Obedience
As the time drew near for him to ascend to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem. Luke 9:51
There’s a wonderful description of the servant of the Lord in Isaiah 50:7 in which it says that he set his “face like flint”. That is to say, he was absolutely resolute in his obedience to the Lord.
That’s precisely what we see here in Luke’s Gospel. Jesus knew that the Jewish leaders were determined to kill him and yet, even so, he headed into the city where his life would be under greatest threat. If anyone had done a risk assessment of the situation, Jesus would have been advised to avoid the area and head back up north to Galilee.
Jesus’ complete commitment to his Father’s will is awe-inspiring. He could have chosen to avoid the dangers, but his desire was to be obedient and, so, he headed south to Jerusalem. He had no fear and took a route that no Jewish person would ever have taken, walking through Samaria (whose people despised the Jews).
Predictably, the Samaritan people kicked up a fuss when they heard Jesus was heading to Jerusalem. This angered James and John, who suggested calling down fire from heaven to destroy the people. But Jesus rebuked them.
As they continued on the road to Jerusalem, a man told Jesus that he would follow him wherever he went. Jesus’ response was to inform him that “Foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place even to lay his head” (Luke 9:58). Jesus invited the man to follow him, but he wanted to ensure he had no illusions: it would require a single-minded commitment, nothing less.
He was calling on all his followers to set their faces like flint, and that’s exactly the same invitation that he gives to us today.
QUESTION
Have you set your face like flint in obedience to Christ?
PRAYER
Dear Father, thank you that you invite me to live a life of obedience to you. Give me strength today to head resolutely in the direction you want me to go. Amen