“Follow me.”

“He said to another man, ‘Follow me.’ But he replied, ‘Lord, first let me go bury my father.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9: 59-60)

Have you ever heard your parent calling you and instead of immediately going to them, you called back “in a second!” or “ok, let me just finish this”? I know I have. I also know it sometimes caused me an unfavorable consequence! What about this: have you ever heard God calling you and found yourself responding with the same “in a minute, God!”

The more I study the Bible, the more I realize that God can be very black and white; often straightforward with His desires. For example, “be holy as I am holy” or “have no other gods before Me”. Simple. It is often our sinful nature that tries to add a gray area where God only wants obedience. In this text, Jesus gives a very simple command. He says “follow me.” There is nothing inherently confusing about that but we see two examples of disobedience (vs. 59-62).

Has God called you to live a life fully surrendered to Him and you have been more concerned with old friendships, old career plans, and old ways of thinking? This is your warning that it’s not a good enough excuse for the Father. Of course, we should still love those in our lives, always pointing them to Christ. Be careful that it does not become the thing holding you back from fully pursuing the Kingdom of God.

Prayer:

God, thank you for calling me according to your purpose for my life! You, the God of the universe, want me and I will never understand. I repent for being slow to obedience, no matter how good the excuse sounds. Please call me again. Ask me to follow you again. Help me to leave my old life behind as I build your kingdom. I love You more than the “important” things in my life. In Jesus’ name, amen.