How Do We Defend Our Mission?
We are working through a series of teaching called “The Mission — Accomplished!” God wants us to carry out the mission he has given us. There are three things that would help us fulfill it. First, knowing our mission very well and understanding what it actually is. To have a “mission” means that we have a goal that has been set before us and that we must complete. In order to fulfill our mission, we have to know its aim. What is our assignment? What are we to do?
The second thing that would help us accomplish our mission is a clear focus on it — not to drift away from it. Many Christians never accomplish their mission because they let their focus slip away from it.
At the beginning of their faith people understand that God has a plan to work through them, because Ephesians 2:10 says that God did not save us for no purpose. He saved us, not by works, but for “good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”
For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. (Ephesians 2:10)
The “good works” that God prepared in advance for us to walk in are the mission God has for us. At the start of their faith people grasp that they have a mission. They are meant to carry it out, but the problem is that along the way, in the course of life, they get distracted, they get diverted. They lose their focus, they forget what their mission is, and they stop pursuing it. And so their mission is left unaccomplished.
The third thing needed for our mission to be fulfilled is that we must pay a price for its accomplishment. To “pay a price” means to be willing to endure suffering for the sake of a higher goal in our life — our mission.
Although Jesus Christ was with his disciples for such a long time, at times they were confused and did not understand what his mission was. In Luke 9:51 it says that Jesus “set out” for Jerusalem.
As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem. And he sent messengers on ahead, who went into a Samaritan village to get things ready for him; but the people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem. (Luke 9:51-53)
Jesus knew his time, for it says that “as the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven,” he resolutely set out for Jerusalem. That resolute setting of his face speaks of determination. Although he knew the price of accomplishing his mission — that he would have to pass through the cross — Jesus decided to go to Jerusalem. At the same time we see that the apostles did not grasp the nature of his mission. Even though he told them many times that the Son of Man had to go, to suffer, and to rise again on the third day, they did not understand.
When the disciples James and John saw this, they asked, “Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them?” But Jesus turned and rebuked them. Then he and his disciples went to another village. (Luke 9:54-56)
This is one incident that shows the disciples’ expectation that Jesus would impose himself by any means and become king — but that was not Christ’s mission. He knew his mission; they did not. The Lord Jesus is our example. He did not come to be a slave-master; he came to be King and Redeemer. That was his mission. He knew he had to go to the cross and die for our sins and rise again for our justification. But his disciples at times did not understand what Jesus was doing, or why. The disciples’ failure to grasp Jesus’ mission should move us to learn very well what our own mission is and never to lose our focus on it.
Protection from Premature Killing
Once we know our aim and our mission, the second thing we must do is defend it. Jesus is our example in this, because he guarded his mission from two things. The first thing he guarded it from was being killed before the time God had appointed. There was a time God had set for Jesus to go to the cross. That time was the Passover. It was precisely on the day of Passover that Jesus was to be lifted up on a cross. This had to happen in Jerusalem. Jesus was not to be killed before that. And there were attempts. There were plots to kill him. At one point people tried to throw him off a cliff, but he turned and passed through their midst (Luke 4:28-30). On another occasion the Pharisees wanted to seize him and kill him, but they were afraid, because the people regarded him as a prophet (Luke 20:19). So Jesus had to guard his mission from being killed before the time God had appointed. Jesus had a perfectly clear sense of God’s timing for his life. He knew very well when his time was. For example, in Matthew 26:18 we read:
He replied, “Go into the city to a certain man and tell him, ‘The Teacher says: My appointed time is near. I am going to celebrate the Passover with my disciples at your house.’” (Matthew 26:18)
So Jesus knew his time. Likewise, in John 12:23 we read:
Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.” (John 12:23)
Jesus knew his time very well, and he was not to allow himself to be forced out of it.
