Jealous Jesus

He said to another man, ‘Follow me’.
But that man said, ‘Sir, first let me go back and bury my father’.
Jesus answered, ‘Let the dead bury their own dead. You go and proclaim the Kingdom of God.’
Someone else said, ‘I will follow you, sir; but first let me go and say goodbye to my family’.
Jesus said to him, ‘Anyone who starts to plough and then keeps looking back is of no use to the Kingdom of God’. (verses 59-62)

Read Luke 9: 51-62

This is rough. I could understand Jesus asking us to choose between following him and following the devil. After all, we did renounce the evil one in our baptism. But family? Is Jesus seriously asking us to put him above our most dearly beloved and their needs?

Yes, he is, no two ways about it. If you and I are to be followers of Jesus, and if our genuine concern is to be children of the kingdom, then Jesus will claim first priority in our lives. He wants nothing and no-one, regardless of how loved they are, to get in the way of our love for him. For the relationship with Jesus is the most critical in the world.

And, remember, he regards you and me as being so valued in the eyes of God that he gave up everyone and everything for us, single-mindedly setting his sights on Jerusalem (verse 51), dying in order to save our lives. Truly, the relationship with Jesus is a matter of life and death. His and ours.

Lord Jesus, jealous lover, help me always to keep my priorities right and, by the power of your Spirit, to allow no­ one to come between you and me. Amen.

 by Bob Kempe, in ‘God’s promises for each Day’ (LCA, Openbook, 1999)

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