The “Go” of Renunciation

. . . someone said to Him, ’Lord, I will follow You wherever You go’ —Luke 9:57

Our Lord’s attitude toward this man was one of severe discouragement, “for He knew what was in man” (John 2:25). We would have said, “I can’t imagine why He lost the opportunity of winning that man! Imagine being so cold to him and turning him away so discouraged!” Never apologize for your Lord. The words of the Lord hurt and offend until there is nothing left to be hurt or offended. Jesus Christ had no tenderness whatsoever toward anything that was ultimately going to ruin a person in his service to God. Our Lord’s answers were not based on some whim or impulsive thought, but on the knowledge of “what was in man.” If the Spirit of God brings to your mind a word of the Lord that hurts you, you can be sure that there is something in you that He wants to hurt to the point of its death.

Luke 9:58 These words destroy the argument of serving Jesus Christ because it is a pleasant thing to do. And the strictness of the rejection that He demands of me allows for nothing to remain in my life but my Lord, myself, and a sense of desperate hope. He says that I must let everyone else come or go, and that I must be guided solely by my relationship to Him. And He says, “. . . the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”

Luke 9:59 This man did not want to disappoint Jesus, nor did he want to show a lack of respect for his father. We put our sense of loyalty to our relatives ahead of our loyalty to Jesus Christ, forcing Him to take last place. When your loyalties conflict, always obey Jesus Christ whatever the cost.

Luke 9:61 The person who says, “Lord, I will follow You, but . . .,” is the person who is intensely ready to go, but never goes. This man had reservations about going. The exacting call of Jesus has no room for good-byes; good-byes, as we often use them, are pagan, not Christian, because they divert us from the call. Once the call of God comes to you, start going and never stop.

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[去]的放棄

你無論往那裡去，我要跟從你。 （路九57）

主叫這人極度的洩氣，他用這個態度是因為他知道人心。我們會說：[多可惜，失去了得著那個人的機會！ ][竟用北風把他凍結，叫他沮喪而回。 ]不必為你的主抱歉。主的話往往頂撞刺傷，知道無可再頂撞刺傷。主耶穌對那些至終摧毀人事奉神的東西，絕不憐惜呵護。主的回答不是順口而出，乃是根據他對人內心的認識而說。若神的靈叫你想起主一句刺傷你的話，那麼一定有什麼東西，是主想戳傷至死地的。

第58節這幾句話，對那為悅己心而事奉主的人是當頭棒喝。棄絕的要求是嚴峻的，最後只剩下我的主，我，和一個孤絕的盼望。 [讓那一百倍去或留，你的目標必須是我與你的關係，而我沒有枕頭的地方。 ]

第59節這人不想令耶穌失望，也不想傷父親的心。我們會把對家人敏感的忠誠，替代了對主耶穌的忠誠，主耶穌竟排在末位。在效忠的矛盾裡，必須不惜代價順服主。

第61節有人說：[主，我要跟從你，但……]這人準備齊全了，卻從不出發。他還有一兩項保留。主耶穌肯定的呼召是沒有話別的餘地，因為話別往往出於不信者，而非信徒。神的呼召一來，就要出發，不可止步。

祈禱◆我們感謝你，因為在你裡面沒有永別。我們向你祈求，願你的冠冕和印記臨到我們每個人，直至我們能面對面地見你。