In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

     You may only, ever hear me say this once. This morning, I wish we had one of those big white projection screens, so I could shoot up there a bigger than life-size picture I have of myself-on a tractor! Because I'm figuring unless you see that picture, you might not believe that I actually have experience on a tractor.and, I'd like for you to have a good laugh. Because in this particular photo, taken when I was in college, probably the mid-'70s, I've got my long hippie hair, sticking out from underneath one of my grandpa's DeKalb seed-corn caps-sunglasses on, looking all rural and homespun, as my brother, Denis and I were helping with the farming. Now, I have to say, my Grandpa Barker never allowed Denis and I to drive tractors much, until later in his life, when he was slowing down, and having some health problems, and needed some help. And while I never lived on the farm, I enjoyed those years when my brother and I were able to help, and get comfortable on a tractor--plowing and cultivating, and yes, even helping Grandpa spread manure over his fields. Imagine that-a future preacher learning to spread manure! And partly, I enjoyed the experience because there is something altogether earthy and natural about working the fields and plowing and planting-something that brings one closer to the Almighty Creator, who gives growth and blesses crops with sun and rain. But I also appreciated the experience because, as a future preacher, it gave me the chance to come closer to the many biblical texts related to plowing and sowing and tending the fields. Two of which we have as our lessons this morning.

     The first is our lesson from Kings, when Elijah was ordered by the Lord to go and anoint Elisha to be his successor. And Elijah found Elisha, out in the field, plowing. And Elisha, son of Shaphat, was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen ahead of him, and Elisha was with the twelfth. And Elijah threw his mantle, his cloak over Elisha, which was the traditional manner of choosing a successor, and while Elisha realized what Elijah had done, before leaving, Elisha wanted to kiss his father and mother-and then, come follow. Which, so long as Elisha understood the actions of Elijah, Elijah allowed-so, Elisha returned home to say his goodbyes. Which all seems very well and good. It's what comes after that, which makes the point in his call to prophetic ministry. Elisha returned from Elijah, took the yoke of oxen and slaughtered them, using the equipment from the oxen, he boiled their flesh, and gave it to the people and they ate. The point is, he could've just said a simple goodbye! But Elisha realized that there would be no coming back, that this call to be a prophet of the Lord would be all-encompassing-so, not only does he say goodbye, but he kills, whether one yoke, or all twelve yoke of oxen-makes a fire out of the equipment he'd been using to plow so that cooking the oxen he gave his own farewell feast-feeding, not just his parents, but "the people"-and we can trust it was a lot of people who could be fed with the meat from twelve oxen! But Elisha makes his point-he has been called by the Lord, through the prophet Elijah, he is yielding to the Lord's call, and from this point on, there'd be no turning back. Once he set out to follow Elijah, he would only be looking to the Lord-not to the past, not to former things, not to his old life, or family. And if you read the story of Elisha, you'll find that was indeed, the case. Elisha's ministry was filled with miracles, he provided prophetic insight and wise counsel, and he finished the work of Elijah, destroying the system of pagan Baal worship, anointing kings for Israel! All in all, Elisha once called, followed faithfully, and it seems, never looked back, but turned heart and soul toward the Lord! And interestingly, that, is what Jesus is calling people to in our gospel reading as well.

