This Sunday I have been invited back to St Nicholas’ Church, Fyfield and St Peter in the Woods, Appleshaw. We are now in ‘Ordinary Time’ or as I like to think of it, ‘God is with us all the time.’

The end of June and beginning of July are also known as Petertide, which means that we are in the midst of ordination season. My own anniversary is the 27th of June, a mere 18 years ago! Many ordained deacons and priests remember the wave of imposter syndrome that comes across us as we try on a cassock for the first time, but also the excitement and sense of awe as we walk through the rehearsal. Then of course the huge blessing of the day itself. I was ordained deacon in that most impressive of buildings, Wells Cathedral. It is rare to see the main doors flung wide open, but on the day of our ordinations that was what happened: The sun shone as we processed from the small chapel in the Bishop’s Palace where we had made our oaths, across to the Cathedral; and with those doors wide open we could hear the voices of hundreds of guests singing their hearts out to God.

Ahead of this day there had been years of study and training, and ahead of that had been a lengthy selection progress. We had given up homes and jobs and standard of living to follow God to this point in time. Spouses and children had also given up much, we had just moved house once again, barely having time to settle in before leaving our loved ones to go on ordination retreat.

Today we are invited to consider what it means to give everything to follow Jesus: In the gospel passage Jesus warns would be disciples that there is a huge cost to following him, and should not be done so lightly. Perhaps he is referring to the cost of literally walking in his footsteps as the 12 disciples were doing. It may have seemed ‘glamourous’ but Jesus warns wanna-be disciples that following him will incur hardships: there is no guarantee of a roof over your head, or being available to carry out family obligations. To be a disciple in Jesus’ time was referred to as ‘walking in the dust’ of a rabbi: to follow him so closely that you become covered in the dust kicked up by his sandals.

No one who puts a hand to the plough and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.

Luke 9:62

Here Jesus refers back to Elijah and Elisha. When it became time for Elijah to choose an apprentice who would take his place, he seeks out Elisha who was found in the midst of ploughing a field.

Elisha son of Shaphat, who was ploughing. There were twelve yoke ahead of him, and he was with the twelfth.

1 Kings 19:19

There is plenty to be gleaned from this small sentence. Elisha, being the driver of the 12th of the ploughs, would have been the leader of the labourers. It may even have been his family’s farm, which means that he was a man of wealth, or means, and substance. He owned his own plough and oxen and stood to inherit so much land that it needed 12 ploughs to till it. This is the man that has been chosen to step into Elijah’s footsteps, to be covered in the dust from his sandals rather than that kicked up by the oxen. Elijah seems hesitant to call Elisha into ministry, he doesn’t speak to him or interview him, but symbolically lays his own cloak upon Elisha’s shoulder as he walks by. This action seems strange, but we still talk about ‘picking up the mantle’ when we take over a position of leadership. Elijah’s rough animal hair mantle, the outerwear of a prophet, indicated who he would become, but the action was that of a father adopting a child.

Elisha’s response is an immediate ‘yes’. He asks if might simply say farewell to his family, after all, if he is being ‘adopted’ by Elijah his parents are not only losing him, but their heir as well. Elijah gives a somewhat sulky reply,

Go back again; for what have I done to you

1 Kings: 20

All that Elijah has done is offer an invitation, which has not yet been formalised. Elisha’ responded with an immediate rush of positivity, leaving his oxen in the middle of the field, Elijah now waits to see if his true colours will really show. And they do. Elisha doesn’t just return to say goodbye to his parents, but to say bid a final farewell to his former life. Elisha quite literally burns his bridges, setting fire to his ploughing equipment he boils the meat from his freshly slaughtered oxen to provide a final farewell feast for his fellow farm labourers. Elisha is all in for this next adventure, he hasn’t turned back, unsure whether or not to pay the price of bearing the mantel. After all, just as a dog is for life and not just for Christmas, so is God.

In Luke’s gospel Jesus seems to be referring back to this story which his Jewish neighbours would have been familiar with. If you are going to follow me, don’t look back , he declares. Here though he seems to be mixing his metaphors: when ploughing a straight line it is important to keep focussed on the destination, otherwise the furrow will not be straight. Either way Jesus is warning those who seek to follow him, that it will take 100%.

Jesus wasn’t then, and isn’t now, looking for ‘Christ-ers’ those who only come to church at Christmas and Easter. If we wish to follow Jesus’ call to live life as a follower of his, then we need to be all in, and there will be a cost to that. There will be times when we will be called to give up possessions, finances, security. We shouldn’t be surprised at this, after all Jesus himself camped rough, and his disciples were called to leave their nets and follow him. Perhaps we have been lured into ‘faith’ via a prosperity gospel, whereby the more we are in God’s favour, the more we will be blessed, where wealth is a sign of God’s blessing. We only have to look at the likes of Mother Theresa to know that this isn’t true. There will be innumerous blessings in following Jesus, but don’t expect them to include financial security.

Read the full Bible passages here.