Following Jesus?
Luke 9:57-62[1]
We live in a results-oriented world. Everything from education to performance
reviews at work to government projects are evaluated based on so-called
“objective measurement.” That’s not
necessarily a bad thing. We need more
accountability these days, and the tools that measure results can help with
that. But we seem to think that
everything in life can be measured by objective outcomes. I fear that if we approach the Christian life
from the perspective of looking for results, we may be setting ourselves up for
a serious disappointment.
The famous Catholic priest, professor, and author Henri Nouwen
warns us against that approach. He
insists that our ability to continue to serve others is not based on the results we see,
but rather on the hope that is firmly grounded in Christ’s victory over death
itself, which demonstrates “that there is light on the other side of darkness.”[2] On the other hand, Nouwen warns that many of
those who base their Christian lives on the search for visible results “have
become disillusioned, bitter, and even hostile” to the faith “when years of
hard work bear no fruit.”[3] In fact, I would say that most people who
lose their faith were expecting some kind of tangible results from following Jesus in discipleship.
I think our Gospel lesson for today has a lot to say about
our expectations regarding what the decision to follow Christ means for
us. It’s a story about three would-be
disciples who encountered Jesus. The
first volunteered, saying “I will follow
you wherever you go.” Sounds like the
ideal candidate. But Jesus seems to be
aware that he doesn’t fully know what “I will follow you wherever you go”
means. It means “not having a place to
lay your head,” like Jesus. It would
appear that he had some kind of expectation of a payoff for following Jesus,
and Jesus rather bluntly confronts him with the truth that his expectation is
unrealistic at best.[4]
The second would-be disciple is one whom Jesus invited to
follow him. But he asked Jesus to first
be allowed to bury his father. It would
seem to be a reasonable request. In that
day and time, the obligation to see to the proper burial of parents was part of
fulfilling the commandment to “honor your father and mother.”[5] But Jesus responded in a way that seems quite
harsh. He said, “Let the dead bury their
own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” Although there
is significant debate about what Jesus meant, it would seem clear that the
commitment to the seek first God’s Kingdom that is inherent in the decision to
follow Jesus outweighs all other priorities.[6]
The third would-be disciple also volunteered to follow
Jesus, but asked permission to first go and say farewell to his family. Again it seems a reasonable request. Even Elijah allowed Elisha to say good-bye to
his parents when he chose him to be his disciple while he was plowing his field
(1 Kings 19:19-21). But Jesus will have
nothing of the sort. Echoing the incident with Elisha, he says, “No one who
puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”[7] Perhaps
this would-be disciple was looking for some kind of recognition from his family
for the fact that he was going to be a disciple of the Messiah. It’s hard to say. What seems clear is that all three would-be
disciples decided not to follow Jesus
The message of this unusual story is that following Jesus
means the Kingdom of God takes priority over everything else in your life.[8] Following Jesus means giving yourself away
without thought of reward or recognition.
It means serving the purposes of compassion, justice, peace, and freedom
simply because it’s the right thing to do, not for any payoff.[9] And to all who approach the task looking for
a reward, or a payoff, or recognition, it would seem that Jesus warns them to
do themselves a favor and not start something that is going to result in the
kind of disillusionment and even bitterness that Nouwen warns us against.[10]
One reason why I mention Nouwen is because he knows whereof
he speaks.[11] After his ordination as a Catholic priest,
Nouwen began to study the connection between pastoral care, psychology, and
theology in Holland. He finished those
studies at the prestigious Menninger clinic.
Along the way, his message of acceptance and compassion earned him quite
a reputation and a following to match.[12] For twenty years he taught Pastoral Care at
some of the most distinguished universities in the U. S.--Notre Dame, Yale, and
Harvard.[13] But he left it all behind to become the
chaplain at the Daybreak community in Toronto.[14] It is a part of the world-wide network of
L’Arche homes where the mentally handicapped and their caregivers lived
together with others in a community.
Nouwen’s story illustrates the kind of sacrifice following
Jesus demands. It means that the Kingdom
of God takes priority over everything else.
