Verse 18 is it. It what, you may ask. Jesus saw the crowd around Him and told His disciples to ready the boat to cross to the other side of the lake. Jesus was moving on even though people were pressing in on Him.
But is that the whole story? Did Jesus just share His compassion with just a select few? Was He setting the people up for a grand finale? Why leave now?
Sometimes I wonder if the crowds only cared about the healings and the miracles and not about the One they approached who had such great power. Did their own pursuit of healing show a lack of care? Don’t get me wrong. There is not any reason to avoid seeking the healing touch of God. There is, however, proper motivation.
Take Psalm 51: 16 and 17 for instance. God doesn’t delight in sacrifice unless it is a sacrifice. He did not sit around wondering about the next leg of lamb dish being prepared as an offering. God was looking at the heart of the giver.
If these people approached Jesus without love but only selfish desire, then they sought Him only because of their love of miracles. Jesus was not a miracle worker in that sense of the word. Jesus doesn’t just want to perform a miracle in lives. He is seeking to complete us.
I agree with C. S. Lewis on this point. In his book Mere Christianity
chapter nine, he says the following:“Dozens of people go to Him (God) to be cured of some one particular sin which they are ashamed of or which is obviously spoiling daily life. Well, He will cure it all right; but He will not stop there. That may be all you asked; but if once you call Him in, He will give you the full treatment.
That is why He warned people to “count the cost” before becoming Christians.”
Jesus doesn’t want to stop at a simple miracle! He has much more planned for us and wants to give us the full experience of Him which will lead to a full transformation in us. Don’t go to Jesus just for a small thing and think that is where He will stop. He wants our whole life, and He will pursue us with a passionate love to get it.
Just look at how he deals with the two men who approached Him. Oh by the way, Jesus did not come to save just one town. He had work to do in other regions of Israel and the surrounding countryside. I will deal with more of the reason of why he sent the boat in the next post.
Let’s get back to the two characters. The first was a teacher of the law. This man said, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” Following is one thing when you know where you are going. Following Jesus has its costs: loss of popularity, loss of friendships, loss of leisure time, or even a loss of treasured habits as one commentary puts it. Could you sacrifice these to follow Him?
I know this to be true because I had a friend stick his finger in my chest and say, “We don’t hang out with your kind.” Talk about hurtful.
Jesus did not have a place to call home and following Him is not something to do if you are looking to raise your popularity status. Is that what the teacher wanted? I can’t be sure but I can bet he did not count the cost or he would have followed without making the big announcement in front of everyone.
The next disciple puts it this way, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” Was the man’s dead of on his death bed? I don’t know. Whatever the reason, this man wasn’t ready to commit himself to Christ. I was studying through the notes of a seminary professor who said it takes great courage to follow God’s plans in God’s way. This man wanted to add addendums to his commitment to Jesus. The problem is we must commit all and not some. There are not any excuses to not follow Christ. Jesus comes first in all things and then we can take care of our human loyalties.
Following Jesus means that there are some securities we must willingly set aside. Here is where our hearts are revealed. If we cannot lay something aside for the sake of Christ, then we must ask ourselves, do we love it more than Him? Can we give up time to take His Word of life, His message, to a dead world?
- What loyalties are competing for your attention? Are they keeping you from following Jesus? Do you need to rearrange your priorities?
- Where is your heart?
- Are you being the person God made you to be?
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