The would-be followers...

As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go."

Jesus replied, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head."

He said to another man, "Follow me."
But the man replied, "Lord, first let me go and bury my father."

Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God."

Still another said, "I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good-by to my family."

Jesus replied, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God." Luke 9:57-62

We often remember the men who upon hearing the call of Jesus to "Follow" did just that. They left everything and followed him. Luke reminds us that there were others.

There is the one who volunteers. He seems almost impulsive. The kind of person who will rashly commit to something before considering the weight and responsibilities that come with his/her action. Jesus reminds them that there are great costs and sacrifices to be considered before following him. Everything is on the table.

Jesus calls the second person whose response is one of family commitment. The comment that he must first go back and bury his father can mean either a.)that his father has just died and he has to go back and bury him. or b.)that his father is still well and healthy and that this person has to go back and wait for him to die before leaving. Either way Jesus points out that the call to follow involves total abandonment.

Finally we find ourselves with someone who is either responding positively to Jesus' invitation to follow or is another volunteer. Either way, once again there is a 'but' to their willingness and commitment. They want to go back and say good bye to the family. How big is the family?? This could take days, weeks, months or even years. Again Jesus reminds them that you can't look back. If you choose to follow Jesus, looking back will only result in the kingdom work being badly done.

So Lukes' point is that the call to follow Jesus comes to all. It is your decision to follow or not. It is a call to give all...to live in the here and now...to fulfill the command of Jesus, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength."

The ultimate question in the quest of discipleship is found in Jesus' conversation with Peter... "Do you love me?"