Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head

And when Jesus saw great multitudes about Him, he gave a command to depart to the other side. Then a certain scribe came and said to Him, "Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go." And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head." Then another of His disciples said to Him, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father." But Jesus said to him, "Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead."

Now when He got into a boat, His disciples followed Him. And suddenly a great tempest arose on the sea, so that the boat was covered with the waves. But He was asleep. Then His disciples came to Him and awoke Him, saying, "Lord, save us! We are perishing!" But He said to them, "Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?" Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. So the men marveled, saying, "Who can this be, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?"

- Matthew 8:18-27

Yesterday's reading gave us examples of three tremendous healings by Jesus, three miraculous healings. They come immediately after the Sermon on the Mount (see all the readings that follow The Beatitudes). Jesus healed a leper, the servant of a centurion, and Peter's mother-in-law. Then many brought the demon-possessed to Him, and He healed them with a word - and also many other illnesses. With the centurion, Jesus marveled: "Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel! And I say to you that many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." See Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.

And when Jesus saw great multitudes about Him, he gave a command to depart to the other side. This isn't the first time in the Gospel that we're told there are great multitudes following Jesus. In yesterday's reading, when we're told Jesus is coming down from the mountain after the Sermon on the Mount, great multitudes were also following Him. So we know of His great popularity at this time. Here, He decides that He will travel to the other side of the Sea of Galilee.

Then a certain scribe came and said to Him, "Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go." And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head." In this passage, we're taught that a man of learning, of the Law, a scribe comes to Him and declares ardently His devotion. Scribes themselves were authorized to teach, so this is a tremendous compliment. Jesus implies here the greater commitment that will be asked of the scribe to become His disciple: His poverty for the sake of the Gospel. Jesus is not a part of the mainstream, not a part of the institutions of the religious, and so has no real home or house or property to speak of. He hasn't got the social status or recognition that comes from being a part of the Temple authority or the Jewish religious establishment. While the scribe professes that He will follow Jesus wherever He goes, He must be prepared in discipleship to go further than he may expect. My study bible makes a note on the term "Son of Man" that Jesus uses for Himself here. "Since Son of Man refers to the Messiah (Dan. 7:13), it expresses both His humanity and divinity. Here it refers to Jesus' human condition; in 25:31-33 it describes His divine authority as Judge." No doubt the scribe knows full well the term Son of Man. He calls Jesus "Teacher" -- but Jesus opens up to Him more of His identity, and reveals a messianic secret to one who may perhaps begin to understand.

Then another of His disciples said to Him, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father." But Jesus said to him, "Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead." Here is another great example of what it is to be asked to go beyond what one may expect in discipleship. Both this example and the one with the scribe indicate perhaps hardship and certainly sacrifice. The scribe may enjoy a great place in his profession in the temple, an honored place. Here this disciple wishes to go home and bury his father. My study bible points out that this isn't negating the command to honor parents. It says, "He means that nothing ought to be more urgent to us than the things of the Kingdom. Those who ignore heavenly priority are spiritually dead." We may consider that we are unaware of the circumstances of this disciple's family. We also remember that the second occasion when Jesus will marvel (the first was in yesterday's reading -- at the faith of the centurion) is in the lack of faith He will find among His own, in His own hometown. But the message is clear from both examples here, of this disciple and the scribe: in discipleship we may encounter times when we are called beyond the places we feel prepared to go, and especially in making sacrifices we haven't previously understood, things and values and ways of thinking and being we might hold very dear. We may have to make a choice between the "pearl of great price" and other things we value if it comes down to that. In the lives of the apostles, such choices will be commonplace. We may not always understand how or why we are called one way or the other, just that we are faced with the choice.

Now when He got into a boat, His disciples followed Him. And suddenly a great tempest arose on the sea, so that the boat was covered with the waves. But He was asleep. Then His disciples came to Him and awoke Him, saying, "Lord, save us! We are perishing!" Taken up to this point, this story is a reminder of the sacrifices (especially of security in one form or another) we may feel called to make, the times when our emotions storm up in us due to outside forces beyond our control. In a life of faith, everything is not in our hands alone. We may not feel prepared to go through the things that we will experience, and that life will present to us.

But He said to them, "Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?" Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. So the men marveled, saying, "Who can this be, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?" Jesus addresses all of our fears here. This question could possibly be asked many times in a lifetime of faith! My study bible points out that this scene is often depicted as characteristic of the Lord and His Church as a whole: It has often gone through storms and needed deliverance. Let us understand Jesus' human condition and the tremendous ministry we have so far witnessed. He also needs sleep! "His inactivity," says my study bible, "intensified the disciples' fear, giving this miracle a greater impact." Rebuking the winds and seas reminds us again of Jesus' divinity, and teaches us -- in the image of the Lord and His Church -- to remember what faith embraces as a whole, in just Whose hands our lives remain. Faith calls on us to expand that understanding in the mystery of this scene taken as a whole. We may often feel threatened one way or another, but faith will stretch us in our reliance on God for the outcome. Now it is the disciples' turn to "marvel."

So, today's reading as a whole gives us a perspective on what it is to encounter the tests to our faith that may occur in discipleship. We may be called upon to do things and go places that strip us of the familiar, of the comforts we're used to. This may happen on a personal, physical, social or psychological basis. And, powerfully enough in this reading, these may be things we are asked to forgo, to sacrifice, for the sake of the kingdom. We may not know why or how, exactly, this works, just that we are called upon to go this way in His Way, as we "Follow Him." In this way, our faith is stretched, taken beyond our own thoughts of our limits, pulled in new directions so that we understand ourselves better than we do now. How has faith stretched you? Has it taken you to places you didn't expect, or asked of you sacrifices you hadn't considered? In so doing, do you face your own fears? Let us remember the picture of the disciples with Christ in the boat. We may feel that God is "sleeping" - not present to us. But all of this has the effect of stretching our faith, taking us to new places, exploring our own capabilities as disciples. Can we wait on God? Can we rest in prayer? In our own inevitable fears, can we choose to hold on to faith? God may take us where we hadn't known we were capable of going. How has God called on you to serve, and where has it taken you in your own understanding of who you are, and who you are called to be or to become? Let us remember that He has shared it all with us, first.