ALIVE TO THE KINGDOM

Luke 9:60

“Let the dead bury their dead. But you, go and proclaim the Kingdom of God.”

Those who hear these verses should understand the importance of having our priorities in the proper order and the fact that being a disciple of Christ’s takes a radical commitment. But what just doesn’t seem right is that Jesus seems to say that in order to follow Him the man must ignore the seventh corporal works of mercy (“bury the dead”) and in a way the fourth commandment to honor your father and mother.

But is this the case? Some scholars looked at this conversation and have varying opinion. But the most common one is this: They have suggested that if the father had actually already died, the man would be presently involved in burying his father. Therefore, the context may suggest that the father had not yet died. He may have been just an old man, but still alive. If this is correct, the man's son to whom Jesus was speaking was essentially saying that he wanted to wait to serve the kingdom until that time – maybe soon or possibly even years away – when his father died and was subsequently buried.

The point Jesus was making here was that anyone who wishes to follow Him must give his whole heart to the matter and not be double-minded, with one foot in service to the kingdom and one foot in the affairs to this world. There should be no divided interests. The one who would follow Jesus and engage in kingdom work needs a firm hand and a steady eye on the forward-moving plow. We need you to be dead to wealth and riches of this world and be alive to the Kingdom of God. We cannot be alive to both!

Let us pray +

Lord Jesus, I know following You is the most secure thing in the world. Help me to be dead to the world and be alive to the kingdom of God! Forgive me. Have mercy upon me. Please help me to answer when You call, making no excuses. I ask for Your strength to be a disciple You can count on.

Amen +

But I, O LORD, cry out to You; with my morning prayer I wait upon You.