Impact Magazine

“I WILL FOLLOW YOU, BUT...”

  -  4 Would-be Disciples.

‘Muyiwa Omole

The Lord Jesus called everyone to come to Him. He said, “Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me” (Mt. 11:28-29).

While this general call went forth to come to Him, He also called individuals to come follow Him as His disciples. We know the names of the twelve disciples that He called. There are some, however, that were called but remain nameless, nameless because they did not follow Him. He called them and they knew what they could be, what they should be. They came close, but fell short. They started in, but gave out. The Gospel of Luke tells us about these would-be disciples (9:57-62; 18:18-30) and their stories will help us know what we should be as we follow Him.

MR. TOO QUICK - Count the Cost (Luke 9:57-58)

⁵⁷ Now it happened as they journeyed on the road, that someone said to Him, “Lord, I will follow You wherever You go.” ⁵⁸ 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.”  Luke 9:57-58. New King James Version (NKJV)

This first would-be disciple met the Lord as He journeyed and said to Him, “Lord, I will follow You wherever You go.” He was a volunteer! It warms the heart to hear someone stand up and be counted a follower of Jesus Christ. “Where He leads me I will follow” might well have been his theme song on the way to meet the Lord. But when he heard about the accommodations, he suddenly lost the tune. Ruth, a Moabitess, was more committed that this Jewish scribe. “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”  How good to rest where He rests, in His finished work. What would you call a man like this? Let’s call him Mr Too Quick. He hadn’t stopped to count the cost. It’s one thing to sing the songs of commitment but another to collect the hymnbooks and stack them on the book table after the meeting is over. This would-be disciple chose the way of comfort instead of the way of the cross.

MR. PRO - Don’t Delay (Luke 9:59-60)

⁵⁹ Then He said to another, “Follow Me.” But he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” ⁶⁰ Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God.”

Luke 9:59-60 New King James Version (NKJV)

Our next would-be disciple was actually invited personally by the Lord saying, “Follow Me.” His response is very instructive: “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” How considerate he was of his dearly departed dad! The problem was that his father was probably very much alive and in good health. It was a proverbial saying of the day, “After I bury my father.” He wasn’t about to let his dad down—not even into a grave! We don’t use that proverb today, but we surely know how to procrastinate! We say, “One day I’m going to serve the Lord with all my heart.” If it’s one day, that day will never come. Don’t be fooled by the devil into thinking that tomorrow is a better day to know and serve the Lord. The Bible declares, “Now is the day of salvation” (2 Cor. 6:2) and that we should “Choose… this day whom [we] will serve” (Josh. 24:15). This second would-be disciple didn’t refuse to follow. He just put it off. The Lord Jesus responded truthfully saying, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach…” In other words, follow our Lord’s example who was about His Father’s business. Redeem the time for the days are evil. We don’t know this man’s name but we know he was a “pro” – at procrastination!

MR. ME FIRST

Christ First (Luke 9:61-62)

⁶¹ And another also said, “Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house.”

⁶² But Jesus said to him, “No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”

Luke 9:61-62. New King James Version (NKJV)

The third would-be disciple has something in common with the first two. He promises like the first disciple and procrastinates like the second. He uses the same contradictory combination of words: “Lord, let me first...” You can say, ‘Lord’ or you can say, ‘Me first’, but you cannot say, “Lord, me first.” If He is Lord, He is first. It’s a matter of priority. This man’s request was to bid his family farewell. Elijah permitted Elisha to kiss his father and mother goodbye. He did so with a feast. He had been ploughing the field. Now he was leaving his family to follow the prophet. Do you remember what he offered? The oxen for sacrifice and the yoke for burning! (1 Ki. 19:19-21). There was no turning back for him. He had come to the end of the row, as it were.

This would-be disciple, however, was just at the beginning of the row and had just put his hand to the plough. The Lord warns that, “No one, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.” Family relationships are good, but not when they turn you around from following the Lord Jesus Christ!

MR. FOOL

True Riches (Luke 18:18-23)

¹⁸ Now a certain ruler asked Him, saying, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” ¹⁹ So Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one isgood but One, that is, God. ²⁰ You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery,’ ‘Do not murder,’ ‘Do not steal,’ ‘Do not bear false witness,’ ‘Honor your father and your mother.’ ”^[a]

²¹ And he said, “All these things I have kept from my youth.” ²² So when Jesus heard these things, He said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” ²³ But when he heard this, he became very sorrowful, for he was very rich.

Luke 18:18-30. New King James Version (NKJV)

There is one more would-be disciple who may be more convicting that we’d like to admit. Luke tells us that he was a ruler and very rich. Matthew adds that he was young. He had it all: power, wealth, and youth. He came to the Lord in a humble way, running to Him and kneeling, calling Him “Good Master” asking. “What shall I do to inherit eternal life?”

Using a legal term such as “inherit” certainly prompted discussion of the Law. The Lord named a few of the commandments, and the young man still justified himself. But one thing was lacking: when the Lord Jesus touched his pocketbook, he discovered where his heartstrings were attached. He became very sorrowful and went away grieved. Mark’s Gospel tells us that Jesus looked at him and loved him. He could leave unsaved, but not unloved. He chose the temporal wealth of this world over eternal treasure in heaven! What would you call a man who takes the world at the expense of his soul? God calls him a fool. As Jim Elliott put it, “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.” Leave it to Peter to put two and two together and voice the concern that the other disciples were still calculating. He said, “See, we have left all and followed You.” The Lord assured them that they would “receive many times more in this present time, and in the age to come eternal life.”

Bottom line: it will be worth it all. These four men teach us not to jump too fast, wait too long, get turned around, or live for this world. Don’t be a would-be disciple.