I Must Walk On - Luke 13 31-35

I Must Walk

At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.”

He said to them, “Go and tell that fox for me, ‘Listen, I am casting out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my work.

Yet today, tomorrow, and the next day I must be on my way, because it is impossible for a prophet to be killed outside of Jerusalem.’

-Luke 13:31–33

When the colluded powers sent their collaborating messengers to warn Jesus he was in trouble and that he was likely to be killed, his response was four-fold:

• I am doing works of mercy and deliverance.
• I will continue to do them until I am done.
• I will not be stopped. I will not be intimidated.
• I won’t die here, but I will keep moving toward the place of my death.

But there is a third day coming and no matter what anyone does or thinks they can do to me, I will move past it toward that day … and then, and only then, my work will be complete.

The way of the cross is the way of persistent progress. We cannot rest from the walk — even when our bodies are not in motion.

Are you tempted to take a break from the way of the cross?

“Go and tell that fox …”

Even in the flesh, Jesus is unperturbed by threats and plots.

He says, “I will keep on doing the good I am doing and I will finish my course.”

That is all that is required … to keep on doing what we have been placed here to do until such a time as our course has finished.

Neither Herod nor any other external puppet power has any power to alter the course of our lives.

Live with that confidence today.

Keep on.

Determination is when you decide when and where you will terminate your journey.

Following Jesus is an act of determination.

No termination until the place and time of determination.

Determine to do so and then, do so.

“And he said unto them, I must preach the kingdom of God to other cities also: for therefore am I sent.” — Luke 4:43

Is it an urgency, and emergency, or a priority?

Or … is it all three of two out of three?

Or … is it none of these?

What must you be doing right now?

The phrase, “I must” appears 16 times in the King James Version of the Bible. Jesus said, “I must preach” in Luke 4, “I must walk …” in Luke 13:33, and “I must be about my Father’s business” in Luke 2:29.

John the Baptist said, “He must increase, and I must decrease (John 3:30).”

These were driven by something greater than the urgency of the moment. Urgency is a poor substitute for purpose and priority. When we establish an understanding of what is truly important based upon God’s abiding principles and mission, we need to stick with it.

The reality is that the moment we prioritize our ministries, diversions will emerge, distractions will appear, and urgency will shout in our ears, “Stop and take care of me NOW!”

We need to be able to say “no” to urgency any time it steps outside the boundaries of our priorities as given to us by God.

Yes, there will be emergencies that must be faced as they arise. There will be extraneous details that must be handled. The problem arises when every urgent matter presents itself with the same emergency motif and both ministry and the spiritual life become one great series of emergencies.

We have fire departments to put out fires.

What is your focus?

Make sure it receives a prominent place on your calendar and that you do your best to follow your calendar.

Leave time for incidentals.

Leave cushion for emergencies.

Live by grace because you won’t meet all of your goals. But, know this, if you heed every urgent cry, you will meet none of them because your life will be controlled by something far less than your God-given priorities.

Live on purpose, directed by God’s master plan for your life.

Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! See, your house is left to you. And I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.’” — Luke 13:34–35