Word@Work Luke158 - Luke 9:59-60
Published: Fri, 07/30/10
Word@Work from BeaconLight
RADICAL PRIORITY
Luke 9:59-60 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." (NIV)
Following Jesus, if it is done properly, is not a whim or personal preference. It is a conscious decision to obey the call of Christ. Today's passage is the second of three encounters recorded between Jesus and would-be disciples. Jesus issues this man with the call to follow Him. It is quite clear: the Greek puts it in the present tense, the active voice and the imperative mood. In other words, 'do it and do it now'! But the man's response denied all three: he did not see it as an instruction for that moment, he had no indication of taking action and he had no urgency about Christ's command.
The expression, "...bury my father", probably did not mean his father had died, but that he would consider the call to discipleship when his father was dead. He would then have received his share of the inheritance and fulfilled all that was expected of him as a son in the family. Jesus' response seems quite cutting. He was saying that those who had no interest in obeying God's call (the spiritually dead) could deal with the filial obligations expected in the earthly society. But those who recognised the privilege of being in God's family would set His priorities as their own.
Family relationships are God designed and should be very precious. But nothing can be more precious than accepting and obeying God's call. However much a relationship is special, it must never be more important than our relationship with the God who made us and the Saviour who died for us. His call on our lives, to proclaim the supremacy of His kingdom and His grace, is the primary priority. The Lord does not want us to dishonour our family, but when we use them as an excuse to disobey our heavenly Father, we dishonour both Him and His calling of us. Yet Mark 10:29-30 tells us that those who obey the call will find that God blesses them in a greater way than they could ever have experienced in the way of the world.
Prayer: Dear Lord God and loving Heavenly Father. Thank You for the family into which I have been placed, and all the good things that have come to me through them. Thank You too for the responsibility of care and serving others, which have come with those privileges. However I know that You are my Great Father and that Your Word is higher than any other. I accept Your call to work with You. So please help me to make the radical choices necessary to honour and obey You, trusting that You will resolve everything that is yet to be done in my family. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
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You can read the verses around this Bible passage from the Internet Bible: - in English, and many other languages
Following Jesus, if it is done properly, is not a whim or personal preference. It is a conscious decision to obey the call of Christ. Today's passage is the second of three encounters recorded between Jesus and would-be disciples. Jesus issues this man with the call to follow Him. It is quite clear: the Greek puts it in the present tense, the active voice and the imperative mood. In other words, 'do it and do it now'! But the man's response denied all three: he did not see it as an instruction for that moment, he had no indication of taking action and he had no urgency about Christ's command.
The expression, "...bury my father", probably did not mean his father had died, but that he would consider the call to discipleship when his father was dead. He would then have received his share of the inheritance and fulfilled all that was expected of him as a son in the family. Jesus' response seems quite cutting. He was saying that those who had no interest in obeying God's call (the spiritually dead) could deal with the filial obligations expected in the earthly society. But those who recognised the privilege of being in God's family would set His priorities as their own.
Family relationships are God designed and should be very precious. But nothing can be more precious than accepting and obeying God's call. However much a relationship is special, it must never be more important than our relationship with the God who made us and the Saviour who died for us. His call on our lives, to proclaim the supremacy of His kingdom and His grace, is the primary priority. The Lord does not want us to dishonour our family, but when we use them as an excuse to disobey our heavenly Father, we dishonour both Him and His calling of us. Yet Mark 10:29-30 tells us that those who obey the call will find that God blesses them in a greater way than they could ever have experienced in the way of the world.
Prayer: Dear Lord God and loving Heavenly Father. Thank You for the family into which I have been placed, and all the good things that have come to me through them. Thank You too for the responsibility of care and serving others, which have come with those privileges. However I know that You are my Great Father and that Your Word is higher than any other. I accept Your call to work with You. So please help me to make the radical choices necessary to honour and obey You, trusting that You will resolve everything that is yet to be done in my family. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
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