PASSAGE: Matthew 8:18-22

SERIES SUMMARY 

As Jesus steps onto the scene of history, Matthew paints a picture of him that invites our participation in what Jesus is doing. The portrait is that Jesus is the True King who is bringing the kingdom of heaven to earth. This good news is not reserved for especially religious people in a distant future; it’s good news, right now, for ordinary people who come to Jesus in faith. 

And while Jesus inaugurated the kingdom among us through teaching and serving in dozens of ways, he ultimately brought heaven to earth by embracing the cross as his throne and wearing thorns as his crown. In doing this, he broke the powers of the kingdom(s) of this world and opened up God’s new world through his resurrection. Now, because of these things, discipleship to Jesus is about praying and living “Your kingdom come, Your will be done.” It is about whole-life transformation and embodying kingdom realities. It is about becoming people who naturally live out what Jesus taught. Today, because of Matthew’s witness and Jesus’ ministry, the kingdom is coming in our own lives, “on earth as it is in heaven.”

PASSAGE GUIDE

Matthew places these brief conversations within a larger display of Jesus’ authority. He has healed the sick, cleansed the unclean, and delivered people from spiritual oppression. Crowds now surround Him, captivated by what He says and does. Yet when Jesus orders His disciples to cross to the other side of the lake, Matthew turns our attention from the crowd around Jesus to the cost of actually going with Him. There is a difference between being impressed by Jesus and living under His rule. Discipleship begins when His direction for our lives matters more than our own.

The first man is a scribe who enthusiastically declares, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” Jesus does not reject him, but He makes sure the man understands what “wherever” may require. Foxes have holes and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head. The title “Son of Man” points to Jesus as the King who possesses everlasting authority, yet His path involves humility, dependence, rejection, and ultimately the cross. Anyone who follows Him must not make comfort or earthly security a condition of obedience.

The second man is already described as a disciple. He calls Jesus “Lord,” but then adds, “Let me first go and bury my father.” Matthew emphasizes the man’s desire to place something else first. His obligation appears honorable, which makes Jesus’ response especially searching: “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead.” Jesus is not condemning love for family or responsible care. He is declaring that no relationship, responsibility, or season of life can possess the authority to determine the timing and terms of our obedience to the King.

Both encounters reveal how good things can become controlling attachments. Attachment forms when something we rightly value becomes something we believe we must possess, preserve, or control in order to be secure. Comfort, family, work, achievement, approval, and responsibility can all become conditions we place upon following Jesus. We may gladly call Him Teacher or Lord while still reserving the right to say, “Not there,” or “Not yet.” Following Jesus becomes hard when He challenges the attachments we have come to depend on more than we depend on Him.

Jesus’ hard words are not the words of a harsh Savior. The King who calls us to release our attachments did not protect His own comfort or cling to His rights. He gave Himself completely, going to the cross to rescue us from sin and every lesser master. He rose to bring us into the life of His kingdom and gives us grace to trust Him when obedience feels costly. Jesus is not asking us to open our hands so that we are left with nothing. He is inviting us to receive Him as our truest security and highest good. We can respond honestly: “Jesus, I want to follow You. Help me release whatever keeps me from following You wholeheartedly.”

*We are a church located in Greenville, South Carolina. Our vision is to see God transform us into a community of grace passionately pursuing life and mission with Jesus.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Following Jesus becomes hard when He challenges the attachments we have come to depend on more than we depend on Him.
• There is a difference between being in the crowd around Jesus and becoming a disciple who goes where Jesus goes.
• Discipleship begins when Jesus’ direction for our lives matters more than our own.
• The issue is not whether we have security, but whether security has us.
• Attachment turns good gifts into controlling needs.
• Maybe the hardest part of following Jesus is not what He asks us to carry, but what He asks us to release.

SUGGESTIONS FOR COMMUNITY GROUP QUESTIONS    

Remember, these are “suggested” questions. You do not have to go through every single one of them.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS (Read Matthew 8:18-22)

*Remember the text is the focus, the sermon is a commentary, discuss and apply in the group.

1. What stood out to you from the passage?
2. Why might Matthew place these conversations immediately after describing the crowds surrounding Jesus and just before Jesus crosses the lake?
3. What does Jesus communicate through the contrast between animals having homes and the Son of Man having “nowhere to lay his head”?
4. What does the tension between calling Jesus “Lord” and saying, “Let me first” reveal about discipleship?
5. What does this passage reveal about Jesus’ identity and the authority He claims over those who follow Him?
6. What are you holding so tightly that it is making it hard for you to follow Jesus?
7. How can a good gift, relationship, or responsibility become an attachment that competes with our trust in Jesus? 
8. Where are you holding on to an attachment that is competing with your trust in Jesus? 
9. How does Jesus’ willingness to surrender His comfort, rights, and life for us reshape the way we hear His costly call to follow Him?
10. Where is Jesus inviting you to open your hands and trust Him right now?

CLOSING 

Pray: Thank Jesus for being the compassionate and trustworthy King who gave Himself to rescue us from sin and every lesser master. Ask Him to reveal the comforts, responsibilities, relationships, or desires we have allowed to determine the terms of our obedience.