one of the temptations of our postmodern
period is to see Jesus as you know great
teacher and to seem as one spiritual
guru among many the problem with that is
it's just repugnant to the logic of the
New Testament the New Testament keeps
saying over and over again that Jesus is
the Son of God that there's a centrality
to Jesus that can't be compromised see
once you get that then there's a great
clarity that comes to the spiritual life
and in many ways the Gospels are all
about that if Jesus is unambiguously the
center of your life then everything else
falls away or better arranges itself
around that Center if you say Oh a great
teacher always a great spiritual
inspiration well then sure I'll I'll
pick and choose and take this and that
and Jesus and the Buddha and Muhammad
and secular figures I'm sure they're all
important to me see but that is not New
Testament logic New Testament logic is
Jesus first and last the Alpha and the
Omega
either you gather with me or you scatter
Jesus says who's not with me is against
me Jesus says once you know that then
you don't issue everything else
everything else finds its relationship
to him okay now I think this passage
from Luke's Gospel chapter 9 is really
helpful in this regard once we get this
logic now look at this episode he's
walking with his disciples to Jerusalem
I'll come back to that it always means
the cross right but off he's going and
we hear a number of little adventures
and conversations and they're all very
clarifying on this thing so they're
passing through a Samaritan village and
and first that's an odd thing because a
lot of pious Jews went around Samaria it
was the land of the half-breeds but
Jesus is typical you know he goes right
into it well while they're doing this
the Samaritans are obnoxious to them
because they're Jews going to Jerusalem
which is all bad
and so they wouldn't receive them they
wouldn't feed them and so we hear
James and John the sons of thunder Jesus
called them you know so you get a hint
of it here why he would have called him
man because James and John they say Lord
do you want us to call down fire from
heaven to consume them see what is that
but you know what kind of righteous
indignation so they're being treated
badly is it sort of racist as it is it
you know aggressive violent
non-inclusive all these big yeah it is
and and they feel this righteous
indignation and they know they're with
this guy who has this unique power and
so hey let's let's express our righteous
indignation by calling down fire now are
these understandable emotions yeah sure
sure and up and down the ages to the
present day a lot of us feel that way
and look around the world how many
offended feelings there are you know boy
they didn't treat me right so they
deserve to be destroyed and Jesus it
says turned only to rebuke them what's
going on there what has to fall away if
Jesus is the absolute center of my life
are my private feelings of being wounded
and having unjust things done to me and
my righteous indignation and my desire
to set things right right I'm setting
the agenda here Laura do what I want see
that's got to fall away if we're playing
that game then Jesus is not the Lord
we're not following him we're allowing
our own feelings to govern our lives so
that's gotta fall away then listen as
they were proceeding someone said to him
I'll follow you wherever you go well
good that's that's nicely expressed some
people in the Gospels say Lord I want
you to do something for me
that's always a formula for disaster by
the way when you start telling Jesus
what you want him to do so this is good
you know I'll follow you wherever you go
and was he saying foxes have dens birds
in the sky have nests but the Son of man
has nowhere to lay his head now what's
he saying here he's that saying he'll go
away from me or you're a bad person he's
saying do you get the full implication
to what it means to say I'll follow you
wherever you go you know home home base
the nest my my lair my place it's a very
important thing for us isn't it I
remember years ago when I was a student
over in Europe and we travel a lot you
know how important it was to have the
hotel set for me I wouldn't rest I
couldn't comfortably tour the city until
I knew we got a place to stay there's
something about coming home then after a
long journey after even a vacation to
come home there's something so
satisfying about that well it's got to
fall away though if you're following
Jesus that can't be the dominant concern
of your life that you're stable and
comfortable and relaxed you're following
him you know I can't help but think too
of just about a year ago
when I got the call to come out to Santa
Barbara California to be bishop and it
was nowhere on my radar screen no idea
that was coming I was an utter utter
surprise and it meant a move leave
everybody you know everything you know
leave your home your nest your lair you
know your place where you're comfortable
and go go hey Fox has heavier layers
birds have their nests on a man has
nowhere to lay his head if you're gonna
follow him wherever he goes you gotta
accept that you know that's got to fall
away now listen as he goes on his
journey to another he said follow me
so think now of Jesus calling you call
Volos follow me and the guy says Lord
let me first go and bury my father well
what I love about this is almost like a
like a comedy routine he's like almost
like a straight man setting up Jesus
lying because especially in the culture
of this time biblical times true in our
culture true I'd imagine almost any
culture talk about the one excuse that
can't be denied if you say hey could you
help me with this or hey could you come
to my party oh yeah
I'll come but you know what my dad died
and I got to go to his funeral I mean
who's gonna who's gonna question that
and
anyway you'd say well of corn of course
of course berry your father
pours you know so here's the setup line
what does Jesus say let the dead bury
their dead but you go and proclaim the
kingdom of God now people say only so
harsh no he hates family isn't always
against no no no what's going on here
this is someone who from this culture
knew and loved family all of it but but
Jesus it's more important than your
family he's more important than the most
important people in your life he's more
important than the people you love the
most
so your own feelings gotta let go of ya
your own home and comfort you gotta let
go yeah and the people you love the most
have got to take second place to him let
the dead bury their dead is it like a
slap in the face
yeah but meant to wake us up to this
truth now I mentioned where they going
they're going to Jerusalem they're going
to Jerusalem which means one thing it
means the cross and he's a cross
what's the cross but this moment when
Jesus having let go of absolutely
everything think of him on the cross no
wealth no pleasure no power no honor no
family no home nothing stripped of
everything but doing the will of his
father but doing the will of his father
now as the father sent me I send you
Jesus now becoming the center of our
lives in the same way so what's so
clarifying about this little passage is
all of us who want to be disciples of
Jesus okay walking with them you know as
long as the crowds are cheering and
weather's good and Haven we have food
hey that's great I'm with Jesus you know
okay but are you willing to let go of
your own righteous indignation let go of
your feelings of power and all that are
you willing to let go of home are you
willing to let go of the nearest and
dearest to you only then the only then
if you're willing to walk all the way to
the cross with me only then are you
truly my