Posted on 07/25/2025 6:45:47 AM PDT by metmom
“Then a scribe came and said to Him, ‘Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go.’ Jesus said to him, ‘The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head’” (Matthew 8:19–20).
Superficially, Jesus’ expression “The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head” has nothing to do with the scribe’s confident words. In proverbial style He simply wanted to caution the man that even though He was God’s Son, His ministry did not include comfortable living—He actually had fewer amenities than some animals.
Christ wanted the scribe to assess the sincerity of his assertion. It’s easy to make a bold, impressive profession of loyalty, especially if you don’t first think about the cost of commitment. Early in His ministry, our Lord knew that many did not have a genuine faith: He “was not entrusting Himself to them, for He knew all men. . . . He did not need anyone to testify concerning man, for He Himself knew what was in man” (John 2:24–25). Many were committed only to the thrill of following Jesus around and seeing miracles performed, not to His Person and saving work. They were examples of the seed that had no root but fell away soon because of adversity (Matt. 13:5–6, 20–21).
Bible commentator R. C. H. Lenski once noted that people with eager but uncertain vows of allegiance to Christianity are like those who view “the soldiers on parade, the fine uniforms, and the glittering arms and [are] eager to join, forgetting the exhausting marches, the bloody battles, the graves, perhaps unmarked.”
Ask Yourself
Are we guilty of trying to make Christian faith so attractive that we disguise its demands and difficulties?
What are the logical consequences of such a tactic on those who come to Christ without counting the cost?
Studying God’s Word ping
TANSTAAFL.........................
?
TANSTAAFL
Acronym of “there ain’t no such thing as a free lunch”: something advertised as being “free” will invariably have hidden costs.
the seed that had no root and therefore fell away soon because of adversity
I agree that Judas did not expect the outcome he got, but neither he nor any of the disciples truly understood that the crucifixion was about to happen and how it was part of the plan.
He choose poorly and paid a horrific price.
That is for God to judge.
The Word makes promises, which include physical and spiritual blessings. It also yells us that we will experience tribulation & death for His sake. Both are realities for the Christian & both need to be taught/preached.
Post 10: “TELLS us ..”
Killing yourself like Judas did, doesn’t afford the opportunity for repentance and forgiveness.
That is SO true.
Even God’s grace to us came at HIS expense, and a great one at that.
Perhaps because Peter repented and Judas just experienced remorse.
Additionally, Scripture records that Judas was a thief and helped himself to money from the money bag, so I SUSPECT that he never was a believer, just an opportunist who saw the chance to get in with Jesus and be on the ground floor with the establishment of his kingdom and the overthrow of the Romans.
That would come with a lot of power and prestige.
also, peter wasn’t the only one who abandoned Jesus and Thomas was not the only one who doubted the reports of His resurrection.
In defense of Thomas, what he disbelieved was the other disciples reports, but so did the other disciples when the women came back from the tomb and reported Jesus was risen.
So it wasn’t JESUS Thomas disbelieved, it was the other disciples.
Anything worthwhile doesn’t come easy. Following Lord Jesus is the most worthwhile thing anyone can do. Thankfully He promised He would never leave our forsake His children and He is trustworthy.
That could very well be the case. As I said earlier, Judas was motivated by power and money but what did Judas do before committing suicide? He threw back the money and disavowed it as blood money. He felt tremendous guilt and hung himself. Both acts are the same as giving up money and power.
As far as repentance, only God knows. I have no conviction either way.
How do the prosperity churches respond to this?
I have no idea.
It sure doesn’t fit with their theology.
Maybe then, they just ignore it.
Jesus had many "religious" people who were interested in Him and enamored. According to online sources-
Moreover, the scribes always connected with the text the laws which they deduced from the Biblical passages; that is, they read the passage, explained it, and then deduced the law contained in it; they did not in general formulate abstract halakot apart from the Biblical text. The halakot were the work of (1) the "Zugot" (duumvirates), who immediately followed the scribes, and (2) the Tannaim, who treated the law independently of the Biblical text. There are, however, some mishnayot which, from their style, seem to have emanated directly from the scribes (comp. Neg. ii. 5-7). The latter seem not to have departed from the literal interpretation of the text, although they adapted the laws to the requirements of the times, sometimes instituting by-laws ("seyagim"), this, according to Abot (l.c.), being one of the three main duties of their office. (Scribes)
I thought that the scribes were mostly just the "copiers" of the Hebrew Bible, but they were more than that and I think their assumption of authority over the word of God by their interpretations, teachings and traditions were what enraged Jesus against them. He often harangued against the "Scribes, Pharisees, hypocrites".
Judas Iscariot wasn't a Jewish scribe. He was a zealot and had been involved with a group who conspired to overthrow the Romans' rule in Israel like you said. When Jesus humbly submitted to the arrest and crucifixion, he became disillusioned. No doubt his "betrayal" was to force Jesus' hand to act in the power of God and usher in the kingdom right then and there. His suicide has always made me wonder if he really did finally come to the realization of Jesus as the suffering servant spoken of in Isaiah and then couldn't live with himself over his part in that.
Like my tag line says, “God is ready to assume full responsibility for the life wholly yielded to Him”. He calls us to trust Him and believe that where He guides, He will provide. If we really believe this - I mean REALLY - there’s no limit to what He will do through us.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.