Jesus came into the world to rescue men from the ruin of sin. When people follow their own will, or submit to the influence of the society in which they live, they are also yielding their lives to the control and motivation of sin. Jesus calls people to forsake the urging of their will and turn their backs on the trends of society in order to follow the way in which He will lead them. Jesus calls us to come and follow Him, for He grants salvation to all that will. The dictates of self-will satisfy human pride, while the way of society offers gratification in the "fleeting pleasures of sin," but neither life course can reward its traveler with anything permanent. But the way that Jesus offers will lead its follower unto the God of creation who will grant eternal life in the paradise of His heaven.
Nevertheless, Jesus makes it very plain to those who would answer the call to follow Him that His way involves hardship and sacrifice. Discipleship in Christ has a cost that must be paid. He entices no one into His service with delusions of ease and effortless glory. Jesus' apostles once began to reflect upon what they had chosen in Christ. When they spoke of their thoughts, it gave Jesus an opportunity to put the thing in perspective for them. It then says that "Peter began to say to Him, 'See, we have left everything and followed You.' Jesus said, 'Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for My sake and for the gospel, who will not receive a hundred fold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life.'"
With the words "with persecutions" in the midst of the rewards offered to His disciples, Jesus tells them frankly and clearly that they must make a sacrifice to follow Him. In the text above, a prospective disciple had come to Jesus and said, "Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go," (v.19). Such a resolution is exactly what Jesus desires from us. But He answered the man, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head," (v.20). In effect, Jesus was saying, "I welcome you as My disciple. But please be informed that it carries no promise of physical comfort, ease, or luxury. Even I, your Lord and Master, do not have a house or bed of My own." Those who think Christianity is an avenue to affluence and success in human terms have very poorly understood the teachings of the Son of God.
Then another man who was already a disciple came to Jesus to ask for a leave of absence to take care of domestic business. But Jesus answered, "Follow Me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead." Jesus was not being heartless and cold in denying a man the time to attend his father's funeral, for that was not the intention of the request. In a Jewish context he was asking for a suspension of his service to Christ so that he could serve his father until the man died. That might take years and deny the Lord of the best of his time, talent, and energy. It basically meant that he wanted to put the needs of his father at home before Christ, and that is not permitted. Jesus once declared that "whoever loves father and mother more than Me is not worthy of Me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me," (Mat. 10:37). There are disciples of Jesus at present who take leaves of absence from Him and from His church to please family or friends, or to promote their education or professional careers, or to establish themselves in economic security, or to indulge in the pleasures and amenities of carnal living. But we must understand, from Jesus' own words, that such a choice will negate discipleship. If we want to follow Jesus, we must be willing to pay the price.