Protection from a Different Kind of Death
The second thing Jesus guarded himself from was being killed in some way different from the manner God had appointed for him. In John 3:14 it says:
Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, (John 3:14)
That the Son of Man “must be lifted up” means that he had to be lifted up on a cross. The snake was set by Moses on a tall pole. For this reason Jesus was not to die by beheading, or by stoning, or by any other means. He had to be lifted up on the cross. That was God’s will.
Likewise, in John 12:32-33 it says:
And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” He said this to show the kind of death he was going to die. (John 12:32-33)
This “lifting up” meant that Jesus had to die in a particular way — by being crucified on a cross.
What did Jesus do to protect the carrying-out of his mission? To protect it, Jesus used four defensive strategies.
Avoiding Unnecessary Confrontation
The first of these strategies was that he guarded his mission by withdrawing and avoiding needless confrontation with his opponents. When he healed people, he would tell them, “Do not tell others about this healing!” But they would not listen; they would go and tell. Why did Jesus tell them not to tell? Because he knew that when they spoke, it would stir up even more opponents, even more confrontation, before the appointed time. We find an example of this strategy in Matthew 12:14-16:
But the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus. Aware of this, Jesus withdrew from that place. A large crowd followed him, and he healed all who were ill. He warned them not to tell others about him. (Matthew 12:14-16)
This is still early in his ministry. The Pharisees were angry with Jesus because he healed on the Sabbath. They considered that Jesus was breaking the Sabbath and that therefore he was not from God. On top of that, Jesus said of himself that he was the Son of Man. They were furious that he was making himself equal with God, and they wanted to kill him. The text says they plotted how they might destroy him. But “aware of this, Jesus withdrew from that place.” There you see the strategy of Jesus. When he knew that they wanted to kill him, he withdrew. He charged the people he served “not to make him known.” Why? Because his hour had not yet come. So this is the first thing Jesus did. He withdrew and avoided needless confrontation with his opponents.
Also, in Matthew 12:1 it says:
At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry and began to pick some heads of grain and eat them. (Matthew 12:1)
Why was Jesus going through the grainfields? Because if he walked along the road, many more people could meet him there. But he “went through the grainfields.” He cut straight across, as we say. Why? Because he did not want to run into people who would press him, who would betray him, who might in some way threaten the carrying-out and endurance of his mission. Why? In order to complete his ministry, Jesus had to live at least three years. Luke the evangelist tells us that Jesus was about thirty years old when he began to teach (Luke 3:23). It does not say exactly how long. But we see that his ministry lasted about three years, at least because the Gospels speak of three different Passovers. During his ministry Jesus had to reveal God, to work miracles, to reveal himself as the Messiah, and he was not to die before this.
In John 11:53-54 it says:
So from that day on they plotted to take his life. Therefore Jesus no longer moved about publicly among the people of Judea. Instead he withdrew to a region near the wilderness, to a village called Ephraim, where he stayed with his disciples. (John 11:53-54)
Again there was a plot to kill Jesus. We see that at certain moments Jesus withdrew and went to little-known towns where no one knew where he was. Then, however, he would return, and again and again he would continue his mission. Jesus was fully aware of what his mission was, and he defended it. In this he is our example — we too must know what our mission is and defend it. If we see that something threatens our mission, let us fight it; let us not give up, but be wise and defend our mission. If we must withdraw, let us withdraw. If we must press forward, let us press forward — but let us have our strategy and follow our mission.
Surrounding Himself with Friends
Second, Jesus guarded his mission by surrounding himself with people who supported him. Jesus had around him twelve disciples. And out of them he had three who were the inner circle. And besides them, he had the seventy disciples whom he sent out.
Besides this, there were many women who supported him. Luke 8:1-3 speaks of this:
After this, Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out; Joanna the wife of Chuza, the manager of Herod’s household; Susanna; and many others. These women were helping to support them out of their own means. (Luke 8:1-3)
Jesus had twelve disciples, and those disciples had to eat. Food has to be bought. So they had a common purse. Judas was the treasurer, as you know. Jesus’ ministry evidently gathered gifts so that it could function properly. Those who gave were not only the people who listened to his preaching, but also well-off friends. Some of those mentioned in this passage were people of standing — such as the wife of Chuza, who was married to a manager in the household of Herod. Clearly she was a woman of means. She was supporting the ministry of the Twelve. So this is one of the ways Christ defended his mission — by having around him people who supported him.
