Discipleship

Reflecting on the Gospel reading from Luke 9:51-62; L99 C the word disciple calls out to us. The words we hear, “I will follow you wherever you go,” are as meaningful today as they were two thousand years ago. Jesus’ reply makes it clear to His followers then, and to us now, what being a disciple really means.

Author Sherry Weddell wrote in her book, Forming Intentional Disciples, that no one becomes a disciple accidentally. One doesn’t just wake up one morning and say, “Well, now I’m a disciple of Jesus.”  Rather, becoming a disciple is a conscious decision: a lifelong journey.

Earlier in Luke 5:10-11, Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; henceforth, you will be catching men.” And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed Him. This was a conscious decision to follow Jesus, although Simon had no idea what lay ahead of him. Intentional discipleship is not accidental or cultural. It is not just a matter of “following the rules”; that would be easy. This was a conscious decision to change his life: to truly follow Jesus.

True disciples seldom know what lies ahead, Weddell writes, but still, they make the decision to follow because their motivation comes from within. There is a Holy Spirit given “hunger and thirst for righteousness.” Then all things flow from the central thing: the worship and love of the Blessed Trinity with one’s whole heart, soul, mind, and strength, and therefore the love of one’s neighbor as oneself.

And then we make Jesus the center of our life. For example, should I go to Mass today or should I watch an hour of Impractical Jokers? Should I come to the church on Thursday and spend 15 minutes in Adoration or spend those 15 minutes watching TikTok? These questions make Jesus part of the conversation about how I spend my time.

In our Gospel reading, we hear Jesus explain what following Him will mean. Their lives will need to change. Their focus will need to change. “… the Son of Man has nowhere to rest His head,” … “Let the dead bury their dead” and “No one who sets a hand to the plow and looks to what was left behind is fit for the kingdom of God.”

These words had to be difficult for His followers to hear. These things went against the expectations of the culture, and we are not told what happened next. Did these followers become disciples? Or did they decide that it was just too difficult?

What will our response be?

- Deacon Ed Herrera