Matthew 8:18-22

When Is The Best Time To Start Following Christ?

19 Then a scribe came and said to Him, "Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go."

20 Jesus said to him, "The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head."

21 Another of the disciples said to Him, "Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father."

22 But Jesus said to him, "Follow Me, and allow the dead to bury their own dead."

23 When He got into the boat, His disciples followed Him.

The Storm

24 And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being covered with the waves; but Jesus Himself was asleep.

25 And they came to Him and woke Him, saying, "Save us, Lord; we are perishing!"

26 He said to them, "Why are you afraid, you men of little faith?" Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and it became perfectly calm.

27 The men were amazed, and said, "What kind of a man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?"

A Question Of Faith And Following Jesus

This Bible study lesson has many different lessons but I'd like to concentrate on Jesus' statement "Follow Me, and allow the dead bury their own dead.". One meaning can be that, without God, the people mentioned were already dead in spirit.

But, the Disciple Only Wanted to Bury His Father!

In reality, the disciple was procrastinating about following Jesus as the ritual of a funeral could last as long as a year in the Jewish home. By then it could have been too late for the disciple - Jesus knew his heart.

Short Term vs. Long Term

Is it better to have faith and follow Christ or to continue living life for the popularity, leisure and habits of this world? Which is better? We will be here for a very short period of time on the scale of eternity. An investment in following Jesus in this life will last forever. How long is forever? I can't even imagine!

No Place to Lay His Head

Even the disciples had doubt and fears and, following Christ meant that sometimes they would not even have a place to sleep. But, they followed. When we decide to follow Jesus we are not always going to have it easy or do everything or have everything of this earth but, in my humble opinion, it's worth the cost.

When Is The Best Time To Follow Jesus?

Did the young man really need to bury his father? In Jewish tradition a burial ceremony could last for a very long period. The man could also have been a first-born son who did not want to lose his inheritance. Whatever the reason, he wanted to put off followship until a later date.

What about the rest of us? I put off following Christ until middle-age and I'm now playing catch-up on learning more about Him. But, the good news is that Christ offers me the same salvation as he does to Christians who were raised in the church. He offers that very same promise to you too, no matter where you are in life. Isn't God wonderful?

Your Time

If you have never made the commitment to receive the love and life-changing experience of Jesus Christ and would like to find out how, please take a moment to see John 3:16.

Love in Christ

- Bob

Matthew 7:1-6 - Jesus Teaches about Criticizing Others