Luke 14:25-35

Luke 14:25-35

25 Now large crowds were going along with Him; and He turned and said to them, 26 “If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple. 27 “Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. 28 “For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it? 29 “Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who observe it begin to ridicule him, 30 saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ 31 “Or what king, when he sets out to meet another king in battle, will not first sit down and consider whether he is strong enough with ten thousand men to encounter the one coming against him with twenty thousand? 32 “Or else, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. 33 “So then, none of you can be My disciple who does not give up all his own possessions. 34 “Therefore, salt is good; but if even salt has become tasteless, with what will it be seasoned? 35 “It is useless either for the soil or for the manure pile; it is thrown out. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

Discipleship, or following Jesus, is a privilege without compare but it comes with great responsibility.  Jesus made it very clear that following Him would come at a price.  There seems to be a disconnect with many people when it comes to following Jesus.  When Jesus walked this planet, He ended up on a cross.  However, those who follow Him seem to be taken by surprise any time they are called to face any kind of suffering.  This passage makes it clear that a disciple should never be taken by surprise when they face trials.  There are at least three truths about discipleship that we can learn from this passage.

THE DISCIPLE CARRIES A CROSS: It is significant that this teaching comes with large crowds gathering around Jesus.  Many ministries today are doing anything they can to attract large crowds.  I doubt many of them are using the message that Jesus gives to this crowd.  It is not a very popular thing to tell people they must hate their parents, children, siblings and their own lives.  In a day where self-esteem seems to have become the most sought after “virtue” this message certainly would not bring in the crowds.  Jesus makes it very clear that the cross is a reality for any who wish to be a disciple.  Clearly, Jesus is not promoting a culture of hate in His followers; that would contradict His previous and consistent teaching that His followers are known by their love.  His point is that our love for God must be so strong and unquestioning that our love for family and self must look like hate by comparison.  Our lives can never be more precious than God and His kingdom.  God is on a mission to be reconciled to with sinful men.  The cross was the necessary instrument for accomplishing that reconciliation.  Satan is desperate to keep that reconciliation from happening, so he will do all in his power to prevent it.  Following Jesus means being engaged in this “war” for the souls of men.  Involvement in this war means carrying a cross.

THE DISCIPLE COUNTS THE COST: This passage has been used to promote strategic planning, budgeting and establish human resources departments.  All those things are important, but they are not the central teaching of this passage.  Jesus used these illustrations to call His disciples to count the cost of following Him.  His point is that just as a constructor counts the cost of building a tower and a general counts his soldiers to make sure he has the means to go to war, a disciple must count the cost of following Jesus.  The cost is your life.  Nothing can be spared.  Loving God means a total and complete commitment to Him, so much so that our view of our own life is to seem like hatred by comparison.  Jesus wants His disciples and us to realize that the proposition to follow Him will be not only life altering but life threatening.  All the disciples died because of their decision to follow Christ.  God’s mission to reconcile the world is not an easy one or a safe one.  Comfort and security are two of the most important things to must of us.  Jesus is saying that following Him means renouncing those priorities if favor of the priority of His glory and His kingdom.  That is the cost of discipleship.  The payment is a life with a purpose followed by an eternally rewarded life.  The reward is worth the risk.

THE DISCIPLE CONTINUES THE CAUSE: Perseverance is a vital aspect of discipleship.  It is easy for us to get caught up in a moment of inspiration or emotion and “take up the cause” of Christ.  Jesus saw multitudes of people commit to following Him only to have many of them join another multitude that called for His crucifixion.  God does not call us to a temporary state of devotion, but to a permanent state of commitment to Christ.  He calls us to be the salt of the earth.  Whether Jesus was using salt’s properties of preservation or promoting flavor is not of vital importance to understanding the point of the passage.  The point is that the world in which we live is in desperate need of help.  As disciples of Jesus, we have been equipped to impact this fallen world with hope and help that can rescue it from this desperate reality.  The problem is that those who start following Jesus don’t always continue to do so.  Far too often, the price of following Christ seems too high and “disciples” decide it is too much and simply quit.  When that happens, we become like salt that has lost its flavor.  It is no longer of use and is thrown out on the pile of dung.  Too often, we think and act like following Jesus is “all about us.”  The truth is that following Jesus is all about Him!  He must be the focus of our affections and His mission must be the purpose of our lives.  He is on a mission to reconcile man to Himself.  Participation in that mission will cost us everything but we must never quit.  We are called to persevere as long as we live to continue the cause of the cross of Christ.

APPLICATION: Don’t allow your family or your own comfort and security prevent us from following Christ and fully engaging in His mission.  Understand the cost of following Christ is everything.  It is impossible to be a true disciple of Christ and hold back areas of our lives and service.  Discipleship is not a phase in life or a temporary station; it is a life-long commitment to Christ.  God wants us to impact the lives of a lost and dying world that men might be reconciled to Him.