Luke 9:61 Commentary and Bible Study

Finally we read of another, who was also probably a disciple of sorts. It seems very hard. He only wanted to go and say goodbye; that is all he wanted to do. He didn't want to disappear from his family without giving a word of explanation. Why is he rebuked and his attitude faulted? We cannot answer this question without reminding ourselves that Christ could not be mistaken in his response. He who is full of lovingkindness, and who has created families and the close ties between them, would not have given this answer without good reason. He saw into this man’s heart, and he saw better than the man did himself; he saw that there was still something there which needed to be removed before he could wholeheartedly follow Christ. The man was a volunteer, an optimist, and like many optimists, he had not taken proper account of the obstacles to discipleship. The offers of volunteers are welcome, but sometimes they should not be taken at face value. The Lord deals individually with each one of us and his interactions are specific to our case. When the man asked to go home and bid his family farewell, there was a part of him that was not going to stop there. This going home to say goodbye was going to lead to his ‘looking back’, as Lot’s wife looked back. The man was struggling already with the break he would need to make with a family that did not see the Lord Jesus Christ in the same way. To go back, even to say farewell, would expose him to a temptation that was more than he was able to bear. This return to say goodbye is going to tip him over the edge, and put so much pressure on him that his resolve to follow Christ will be broken. When Christ is dealing with a soul, there is nothing – no sentimentality, no cultural imperative – which is allowed to get in the way of that soul’s salvation. As Hendriksen observes, the Lord knew that on going home the man would be subject to their ‘fervent and emotional pleas to stay at home and not join Jesus and his company.’ ‘And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.’ There is an equivalence between what the ploughman does when he looks back, and what this man was in danger of doing. The ploughman looks back to see where he has come from, but he should be constantly looking ahead. In looking back he is unable to keep his eye on a distant point in front of him, which he keeps in view to ensure that he ploughs in a straight line.