Public Reading: Luke 9:46-62
The Story
We have been following the life of Jesus and studying both his teaching and his actions. He is our example – God himself came down to earth and showed us the way to live – the way to live under his rule and reign.
Some folks think that perhaps this way of living is rule of do’s and don’ts…yet as our journey through the book of Luke has been telling us, the way of Jesus is anything but a list of rules. It is a way of life governed by a personal relationship with the Creator God; a life build upon listening and hearing him.
Yet, as we will learn through today’s passage, it is a life of choices. Do we really believe and trust Jesus? Do we really want to follow him? What happens when we are faced with the hard decisions? What do we do? What choice we will make?
Not questions to be easily answered.
Nor ones to be dismissed as the day is coming; nay the day has arrived when we will have to make a decision. Do we follow Jesus in the good and bad days or just the good?
Let us turn to Luke chapter 9 verse 46.
The Greatest
46 An argument started among the disciples as to which of them would be the greatest. 47 Jesus, knowing their thoughts, took a little child and had him stand beside him. 48 Then he said to them, “Whoever welcomes this little child in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. For it is the one who is least among you all who is the greatest.”
The disciples had recently just acknowledged that Jesus was the Christ, the Coming One of God, who was to usher in God’s Kingdom. Right after that Jesus went up on a mountain with Peter, James and John and talked to Moses and Elijah.
Knowing human nature, knowing ourselves, it should be no surprise therefore that the twelve now began to fight among themselves. Each one was trying to best the others so that they could have the best ‘job’ or the riches lands and money in the new ‘age’ of the Christ – the one in which they, with God’s help of course, defeat the Romans and take control over the nation of Israel.
Instead of addressing the issue head on, which most likely wouldn’t have helped much, Jesus tackles things from a side angle. Calling up a young child to stand next to him, Jesus proceeds in telling the twelve that those who welcome the least of these (children were considered nothing then – and in some ways, still are) welcomes him.
• The least is the greatest
o The son of man came to be a servant of all
• We all want to be known for changing the world
• We want to be known as someone big – someone important – even if we don’t like attention, I dare say there is usually some bit of pride hiding within us.
• Yet is Jesus saying that if we want to be known as great in the Kingdom of God, we are to be the least. We are to be the ones who serve others even when it is hard and brings no favor from society or humanity.
Not Against Me
49 “Master,” said John, “we saw someone driving out demons in your name and we tried to stop him, because he is not one of us.”
50 “Do not stop him,” Jesus said, “for whoever is not against you is for you.”
• This plays into the pride question a bit as we typically want to keep Jesus for ourselves
• Yet Jesus clearly said that “whoever is not against you is for you.”
• This is a hard teaching, but one that I think we need to remember daily as there are a lot of teachers and pastors out there tell us that it is a ‘us’ versus ‘them’ world.
• It is not!!
• I am neither for myself nor for anyone else. I stand for Jesus alone!
o If I hear someone talking about Jesus, even if I don’t fully agree with them, I remember this teaching of Jesus and bless them.
o May they point people to Jesus that will never listen to me.
Samaria
51 As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem. 52 And he sent messengers on ahead, who went into a Samaritan village to get things ready for him; 53 but the people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem. 54 When the disciples James and John saw this, they asked, “Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy thema]”>[a]?” 55 But Jesus turned and rebuked them. 56 Then he and his disciples went to another village.
• Odd passage as Jesus recently told the twelve to stay away from Samaritans (Matthew 10) when they went out.
• Yet here is Jesus sending word ahead of himself for the Samaritans to receive him.
o Again, clues that the message of Jesus is bigger than most people realize
• Sadly the Samaritans did not receive Jesus but sent him on down the road
o Luke gives this reason for why they rejected him: “because he was heading for Jerusalem”
o To me, this means that at first they wanted to receive him but then decided not to once they learned his mission.
o They wanted Jesus to be their leader and Christ. Yet Jesus knew that he came from everyone and therefore had to keep walking to Jerusalem and death
• James and John wanted to kill them all with fire
o But Jesus rebuked them
o Similar to what he did a few verses previously when he rebuked John for stopping those who were not part of the Twelve
o John had a lot to learn!!! (as do we!!!!)
• People will reject us and our message
o We may be tempted to do them harm
o But we are not to do that. We have to follow the ways of Jesus and love them even if they reject us and the message of the Lord
No Home
57 As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”
58 Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”
• Jesus had nowhere to lay his head….no home or place of his own..
o This is slightly odd as he had a mother and siblings.
o He could have went there and had a room and a pillow
* But instead he choice to follow the prompting of God and tell others about the coming Kingdom
• There are some here that came to the valley in a similar manner.
o They came because God told them to come and tell the people of this area about Jesus
• There are others here who God will call to leave this valley to go and plant new churches in new areas
o The world needs to hear the message of Jesus
o We are the spokes people of Jesus and God Almighty
• The question becomes…are we going to listen and go? Or are we going to cover our heads and stay in bed?
Let The Dead, Bury the Dead
59 He said to another man, “Follow me.”
But he replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”
60 Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”
• This is a bit of a shocker
o Jesus doesn’t sound real kind here….
• There are a few things to consider here..
o First the burial practices of the time
* Funeral lasted seven days followed by 30 days of morning
* One year later the body is dug up – or if in a cave, opened up – and the bones are removed into a box that is then placed on the shelf of the burial cave.
o Secondly, don’t under estimate the power of speech
* This could have been the right thing to say to shock this guy out of his life
* He needed to know that following Jesus was a right there, right now thing
* No waiting
Let Me Go Back…
61 Still another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.”
62 Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”
• How often do we say, ‘yes Lord…but only after….”
• Jesus will have none of it!
• If we bow our knees to Jesus we need to walk after Him
o No more double speak
o No more halfhearted gestures
• To place our hand on the plow means that we are to continue forward walking after Jesus