Matthew 8:18-22 – Discipleship is now!

Whenever Jesus wields authority, needs will be met. Hence, it is not unusual to see large crowds flock to Him. There are always those that will be drawn by the supernatural signs that accompany His ministry. And of course there are also those serious followers who can recognize Who He is, and willingly choose to commit to Him. Jesus wants us to choose to follow Him because we truly love Him, and not because of the sensation we see in His ministry. It’s always easy to follow Jesus when everything is exciting, rosy and comfortable.  It is quite another matter when the road gets rough. What happens when He invites us to travel with Him in life’s journey?

In these 5 verses, we are told that the crowd had swollen, and Jesus instructed his disciples get into a boat to go over to the other side of the Sea of Galilee.  As they were proceeding to the boat, a scribe assured Jesus that he wanted to follow Him. This scribe already had a position. Why would he want to follow Jesus unless he was thinking of something he could get from following Jesus? Jesus’ response to him was, “The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”  He was asking that scribe to count the cost. There are personal demands required in following Jesus. It will require us to lay down our status and earthly security. Following Jesus will require us to give up our personal ambition so that we can embrace His. Are we willing to lay down our all to follow Him?

There was another seeming disciple who came saying that he would follow Jesus after he had buried his father.  Where was his priority? In following Jesus, one must be willing to put Him on top of life’s priorities. We need to know the common practice in Jesus’ day in order to understand the context. The first duty that would start the day of an Israelite was his prayer to God. If he had a dead father, he could be excused from this priority to bury his father, before he returned to pray. The words of the Lord Jesus here may seem unkind. He said to him,“Follow Me, and allow the dead to bury their own dead.” It could well be possible that the request of this man was only an excuse. It could well be that his father was still alive and he was requesting to follow Jesus only after his father’s eventual death. For us today, Jesus still wants us to put Him at the top of our life’s priority. Even what seems like the most critical thing in life! 

Let’s stop making excuses! He certainly knows how many excuses we can come up with, when we are required to put Him first. Some of us still want to follow Him only when our studies are over, or when our careers are established. Others may consider finding a life partner as their priority, or getting married, or after their children are grown up, as their more important priories. Still others of us will only commit when we have retired and have more time. The list can go on without end. But can we hear the invitation of Jesus, “Let us go over to the other side”? What are we waiting for? Discipleship and following Jesus is immediate! It is now! And now is the time to follow Jesus wholeheartedly!