“And a certain scribe came, and said unto Him, “Master, I will follow Thee whithersoever Thou goest,” but he did not realize where such a path would lead. Doubtless he thought that following Jesus would get him a good place with the Messiah in the kingdom, but the Lord tells him, “The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man hath not where to lay His head.” He had no place to give to the scribe. It is sad to think that in spite of all the love the Lord had shown to Israel, yet they had no heart for Him. He was rejected and a stranger here — He had no place to lay His head.
Next we read of another, one of His disciples, who said to Him, “Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.” Here we have a different case. When the Lord calls, how often difficulties and trials are felt. The Lord, however, tells this one, “Follow Me; and let the dead bury their dead.” That is, all are looked at as dead in the sight of God until quickened through grace, and natural ties must not come first. How often natural relationships come in as a hindrance between Christ and the soul. He must have the first place — “that in all things He might have the preeminence” (Col. 1:1818And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. (Colossians 1:18)).
Travelling With the Creator
We then have the Lord with His disciples in a little ship crossing the Sea of Galilee. “And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but He was asleep.” The disciples, experienced sailors though they were, were afraid, and awoke Him, saying, “Lord, save us: we perish.” But how could they perish when the Lord was with them in the ship? “And He saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then He arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm.” The men marveled, saying, “What manner of man is this, that even the winds and sea obey Him!” They had not yet discerned Him as the One who was the Creator and Sustainer of even what is commonly spoken of as nature.
On the other side of the sea the Lord was met by two people possessed by demons, and they were so fierce that none could pass that way. “And, behold, [the demons] cried out, saying, What have we to do with Thee, Jesus, Thou Son of God? art Thou come hither to torment us before the time?” Here we have a picture of the terrible power of Satan in this world. The demons acknowledge the authority of the Lord Jesus over them, and they know of a time appointed when He will send them into the bottomless pit. They ask if that is what He was doing now. But, no, the Lord was now showing mercy to those afflicted by them.
There was a herd of swine feeding on a hillside and they request that they might go into that herd of swine. The Lord commands them to go. “And ... they went into the herd of swine: and, behold, the whole herd of swine ran violently down a steep place into the sea, and perished in the waters.” Why did the Lord allow this? Partly because, we believe, He was testing the hearts of those in that area to see which they thought most important, their swine, which were forbidden by the law, or Himself as their Messiah. How sad the attitude of the people in the city who, when they heard what had happened, came out and asked the Lord Jesus to depart out of their coasts. How many there are today who desire to be left alone, even though they know they are going on in a way that’s completely contrary to the Word of God. They prefer the power of Satan to the liberating power of the grace of God.
Further Meditation
1. What does it mean to have Christ be more important than natural relationships?
2. Why were the swine considered unclean animals?
3. For more on the fascinating subject of discipleship consider reading Discipleship — Its Terms, Tests and Rewards by B. Anstey.