Joseph Whelan, S.J. was a Jesuits priest who gave an address in 1981 that included the quote above. It is an hopeful, compelling declaration of love and vocation but is it wisdom?
My personal experience is that as my devotion to God has increased, my life has become more difficult and complicated, not clearer as the prose above proclaims. Wrestling, not resting is more the norm when it comes to spiritual matters and much discernment is required to honor my promise to God made many years ago. Yet, this shouldn't be a surprise. Jesus was pretty clear that if you chose to follow Him, life was going to become difficult, full of persecution and dividing those who love God from those who don't. Check out Jesus's words in three encounters with people expressing their desire to follow Him. (Luke 9: 56-62)
Encounter #1 - "I will follow you wherever you go," says the first man to Jesus. Jesus's response, "The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head."
Encounter #2 - Jesus extends an invitation to, "Follow me." The man says, "Permit me first to go home bury my father." Jesus's response, "Allow the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God."
Encounter #3 - This man says, "I will follow you, Lord; but first permit me to say good-bye to those at home." Jesus's response, "No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."
Context, is as in all things, crucial. Jesus had earlier sent messengers ahead of Him (Luke 9:52), to prepare for His upcoming journey into Jerusalem. But the people in the next village did not receive Him because they knew He was going to Jerusalem. The King had no place to stay, was not welcome popular because of His announced goal of entering the city where He was going to die, and His own followers didn't understand His teachings about the need for His death and sacrifice. So when this three recruits proclaimed their desire to follow Jesus, He immediately tested the depths of their convictions. He was laying out their true desires, testing their deepest motivations to determine if they were worthy of being followers of His kingdom.
John Piper puts these encounters into perspectives we can understand, "Think of it. Jesus is offering himself for our fellowship, friendship, and partnership in missions. This is the Creator of the Universe. The King of kings and Lord of lords. The one who upholds all things by the word of His power. The one who is from everlasting to everlasting. Born of a virgin as the Holy One of God. Perfect in life. Triumphant over sin and death and hell and all the demons you will ever meet. In Him are hidden all the the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. So when this Jesus says to you, "Follow me." He is also saying I will always be with you, I will never leave you or forsake you, and the rewards for your obedience our unimaginable riches with Him forever and forever.
John Piper continues, "Don't make these hard words more difficult than they are. Jesus is not saying, "There will never be time when you have a bed, pillow, and a roof." He's not saying, "It will always be wrong to be at your parent's funeral." He is not saying that battling fear will make you unfit for future service. To truly understand these hard saying you need to compare them to Jesus' words to the rich young ruler. To the rich young ruler Jesus said, "It is going to cost you all your possessions to follow me." This was not a request that He made for all of His disciples. In other words, the point of these conversations were not to create laws that all of Jesus' followers had to keep. The point is that Jesus knows everyone's idol. He knows perfectly what is competing in your heart with affection for Him. He looks each of us in our face and see right to our heart."
Being a Christ follower is the hardest decision that I've ever made. Yet whatever cost has been accrued will not compare with the privilege of being His child. That is why Jesus told us that very few people will complete their faith journey. "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it." (Matthew 7:13-14) The enemy is working tirelessly to steal, kill and destroy. (Matthew 13) But in closing lets remember the encouragement that Jesus left for all of His followers, "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."
