Luke 14:25-35, What’s It Take?

Welcome, I had a procedure done this past week on Monday called an orthoscopy to see what was wrong with my left knee. In fact, this is the first day of this since that surgery that I've been going along without a crutches, but it turns out that Most of the cartilage in my left knee has just been totally worn away so this is made by running and I've noticed my running has been even actually my sometime I'm preaching because I Always wonder why after preaching my knees so stiff.

But it's made about running a difficult and bad for the bones so it takes healthy cartilage. To to be a good runner of all the things it takes to be a governor. There's a lot of criteria. One of those is you got to have good cartilage in your knees.

So this is probably the end of my regular running you after all you just got to have what it takes now. Everything we do requires something from us physically mentally intellectually knowing certain facts.

Maybe emotionally being able to work well with people and your job whatever. Well, you know, what's it take? Let's take to be a good mailman. You got to be able to gotta be able to read. Yeah, you got a reality.

You got to be in reasonably good health because it's pretty physically active job. Yeah, you got to be organized, you know, just go to deliver here deliver there. You got to go in order. You got to be self-disciplined because they're not a boss standing over your shoulder every second making you do every what you're supposed to do.

What's it take to be a good? Teacher Justin's here. We're not like what's it take to be a good teacher. I've got to be able to communicate got a bit of relate. Well, so that in a way depends on the age level of who you're teaching.

You know someone may be a may have what it takes to be a very good elementary school teacher. But maybe not what it takes to be a good high school teacher. Have you got to be authoritative without domineering?

You got to be caring but able to maintain discipline. You've got to also got to know your subjects. You got to know what you're talking about. What's it take to be a good student? Got some students here.

You got to be self-motivated. It helps to have a high IQ, but I think if you're disciplined and organized enough. Someone could someone could make up for just being of average intelligence and still be a very good student.

What's it take to keep a restaurant in business? That's a tricky one. You know that 60 of restaurants fail in the first year and 80 fail in the in the first five years. But we have at least four we've got at least four Restaurants represented here and they've been you know going for a while now.

They haven't gone out of business. What's it take? What's the secret? I think a big part of this their secret is that they work hard. They work long hours. Almost every usually every day of the week long hours and with often.

Only this time right here in church being time taken off from the business. Regularly during during the week, you know, they don't hire employees if they can do the work themselves apparently. That's what it takes.

What It Takes to Be a Christian

What's it take to be a Christian? Many and today and say it takes almost nothing. There's this common idea going around. It didn't take believe almost hardly takes anything. You say you believe in a bare minimum of facts and really that's all it takes they say.

Now if you really want to be devout if you want to you know, you you're really gonna be committed. Well, you can opt for that. It's kind of an option out there. It's like flying a plane. You can you can go first class if you're willing to pay the price or you can go to you know.

Be the cheap seats in the coach some people have that idea about being Christian if you want to be devout and you deny yourself things and give your money and go to church and Help with outreaches and you want to read the Bible and pray and you can that's all well and good.

Many have a kind of a two-tiered view of Christians two-tiered system with the disciples. They're the first class. They're the kind of the higher rank sort of the special forces. You know, they're kind of the the Navy SEALs of Christians.

Disciples with the rest of us. You know hardly anyone hardly anything is really required of us except we agree agreeing to a minimum of a few doctrines. This view has been with us for almost for over a thousand years.

It used to be that the monks and the nuns they were considered the really devout who went to the extra effort of really being serious. But it didn't take much at all. If you just wanted to be all you wanted to do was be a regular Christian.

I'll you know, basically just be baptized as a baby and Don't be a heretic. That's about it. Now. You might have to go to purgatory for a few thousand years, but you know, that's that's the price you pay.

Today maybe it's today though. Maybe our view instead of the monks and the nuns our view as often as maybe it's the missionaries. Or they're really devout and the first class or maybe someone who has quote surrendered to the call.

I just hate that term surrendered to the call to preach. You know. So it gives the idea like they were under siege by this horrible enemy that they had to capitulate to. Finally made them to preach. Those are the really spiritual while the rest of us.

Not much is really required, you know, but the Bible really knows nothing of that two-tiered system the Lord Jesus did not say. Go you therefore and make?

Converts.

Christians and if you can get a few of them to be disciples, that's great, too. No, there's no special class of believers who are the Saints while the rest of us are just the pew fillers in the New Testament.

The Saints were all the believers. Believers were Saints who were Christians who were Disciples all of those are interchangeable and all had surrendered to whatever call the Lord had for them. So then What's it take?

To be a disciple a believer a Christian. Well, Jesus tells us right here. I didn't read the passage did I? Let's read the passage. Jesus tells us right here in Luke chapter 14. Jesus tells us in Luke chapter 14 starting verse 25.

We bring the verse 35. Hear the word of the Lord now great crowds Accompanied him and he turned and said to them. If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters.

Yes, even his own life. He cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. For which of you desiring to build a tower does not first sit down and count the cost whether he has enough to Enough to complete it.

Otherwise when he has finished when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish all who see it begin to mock him. Saying this man began to build it was not able to finish or what King going out to encounter another King in war.

Will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with 10 ,000 to meet him who comes against him with 20 ,000 and if not while the other is yet a great way off. He sent a delegation and asked for terms of peace.

So therefore any one of you who does not renounce all that he has Cannot be my disciple. Salt is good. But if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is of no use either for the soil or for the manure pile.

It is thrown away. He was ears to hear let him hear. May the Lord add his blessings to the reading of his Holy Word. And so we see here What Jesus tells us how what's it take to be Christian a disciple see that in three parts first the cost second the counting and finally the compromised.

