Matthew 8:18-22
We know people refuse to follow Jesus, but
what makes Jesus refuse would-be followers. The answer is
found in Matthew 8:18-22.
Verse 18 – “Now, when Jesus saw a crowd around Him, He gave
orders to depart to the other side of the sea.”
Jesus and His disciples had been on the western shore of the
Sea of Galilee. Since the crowd around them was becoming so
massive and the Lord was physically exhausted, they entered
a boat to depart to the opposite shore. This afforded the
Lord some necessary time for prayer, meditation, and relief
from the pressures of the crowds. Such pressures, not
necessarily part of God's plan, motivated Jesus to leave for
ministry in a new place.
As He left, the issue of commitment faced certain people. By
that time, many people were following Him. In fact, Mark
tells us that several other boats followed behind Him like a
little flotilla. Therefore, some people were at the very
crux of decision: “Do I get in the boat and go, or do I
stay?” Matthew identifies two individuals who must make
similar decisions.
Verse 19 – “Then a scribe came and said to Him, ‘Teacher I
will follow You wherever You go.’”
What a tremendous statement of dedication! Apparently, he
was making a permanent commitment. I am sure the scribe
thought that Jesus was the greatest teacher he had ever
heard, and when he saw Christ's miracles, he concluded that
they were from God. He was attracted to the unique and
impressive person and power of Christ. If that man showed up
at a church today, most people would immediately sign him
up. However, Jesus was not so eager. He tested the scribe's
true level of commitment:
Verse 20 – “Jesus said to him, ‘the foxes have holes, and
the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has
nowhere to lay His head.’”
That is a proverbial saying that simply means Jesus would
not regularly experience the basic comforts of life that
wild animals had. The implication seems to be that He did
not have His own house. Often He would spend the night at
the Mount of Olives in prayer with the Father. Although, the
gospels tell us that Jesus occasionally stayed in a house in
Bethany, He had few personal possessions. He had no
guarantee of comfort to offer this scribe. Being able to
read his mind, Jesus forced him to face the unpleasant
reality of discomfort.
Like the scribe, there are people who want to jump on the
Christian bandwagon, but as soon as the persecution starts
and following Christ is not comfortable anymore, they want
out.
The scribe wanted to join the cause, but Jesus knew that
human nature is fickle and self-centered. He knew that it
hungers for sensations: the crowd, the miracles, and the
excitement. Jesus saw the shallow eagerness of the scribe is
like a seed on stony ground that grows quickly but dies
under the heat of persecution. Evidently, that man never
understood the basic elements of discipleship: self-denial
and suffering. After Jesus told the scribe what he could
expect, you will notice that the next verse does not say
anything about him. Do you know why? He probably was not
around. The Lord put him under the spotlights and he left.
Jesus is so unlike us. We sugarcoat the message so everybody
can get in as easily as possible. However, Jesus told it
like it was and in so doing, kept many insincere people from
following Him.
Jesus affirmed that He was “the Son of Man, a Messianic
title that first appears in Daniel 7:13 and is used in the
gospels eighty-eight times. The term, “Son of God” speaks of
Jesus' deity, whereas, “Son of Man” emphasizes His
humiliation. Jesus is saying to those who want to follow
Him, “In My humble estate I do not even have the basic
comforts of life that foxes and birds have. And if you're
going to follow Me, you need to be willing to give them up.”
In fact, the New Testament makes it clear that persecution
would accompany those who follow Christ and live righteously
(Matthew 10:16-18, 19, 22, 23; John 15-16).
There is a price to pay for being a Christian, but the
scribe was not willing to pay it; he just wanted to add
excitement to his life. He was a potential Judas and nobody
needs more of that type. Therefore, Jesus' explanation of
the way things really are drove him away. We do Jesus a
grave disservice if we lead people to believe that the
Christian way is an easy way. It is not. There is no thrill
like following Christ, and there is no glory like the end of
a life of obedience to Him, but Jesus never said it would be
easy--He always said you had to take up your cross. People
who want personal comfort plus Christ merely want to add
Jesus to their previously established pattern of life. He
refuses such people as His disciples.
Verse 21 – “Another of the disciples said to Him, ‘Lord,
permit me first to go and bury my father.’”
That sounds like a reasonable request. The son could not
just forget about his father if he were dead; he would have
to bury him quickly because Jewish people did not embalm.
Furthermore, Jewish custom taught that one needed to mourn
for your father and mother for thirty days after they died.
Genesis tells us that the last responsibility of a son in
his final act of devotion to his parents was to make sure he
cared for their burial (Genesis 25:9; 35:29; 49:28-33;
50:13-14). So maybe he was talking about needing a month to
mourn and take care of family business. However, the
implication of the phrase to bury one's father can mean that
a person would prefer to wait until his father passes away
so that he can receive his inheritance. That seems to be
what the son in Matthew 8 had in mind.
Verse 22 – “But Jesus said to him, ‘Follow Me, and let the
dead to bury the dead.’”
At first, Jesus’ response seems to be almost ridicules, how
can dead people bury other dead people? The solution must be
that the first kind of dead people refer to those who are
spiritually dead. In other words, Jesus is saying, “Let the
spiritually dead bury the physically dead, let the secular
world take care of its own issues, you have been called to
the Kingdom of God. Let the system take care of itself.”
Jesus was not saying that Christians are forbidden to go to
funerals, or that Christians are not supposed to make sure
their father or mother is buried. He simply pointed out that
the world's passing affairs regarding death and inheritance
are part of a dead system.
The young man's priorities were fouled up. He had stressed
secular matters above spiritual ones. Personal possessions
were important to him; he had waited a long time for his
inheritance and he was not going to leave now. He was
attracted to Jesus by the thrill of the cause, but exhibited
no commitment. He wanted his money more than he wanted the
Messiah. He reminds me of the rich young ruler in Matthew
19.
Conclusion
Personal relations, personal riches, and personal comfort
all stand in the way of following Christ. Even though Jesus
said in John 6:37 that “the one who comes to Me I will
certainty not cast,” He will not accept those who have no
intention of making a true commitment. The one who comes to
Jesus, He will not reject if he comes with a begging in his
spirit, mourning over his sin, meek before God, hungering
and thirsting for righteousness, crying for mercy, and
willing to be persecuted, hated and reviled for His sake.
The Authority of
Jesus Series
