Jesus rebuked his disciples, "And they went to another village." There
may be place for righteous indignation, but there is no place among the
followers of Christ for anger, for intolerance, or for revenge. This is
not a time of judgment, but of grace. It is not for us to attempt to
administer vengeance, but to preach the gospel of love.

2. Jesus Rebuking Rashness, Insincerity, and Indecision. Ch. 9:57-62

57 And as they went on the way, a certain man said unto him, I
will follow thee whithersoever thou goest. 58 And Jesus said unto
him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the heaven _have_
nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head. 59 And
he said unto another, Follow me. But he said, Lord, suffer me
first to go and bury my father. 60 But he said unto him, Leave the
dead to bury their own dead; but go thou and publish abroad the
kingdom of God. 61 And another also said, I will follow thee,
Lord; but first suffer me to bid farewell to them that are at my
house. 62 But Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to
the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.

These three incidents show how carefully Jesus was sifting those who
wished to become his followers and how deeply he appreciated the fact that
he was passing through this region for the last time. The first of the
three men with whom Jesus spoke was being swept along by his emotions, by
the sight of the crowd which was following the Master, and by the thought
that it would be a great privilege to be in such company. He had not for a
moment realized that it might involve sacrifice and pain to become a
disciple of the Master. It was for this reason that Jesus turned to him
with a statement which implies a rebuke and suggests that the Master
realized the thoughtlessness and rashness which were prompting this
professed follower. "The foxes have holes, and the birds of the heaven
have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head." Of course
Jesus is eager to have men vow their allegiance to him and openly
acknowledge their discipleship; but among his followers there is no place
for rashness. He would have us count the cost.

In the case of the next man, when he was bidden to follow Christ, he
offered an excuse, "Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father." This
was a natural request and it seemed that a tender duty made it necessary
for him to decline the invitat