So too Martha, Mary, and Lazarus. He was always welcome in their home, in Bethany.
The crowd that followed him also protected him. In Matthew 21:45-46 it says:
When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard Jesus’ parables, they knew he was talking about them. They looked for a way to arrest him, but they were afraid of the crowd because the people held that he was a prophet. (Matthew 21:45-46)
So even the crowd that listened to him also protected him. Jesus surrounded himself with people who loved him, who were his friends. And when his enemies came, they could not seize him, because they were afraid of the people who were around him.
In this regard Jesus is our example. If we want to fulfill our mission, we too must surround ourselves with like-minded companions, fellow workers, supporters, and friends.
Carefully Considered Communication
Third, Jesus guarded his mission by carefully weighing his words and speaking clearly. In Luke 19 it says:
For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” While they were listening to this, he went on to tell them a parable, because he was near Jerusalem and the people thought that the kingdom of God was going to appear at once. (Luke 19:10-11)
When he spoke, Jesus made statements about the Son of Man and used parables. That way he could not be accused, since he said nothing directly — he simply told instructive stories. What were the parables? The parables were short stories. A farmer let out his vineyard to tenants and went away to another country… But Jesus did not say plainly, “The Pharisees are sinners,” or anything of the kind. Jesus did not speak directly. He spoke in parables. Of course, when he spoke in parables, the Pharisees realized that he was speaking about them, but they could say nothing, because Jesus was simply telling instructive stories. In this way Jesus protected his ministry.
In this the Lord is also our example — to be very careful in our words and in the content of our communication to the world. God’s Word urges us to control our tongue. And it says that the one who masters his tongue is a perfect person, able to keep his whole body in check (James 3:2).
We all stumble in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check. (James 3:2)
One of the ways we can defend our mission today is to uphold the good name of the church. Because the way Satan works is to strike at the standing of the church. He says, “They are a cult, do not listen to them!” But we must be very wise and careful and live in such a way that our neighbors and the people who know us can say, “Well, people say they are a cult, but we see that they are actually very good people. They do good; they smile at us; they help us; they welcome us. We have never seen them drunk, or on drugs, or gossiping, or doing anything wicked.”
Control of Time
Fourth, Jesus guarded his mission by carefully controlling his time. Jesus knew when his hour was. He knew what he had to do, because he prayed constantly. Early in the morning, before the others had risen, he would go out to pray, so that he could keep his connection with God the Father (Mark 1:35). Likewise, after he had worked miracles, he would again go away and pray (Mark 6:46). He knew where he had to preach and traveled continually (Luke 4:43).
Especially in the last week of his life, the control of time in Jesus’ life is seen with extraordinary clarity. Everything is so well planned; it is all like something out of the secret intelligence services. Everything is precisely arranged in time — what will happen and at what hour; what will follow and at what hour. You could make a film out of the last twenty-four hours of Jesus’ life and call it “24” — a film in which various things happen, but everything happens at exactly the appointed hour.
For example, as Jesus entered Jerusalem as King, he told the disciples, “When you go, you will find a tethered donkey; untie it and bring it to me.” The prophecy had to be fulfilled exactly. The donkey had to be one that no one had ever ridden. “If anyone asks you what you are doing, say, ‘The Lord needs it,’ and he will give it to you.” And they went, and it happened exactly so. And he mounted that donkey and entered Jerusalem as King.
Only three days later, the same people who had shouted “Hosanna!” were now shouting, “Crucify him!” How quickly public opinion changed! Jesus knew this was happening, because he had to die on the cross. At the same time, however, he had to reveal himself as King, as Messiah (Mark 11:11).
