The Lenten Journey - Pt. 2

 

As they were going along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” To another he said, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” And Jesus said to him, “Leave the dead to bury their own dead. But as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” Yet another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:57-62 ESV).

 

Experience has taught me that it’s easier to begin a project than to sustain it over a long period of time. The initial enthusiasm launches us with a great deal of excitement, but determination is needed to maintain and finish a project. This determination is the resoluteness I wrote about yesterday. Our reading today follows that declaration of Jesus being resolute in going to Jerusalem. It gives us an important key to understanding how we can be more like Him in our perseverance. It involves looking forward rather than backward.  

 

In this reading today, Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem where He meets a man who says spontaneously, “I will follow you wherever you go.” But the man did not know where Jesus was headed and what would be involved. Speaking of himself as “the Son of Man,” Jesus made clear that following him would bring hardships that most people would want no part of. Then Jesus said to another man, “Follow me.” But the man scrambled for excuses, saying he first had to bury his father. In that day, that meant looking after his ailing father (and other family members) at least until the father died. If the father had already died, the man would already be in mourning and would not have been able to join the curious crowd around Jesus that day. Then, in his response to another man, Jesus indicated that there can be no turning back in service to him. Jesus taught that following him calls for total commitment. He’s our example. Knowing what lay ahead, he set out and stayed faithful to the end. Being fit for service involves more than good intentions.

 

Regardless of your past, fix your eyes forward on Jesus. He has already set the path for us. Start small and finish the task. Be simple and go forward to the profound.