “Welcome aboard! So glad you’ve seen the light!”
Jesus, however, lays out a harsh reality. “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)
Jesus may have been referring to His poverty here, which
would have been a tough enough pill for this man to swallow, but by using the
word “fox,” Jesus also may have been referring to Herod, whom Jesus had
referred to as a fox earlier. Herod has a palace, but the Son of Man, has
nothing so elaborate to offer. This man may have come to Jesus for political
reasons, thinking that, if Jesus really does overthrow Rome, being with Him
would put him next to the seat of power. If this is the case, this man needed
to learn that Jesus could not be used for worldly gain. If this man was to
follow Jesus, it needed to be now and it needed to be to serve, not conquer.
The second man was actually called out by Jesus, but worldly
concerns held him back. Jesus has dealt with this issue before in the Sermon on
the Mount when He said, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth,
where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up
for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and
where thieves do not break in and steal.” (Matt. 6:19-20) Jesus called, but
this man’s misplaced priorities caused him to miss out on the plans that Jesus
had in store for him.
The third man offered a conditional service to our Lord. I
will follow You, but first I need to take care of myself. First I need to get
my retirement account to a place where I can live comfortably. First I need to
make sure that my children's college accounts are fully funded. My house needs
to be paid off so that I have a place to come back to in case it doesn’t work
out with You. My pantry needs to be fully stocked. My calendar needs to be
cleared. I need better clothes so that I represent you well, Jesus. You
wouldn’t want me to look like an outdated bum now would you?
Jesus replied, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service In
the Kingdom Of God." (Luke 9:62) Are there excuses that you are using to
rationalize your holding back? What do
you suppose Jesus would say to you about them?
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