Third Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 8, June 29, 2025

Luke 9,51-62

Rev. Neli Miranda

 

Last Sunday, our journey with Jesus took us to the region of the Gerasenes, a land across the sea from Galilee. In crossing over, Jesus revealed to us realities beyond our familiar boundaries, reminding us that many people are in need of liberation and the Good News. Today, Jesus again calls us to move forward, inviting us to travel with him on the long road to Jerusalem. This marks the beginning of a major section in Luke’s Gospel—a rich journey of learning and growth in our discipleship. As we read this story from our post-Resurrection perspective, we know that the ultimate end of this path is not the cross, but Jesus’ victory over death. Starting today, we are on the way, walking with Jesus who has determined to bring his mission to its pivotal destination, traveling from Galilee, through Samaria, to Jerusalem—the city that encompassed the religious and political heart of Israel.

Jesus’ commitment to his mission is absolute. Luke expresses it in powerful words, “When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem” (9,51). The phrase “he set his face” is a strong Hebraism signifying Jesus’ unwavering resolve and determination to fulfill his mission, culminating in his death and resurrection. He moves forward knowing well that a difficult path and the cross await him. His determination comes from his conviction as the one sent by God to announce the arrival of the Kingdom and to call all people to repentance. Nothing and no one will deter him from this path, not even the threat of death. This journey to Jerusalem is the necessary path for the fulfillment of God’s plan, which will ultimately launch the mission to the ends of the earth. 

On his way, Jesus immediately confronts opposition. To travel from Galilee to Jerusalem, the most direct route cut through Samaria. This path, however, was full of tensions due to the deep-seated animosity between Jews and Samaritans. This hostility was rooted in centuries of religious and political rivalry, which had culminated in the late second century BCE when a Jewish ruler, destroyed the Samaritan temple on Mount Gerizim, the sacred center of their worship. This hostility was so profound that many Jewish would take a long detour through the Jordan Valley to avoid traveling via Samaria. Jesus, however, does not avoid it. He sends messengers ahead to a Samaritan village, but they do not welcome him precisely because “his face was set toward Jerusalem” (9:53), the center of their rivals’ worship.

In response to this rejection, two of his disciples, John and James, react with fury: “Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to consume them?” (9,54). Their question is a direct allusion to the prophet Elijah, who twice called down fire to destroy the soldiers of an unrighteous king (2 Kings 1). The disciples, seeing Jesus rejected, want to imitate this revered prophet. But Jesus’s way is radically different. He rebukes them, rejecting this model of violent retribution, and they simply continue on to another village. The Kingdom of God does not advance through force or vengeance!

Dear sisters and brothers, as our journey to Jerusalem begins, Jesus clarifies us the nature of discipleship. Following him is not a comfortable undertaking but a call to radical trust. There is no guarantee of security or stability: “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests,” Jesus explains, “but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head” (9:58). To follow him is to embrace a life of itinerant insecurity, dependent not on worldly possessions but on God’s daily providence. 

Jesus’ demand for absolute commitment is emphasized in his encounters with two potential followers. One asks, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father” (9,59). Another says, “I will follow you, Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home” (9,61). While these requests seem reasonable, Jesus’s replies are startlingly severe. To the first one Jesus replies: “Let the dead bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” And to the another one, Jesus says: “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.” Jesus is not denying family obligations, but rather declaring that the call of the Kingdom is so urgent and absolute that it takes precedence over all other loyalties.

The lesson from the Old Testament concerning Elisha provides a vital contrast. When the prophet Elijah calls him, Elisha also asks to say farewell to his parents. But then he does something decisive: he slaughters his yoke of oxen, uses the plowing equipment for firewood, boils the flesh, and gives it to the people (1 Kings 19,21). This act is a complete and irreversible break from his former life. He has burned his bridges; there is no going back! This is the kind of undivided commitment Jesus seeks. The potential disciples in Luke hesitate, putting other duties “first”, revealing a divided heart.

Dear sisters and brothers, this is what Jesus expects from us: not excuses, but radical availability and an undivided commitment. The call to follow Jesus on the road to Jerusalem is a call to leave behind our securities and our divided loyalties. The question for us today is the same one he posed on that road: Are we truly willing to follow him?  Amen.