Discipleship... Keep Ploughing
Scripture Luke 9: 51-62
Reading
As they were going along the road,
Someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”
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, Jesus said,”Follow me.”
But he replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”
But Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead;
but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”
Another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but let me first say farewell to those at home.”
Jesus said to him,
“No one who puts his hand to the plough and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”
Reflection
There is a great deal of activity and energy in this week’s short Gospel passage. The movement begins with a shift from the Galilee preaching and healing ministry to a focus now on the crowning paschal climax in Jerusalem. Luke states it simply and directly: "Jesus set his face to go to Jerusalem." This indicates Jesus’ absolute resolution, borne out of trust in God and complete fidelity to his mission.
Their travels have them passing through Samaria on the way up to Jerusalem. But the Samaritans did not welcome him. The world is not always going to be responsive to Jesus and rejection can be widespread. The disciples react with the wish to use their connections and power to launch a retributive strike. James and John ask for the ancient equivalent of nuking the enemy: "Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them?" This becomes a teachable moment for Jesus. They wonder if vindictive power is proper in this instance. Is their hostile reaction justified? The text does not tell us what Jesus said. It simply notes that Jesus rebukes them and they move on to the next village. Jesus' nonviolent action speaks for itself. Offer the Good News proclamation, but do not fight for it! Give people time to decide. Invite everyone to come into the larger Christ consciousness. If you are not well received, then you are to move on.
Jesus' mission is not about judgment, but rather compassion and mercy. There is a new urgency now to continue his instructions on the cost of discipleship. The entourage of disciples is moving along with him. They too are "going on the Way." The accent is on movement and commitment and staying the course with Jesus. Along the journey they meet up with three different persons who encounter Jesus and know themselves to be called by him. Each reveals something of the mandate and mission of a true disciple’s life.
1. In one case, a disciple offers to follow wherever Jesus goes with no excuses.
2. In another case, Jesus initiates the call.
3. In the third case, the disciple has a priority that stands before his desire to follow Jesus.
The first one: A would-be follower asks to follow Jesus. He will follow Jesus no matter where he goes. Jesus responds by talking about the difficulties of itinerant ministry. Be aware. If you want to follow me, you might be homeless. The Jesus movement cannot be a casual partnership. This open-ended offer to go anywhere Jesus goes is what all good students in Judaism did when they left home to live with their teachers to learn Torah and see a model of a righteous life. But there is more to discipleship with Jesus than being a student. Jesus' response makes it clear that discipleship is a demanding affair. To follow Jesus is more like following an Old Testament prophet than like studying with a rabbi. Jesus, calling himself the Son of Man, says that he has no home. Even foxes and birds have more of a home than Jesus does. Discipleship requires resolve because it will mean at some point, rejection. The premise behind the remark is that disciples will have to follow the same path as Jesus. Discipleship requires trusting God even in the midst of rejection.
He said to another, "Follow me." But the neophyte said, "Lord, let me first go to bury my father." But Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead. But you go. Declare the kingdom of God." This second scene involves one who wishes to bury their father before coming to follow Jesus. Though the request seems reasonable, the potential disciple's premise is that family comes before Jesus. In Judaism, burying family members was a priority. Jesus, however, represents the arrival of a new, more demanding era. So even carrying out such a burial is insignificant in the face of discipleship. The task must be left for others: "Let the dead bury their own dead." Jesus' response seems so harsh. Jesus' command is heavily rhetorical, since the dead cannot bury anyone. It means either that the 'spiritually dead' should be left to perform this task or that such concern is inconsequential in the face of the call to discipleship. As important as taking care of a family member's death is, it is a lower priority. Either way, Jesus makes it clear the request should not be honored. Even the "best excuse" possible should not get in the way of discipleship. Instead, the call is to go and proclaim the kingdom of God. This is the responsibility of all disciples. All must be prepared to share the message of God's goodness in Christ.
Yet another said, "I will follow you, Lord, but first let me bid farewell to the ones in my house." But Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plough and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.” This third scene involves a simple request to tell the family goodbye before setting out to follow Jesus. However, Jesus’ response interprets the request as a desire to hang on to the old life. This too is emphatically rejected, with a warning that turning back from the task is showing oneself unworthy of discipleship. The disciple's hand is to stay at the plow. This image captures succinctly how the person who looked back while plowing would not furrow a straight row for crops. Jesus' point is that discipleship takes focus. Only Luke quotes this symbolism of the plow, a detail that stresses the disciple's long term commitment. Disciples cannot back off from the task. Discipleship is not a part-time job or a weekend hobby. It is the product of God's calling, “God’s grasping”, and should be pursued with appropriate seriousness. The calling of God ought to be preferred without any question, before all duties that we owe to each other. Just as ploughing requires an eye intent on the furrow to be made, and is marred the instant one turns about, so must the work of God go forward with a focused attention and a pure heart. The plowman must look ahead instead of back.
Discipleship, mature Christian discipleship is very costly. It is a radical following, a total commitment to the summoning person of Jesus. Disciples grow to be like their Master and this growth, this totality of giving in response, is a long and arduous process demanding ever deeper faith and more openness to the Spirit. Like the 'three' in today's Gospel, we too are learning discipleship from our Master, being taught gradually, lesson by lesson from The Teacher abiding within.
Carrying Grace I have decided to follow Jesus. No turning back. No turning back!
Comments
The staying phrase, for me, is in the title......KEEP PLOWING!
At the time Luke wrote this gospel, history had moved to somewhere between the last years of the 9th decade and the early years of the 10th decade (probably somewhere between 89 and 93 CE). As the Christian movement was transitioning from its deep roots in the synagogue into a convert community of Gentiles (Gentile proselytes ... although still deeply entrenched with dispersed Jews), the early church was beginning its struggle to be a legitimate movement within the Roman Empire. The Temple in Jerusalem was now gone .. Jews were dispersed well beyond the borders of Judea and Galilee. And, regrettably, a split was emerging between the new Way and traditional (orthodox) Judaism .. it was a struggle that, eventually, would never be reconciled .. not even to today. Luke's message in this particular scripture is a message to stay the course. It requires sacrifice. It means moving priorities away from ancient practices and traditions. Jesus' focus is on a new path forward ... not looking back, not looking at "the old". It is a messae of hope .. as much as it is a message of choices -- for hope is always routed in our choices. If we choose the Way of God, we learn to always look forward, and never backward. A mirror only shows us where we have been .... never where we are going. And like the man behind the plough, Jesus wants us to see the beauty of the Kingdom that stands within our reach. It is not a kingdom that is far away, in another life ... it is a kingdom that Jesus brings to our lives today. A Kingdom of love, compassion, hope and healing. A Kingdom that says "you are a part of me; let go ... and let me lead. I will show you the Way of Life, and the Way of Love."