No More Excuses
Oct 6, 2023 | by Joel Jacobs
During a recent reading time in the Word something stuck out at me big time. I’ve read this several times and always had these thoughts, but until now I didn’t take the time to really dissect it. I always conveniently dismissed it to figure out later. I was reading Matthew chapter 8. Up until now I admit I was a little confused at Jesus’ responses and his directness. Sometimes he seemed to lack compassion and empathy. However, I came to realize I was not looking at what He said through the correct lens and was not considering His actual character traits and identity. {Some quick notes on Matthew to keep in mind before I proceed: It appears Matthew’s purpose in writing his account is to prove to jews who Jesus is, the Messiah and Son of the living God. That’s why he starts with the genealogy and mentions a lot of “this was to fulfill the prophecy of…” and quotes it. For me, Matthew’s style seems written “matter of fact,” and he doesn’t appear to be too concerned with the chronological timeline of the events, just the details of them to be most important.}
With that said, starting in chapter 8, verse 18, Jesus gave the command that they were done in that area, and it was time to “depart to the other side.” It’s unclear exactly how long Jesus was in this area, but in the verses preceding, he was performing many miracles, casting out demon spirits, and healing a lot of people. This, of course, garnered a large following and many disciples very quickly. These new followers/disciples were probably very excited about any opportunity to be around Jesus, and to help with this “local” ministry (I mean who wouldn’t be, right?!?!). However, when Jesus decided it was time to go, they were now faced with the reality of what a decision to truly follow him meant.
Verse 19 says “a certain scribe” (many translations describe this as “a teacher of religious law,” and the Amplified Bible description is [a respected and authoritative interpreter of the Law]. That means this “certain scribe” had some status in the area (or since I’m a youth pastor), he had “clout.” This “certain scribe” tells Jesus (I imagine very enthusiastically) “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.” Jesus’ response to him has, I believe, been misconstrued to show Jesus was a poor vagabond. If you are someone that listens to Pastor Anthony often, you’ve heard many times why that’s far from the truth. What I believe Jesus is pointing out to the “certain scribe” is that following Him is going to be WAAAAY different than the life he is used to. This “certain scribe” may have had his own servants and probably lived comfortably. Truly following Jesus and putting Him first, meant that their travels would not always be so “comfortable.”
Verse 21- “Another of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” (the Amplified Classic expounds “care for until death”) BUT Jesus told him “Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead. (all my emphasis).” ...OUCH! Jesus, that stung a little. Don’t you have compassion for this man’s family situation?? Hold on though. Wait a minute. Remember, if we are wise to analyze this considering Jesus’ character traits and his identity the revelation of Jesus’ motive becomes clear. How often is it recorded that Jesus “perceived their thoughts…” or knew the true intentions of someone He was engaging with? A lot, right? Therefore, I believe, Jesus perceived this was just an excuse by this so called “disciple.” It was great being a disciple of Jesus when it was convenient for him, in his hometown, but the moment he’s faced with a difficult decision of putting Jesus first, he starts to cave to the pressures of the world. I imagine this disciple started to go through his internal roll-a-decks of “but what about this and this and what if this happens?” “I’ll just tell Jesus I can’t go with Him yet, until I get everything perfectly the way I need it to be.” If you’re starting to see this knew revelation too, it might still sting you. That’s probably because it’s getting you to think about what excuses you might be giving to not put Jesus first in a certain area of your life.
Now, don’t get this twisted in thinking, as a pastor, I want to guilt you into serving the local church more. Or that Jesus doesn’t want you to miss church to attend a funeral. Stop that! Remember, Jesus’ response was just reveling the disciple’s true heart and to point out the reality that sometimes putting Jesus first in our life LOOKs extreme, especially to the world. I’ll end with a particle and personal example.
Just this week we have been faced with a dilemma regarding my son and youth sports. He has played two seasons of basketball in our local program and has really enjoyed it. This year, he is starting to be of the age that the league becomes more competitive (keeping score and tracking wins/losses). In and of itself, there is nothing wrong with any of that, and there can be some great lessons learned in competitive team sports. However, this year, my wife and I both had an uneasiness about our son’s participation in the next level. Having watched other friends with older children have games every Sunday morning, and other youth sports “drama,” we were reluctant to sign him up. However, I believe Holy Spirit wanted us to see how it played out so there wouldn’t be any question as to what the right decision would be moving forward. So, we signed him up and paid the league fee. It very much appears to be playing out in a way that makes it clear to us that basketball might not be an option for our son at all this year. Why? Because, as a family, we are committed to and earnestly strive to put God and Jesus first in every area of our life. My son is disappointed, but he understands.
Is it hard sometimes? In THIS world, in THIS American culture, in THIS town of course it’s hard! We’re not up on the current popular movies, music, and tv shows. Our children may not experience youth sports the way their peers do. We celebrate holidays differently than we used to, and again our kids will not have those same experiences as many of their peers. Choosing to live life this way may appear to the outside world (including some of your friends and family) as “too extreme.” Here’s my encouragement though. IT’S ALL GOOD! We have a wonderfully fulfilling life, and we are not “missing out!”
Analyze your life today and be honest with yourself on what areas you might be putting ahead of God and Jesus. Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you the right steps and faithfully take them. Choose to put God and Jesus first in every area of your life, and I promise, in the long run, you will see more and more of God’s goodness manifested for you.
I love you all,
- Pastor Joel