Jesus entered Jerusalem and went into the temple courts. He looked around at everything, but since it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the Twelve. (Mark 11:11)
During this last week, although Jesus came into Jerusalem by day, he did not stay to spend the night there. Why? So that he would not be killed! To keep himself safe. In Jerusalem the scribes and the Pharisees held sway, and if he had been there, he could have been betrayed and very easily seized. So Jesus had to guard his mission from being killed before the time God had appointed. Do you understand? He knew exactly when he was to be crucified. That is why, by going to spend the night in Bethany, he did not allow himself to be killed before his time.
Who was his host in Bethany? Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. No one dared do anything to Jesus in Bethany, because all the people rejoiced that he had raised Lazarus. (In the church calendar this raising is remembered on the Saturday before Palm Sunday, for it was immediately before he entered Jerusalem that Christ raised Lazarus.) So his opponents could do nothing to him in Bethany, because there they regarded him as a prophet. To them he was the Prophet who had raised Lazarus from the dead after Lazarus had lain four days in the tomb. Anyone who tried to harm Jesus in Bethany would have had serious trouble with the people who had witnessed that miracle.
So Jesus would go out to Bethany, and there he was safe through the night, protected; but by day he would return to Jerusalem. And what did he do there? He overturned the tables of the money changers. He “stirred up the dogs,” as we say. He did not merely disturb them; he drove them out of their minds, because he was cutting off their trade.
According to the law, the people had to bring animals as sacrifices. But there was the following arrangement. Someone might bring an animal from far away, but the priest would not approve it. He would say, “It has a defect. You cannot sacrifice to the Lord something with a defect.” So people would say to themselves, “Instead of leading my animal all that way, they already have there unblemished animals ready. So I will just buy one from them.” And to buy such an animal, you had to have temple money, because your own money was not valid there. There were “currency exchange booths.” But Jesus went and overturned the tables of the money changers (Mark 11:15-19).
On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple courts and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. And as he taught them, he said, “Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations’? But you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’” (Mark 11:15-17)
Jesus wanted God’s house to be a house of prayer, not a house of trade. This angered even more all those who were running this business, and all the chief priests, because they most likely took commissions on every exchange or sale. So they wanted Jesus simply gone. They plotted how to find legal means to kill him. But what did Jesus do every evening? He did not stay in the city; he went out to Bethany.
The chief priests and the teachers of the law heard this and began looking for a way to kill him, for they feared him, because the whole crowd was amazed at his teaching. When evening came, Jesus and his disciples went out of the city. (Mark 11:18-19)
The chief priests and the teachers of the law could not seize Jesus by day, because “they feared the crowd,” and they could not attack him by night either, because “when evening came, he went out of the city.” And yet, in the end, Jesus still had to die in Jerusalem at that Passover (Luke 22:7-13).
Then came the day of Unleavened Bread on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and make preparations for us to eat the Passover.” “Where do you want us to prepare for it?” they asked. (Luke 22:7-9)
The Passover had to be eaten in Jerusalem; it could not be eaten in Bethany. But eating the Passover in Jerusalem was very dangerous, because if the priests learned where he was eating it, they could seize him and kill him. That is why care was taken to keep the meal secret. (In our language the Last Supper is literally called “the Secret Supper.”) And here are the instructions Jesus gave:
He replied, “As you enter the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him to the house that he enters, and say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ He will show you a large room upstairs, all furnished. Make preparations there.” They left and found things just as Jesus had told them. So they prepared the Passover. (Luke 22:10-13)
Notice what a detailed plan Jesus had. Everything was laid out by time, like a schedule. We do not know how this man, the owner of that room, had made his arrangement with Jesus. But consider: the disciples had to meet a man they had never been introduced to. How can you recognize a man in a crowd? This was Jerusalem at Passover. All the Jews were there — simply an enormous throng, and many of them carrying water jars. So how did they recognize this particular man? Because in those days it was the women who went to fetch water, and everyone carrying a jar on the head was a woman. These were special vessels that fit the head in a particular way and were convenient to carry. But Jesus told them that among all these women they would see one man with a jar on his head. The disciples recognized the man because he stood out from the crowd — he was a man, while everyone else carrying a jar was a woman. Jesus told them that by this they would know him. But to find him, they had to be at exactly the right time and the right place.
