There are moments in life when you suddenly realize, “I’m in. Really in. There’s no turning back now.”
Parenthood. Marriage. Signing the mortgage. Starting a ministry. Even the first time you step onto a roller coaster with your kid and watch the safety bar lock down—commitment hits you fast.
I remember taking my son Judah on his first big-kid roller coaster at Silver Dollar City. Nighttime. Lights flashing. The clank of the chain lift echoing in the dark. He had no idea what he was getting into until that bar came down. There was no going back—only forward.
In Matthew 8, Jesus invites us into that same moment of decision, but on a much deeper level. His words confront the part of us that wants to follow Him… but only as long as the ride stays comfortable.
This passage asks every believer a challenging question:
Are we following Jesus with both feet in—or with one foot still on the dock?
When Jesus Calls, He Calls for Everything
Matthew 8:18–22 gives us two short conversations that cut right through every modern version of half-hearted Christianity.
“Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.”
—A religious teacher“Lord, first let me return home and bury my father.”
—Another disciple
Two men. Two different hesitations.
One wants comfort. The other wants convenience.
Both want Jesus—on their terms.
And Jesus responds with words that still challenge every disciple today:
“Foxes have dens… birds have nests… but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”
“Follow me now. Let the spiritually dead bury their own dead.”
This isn’t Jesus being harsh.
It’s Jesus being clear.
Following Him requires decisive commitment, not part-time allegiance.
1. Following Jesus Means Realigning Your Lifestyle
The first man tells Jesus he’s willing to follow Him anywhere. But Jesus exposes what that really means:
“I can’t promise you comfort.”
To follow Jesus is to release the expectation that the path will be easy or predictable. Discipleship isn’t built on convenience. It’s built on surrender.
Jesus essentially says:
- You may lose your pillow.
- You may lose your preferred pace of life.
- You may lose the illusion of control.
But what you gain—purpose, character, eternal significance—is infinitely greater.
Too often we treat discipleship as something we fit into life. But Jesus teaches the opposite: our entire life must fit into discipleship.
2. Following Jesus Means Reordering Your Obligations
The second man asks to fulfill a cultural and family expectation—burying his father. In Jewish custom, this was a sacred duty. Yet Jesus responds:
“Follow me now.”
He’s not disrespecting family or tradition. He’s revealing a deeper truth:
God doesn’t want to be one commitment among many—He wants to be the commitment that shapes them all.
In Scripture, those who took a Nazirite vow or served as High Priest had to set aside even family obligations for a season of consecration (Numbers 6:7). Not out of coldness, but out of calling. Following God required undivided devotion.
Jesus is giving the same invitation here:
“Put first things first. Let following Me define everything else in your life.”
The Real Issue: One Foot In
You can feel the tension in both of these encounters:
- “I’ll follow you wherever… but I’m expecting comfort.”
- “I’ll follow you… but after I take care of this first.”
And Jesus presses gently but firmly:
“Follow Me now.”
Not later.
Not after conditions are met.
Not with divided priorities.
The disciples were only rowing across the lake—a short trip. But symbolically, Jesus was asking them to make a deeper crossing:
from convenience to commitment.
What About Us? Three Questions Every Disciple Must Answer
If we’re honest, we all have areas where we want to follow Jesus almost fully.
Here are three questions to help expose where we might still have one foot on the dock:
1. Where am I prioritizing comfort over obedience?
Is God asking you to step out in something—serving, giving, forgiving, leading, confronting sin—but you’ve been waiting for the “right moment”?
2. What obligations or expectations am I placing above Christ?
Work?
Family expectations?
Financial fears?
Personal plans?
Good things become dangerous things when they become ultimate things.
3. What is Jesus asking me to do now that I keep postponing?
Delayed obedience is disobedience dressed in nicer clothes.
Action Steps for a Fully Committed Discipleship Life
Here are three practical ways to move from “one foot in” to “all in”:
1. Identify one comfort you need to lay down this week.
Maybe it’s your evening routine, your free time, or a habit that’s keeping you spiritually stagnant.
Ask: “What comfort is competing with my calling?”
2. Choose one area where Jesus needs to become the priority.
Pick something specific:
- Weekly worship
- Daily Scripture
- Tithing
- Serving
- Reconciling a relationship
- Saying yes to a ministry opportunity
Make a concrete plan and commit.
3. Practice immediate obedience.
When God prompts—through Scripture, prayer, conviction, or counsel—respond the same day.
Not tomorrow.
Not “when things settle.”
Now.
Immediate obedience builds lifelong faithfulness.
The Invitation Still Stands
The call Jesus gave those two men in Matthew 8 wasn’t a one-time moment in history. It’s the same call He gives today:
“Follow Me now.”
Not because He wants to make our lives harder—
but because He wants to make our lives whole.
Following Jesus is not about adding another commitment to the list.
It’s about giving Him the foundation upon which every other commitment stands.
The ride may be wild. The climb may be steep. The bar may lock you into places that feel uncomfortable.
But once you go all in, you’ll discover what countless disciples before you have found:
The only way to truly live is with both feet in.