Discipleship is Not Easy
07/01/07
Pentecost 5
Luke 9:51-62
Dear friends in Christ,
It is basic to our nature as humans to want things as easy, convenient, and comfortable as possible. Much of what drives human invention and ingenuity is finding ways to make life easier for us. Apple’s new I-phone is the latest example, especially for those who love that kind of technology.
I’m old enough to remember when the remote control first began being used with televisions. Buying a TV with remote was an option which cost more money. It made watching TV easier and more comfortable. Today, buying a TV without remote is not even an option. They all come that way and that device has changed the way television is viewed.
I think this drive for the easy and comfortable goes all the way back to the beginning, as recorded in the story of Adam and Eve. They were provided a very lush setting, the Garden of Eden, in which to live. They could make full use of it, except for one tree, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, from which they were forbidden to eat. But a serpent came along and said if they ate of that tree, they would become wise like God. The tough choice would have been to refuse the temptation. But in the end, Adam and Eve took the easy way, the way they thought would lead to greater comfort, and ate the forbidden fruit.
Ever since we have been driven to find the easy and comfortable way. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing. I much prefer indoor plumbing and a furnace to an outhouse and a fireplace. But the easy and comfortable way is not always the best way or the right way.
Even in the church we are tempted to call people to an easy and comfortable faith. We emphasize our great Sunday school or youth ministry or music program. We want to attract people so that there needs are met and they are happy. But is this what it means to follow Christ, to have everything easy and comfortable?
In today’s gospel lesson, Jesus says a few things about what it means to be one of his disciples. It is clear from what he says that being his follower is not intended to be an easy and comfortable thing. Discipleship is not easy. It is demanding. I’d like to talk about this for a few minutes this morning. These words of Jesus are hard, but I think they provide a helpful corrective in a world that wants everything easy and comfortable.
In the lesson, Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem. We know that he is on the way to the cross, on the way to his death. He had been gaining in popularity with the people, many hearing of his miraculous deeds and teachings. People were coming up to him and saying, “I’ll follow you wherever you go.” Jesus then warned them that at this time he was a man without a home. This was not a stable and secure life. Jesus called out to another man to follow him, but the man first wanted to bury his father. That certainly seems like a reasonable request. After all, aren’t we to honor our parents, and certainly we want to give them a respectful funeral. But Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, you are to proclaim the kingdom of God!” Another said he would follow Jesus, but first he needed to say goodbye and get some things in order at home. After all, that was OK for Elisha to do before following Elijah. But Jesus said, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom.”
On this pleasant, sunny, mid-summer morning we have come to church. Perhaps we expect to hear some nice, comforting words. Perhaps we hope for something that makes life easier and more comfortable for us. But that’s not what we get this morning. Instead, we hear Jesus say that to follow him means a total commitment that will lead to some tough choices.
You have all probably heard the expression “the blind leading the blind” to describe one person who doesn’t know what they are doing leading another who doesn’t know what they are doing. Someone once said that too often our churches are “the bland leading the bland.” We have become places where there really is no challenge and commitment. We have become nice, easy, comfortable places to practice our religion.
But true, Christian discipleship is not an easy, comfortable thing. In preparation for this message I came across this passage about the early life of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the civil rights leader. It’s interesting to hear how his nice, comfortable religious life was transformed to a commitment which eventually led to both his fame and his death at a young age. He once said, “Now of course I was religious. I grew up in the church. I’m the son of a preacher...My grandfather was a preacher, my great grandfather was a preacher, my only brother is a preacher, my daddy’s brother is a preacher, so I didn’t have much of a choice, I guess. But I had grown up in the church, and the church meant something real to me, but it was a kind of inherited religion and I had never felt an experience with God that you must if you’re going to walk the lonely paths of life.”
