Blessed Are the Committed
Luke 9: 51, 57-62
(Read text)
A British warship was docked at a port in the West Indies as a fierce storm was approaching. The wind picked up and powerful waves came sweeping into the harbor. There were five other ships of different nationalities also docked there, but only the British captain weighed anchor and sailed out to sea and into the teeth of the storm. He returned two days later, his ship battered but still intact. He discovered, however, that the other five vessels had either sunk or were smashed to pieces. Playing it safe, it turned out, was the most dangerous thing they could have done. Only the ship that dared to face the storm survived.
Jesus is pivoting from his ministry in Galilee, the remote northern province of Israel, to Jerusalem, the center of its religious life and political power. He’s been drawing large crowds among the people of Galilee’s many small farming villages, while in fairly safe territory. Yes, there were still scribes and Pharisees questioning and resisting his ministry, but he wasn’t considered an imminent threat to ‘the powers that be’ while still at a distance.
So, this is a turning point, leaving “the safe harbor.” He knew the time had come to do battle with the most powerful members of Israel’s religious class, very aware of what it would cost him: more conflict and fiercer opposition. He was also aware that the Roman government was keeping a wary eye on him as a political threat. Still, he “set his face like flint” (Isaiah 50:7) towards Jerusalem.
We can sense his courage and determination here. He’s like an Allied soldier on D-Day storming the beach, intent on only one thing: accomplishing the mission. In their case, it meant the liberation of Europe from the evils of Nazi oppression. But the stakes of Jesus’ mission are even greater: victory over the dark spiritual forces holding the human race in bondage to sin and death.
This pivotal moment, when Jesus turned his face towards the coming spiritual battle, is immediately followed in Luke’s gospel by a series of encounters with his followers, all sharing the theme of courage and commitment.
In the first encounter, when a man told Jesus as they were walking along the road, “I’ll follow you wherever you go,” Jesus reminded him of the kind of commitment that would require: “Foxes have holes and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” Jesus wanted him to know that real sacrifice is part of the commitment of discipleship. His apostles and others--many of them women--had already made the sacrifice to become homeless, too, but it required paying a very real cost.
Our sacrifices can take various forms, in today’s world. It might require taking a moral stand such as Billy Graham’s insistence that his Crusades be integrated, even in the Jim Crow south. That took moral courage, and it cost him considerable support at the time. Or in other cases, it could mean refusing to cut corners, or to lie at work, even knowing that it could cost your job. Or facing rejection because of bearing witness to your faith. There will always be a price to pay for following Jesus. We need to expect it, and to decide which is more important: our worldly comforts and security, or honoring God.
In the 1925 U.S Open, the legendary golfer Bobby Jones was getting set to hit an iron shot out of the rough when he felt his club move the ball, almost imperceptibly. No one else could have seen it, but Jones called a one-stroke penalty on himself, which ultimately cost him the title. When spectators later praised him for his sportsmanship, he famously replied, “You might as well praise a man for not robbing banks.” His moral boundaries were crystal clear. We should have that same unambiguous commitment to the cause of righteousness, whatever the cost.
In the second exchange, when responding to Jesus' invitation to follow him, a man answered, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” Jesus told him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”
This answer sounds heartless without understanding the cultural context (and by the way, it’s a good example of why everyone should have a study bible). It was the custom in Jewish culture at that time to bury the dead within 24 hours. So, the man was really saying, “I’ll follow you later, only after my father has died.” .
Jesus was making the point that if the man missed the opportunity to act on his faith, he might never do so. He’s impressing upon him a sense of urgency to live out his convictions.
Psychologists tell us that every time we fail to act on a noble impulse, it becomes less likely that we will in the future. Jesus is warning us to beware of that pitfall, and to seize opportunities for spiritual faithfulness when they arise. “Don’t put off until tomorrow what you can do today” is wisdom that also applies to spiritual matters.
And the last of these encounters along the road highlights the necessity of making a firm commitment. In this case, a third man says, “I’ll follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good-by to my family.” Hearing that, Jesus replied, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”
I doubt that Jesus meant for the man to leave his family on the spot, without a farewell. That would be completely out of character. Rather, he was warning him not to linger on those attachments, but to keep his focus on the goal, once making the decision to follow his heart.
Around two thousand years ago, Julius Caesar and his navy set out to invade and conquer England. They knew they would face fierce resistance, of course, and in fact as they drew near the coast they could see the enemy lining the Cliffs of Dover. Caesar established a beachhead nearby, and his troops soon met the Celts in battle. But Caesar knew that as long as the ships remained behind them as an option for retreat, the men might have those thoughts. So, in a bold stroke, he commanded that the ships be burned. He and his army would either have to advance and conquer, or die trying. When the men saw the burning ships, they knew there was no going back.
Everyone knows something about that human tendency to look behind us rather than focusing on the future. We want the best of both worlds: our old, familiar ways, and God’s promise of new life. But the only way the spiritual journey works is by moving forward into greater faithfulness and commitment, keeping our eyes straight ahead, like a farmer with his hand to the plow.
Just as Jesus showed his resolve in turning towards Jerusalem, these subsequent accounts make it clear that a similar commitment and courage is required of us, too, as his followers.
Someone has suggested a new beatitude: “Blessed are the committed, for they will make a difference for the kingdom of God.” (Repeat.)
The American patriot Nathan Hale, after being caught by the British and led to the gallows, was asked if he had any last words before being hanged. He famously answered, “I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.”
We, too, only have one life to give for the cause of God’s kingdom. Let’s make the most of it, resolving to be among the committed. Let’s live sacrificially for Christ, seizing opportunities we’re given, and moving forward into greater faithfulness.
God wants committed Christians who will make a difference in the world for our generation. Not just believers, who are a dime a dozen--but real followers, disciples who put our faith first and live by it, as a witness to the saving love of God in Christ. Amen.
