Luke 9:57-62 Scripture Study
By Pastor Chris Simmons – Trinity Lutheran Church, Paso Robles CA
A reinforcement/supplement study to our Sunday service meant for “Building up the body of Christ… the manifold Wisdom of God made known” (Ephesians 4+3)
For Sunday June 29, 2025
Welcome to Summer!
It happens to most all of us… we get distracted from what we should be doing. Maybe it’s watching TV a little too long, looking down at our phones, or out shopping for an hour longer than we said we would. We feel guilty when someone asks “what have you been doing all day?” so we come up with an excuse, an attempt to avoid blame or responsibility. What really happened was that we did not have our priorities in the right order. We neglected the thing we said we would do, either out of lack of care or forgetfulness. Defensive, we come up with many excuses for the things that should’ve done. Thanks be to God, that when we repent of our sins, of both things done and left undone, God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). Blessings on your studies this week.
Prayers for a blessed study.
Pastor Chris Simmons.
Discuss: What’s your favorite excuse you’ve heard for not getting something done? Have you heard any crazy stories? Any you’ve used before? (Ex. “My dog ate my homework)
Luke 9:57-62
57 As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”
58 Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”
59 He said to another man, “Follow me.”
But he replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” 60 Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”
61 Still another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.”
62 Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”
Jesus has three interactions here with some “would-be” disciples. As I was studying, I ran across this interesting note from the ESV Lutheran Study Bible
“Elsewhere, Jesus initiated the call to discipleship. Remarkably, the Gospel never tells us about anyone offering to follow Jesus and then successfully becoming a disciple. In each case, Jesus seems to challenge the self-confidence” (ESV Lutheran Study Bible Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO. 2008. Pg 1733).3
It’s an interesting note as you consider the entirety of Scripture… anyone who looked at Jesus and said “yea, I bet I can do that” always fell short. It was those who, in humility, were called by Jesus to follow Him that found faith and “success”.
57 As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”
58 Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”
In context to what has happened throughout Luke so far, Jesus just fed the 5,000 earlier this chapter, healed a demon possessed boy, resurrected Jairus’ daughter, healed the woman with 12 years of discharge, banished Legion (the demon), calmed the storm on the Sea of Galilee, raised the widow’s Son from the dead, healed the Centurion's servant without even being near him, healed many of numerous diseases, cleansed the leper, made the paralytic walk, and that’s all in only the first nine chapters of a twenty-four chapter Gospel! Not only was what Jesus doing amazing and miraculous, it had a degree of acclaim and fame with it as well. A bit of the stardom that comes being associated with someone so miraculous is certainly tempting. Jesus, however, dispels this quickly. It may sound glamorous, but even Foxes and birds have homes… on Earth Jesus called no place home. He was essentially penniless and homeless, either camping or staying as a guest in someone’s home. It was certainly not as glamorous as it sounded, or this man would have expected.
Jesus didn’t sugar coat what it would be like to follow Him. In fact, Jesus doesn’t really try to “sell” anything about being a disciple. It’s hard, He says, “the world will hate you” He tells us “you will have sorrow”... It may be difficult, but the reward of walking alongside Jesus is worth it.
Discuss: What was something you thought would be amazing, but didn’t turn out the way you expected it to? Were there any excuses made for why it wasn’t as amazing as advertised?
59 He said to another man, “Follow me.”
But he replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” 60 Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”
This section always sounds very critical and really makes Jesus sound callus and unkind at face value. Consider what Jesus is teaching at this moment. In a sense, Jesus is instructing us that“what’s done is done”. Telling this man to “go and proclaim the kingdom of God” is a reminder of how many people that are still alive that can benefit from this man’s energy, potential, and proclamation. Rather than being held back and chained to the past, Jesus encourages anyone who follows Him to always be moving forward and seeking to share.
You may be living with something like this now… is there something holding you back? It could be as literal as “burying your father” ... it could be a bad relationship, or focusing on your career, maybe even a mistake you’ve made “hold on Jesus, just let me take care of this… then I can follow you”.
In the forgiveness Jesus gives to us, He shows that nothing should hold us back. “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” (John 8:36). To look to Jesus for freedom, rather than looking back to what is already gone. Not to make the past an excuse to be tethered in place, but believing that Jesus has broken every chain to give us the freedom to move forward from death.
Discuss: Is there anything in your life you feel still “holds you back”? Be reminded that Jesus has set you free by His body and His blood, given and shed for you for the forgiveness of all your sins.
61 Still another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.”
62 Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”
How familiar are you familiar with the term “priority”? When ‘priority’ came into the English language in the 1400s, it was only in the singular. By definition it meant: The very first thing before all other things. It originated from the Latin word 'pri-or', meaning first - Prior the first thing… the thing before everything…
So, with the word priority, there is only one thing prior to everything we do.
Yet as since the Fall from the Garden, we got greedy and pluralized the word to “priorities" as if we can somehow have multiple first things that we do prior to everything else. I will not argue that we certainly can have a list of things that are important that we would engage with before personal enjoyment… but there cannot be multiple “first things before everything else”.
You see the man’s phrasing here “I will follow you, Lord; but first” … But first, before following you Jesus, my first thing… prior to even following you is… In this case it’s “saying good-bye to his family”... but what about next time? First, it’s his family, then next it’s another thing, then another, then another. There will always be one more thing, so when will we ever be ready?
When Jesus replies “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service” he’s stressing the commitment necessary to follow Him. One must have a similar determination as a farmer plowing his field, who must do it with all his strength and always looking forward.
That’s a picture of a walking plow, pulled by donkey or oxen, the “”one who put their hand to the plow” would have to use their full strength to push it down, while handling the goad to drive the animals forward. It would take one’s full attention to push down physically and keep their eyes steady and ahead. If one were to constantly stop, look over their shoulder, or look around at the other things to do, it would not lead to good work.
Jesus reminds us to make Him the priority because we are God’s priority. He sets us prior to anything else in all creation, and it is demonstrated by the giving even of His very own Son, to show how we are valued and treasured. Since the opening verse of Scripture, we have been God’s priority, and thanks be to God that He pursues and desires us. God’s Word, the eyes of Jesus, set steadily ahead to us. In the working of the world, and down from the cross.
Discuss: If you have a list of priorities, what are they? What are the ones near the top of your list? What’s the #1? (I’ll give you a clue, it should start with a “J” and end with an “esus”...)
Prayer
Is there anything holding you back from your walk with Christ? What are they and how can you give them to God?
What in your walk of faith “isn’t turning out how’d you’d like it”? How can you lay your dissatisfaction before God and seek clarity?
Do you have so many “priorities” and can’t seem to get to all of them? Pray for direction to seek God and His Kingdom first.
Lord God, we come before you laden with excuses. We seek ourselves first, rather than you. Forgive us Lord, cleanse us from excuses so we can see the reason to follow you. How you’ve loved us, gave yourself up for us, set us free from our past, and elevate us in your merciful hands. Thank you for the gift of grace and the call to follow you. We pray this all in your name Jesus. Amen.