Nevertheless, King went to seminary, following in the footsteps of his father and his father’s father. Even when he went to his first parish in Montgomery, Alabama, he still had not had a firsthand experience of God, and he frequently considered a career in teaching. But then, in that same city a woman named Rosa Parks refused to go to the back of the bus, and King found himself in the midst of a boycott of bus lines. Although he had been in Montgomery only a year and he was only 27 years old, he quickly became the leader of the movement. It was not long before his family started getting threatening phone calls, sometimes as many as 40 in a single day. He wondered if he could take it. He wanted out.
Then one night, around midnight, another threatening call came through: “Preacher, we are tired of you and your mess now. And if you aren’t out of this town in 3 days, we’re going to blow your brains out and blow up your house.”
Years later Martin recalled, “I sat there and thought about a beautiful little daughter who had just been born...she was the darling of my life. I’d come in night after night and see that gentle smile. And I sat at the kitchen table thinking about that little girl and thinking that she could be taken from me any minute.
“And I got to the point that I couldn’t take it any longer, I was weak. Something said to me, you can’t call on daddy now, he’s up in Atlanta 175 miles away. You can’t even call on mama now. You’ve got to call on that something in that person that your Daddy used to tell you about, that power that can find a way out of no way, and I had to know God for myself. And I bowed my head over a cup of coffee. I will never forget it...I prayed a prayer, and I prayed out loud that night.
“And I discovered then that religion had to become real to me. And it seemed in that moment that I could hear a voice saying, “Martin Luther, stand up for righteousness. Stand up for justice. Stand up for truth. And lo I will be with you, even until the end of the world. I heard the voice of Jesus saying still to fight on.”
That’s a powerful testimony from a man who lived his convictions and ultimately died for them. The easy and comfortable way would have been for him to give up on the boycott and just let everything return to normal. But that wasn’t the right way and so Martin Luther King, Jr. followed God’s voice, put his hand to the plow, and did not look back.
Being a disciple of Jesus is not easy. If we think it is, we aren’t truly his disciple. Sometimes the choices he asks us to make are tough. They might not be as tough as the choice Martin Luther King Jr. had to make, but they are tough for us. Will I commit my time to regular Sunday worship, even though I could be on the golf course, shopping, at the coffee shop, home in bed reading the paper or on the computer? Will I give my offering regularly and consistently, even though there are plenty of nice things I could buy with that money? Will I give of my time to teach children in Sunday School this fall, even though it would be easier to let someone else do that? Will I work and pray for peace and justice for others, rather than sit in the comfort of my own surroundings? The list could go on and on. There are countless ways we are called out of our comfort zone to serve the Lord.
You are here this morning because at some level you have said, “I will follow the Lord.” You would not be here otherwise. Sometimes you have been faithful, sometimes not. Yet maybe the good news is that you are trying to follow him. You are in the game. There are many who are not even in the game, and perhaps need an invitation to follow. There are others who were once in the game, but have dropped out. They, too, need to be invited back. You and I are in the game and for that we give thanks and in that we find hope.
It won’t be easy. It won’t be comfortable. Jesus knows that. He warns us. Yet despite the challenge, it is a journey worth taking. For living obedient to God is the way we are called to live, and has an eternal reward.
I love this story about John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, taken from excerpts of his diary.
Sunday AM, May 5 Preached in St. Anne’s. Was asked not to come back anymore.
Sunday PM May 5 Preached in St. John’s. Deacon’s said, “Get out and stay out.”
Sunday AM May 12 Preached in St. Jude’s. Can’t go back their either.
Sunday AM May 19 Preached in St. Somebody Else’s. Deacons called special meeting and said I couldn’t return.
Sunday PM May 19 Preached on street, kicked off street
Sunday AM May 26 Preached in meadow. Chased out of meadow as bull was turned loose during service
Sunday AM June 2 Preached out at the edge of town. Kicked off the highway
Sunday afternoon, June 2, preached in pasture. 10,000 people came out to hear me, many gave their life to Christ.