Jesus knew who would betray him. He knew how he would be betrayed. He knew that he had to go to a certain place, to pray, to be betrayed, then tried, condemned, crucified, and raised. So Jesus controlled his time. In this too he is our example — that we also should control our time.
So let each of us consider his own mission — what the threats to that mission are, and how he can defend it. How? By looking at what Jesus did:
- By avoiding unnecessary confrontation — praying for God’s guidance on how to press forward with our mission.
- By surrounding ourselves with good friends — a team of like-minded companions and fellow workers.
- By carefully considered communication — like the sluice-gate of a dam: neither holding back truths that could bless, nor flooding people with so much information that we “drown” them.
- By planning and controlling our time — “making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.” By thinking and planning how we can do the maximum for the Lord in the limited window of time we have.
Conversations with Potential Followers
But let us go back and, in our minds, continue with Jesus along his road to Jerusalem. It is worth noting that this journey was not a silent one. Along the way Jesus met various people and spoke with them. So now we will listen to three of these conversations that Jesus had with three separate individuals (Luke 9:57-62). Each of these conversations has some connection with being a follower of Jesus and staying focused on your mission. At first glance these words of Jesus sound harsh and unreasonably demanding. Moreover, there seems to be a gradation in the conversations themselves, each one stronger than the last. But let us separate them and look at each one on its own.
The Idol of Comfort
The first conversation, with the first man, is given in verses 57-58. He was enthusiastic to be a follower of Jesus.
As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” (Luke 9:57-58)
This man says that he would follow Jesus wherever he went. But Jesus looked straight into the man’s heart, read his mind, and knew what was in him. In him he saw a love of comfort, a love of material things. That is why Jesus said of himself that he had nowhere to lay his head. It meant that Jesus had no home, no material possessions. The creatures, the animals and the birds, have their “homes,” but not Jesus. In other words, what can turn us aside from fulfilling goal number one in our life — our mission — is the pursuit of material well-being and prosperity. If you say you want to be a follower of Jesus, do not let the love of material things hinder you in fulfilling your mission.
The love of the various things we are used to, or that we think belong to us by right, can stand in the way of our coming to Christ and of our following and serving him. This is one of the distractions that keep us from fulfilling our mission.
“We have to have a house. How can we not have a house?!” Right? But what if the Lord Jesus says that, in order to follow him, you must give up the comfort of your home? Imagine we lived in a time of persecution and our oppressors wanted to take your house. Would you then agree to have your house taken and yet remain faithful to the Lord — or would you decide that this is more than you can bear?
We all struggle with what we might call the “factor Eve” in us. It is in our DNA, in our genes. What is this “factor Eve”? The “factor Eve” is the desire always to have more. It consists in this: that whatever you have is never enough, always falls short. It looks like this: you are excited to buy something — say, some garment or some other item. It serves you well, but the moment you see another one like it, you want that one instead and regret buying the one you have. For example, you buy a phone and it serves you well, but then you see some other model and you say to yourself, “Oh, how I would love to have that one!”
In Genesis chapter 3, Eve had everything — the whole of creation, the whole garden, all the trees, all the animals; everything was hers. All but one tree. And even though everything she had was utterly perfect and beautiful, for her it was not enough. The devil said to her, “If you do not have that tree, you have nothing!” And we are the same. We always want something more, always long for something else. Even having God himself as a personal friend was not enough for Eve. Though what she did not have was incomparably less than what she had, she wanted only it and nothing else.
We have God as a friend; we are redeemed and justified. But that is not enough for us. We want romance. We want what belongs to others. But this constant wanting of something more, or something else, distracts us. “Oh, what mission?” We think about other things and forget that we have a mission, and that this mission must be defended. Satan looks to distract us with the comforts he offers us and to entangle us with cares.
