Plow Forward

“No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.” - Jesus Christ, Luke 9:62


It helps to think a little about plowing to better understand this passage. If my heart is fixed on what is not straight forward then my eyes are always looking back. If I was to plow while looking back I'd never plow in a straight direction forward. Many religious people claim to "plow" while their hearts are fixed on a god (and christ) of their own making. They plow in vain because their hearts have not been turned towards the true Christ and are therefore blind to the kingdom of God which is the straight and narrow path directly ahead. If Christ is in us then we plow with eyes and heart forward. Perfectly? No. But ultimately? Yes. (parallel passage Psalm 127:1 "Except the Lord build the house, the builders labor in vain.") Philippians 1:5-6 " because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."

also this verse from Luke 9 is a response from Christ from those who claim they want to follow Christ but have other priorities to take care of first. Basically these people are saying they'll follow Christ as long as they can still have other god's before Him (a violation of the First Commandment) or that they'll seek the kingdom of God as long as they don't have to "seek it first" (Matt.6:33). Like many people today they're willing to "hang out" with Jesus, go through some motions and offer up some lip service, but they're not ready to make Him Lord of their lives... they're not ready for an eternity of worship.

To borrow from a quote of Driscoll's book, DOCTRINE, Tim Keller explains worship as such: "To glorify something or someone is to praise, enjoy, and delight in them. When something is useful you are attracted to it for what it can bring you ...or do for you. But if it is beautiful, then you enjoy it simply for what it is. Just being in its presence is its own reward. To glorify someone is also to serve or defer to him or her. Instead of sacrificing their interests to make yourself happy, you sacrifice your interests to make them happy. Why? Your ultimate joy is to see them in joy."

"The chief end of man is to glorify God by enjoying Him forever."

Are you ready to plow forward?