Luke 9:57-62
The Cost of Following Jesus
57 As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”
58 Jesus replied, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”
59 He said to another man, “Follow me.”
But the man replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”
60 Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”
61 Still another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good-by to my family.”
62 Jesus replied, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”
Matthew 6:19-24
Treasures in Heaven
19 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
22 “The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!
24 “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.
Matthew 10:37-42
Jesus Wants All of Us
37 “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. 38 Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39 Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it.
40 “Anyone who welcomes you welcomes me, and anyone who welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. 41Whoever welcomes a prophet as a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and whoever welcomes a righteous person as a righteous person will receive a righteous person’s reward. 42 And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones who is my disciple, truly I tell you, that person will certainly not lose their reward.”
Jesus wants all of us, everyone of us to believe and follow Him...But also from each of us He wants all of us -not just part of us...The path that Jesus chose on earth was one of teaching others, one of helping others, one of having their lives centered around God, one of suffering on the cross, one of dying on that cross (for us), one of resurrection and renewal, and one ascending above and into heaven...To put it more simply -Jesus taught, laid down His life for others and went to heaven to His Father...He has only one Master...And it is His Father in heaven...His Father is His security and treasure...
This is the path He wants us to take...This was the path in life that He took...This is not an easy path, and He explains that in an unusual way in the Cost of Following Jesus verses...This cost and this path seems very difficult for us...We must learn that His life is based on giving up personal safety, learning that material things and wealth are not our security, and even the security of health are not what He teaches...These securities are earthly securities and not heavenly securities...These securities, we think are to be preserved at all cost, no matter what...But He tells us that these securities will soon wear out, just like the good health of our youth will eventually wear on us...
In the end we will have one thing in common with Him...We all will die...But the question is how we will live our lives on earth...Do we try to follow His path and His ways?...When we follow Him, He wants us follow His teachings, His integrity, His morals, His feelings for His Father...We must remember, He wants all of us, and not just a part of us...That is He doesn't want us part and parcel -following His ways today, and then doing our own thing tomorrow...He doesn't want the securities, we think are precious and necessary to us -He just wants us, but (and this is the hard part) -all of us...
C. S. Lewis put it this way...Jesus doesn't want our money, or our work, or the things we think that keep us comfortable and safe :He wants you...All of you...Half measures are not good enough...I do not want to cut off a branch here and a branch there -I want to cut down the whole tree...Hand over all your desires, and securities, both the ones you like and think innocent, and also your wicked ones...I want the whole outfit...I want all of you...And in the end, I will give you a new self instead...In fact, I will give you Myself: My own shall become yours...
When we see and understand this, then He is in us, and we are in Him...We then understand only His Grace and His Love...When this happens, we feel and see the LIGHT...