THE CALL OF JESUS
LUKE 9:58-62
As they were going along the road, someone said to him, ‘I will follow you wherever you go.’ And 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 he said, ‘Follow me.’ But he said, ‘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 my home.’ Jesus said to him, ‘No one who puts a hand to the plough and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.’
The topic the “The Can of Jesus ” Speaks of three great revelations:
1. The revelation of God’s Call
2. The revelation of Man’s response
3. The revelation of Christ’s Demands
THE REVELATION OF GOD’S CALL
Call is one of the many biblical terms that are usually misinterpreted. Because God’s call is not well discerned churches are birthed on a daily bases; pastors are almost more than members; bishop is now a title not a divine office; and conversion is a mockery. If we understand call we will have peace. The Bible describes several kinds of calls; which are basically categorized into three major blocks. They are: General call, Effectual call, and Technical call.
1. The General Call
God gives the General call to every creature on earth. We are all called to turn away from sin and return to God and his plan for our salvation. This is the fundamental prerequisite for the performance of any Christian service. We are all called to live according to God’s law; we are all called to a life of service to God and our fellow man. Generally, Christians are called to Christ, to follow and obey Him. The call to follow Jesus is the ultimate call on our lives. This call is an invitation given to all by God to accept salvation through Jesus Christ. So in this sense, “the Master is calling” refers to the call of mankind to the Father through Jesus Christ. (Mark1:15 […], 2Cor.5:19 God in Christ reconciling the world to himself…Mark 16:15 go into the world and preach the gospel to all creation)
2. The Effectual Call
Many Christians believe that there is also an effectual call. In the effectual call, the Holy Spirit improves upon the General call and makes it effective unto salvation. Those who respond to Christ in faith are the recipients of this effectual call. The effectual call is understood as God’s sovereign drawing of a sinner to salvation. The Apostle Paul refers to the effectual call when he writes, “It is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill His good purpose” (Philippians 2:13). The necessity of the effectual call is emphasized in Jesus’ words, “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him” (John 6:44). Jesus said, “For many are called, but few are chosen” (Matthew 22:14). In this statement, Jesus distinguishes between the general call that everyone receives by hearing the gospel and the effectual call that leads to salvation.
3. Vocation or Technical Call
This call is related to the work of one’s life. The Lord bids each one of us in all life’s actions to look to his calling. He has named various kinds of livings “callings.” Therefore, each individual has his own kind of living assigned to him by the Lord as a sort of sentry post, so that he may not recklessly wander about throughout life. God frequently called people to Himself and to His work. In Gen. 12:1-9 Abraham was called to leave his home and to travel to a place of promise. In Rom 1:1 Paul was “called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ”. This kind of call to carry out a specific assignment is what may be termed Technical call or Vocation. In this sense, the Jesus calls into a particular assignment.
THE REVELATION OF MAN’S RESPONSE
The first man in the passage says; “I will follow you wherever you go.’ And 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 the first man, his advice was, before you follow me count the cost. This shows the honesty of Jesus, before you are enrolled as my disciple know that foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the son of man has nowhere to lay his head. Are you ready to follow a wanderer? No one can ever claim to have been induced to follow Jesus. We are made to understand the cost before we embrace Christianity. Catechesis before baptism.
Again, biblical scholars hold that “I will follow you wherever you go” was a case of hasty decision. It is possible his intentions were not pure, he may have heard people saying it and he said so, or he may have seen people coming to the church and he came not having an intention.
THE SECOND MAN; Jesus said, ‘Follow me.’ But he said, ‘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.’ Jesus said to him “leave the dead to bury their own dead”. To us Jesus’ words to this man might sound harsh. However, when someone in Jesus’ day says he want to bury his father, it does necessarily mean the father is dead. Instead, it means that he want to stay with his father until his death. It means ‘I will follow you after my father’s death’. The man was postponing the call of God. Beloved in Christ, what keeps you from following Jesus as you should? Is it children, family, work or business? Some are waiting to be old before they will answer the Master’s call.