It’s human nature to desire the easy and comfortable way. But that’s not always the right way. The right way is often the tough way. Today we are called to put our hand to the plow and not look back. May God lead us, strengthen us, forgive us, and renew us as we follow, so that we might remain faithful in all we say and do. Amen
Luke 9:51-62
Dear friends in Christ,
It is basic to our nature as humans to want things as easy, convenient, and comfortable as possible. Much of what drives human invention and ingenuity is finding ways to make life easier for us. Apple’s new I-phone is the latest example, especially for those who love that kind of technology.
I’m old enough to remember when the remote control first began being used with televisions. Buying a TV with remote was an option which cost more money. It made watching TV easier and more comfortable. Today, buying a TV without remote is not even an option. They all come that way and that device has changed the way television is viewed.
I think this drive for the easy and comfortable goes all the way back to the beginning, as recorded in the story of Adam and Eve. They were provided a very lush setting, the Garden of Eden, in which to live. They could make full use of it, except for one tree, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, from which they were forbidden to eat. But a serpent came along and said if they ate of that tree, they would become wise like God. The tough choice would have been to refuse the temptation. But in the end, Adam and Eve took the easy way, the way they thought would lead to greater comfort, and ate the forbidden fruit.
Ever since we have been driven to find the easy and comfortable way. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing. I much prefer indoor plumbing and a furnace to an outhouse and a fireplace. But the easy and comfortable way is not always the best way or the right way.
Even in the church we are tempted to call people to an easy and comfortable faith. We emphasize our great Sunday school or youth ministry or music program. We want to attract people so that there needs are met and they are happy. But is this what it means to follow Christ, to have everything easy and comfortable?
In today’s gospel lesson, Jesus says a few things about what it means to be one of his disciples. It is clear from what he says that being his follower is not intended to be an easy and comfortable thing. Discipleship is not easy. It is demanding. I’d like to talk about this for a few minutes this morning. These words of Jesus are hard, but I think they provide a helpful corrective in a world that wants everything easy and comfortable.
In the lesson, Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem. We know that he is on the way to the cross, on the way to his death. He had been gaining in popularity with the people, many hearing of his miraculous deeds and teachings. People were coming up to him and saying, “I’ll follow you wherever you go.” Jesus then warned them that at this time he was a man without a home. This was not a stable and secure life. Jesus called out to another man to follow him, but the man first wanted to bury his father. That certainly seems like a reasonable request. After all, aren’t we to honor our parents, and certainly we want to give them a respectful funeral. But Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, you are to proclaim the kingdom of God!” Another said he would follow Jesus, but first he needed to say goodbye and get some things in order at home. After all, that was OK for Elisha to do before following Elijah. But Jesus said, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom.”
On this pleasant, sunny, mid-summer morning we have come to church. Perhaps we expect to hear some nice, comforting words. Perhaps we hope for something that makes life easier and more comfortable for us. But that’s not what we get this morning. Instead, we hear Jesus say that to follow him means a total commitment that will lead to some tough choices.
You have all probably heard the expression “the blind leading the blind” to describe one person who doesn’t know what they are doing leading another who doesn’t know what they are doing. Someone once said that too often our churches are “the bland leading the bland.” We have become places where there really is no challenge and commitment. We have become nice, easy, comfortable places to practice our religion.
But true, Christian discipleship is not an easy, comfortable thing. In preparation for this message I came across this passage about the early life of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the civil rights leader. It’s interesting to hear how his nice, comfortable religious life was transformed to a commitment which eventually led to both his fame and his death at a young age. He once said, “Now of course I was religious. I grew up in the church. I’m the son of a preacher...My grandfather was a preacher, my great grandfather was a preacher, my only brother is a preacher, my daddy’s brother is a preacher, so I didn’t have much of a choice, I guess. But I had grown up in the church, and the church meant something real to me, but it was a kind of inherited religion and I had never felt an experience with God that you must if you’re going to walk the lonely paths of life.”