We can think of this danger to the carrying-out of our mission as the things that are “below us” — our possessions: the land or the apartments we own, the cars we drive, the material things we manage. The things below us — our possessions — can turn us aside from fulfilling goal number one in our life. For example, if you want to be a missionary, you have to sell your house and go where God sends you. Are you ready? Or do you say, “Let others go; this is not for me!” But if everyone says, “Let others go,” then who will go?
The Tax of Public Opinion
Luke gives us the conversation with the second man in verses 59-60:
He said to another man, “Follow me.” But he replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:59-60)
This man wanted to bury his father, but Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead!” The fact that he did not say, “Lord, first let me wait for my father to die,” as a concern for his father’s old age, but rather, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father,” means that the man’s father was already dead. His wanting to bury him meant that the father was already dead. The man was not asking for a reprieve in order to care for his father while he was old and in need of help. No. He was asking for a reprieve in order to bury him. And that meant only one thing — that this man’s father was already dead.
In first-century Jewish culture great emphasis was placed on family responsibilities, and this emphasis was rooted in the fifth of the Ten Commandments: “Honor your father and your mother.” For a son to bury his father was a matter of duty and honor. The son was obliged to bury his father. But to understand this conversation fully, we must know the customs of that time. According to them, if the man’s father was not yet buried, that implied two possibilities. The first was that his father had died on that very day. The Jews had a custom of burying their dead on the day they died (just as Jesus too was buried on the same day he died on the cross). The heat of the Middle East hastened the decomposition of the body. But if that were the case and the man’s father had died that same day, then the last thing he would do would be to go and talk with a rabbi. He would be at the funeral, if his father had died. He would not come to Jesus asking to become his follower.
The second possibility is connected with a peculiar custom they had — the custom of a second burial. After a person died, he was buried the same day. But the people of that culture did not bury their dead in the ground as we do; they buried them in tombs. They laid the body on a stone platform. Then they waited for it to decompose until only the bones remained. And when only the bones remained, these bones were gathered and placed in a special urn — a bone box — and this urn was set in a designated place inside the wall of the tomb. This placing of the bones in an urn was, in fact, the second burial that they carried out. In this way room was freed up in the tomb for other members of the family, in case they should die and need burial. The tombs were used many times over, and this is precisely why the body of the dead had to be lavishly heaped with fragrances — in order to cut off the stench of its decomposition. This is also the reason why the women who went to Jesus’ tomb carried fragrances with them. So it was quite possible that the man’s father had already died and been buried, and that the man was now speaking of the necessary wait for the decomposition to pass, so that the bones could be placed in an urn and the urn set in its appointed place in the tomb. In speaking of “burial,” this man most likely meant this second, final burial of his father. This second burial was usually carried out about a year after the first.
Jesus, however, did not accept this excuse. He said, “Let the dead bury their own dead.” But can dead people bury other dead people, or do anything at all? Obviously, here Jesus is using a metaphor. When he speaks of the “dead,” he means people who are spiritually dead. Spiritually dead people have no commitment to follow Jesus and extend his kingdom. The spiritually alive can do the work of the spiritually dead, but the spiritually dead cannot do the work of the spiritually alive. The spiritually alive have different priorities from the spiritually dead. So, since the spiritually dead cannot do our work, let us leave them to do their own work, and let us do ours. That is why Jesus said, “Let the ‘dead’ — those who have not believed — bury their own dead; let them wait and busy themselves with keeping the customs, but you do not delay: go and proclaim the kingdom of God, because it is our priority, not human traditions and customs.”
What we have here is yet another distraction, another diverting of our attention. It comes from public opinion. In this case it was a matter of a particular custom. Failing to keep it would lead to this man being talked about and condemned by others for not fulfilling the folk custom. If this man had not kept the custom, people would have pounced on him and said, “You, who believe in Jesus — why did you not bury your father a second time, according to the tradition of placing his bones in an urn in the tomb, but instead went off to do missionary work?”
