“As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, ‘I will follow you wherever you go.’
Jesus replied, ‘Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.’”


This week is the week for disciples. Disciples are fanatical about something. They will pay a huge price and go to extreme measures for their cause. The cause in focus this week this week is the Super Bowl – and all of the “fan”atics will be out in force. (The word “fan” is simply the shortened form of the word “fanatic”.) Hundreds of thousands of people, if not more, surely claim to be fans / disciples of the New Orleans Saints or the Indianapolis Colts. Though is has not been that difficult to a disciple of the Colts through the years, the Saints are another matter. Having a very marginal history, they have never been to the Super Bowl, let alone won it. But suddenly throngs now claim to be their loyal fans. However, the true disciples of the Saints know that most of today’s “disciples” are simply caught up in the excitement of the moment. If New Orleans would fade back to its old ways, these new “disciples” would simply wander off.

Jesus encountered this phenomenon too. As he traveled, people reacted in many different ways to him. Some were angry with him because his new teachings; others wanted to hear what he had to say. Some came to see him out of curiosity; others ignored him. Some wanted him to leave their village; others begged him to stay and help. But some, like the person in Luke 9:57, were so caught up in the excitement of the moment, that they wanted to be his disciple. But talk is easy; living out one’s words through the ups and downs is another matter. Therefore, Jesus confronts the person with the reality of being a disciple of his: “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” And he apparently decided that it was too tough and went back to the comfort of his home.

Jesus still seeks disciples today. While we are not likely to be called leave our home, if we commit to being a disciple of Jesus, there will be things that we will need to leave behind. There will be uncertainties, maybe not of where one will sleep the next night, but the life of discipleship is a walk of faith, and not by sight. (II Corinthians 5:7) In the coming years many of the fanatics for the Colts and the Saints are likely to fade away as new teams rise to the top. May that never be true of us when it comes to the Kingdom of God.