THE THIRD MAN said, ‘I will follow you, Lord; but let me first say farewell to those at my home.’ Jesus said to him, ‘No one who puts a hand to the plough and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.’ The decision to follow Him must be clear and decisive. Nothing must hinder it. This man wanted to go and bid his family farewell, he forgot what Jesus said in Matt. 10:37-38 “Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me.” This does not mean we should not honour our families; rather it means that we should love God above all things.
THE REVELATION OF CHRIST’S DEMANDS
(THE DEMANDS OF CHRIST CALL)
In Luke 14:25-33 Jesus lays down the demands of discipleship. He is so honest about his demands that none is induced to follow him. Using two parables, Jesus illustrated that anyone who chooses to be his disciple must examine his choice carefully, lest he or she slip back later on. If you do not consider the cost of building a house before embarking on it you may not finish well; if your armies are not strong enough do not go to the battle field. So, Christ wants us to weigh the demands of discipleship so that we can make informed choices.
You may think you are a good Christian until the cross comes. During the public ministry of Jesus he had large crowd around him but at the foot of the cross they were very few. Many of the disciples at the beginning of their conversion were very enthusiastic but when the pressures of family life and social hostilities pulled in, their fervor and passion waned. To be a true disciple, it is not enough to crowd around him and enjoy his benevolence. We must equally be ready to bear his burdens. Therefore discipleship demands the following:
Absolute Renunciation: The Gospel says “whoever of you does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.” This is a call to “Absolute renunciation”. It is a major theme in Luke’s Gospel. The disciples must leave everything: Luke 5: 11 “When they brought their boats to the shore, they left everything and followed Him”; in Luke 14:26 Jesus says “If any one comes to me without hating his father and mother […] and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.” Hate as used in this verse is explained as a degree of love in Matt.10:37 where Jesus said; “Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me…”). To be worthy of him, we must love him more than parents and biological life. That is, Love God above all things.
Again, in Luke 18:22 Jesus says to the rich man “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give the money to the poor, […] then come, follow me.” So leaving everything – absolute renunciation is a familiar theme in Luke’s gospel. We too must leave everything; the Church is a place where we learn to leave everything; it is a place where we learn the true meaning of temporal goods. And one best way to leave everything is to renounce Satan and all his empty promises. At baptism we renounced Satan but we however went back to reclaim these things through persistent lies, fraud, greed, lust, gossips, pride, envy, idolatry and materialism. In all, a true disciple must renounce not partially, but absolutely; not temporarily but permanently.
TAKE UP YOUR CROSS: In the gospel (Luke 14:27) Jesus says “whoever does not bear his cross and come after me cannot be my disciples.” Jesus had said this in Luke 9:23 when he says “If anyone wants to come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me. … And whoever does not carry his cross and follow Me cannot be My disciple.” The cross is an essential aspect of discipleship. Discipleship without renunciation and the cross is a wrong ship. And you cannot be in a wrong ship and arrive at the right destination.
The cross is the best-known symbol of Christianity. The cross is a sign of willful humility, hatred, violence, love and forgiveness. It is a great contradiction. It reminds us of death and assures of life. The cross is everything summarized: suffering and Joy; labour and favour. Job understood divine burdens, in Job 2:10 he said “If we accept blessings from God, we must accept trouble as well.” In this light, Wis. 9:13 says “Who can discern what the Lord wills?” He prayed for the cup to pass him by; yet he submitted to the will of the Father. He says “not as I will, but your will be done”. You prayed for that child not to die; yet he died, you have prayed for a spouse yet no one, you prayed and prayed for your marriage to work, yet to no avail, you prayed to have a child of your own, no way; you prayed for promotion and all you knew is demotion. Beloved, the cross may be bitter but it makes you better later.
FOLLOW JESUS: Friends, to follow Jesus is to be open to discomforts, dissatisfactions and insufficiencies. To follow Jesus is to keep his commandments. To follow Jesus is to remain steadfast amidst pressures and social hostilities; to follow Jesus is to resist evil governments. If we follow Jesus, we may lose everything in this world but we shall be saved. If we follow Jesus, surely goodness and mercy shall follow us all the days of our life and we shall dwell in God’s house forever.