It means working for compassion, justice, peace, and freedom simply
because it’s the right thing to do. It
means giving yourself away in service to others without looking for a
reward. Giving something away without expecting
anything in return isn’t very popular these days. But it is the heart of Jesus’ call to follow
him.[15] The question is whether we will follow, or
simply walk away like all the other would-be disciples
[1] ©2013
Alan Brehm. A sermon preached by Rev.
Dr. Alan Brehm on 6/30/2013 at First Presbyterian Church of Dickinson, TX.
[2]
Henri Nouwen, in The Wounded Healer,
reprinted in Ministry and Spirituality,
155.
[3]
Nouwen, Ministry and Spirituality,
156
[4]
Cf. the perspective of Karl Barth, Church
dogmatics 4.2:535-36, where he insists that this would-be disciple “does not realise what it is that he thinks he
can choose. He does not know how terrible is the venture to which he commits
himself in the execution of this choice. No one of himself can or will imagine
that this is his way, or take this way. What Jesus wills with His 'Follow me' can be chosen only in obedience to His call.”
[5] Cf.
John Nolland, Luke 9:21–18:34, 544: “In
Jewish tradition this obligation was so sacred as to override any other
obligations of the OT law. Jesus’ words do not deny the normal claims of the
pious duty to bury the dead, but, in a way that is harsh and even shocking,
they insist that this man has a more pressing duty.”
[6]
Cf. Joseph A. Fitzmyer, The Gospel
According to Luke I-IX, 836; Nolland, Luke
9:21–18:34, 542.
[7]
Cf. Fitzmyer, Luke I-IX, 834:
“Plowing for the kingdom means sacrifice; it can tolerate no distractions.” Cf.
similarly, Barth, Church dogmatics, 4.2:536,
where he says, “It is clear that this man, too,
does not really know what he thinks he has chosen. It is certainly not the
following of Jesus. This is commanded unconditionally, and therefore it cannot
be entered upon except unconditionally.”
[8] Cf.
Fred Craddock, Luke, 144; Nolland, Luke 9:21-18:34, 543.
[9]
Cf. Henri Nouwen, Here and Now, 101, where
he calls it, “the way of downward mobility, the
descending way of Jesus.” Cf. also Luke
Johnson, Learning Jesus, 201 “The
imitation of Christ in his life of service and suffering … is not an optional
version of the Christian identity. It is
the very essence of Christian identity.”
[10]
Cf. Søren Kierkegaard Provocations:
Spiritual Writings of Kierkegaard, 89: Christ “never asks for admirers,
worshippers, or adherents. No, he calls
disciples. It is not adherents of a
teaching but followers of a life Christ is looking for.” Cf. also R. Alan Culpepper, “The Gospel
According to Luke,” New Interpreters Bible IX:218, where he says, “the
radical demands of discipleship require that every potential disciple consider
the cost, give Jesus the highest priority in one’s life, and, having committed
oneself to discipleship, move ahead without looking back.”
[11]
Perhaps the most fitting epitaph to Nouwen’s life was written by Carolyn
Whitney-Brown, a former member of the Daybreak community. She said, “When I think of Henri, I think of
two ‘books’: one is the book that Henri wrote 40 times, yet couldn’t quite
live; the other is the book the Henri lived for almost 65 years, yet couldn’t
quite write.” Cf. Michael Ford, Wounded Prophet: A Portrait of Henri Nouwen,
xv.
[12]
cf. Ford, Wounded Prophet, 16-17 on
Nouwen’s writing career. Cf. ibid., 100-102, 105 on his growing
following.
[13]
Cf. Ford, Wounded Prophet, 95-97,
103-104, 135-36
[14]
On his transition from teaching to serving at Daybreak, see Ford, Wounded Prophet, 145, 149-56
[15]
Cf. Dallas Willard, The Divine Conspiracy,
283, where he puts it more succinctly by saying that following Jesus means that
“I am learning from Jesus how to lead my life, my whole life, my real life.”
2 comments:
Enjoyed reading your thoughts in preparation for my sermon. Hello from another Texas PCUSA preacher :)
Thanks! These days I'm serving a congregation near Lincoln, Nebraska 😊
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