Nevertheless, King went to seminary, following in the footsteps of his father and his father’s father. Even when he went to his first parish in Montgomery, Alabama, he still had not had a firsthand experience of God, and he frequently considered a career in teaching. But then, in that same city a woman named Rosa Parks refused to go to the back of the bus, and King found himself in the midst of a boycott of bus lines. Although he had been in Montgomery only a year and he was only 27 years old, he quickly became the leader of the movement. It was not long before his family started getting threatening phone calls, sometimes as many as 40 in a single day. He wondered if he could take it. He wanted out.
Then one night, around midnight, another threatening call came through: “Preacher, we are tired of you and your mess now. And if you aren’t out of this town in 3 days, we’re going to blow your brains out and blow up your house.”
Years later Martin recalled, “I sat there and thought about a beautiful little daughter who had just been born...she was the darling of my life. I’d come in night after night and see that gentle smile. And I sat at the kitchen table thinking about that little girl and thinking that she could be taken from me any minute.
“And I got to the point that I couldn’t take it any longer, I was weak. Something said to me, you can’t call on daddy now, he’s up in Atlanta 175 miles away. You can’t even call on mama now. You’ve got to call on that something in that person that your Daddy used to tell you about, that power that can find a way out of no way, and I had to know God for myself. And I bowed my head over a cup of coffee. I will never forget it...I prayed a prayer, and I prayed out loud that night.
“And I discovered then that religion had to become real to me. And it seemed in that moment that I could hear a voice saying, “Martin Luther, stand up for righteousness. Stand up for justice. Stand up for truth. And lo I will be with you, even until the end of the world. I heard the voice of Jesus saying still to fight on.”
That’s a powerful testimony from a man who lived his convictions and ultimately died for them. The easy and comfortable way would have been for him to give up on the boycott and just let everything return to normal. But that wasn’t the right way and so Martin Luther King, Jr. followed God’s voice, put his hand to the plow, and did not look back.
Being a disciple of Jesus is not easy. If we think it is, we aren’t truly his disciple. Sometimes the choices he asks us to make are tough. They might not be as tough as the choice Martin Luther King Jr. had to make, but they are tough for us. Will I commit my time to regular Sunday worship, even though I could be on the golf course, shopping, at the coffee shop, home in bed reading the paper or on the computer? Will I give my offering regularly and consistently, even though there are plenty of nice things I could buy with that money? Will I give of my time to teach children in Sunday School this fall, even though it would be easier to let someone else do that? Will I work and pray for peace and justice for others, rather than sit in the comfort of my own surroundings? The list could go on and on. There are countless ways we are called out of our comfort zone to serve the Lord.
You are here this morning because at some level you have said, “I will follow the Lord.” You would not be here otherwise. Sometimes you have been faithful, sometimes not. Yet maybe the good news is that you are trying to follow him. You are in the game. There are many who are not even in the game, and perhaps need an invitation to follow. There are others who were once in the game, but have dropped out. They, too, need to be invited back. You and I are in the game and for that we give thanks and in that we find hope.
It won’t be easy. It won’t be comfortable. Jesus knows that. He warns us. Yet despite the challenge, it is a journey worth taking. For living obedient to God is the way we are called to live, and has an eternal reward.
I love this story about John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, taken from excerpts of his diary.
Sunday AM, May 5 Preached in St. Anne’s. Was asked not to come back anymore.
Sunday PM May 5 Preached in St. John’s. Deacon’s said, “Get out and stay out.”
Sunday AM May 12 Preached in St. Jude’s. Can’t go back their either.
Sunday AM May 19 Preached in St. Somebody Else’s. Deacons called special meeting and said I couldn’t return.
Sunday PM May 19 Preached on street, kicked off street
Sunday AM May 26 Preached in meadow. Chased out of meadow as bull was turned loose during service
Sunday AM June 2 Preached out at the edge of town. Kicked off the highway
Sunday afternoon, June 2, preached in pasture. 10,000 people came out to hear me, many gave their life to Christ.
It’s human nature to desire the easy and comfortable way. But that’s not always the right way. The right way is often the tough way. Today we are called to put our hand to the plow and not look back. May God lead us, strengthen us, forgive us, and renew us as we follow, so that we might remain faithful in all we say and do. Amen