     Now, we realize there are aspects of our gospel text that leave folks somewhat troubled. When Jesus calls people to follow, but then won't let them bury their father, or even say farewell to those at home-it seems harsh, and uncaring. When Jesus says, "let the dead bury their own dead", and "no one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God"-it strikes home-and it hits us hard! Aren't we called to honor our father and mother-and isn't caring for them in death, part of our responsibilities as children? And what's so harmful about saying farewell to those at home? Even Elijah allowed Elisha to return to his family to say goodbye and have a farewell feast. Does Jesus mean that we are to forgo these simple familial responsibilities as well, if we want to follow him? As always, it's important to consider the context of what Jesus is saying, and why. And what is the context of these sayings of Jesus? Luke tells us that the days are drawing near for Jesus to be taken up, and Jesus had set his face to go to Jerusalem. This explains clearly, that Jesus' earthly ministry is drawing to a close, and as the confrontation with the Jewish establishment in Jerusalem loomed off in the not too distant future, Jesus was experiencing an urgency that was both compelling him on toward Golgotha and the cross, but also driving him to reach as many people as could be reached, in the short time left. He sent messengers ahead of him to preach the gospel, and when a village of Samaritans wouldn't receive him, his followers wanted to call down fire and brimstone from heaven to consume them-but Jesus rebukes his disciples, and they moved on to another village. You see, Jesus wasn't willing to waste any time with such foolishness. Jesus had one goal in mind, to reach Jerusalem, and to reach as many people with the good news of the kingdom of God, before he got there. And that's the context from which we should read and understand Jesus' next words. Already, Jesus knows he has nowhere to run, and nowhere to hide. His fate is sealed, and Jesus knows what's going to happen in Jerusalem. And yet, someone said to him, "I'll follow you wherever you go." Right, Jesus says. To another and another Jesus said, "Follow me", but one wants to go bury his father, and still another wants to go bid his family adieu. And Jesus responds with a certainty and an abruptness that is born out of his impending death, and the urgency his crucifixion warranted. Jesus tells the one, "There is no time to go bury your father-until these things are accomplished, he, and everyone else are as good as dead." To the other, Jesus said, "No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God." As St. Luke tells us, at this point, Jesus has set his face to go to Jerusalem, and he will not be deterred, or delayed, or dissuaded, nor can he abide anyone who wants to dally along the way, or take care of other business before following. Jesus was determined, and destined, to move on to Jerusalem, and anyone who wanted to follow him at this point, had to be ready to move, to travel, to get on the bus and forget about us-to keep their eyes on Jesus, and Jesus only-and the cross, that even now, Jesus could see off in the distance.

     So, to put it plainly, these sayings of Jesus, on the one hand, do not apply to you and me who are trying to follow Jesus today. Yes, bury your dead. Care for your loved ones. Honor father and mother. Take seriously your responsibilities. Jesus has been to the cross, died for the sins of the world, and been resurrected to new life, to win for us, the hope and promise of eternal life. You will not keep Jesus from His passion, death and resurrection, by being responsible members of home, family and society. On the other hand, there is a certain urgency and single-minded devotion to Jesus, that we have all but lost, in our time, that we would do well to reclaim, from Jesus' words in our gospel lesson today. While we say we are followers of Jesus, most of us are all too ready to turn back, to dilly-dally along the way, to allow ourselves to be distracted and dissuaded from following Jesus with urgency and commitment. We are indeed, double-minded-we live double lives, following Jesus to church some Sundays, wearing our best Christ-like countenances-but doing our own thing during the week, living as we want the rest of the time, giving not a thought, to what it means to be Christians, in our business dealings, in our leisure time, in our many other pursuits and pre-occupations in life. And we are all too comfortable and complacent in our double-mindedness! We are settled into our routine of thinking about Jesus when it's convenient-but keeping our eyes focused, most of the rest of the time, on job, career, bank account, stock portfolio, planner, Blackberry, cell phone, my space account; oh yes, and home and family as time allows. We may say we are followers of Jesus, but we are all to ready to turn back, to take our eyes off the prize, to allow ourselves to get off track, for any little distraction that catches our attention. And what happens when we put our hand to the plow and look back?

     From first hand experience, I can tell you things can turn out disastrous! It took me a while to learn that while driving a tractor, you can't turn around and look at where you've been or what you've done. You can't allow yourself to be distracted by concerns for later in the day, or thoughts about what you'd rather be doing, or daydreams about the blond-haired-or red-haired girl next door. And for gosh sakes, don't be text messaging while you're driving a tractor! Because what happens is-you go astray! It takes no time at all for the tractor to get off track, and find you're no longer plowing or planting a straight row-and then, you've wasted time, and energy, and land, and seed! Looking back, or looking to the side, on a tractor, causes you to loose your focus, and soon, you might find Grandpa yanking you off the tractor! And while Jesus probably won't yank you off the tractor-Jesus says pointedly, "no one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back, is fit for the kingdom." Jesus says, "I want you to keep your eyes on me-do not turn back, or turn away." Because, as St. Paul writes in our second lesson, when you look back, or look away, you wander into such things as fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factiousness, envy, drunkenness, carousing and the like. By contrast, keeping your eyes on Jesus, living by the Risen Spirit of Christ, guided by the Spirit-brings about good fruit, useful things like, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Jesus will lead us into all these fruits of the Spirit; Jesus will guide us in the way of righteousness and truth; as St. Paul writes, those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires-so, let us live by the Spirit, and let us also be guided by the Spirit. Let us put our hands to the plow, and only look to Jesus-let us only follow Jesus-let us turn to the Lord, and never look back!

     In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.