THE LIFE OF CHRIST - MINISTRY OF WITHDRAWALS

Fourth Withdrawal

-The Cost and Priority of Discipleship

-Luke 9:57-62; Matthew 8:19-22

-These passages clearly indicate that one must be willing to pay the necessary cost of following

  Jesus and make Him their priority.

-First of all, a man (scribe - Matt 8:19) approached Jesus with a commendable statement - “Lord,

  I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest” (Luke 9:19). 

            -By looking at Jesus’ response, it seems that this man was expecting a life of ease and

             luxury as a follower of Christ (probably expecting to be exalted in an earthly kingdom while

             receiving the benefits of Jesus’ miraculous abilities).  However, Jesus Himself was not

             walking in a path of ease and luxury, not having an earthly place to call His own.

            -“…He rejects not this man's offer, nor refuses him the liberty to follow Him. Only He will

             have him know what he is doing, and 'count the cost.' He will have him weigh well the real

             nature and the strength of his attachment, whether it be such as will abide in the day of trial.

             If so, he will be right welcome, because Christ puts none away. But it seems too plain that in

             this case that had not been done. And so we have called this the rash or precipitate disciple”

             (Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown).

-Secondly, Jesus told another disciple to follow Him.  This person did not refuse Jesus’

 instructions but did not make them his immediate priority.  Instead, he wanted to go and bury his

 father first.

            -When considering the statement made by this man, we sometimes assume that his father was

             already dead.  However, that might not be the case.  “The burial of one’s father was a sacred

             duty (Gen. 25:9), but this man is to learn that the first duty that man owes is his duty to God. 

             It is not known that this man’s father was dead at this time; many think that he wanted to

             wait and take care of his father, and after his father died then he would give all of his time to

             following Jesus” (Boles, 1940, pg 213).

            -Jesus is teaching that no situation/relationship should be given a higher priority than our

             relationship with Him. 

                        -In regards to the statement, “Let the dead bury their dead”, we see a contrast between

                         being spiritually dead and physically dead.  Let the spiritually dead bury the physically

                         dead.

            -Our priorities should not lie in the things of this world but in our service to the Lord (preach

             the kingdom of God).

-Thirdly, another disciple offered to follow Jesus but wanted to first bid farewell to his family. 

 This seems like a reasonable request, “…but our Lord, seeing that this person had too much

 attachment to the earth, and that his return to worldly employments, though for a short time, was

 likely to become the means of stifling the good desires which he now felt, refused to grant him

 that permission” (Clark).

            -To plow a straight row, the plowman must be focused forward - not looking back.

-Remember, Jesus did not reject a single one of these three.  He simply made it very plain and

 clear that they needed to consider the cost of being His disciple and had to be willing to place

 their priorities in Him - a very good lesson for us today.

-Upon the arrival of Jesus in Jerusalem, the Ministry of Withdrawals is brought to a close and the

  Later Judean Ministry begins.