It’s On to Jerusalem, Will You Follow? —Lectionary Reflection for Pentecost 3C/Proper 8 (Luke 9)

           

Luke 9:51-62 New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition

⁵¹ When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem. ⁵² And he sent messengers ahead of him. On their way, they entered a village of the Samaritans to prepare for his arrival, ⁵³ but they did not receive him because his face was set toward Jerusalem. ⁵⁴ When his disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” ⁵⁵ But he turned and rebuked them. ⁵⁶ Then they went on to another village.

⁵⁷ As they were going along the road, someone said to him, “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.” ⁵⁹ To another he said, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” ⁶⁰ And Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” ⁶¹ Another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” ⁶² And Jesus said to him, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”

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                The time had come for Jesus to go to Jerusalem. He had been ministering in Galilee, preaching, teaching, healing, and feeding the multitude. He had revealed to his disciples that he would soon be betrayed and executed. But his followers didn’t understand. They were also afraid to ask him about this message concerning his impending death. So, it was time to head south toward Jerusalem, marking a clear change in the narrative. In heading to Jerusalem, Jesus embraced his destiny. As he had revealed to his disciples, the cross stood in his future. Everything in the Gospel is moving in that direction.    

To get there, the most direct route ran through Samaria, though most Jews avoided going through Samaria by crossing the Jordan and traveling on the east side of the river until arriving in Judea. Jews and Samaritans, though closely related, were rivals and enemies. People are like that. Ethnocentrism is commonplace in our world. We see it mushrooming in the United States, with the America First movement. But it’s not just the United States. It’s happening across the globe. Here in the United States, it comes in the form of American Exceptionalism. We believe ourselves to be different and better than our neighbors, but are we? The question that emerges from this discussion should give us pause when it comes to welcoming the stranger in our own context.

                I raise these questions because Jesus ran into a few roadblocks on his way to Jerusalem. When he sent a few of his followers ahead of him to a Samaritan village, the villagers turned them away. Why was that? It was because Jesus was heading to Jerusalem. That response, which was out of character for the region, where strangers were to be welcomed, angered James and John. They wanted to wipe them out by asking for fire to come down from heaven and wipe out these Samaritan villagers. This is called retribution!  Jesus wouldn’t stand for such a thing, leading to a strong rebuke. That’s just not Jesus’ way.  Since the Samaritan villagers refused to welcome Jesus and his followers, they moved on to another village, where they may have received a better welcome. It is worth noting that in the larger context of Luke’s two-volume narrative, the first step beyond Jerusalem took the gospel message to Samaria (Acts 8:4-25).            

                As Jesus and his companions make their way south through Samaria toward Jerusalem, Jesus has three encounters with possible disciples. They may very well have been Samaritans. If so, this would suggest that, at least in Luke’s mind, there were Samaritans who were open to Jesus’ message. Some of the would-be disciples approach Jesus, and others Jesus approaches. The issue that is raised here concerns the cost of discipleship. Whether the three join Jesus’ band is not revealed. They might have joined up, or they might not have. What Jesus does here is push these inquirers to think deeply about their sense of call, especially since Jesus was heading toward a martyr’s death. How they responded is not revealed.

                The first inquirer tells Jesus that they would follow him wherever he was going. Jesus let him know that “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” In other words, Jesus was a homeless itinerant preacher. Those people who followed him would share his homelessness. The second inquirer was interested, but they wanted to first bury their father. In other words, they would join up when the time was right. Jesus told him to let the dead bury the dead. The third person simply wanted to go home and say goodbye to friends and family. That’s understandable. Together, the three inquirers remind us that we all have competing allegiances, whether it’s family, nation, jobs, etc. It’s a question of priorities.

                When it comes to discipleship, according to Jesus, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.” It would seem that it was all or nothing with Jesus. He was heading to Jerusalem, where he would die on the cross. This was his destiny. The question is whether others would join him on this journey. Luke pictures Jesus being quite determined. Nothing will stand in his way. But, if we acknowledge, as I do, the full humanity of Jesus, though the Book of Hebrews tells us that as our high priest he was tested in every way like us but did not sin (Heb. 4:14-16), could Jesus have pondered alternatives to the cross? That is the question posed by the film and book The Last Temptation of Christ. That movie imaginatively allowed Jesus to contemplate what life might be like if he climbed down from the cross, married Mary Magdalene, and lived a normal life. Of course, that’s not the way Luke tells the story, but if he were tested like us, perhaps even he was tempted to look back.

The question for us, as modern followers of Jesus, concerns our willingness to go all the way with Jesus. I, for one, live a fairly comfortable life. Homelessness or separation from family as a stipulation for discipleship seems extreme. It was something St. Francis did, as did St. Clare, but I’m not sure it’s my thing. Still, there is this word from Jesus about not looking back. So, when push comes to shove, what might Jesus be saying to each of us? I will leave you with these words from Fred Craddock, recognizing that Luke doesn’t give us all the details when it comes to the three inquirers: “The radicality of Jesus’ words lies in his claim to priority over the best, not the worst of human relationships. Jesus never said to choose him over the devil, but to choose him over the family. And the remarkable thing is that those who have done so have been freed from possession and worship of family and have found the distance to love them” [Interpretation: Luke, p. 144]. And on we go to Jerusalem.