The Encyclopedia Britannica identifies the plow as the “most important agricultural implement since the beginning of time” (Online Encyclopedia Britannica). This agricultural implement is used by a farmer to prepare the soil where he will plant his seed. Plowing the soil allows fresh nutrients to surface by turning over the soil, but also buries weeds and the old crop beneath the soil so that it may break down into it. As the farmer plows his land, long trenches called furrows are formed where the seeds will be dropped. Because of this, it is very important that the furrows be created in a straightforward path so that the plants would not grow wildly and into each other all over the land. This could cause great strife and difficulty at the time of reaping the wheat or corn and could also harm the soil. Of course, in our modern age this process has become much simpler to do since farmers now use mechanical tractors to pull the plow. However, during the time of the Roman Empire, plowing in the Mediterranean was done by man and his oxen or horses. The farmers of those regions would put the wheel-less plow’s yoke upon his oxen so that the animal could pull it, but it was the farmer who would guide his beast at a steady pace by maneuvering the plow. Since this was the method used by them, the turnout of the furrows depended heavily on the focus and steadiness of the farmer handling the plow. Needless to say that a key factor in creating a straight furrow was for the farmer to keep his eyes locked forward. An experienced farmer knew not to turn around and examine the path of the furrows while his hands were still steering the moving plow. If the farmer turned his body while plowing, he would then divert the path of his furrow making it crooked. This deviation would force the farmer to start plowing the soil all over again, delaying his progress. When He was approached by a certain man who had expressed a lukewarm zeal in following Him, Jesus revealed to him that “no one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God” (Luke 9:61-62). With this fantastic illustration, the Master exposed the divided heart of this man to those present, reminding His disciples that “no one can serve two masters” (Matthew 6:24a). This man’s expressed desire to “first go and bid them farewell” exhibited the struggle he was going to have in sacrificing everything for the Master. He became a victim of self-deceit as he led himself to believe that Jesus was willing to compromise with his earthly needs. Let us carefully analyze what this man was telling Jesus. First, we should take note of the fact that this man was already the third man who approached the Master about becoming His disciple (Luke 9:57-62). Christ had already manifested to the first two that anyone who is to follow Him must be ready and willing to sacrifice the material gain of this world (Luke 9:58) and the emotional ties that can block his spiritual growth (Luke 9:60). Therefore, it is a wonder why after hearing the Redeemer’s response to the first two the third person would dare believe that he would be told differently. Furthermore, the first man who approached the Lord gave no excuse and was ready to follow Jesus. The second man was prompted by the Lord, “follow Me” and he expressed to be allowed to bury his father. Several would perhaps be more empathetic with this request since on the surface it does have an appearance of compassion of a son for his ailing father. However, the Lord’s reply to this request suggests that the man’s father was very likely healthy and had yet some time to live before he perished. This means that the second man to whom the Lord invited to follow Him was loving his father more than Jesus. He was not yet ready to leave his father’s side to serve the kingdom of God. So we see a man who was ready to give his all for Jesus and asked to be allowed to follow (his spirit was hot) and a man who was invited by the Master to follow, but was unwilling to leave his father behind (his spirit was cold). The third character presented by Luke, however, was very contradicting in his approach. On the one hand he expresses that he does want to follow Jesus, but not right away. He claims that before he can be able to follow Christ, there are other matters he must tend to. Hence why this man’s spirit is lukewarm in nature. In an odd way, this man was a combination of the previous two. His divided heart between serving the Lord and serving his guests was creating a mixture of hot and cold. Notice that in His illustration, Jesus confirms that the third person had “put his hand to the plow.” This reveals that his intentions of following Christ were genuine. The problem Jesus noticed was that this burning spirit would soon begin to die down by the coldness of regret. Keeping his mind imprisoned by all that he left behind is how he would be “looking back” and making crooked his furrows. The doubt and regret of deciding to follow the Lord would plague his mind and force him to lose focus on his divine task. Serving God with regret would force him to remain stagnate since he would always have to start his plowing all over again. These words spoken by our Savior resonates in my memory the tragic end of Lot’s wife (Genesis 19:15-26). Although she, too, had taken hold of the angel’s hand, she did not take heed to their command of not looking back; this is synonymous with the issued warning of Jesus to this third fellow. The threat of serving God halfheartedly is that we will be creating crooked furrows that are not “fit for the kingdom of God.” Daring to always plow His land crookedly exhibits the lack of interest or dedication in our plowing. It quickly makes manifest that we have yet to live our lives by “forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13-14). We must not forget that this land we plow does not belong to us, but to our King (John 15:1). Yet, it is just as important not to forget that “He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6). Therefore, we must strive to always present our best work to our Rewarder. If we have become wearied by the ardent plowing of tough soil, let us “be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord” (1st Corinthians 15:58).
