The Undivided Heart: Serving Christ with Singular Focus
Luke 9:62 And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.
To serve in the Kingdom of God requires a level of commitment that goes beyond all human reasoning. Christ, in essence, was rebuking a man for wanting to go home and bid his family farewell before hitting the streets with the Gospel. This seems to us, from a human and customary perspective, somewhat unreasonable. However, it is necessary for our Lord to set the tone in such dramatic terms that we have no doubt of the sincerity with which we are to serve Christ.
We learn a few things in Christ’s response to this otherwise seemingly innocent man. One thing we learn is that there is to be no room for hesitation or delay when heeding the call to serve in His Kingdom. It’s almost as if He’s saying, “Either you’re coming with me, or you’re not!” There is no middle ground. But how often do we postpone our date with destiny for a few more days of what we think is justifiable coddling with our present-day entanglements. As unreasonable as Christ SEEMS to be here, the truth is, WE are the unreasonable ones. It is unreasonable for us to expect Christ to enlist us into His service on OUR conditions. After all, whose Kingdom is it, and who is giving the orders? 2 Tim. 2:4 even says, “No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.” Dear friends, let us examine ourselves, to see if we are being unreasonable with our Savior to whom we are called!
Another thing we learn here is that we are to be singularly focused on our mission. To have our hand on our plough and our eye in our rear-view mirror will never work. We must plough long, straight rows, and we’ll never do that looking back! Jesus said that if our eye be single, that our whole body would be full of light. This means that we must have a single focus. You always head in the direction of your eyes. Where are your EYES headed? That’s where you’ll be soon enough! You may mean well putting your hand to the plough, but if you keep looking back, you’ll GO back! That’s why Prov. 4:25 says, “Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee.” Friends, the only way we’re going to be FIT to serve Christ is when our eyes are FIXED upon Him! Where is your focus today? Show me your focus, and I’ll show you your future. Your destiny is determined by your eye’s direction. May we ALL be sure to cast our eyes upon Jesus Christ alone!
~ Pastor Gary Caudill
To serve in the Kingdom of God requires a level of commitment that goes beyond all human reasoning. Christ, in essence, was rebuking a man for wanting to go home and bid his family farewell before hitting the streets with the Gospel. This seems to us, from a human and customary perspective, somewhat unreasonable. However, it is necessary for our Lord to set the tone in such dramatic terms that we have no doubt of the sincerity with which we are to serve Christ.
We learn a few things in Christ’s response to this otherwise seemingly innocent man. One thing we learn is that there is to be no room for hesitation or delay when heeding the call to serve in His Kingdom. It’s almost as if He’s saying, “Either you’re coming with me, or you’re not!” There is no middle ground. But how often do we postpone our date with destiny for a few more days of what we think is justifiable coddling with our present-day entanglements. As unreasonable as Christ SEEMS to be here, the truth is, WE are the unreasonable ones. It is unreasonable for us to expect Christ to enlist us into His service on OUR conditions. After all, whose Kingdom is it, and who is giving the orders? 2 Tim. 2:4 even says, “No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.” Dear friends, let us examine ourselves, to see if we are being unreasonable with our Savior to whom we are called!
Another thing we learn here is that we are to be singularly focused on our mission. To have our hand on our plough and our eye in our rear-view mirror will never work. We must plough long, straight rows, and we’ll never do that looking back! Jesus said that if our eye be single, that our whole body would be full of light. This means that we must have a single focus. You always head in the direction of your eyes. Where are your EYES headed? That’s where you’ll be soon enough! You may mean well putting your hand to the plough, but if you keep looking back, you’ll GO back! That’s why Prov. 4:25 says, “Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee.” Friends, the only way we’re going to be FIT to serve Christ is when our eyes are FIXED upon Him! Where is your focus today? Show me your focus, and I’ll show you your future. Your destiny is determined by your eye’s direction. May we ALL be sure to cast our eyes upon Jesus Christ alone!
~ Pastor Gary Caudill