Then another of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” Matthew 8:21
Often our struggle as Christians is not in deciding whether we should obey Christ but in obeying immediately. We may acknowledge our need to follow Christ and commit ourselves to do what He has told us. Yet when God reveals His will to us, that is the time to obey! God’s revelation of His will is His invitation to respond immediately.
Some would-be disciples pledged their willingness to follow Jesus, but they told Him they were not ready yet. In Jesus’ day, a Jewish man was expected to care for his elderly parents until they died. One man wanted to wait until his father died before going with Jesus. This would be an honorable delay. The man had to choose between this important responsibility and heeding a call from the Lord. Yet God knew this man, and He knew the man’s father. God would have taken care of the man’s father, if he only would have followed Jesus. This was an opportunity to walk with the Son of God, yet the concerns of this life were competing for priority with obedience to God.
Timing our obedience is crucial. Invitations from God come with a limited opportunity to respond. Some opportunities to serve Him, if not accepted immediately, will be lost. Occasions to minister to others may pass us by. When God invites us to intercede for someone, it may be critical that we stop what we are doing and immediately adjust our lives to what God is doing. Missing opportunities to serve the Lord can be tragic. When an invitation comes from God, the time to respond is now.
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The man was not waiting for his father to die, but was wanting to go bury him, big difference.
Matthew 8:22
But Jesus said unto him, Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead.
KJVLuke 9:60
Jesus said unto him, Let the dead bury their dead: but go thou and preach the kingdom of God.
KJVThe culture of that time and our own, and the Holy Scriptures teach us to honor, respect, and care for our parents when they cannot care for themselves. Jesus would not have asked the man to go if his father was in need of care. This was one of the 10 commandments to honor/care for one’s mother and father.
Thank you for your time and consideration
Melvin L. Heath -
Praise the lord for this great lesson.The living who.have not heard the gospel are better than ones parents and relatives who are already dead,for there fate is already determined unlike those living in darkness who fate can change.This greatly communicates the urgency to enter the mission field. LETS ALL RISE UP!