Today too there are people who press us with their traditions and customs, but we must not pay a “tax to public opinion” and let social pressure divert us from fulfilling goal number one in our life — to follow Christ and to serve him.
So here is where we can expect threats to the carrying-out of our mission:
- From below us — these are our possessions.
- From around us — this is the social pressure that makes us conform to the opinion of the majority.
Looking Back
The third of Jesus’ encounters on his way to Jerusalem is described in verses 61-62:
Still another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.” Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:61-62)
The man who wanted to say goodbye to his loved ones proved unacceptable as a follower of Christ. It was not that saying goodbye to one’s family was something bad; rather, it was that he was looking back and his focus was on the past that made him unfit for the kingdom of God. Looking back, longing for the past, is yet another threat to the fulfilling of our mission. What do we mean by “looking back”? Work, hobbies, pleasures, friendships — anything that has a magnetic pull on us, anything that hinders us so that, instead of moving forward in following Christ, we stop and seek it rather than the kingdom of God.
Nostalgia for the old life was the thing that kept the Israelites who came out of Egypt from entering the Promised Land. They said to themselves, “Oh, how good it was for us in Egypt!” And so they set themselves a leader to go back again. In the same way we too, instead of moving forward into the uncertain future of following Christ, prefer to live in the security of the familiar, in the life of “the old days” — even if that is a life without Christ. Some people say, “But I haven’t really lived yet! I must live it up first, and then I’ll become a Christian.” But that would keep us from fulfilling goal number one in our life — to be faithful followers of Christ who serve him and please him in everything. If you are waiting to “live it up,” that means you are looking back. Life is not behind you; life is ahead of you. That is why Jesus said that whoever has put his hand to the plow and looks back is not fit for the kingdom of God.
It is striking that in all three conversations the issue is “me, mine, and self.” The first man’s focus was on the wrong material things. The second man sought approval from the wrong people. The third man’s eyes were turned in the wrong direction. But what was common to all three was that they put the emphasis, first of all, on themselves. What is below us — our possessions; what is beside us — our friends, colleagues and family, public opinion; and what is behind us — the magnetic pull of our old life — all three distract us. They divert our attention from fulfilling goal number one in our life: to know God and to make him known.
But we must never forget the main thing. Everything else is secondary to the fulfilling of our mission, because its fulfillment has a bearing on eternity — both for us and for those we serve.
Consider. Is this message truly from God? Do we have a mission? Does God want us to make disciples? Does God want us to defend our mission? Are we letting various things in life distract us so that we forget our mission? We come to church on Sunday and think that, having come to church, we have already fulfilled our duty to God. We leave church and say, “Goodbye, Lord. Do not meddle with me for the rest of the week! Next week I’ll come again! But do not bother me during the week. I have many tasks! I must take care of my material things. I must take care of my old life. I must take care of my image and of public opinion. I have customs I must observe. I have all sorts of things I must do. I have a social life, social ties. Do not meddle there! Next Sunday I’ll come. I’ll even give my tithe. Just do not bother me with your things from Monday to Saturday!”
If we say this, we must repent. For the Lord does not want to be our God only on Sunday. He wants to be our Lord on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday — and of course on Sunday too. On Sunday we gather in order to learn how to do the work of the ministry, how to share the good news, how to fulfill our mission. So let each one say for himself, “I have a mission! I must fulfill my mission!” Everything else is secondary. Yes, I must go to work, because at work I will meet people to whom I can share the good news. Yes, I must go to the hospital, because at the hospital I will meet people to whom I can share the good news. I must go to work, because there are colleagues there who need to see my good life and to ask themselves, “What makes this person so steady?” I must pass through trials and not give up, so that I may be a witness for God — so that my trial may be turned into a testimony. So that one day I may say, as the Apostle Paul did, “I have finished the race, I have kept the faith!” And not only that, but when I go to heaven, I will not go there alone. I will take others with me.