First was first of the cost. Now some will object. Grace, they say is free. True. But it's free to get. But once you get it It will cost you everything. Now many of our day you don't get that difference.

They'll claim that there is no cost that nothing must be sacrificed. Nothing must be changed. This is really the same false Quote grace that the Lutheran pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer called cheap grace in his great book the cost of discipleship.

That cheap grace infected the church in Germany prior to the Nazis taking over there. How did the church there succumb to Nazism. Because they had been solely false Cheap grace. Bonhoeffer said quote cheap grace means the justification of sin.

Without the justification of the sinner grace alone does everything they say and so everything can remain as it was before. Well, then let the Christian live like the rest of the world. Let him model himself in the world standards in every sphere of life and Not presumptuously aspire to live a different life under grace from his old life under sin.

We were sold the same cheap grace here too in the South. How it's going to explain how people who call themselves Christians seeing sometimes a man emotionally about amazing grace. We're able to live just like the world around them.

No different the same racism same sexual immorality the same greed for stuff. Every bit and everybody we've been told can be part of this religion because it doesn't take much from you. Takes anything from you, but here the Lord Jesus says that it takes a cost.

Here at verse 25 the great crowds notice that begins with that great crowds follow Jesus from the end of chapter 9 in Luke. Jesus has set his face. From Luke chapter 9 verse 51. He says he set his face determined to go to Jerusalem.

Knowing what was waiting for him there. In fact, he was going for that very purpose. Now the crowds think success and power.

Wealth glory.

They're kind of earthly glory is waiting for for him and they want to ride his coattails to get all that stuff to. That's why the crowds were so big. This is success that's what they're after. They want what they thought he would bring.

That's why the smiling Prosperity teachers today are are so popular. You you know to be what's it take to be a prosperity a good popular preacher today? Well, you've got to have a nice smile. I try to try to work that nice hair I got that down and able to be able to talk entertainingly about how God has a fat and calf for you.

Or maybe a Rolls-Royce or a beach house or a six-figure salary or perfect health. Especially cartilage in your knee for you now. That's why Joel Osteen draws 52 ,000 attendees per week. That's about the whole population of the city of Danville every week.

Great crowds. What's it take to be a popular in the religion business? Here Jesus is popular. He's a success now. Surely we know it truly was a great communicator. He did miracles that helped but what else does it take?

It takes a message that people want to hear. How to have your best life now with no cost. So Jesus turns to these great crowds. Who think that's what they're gonna get from him. He turns to the great crowd and tells them about the cost.

There is a cost people who care more about the popularity of the success the wealth they can get from the great crowds. Care more about that than they do about what it takes to follow Christ. They won't tell those great crowds about the cost.

Joyce Myers has a 10 million dollar corporate jet a 107 thousand dollar silver gray Mercedes sedan sounds nice a two million dollar home and other houses worth another two million dollars. Now I wonder if you'd ever hear of the cost of discipleship.

From her she get all that stuff by telling people About the cost of discipleship you think? Well, she has a study Bible. She puts out so does Joel Osteen. He has another study Bible of his own. What do you think their study Bibles?

Say about this passage here. We just read. Where Jesus tells the crowds about the cost? We think it says Doesn't say anything. They just skip over it in silence. Joel Osteen has a big sidebar though about the very next passage about how God has a fattened calf just for you Prodigal son story the cost of discipleship.

Nothing. Let's move on. So here Jesus turns to the great crowds and He tells them he says if anyone anyone Remember that comes to me notice that this is it just for the elites not just for the special forces.

Not just for the higher tier of super spiritual saints. This is anyone and They're coming to Jesus. It's just you know, it's not Some special kind of coming to Jesus. It means coming to Jesus. You want to come to him?

Anyone wants to come to him? This is the cost anyone who comes to Jesus and Does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters. I should I say wife and children. I hope so and brothers and sisters.

Yes, and even his own life. He cannot be my disciple. What's the cost? The cost is that you hate what to other people are the nearest and the dearest. How can that how can that be? That that can't possibly be we think right now.

It's probably going through most of our heads that can't possibly mean what it says. So here we face a temptation. This is so radical. This is so extreme that we're tempted to interpret it away into Into meaninglessness to say that well He really means you don't idolize those relationships, but you love God and how do you love God?

Well, you love it by you love God by loving your mother and father and children and Wife and our husband and brothers and sisters and so on and of course to do that. You got to love them as yourself, which means you got to love yourself.

Right, you got to love yourself to love them. Which what we're supposed to do and and you love yourself by you know. Giving yourself a two million dollar home and a ten million dollar jet and a hundred and seven thousand dollars silver gray Mercedes and so on and on so basically.

Never mind.

Carry on as you were. We can do the same thing as Osteen and Myers due to this passage. Skip it. Now surely does it mean hey, does he. Now if I hate you mean just got a just a visceral dislike. Like the way you might hate that other basketball team.

We won't name any names here or hey. Cockroaches I did a cockroaches a stamp amount whenever I see one or hate us a style of music that just drives you up the wall off that whatever. Or Hate sagging pants, you know, let's hate that style.

If you mean we're supposed to just hate our nearest and dearest like that. Well, of course not. He teaches us to love our neighbors and certainly that includes parents and spouse and children. But it but it doesn't mean nothing either.

Be careful of people who interpret the Bible especially when it comes to passages like this that are difficult you think. Interpreted and it comes out after they interpreted it. It basically means nothing.

Carry on. He chose the word hate on purpose. He may not have minute meant us to take it literally that we're all right now, you know treat those you came to church with. Rudely try to get away from them as soon as possible.

Oh, I can't stand him. But he did mean something. He meant that by comparison your commitment to and love for the Lord will make your love for your parents or your spouse or your children. It'll make it look like hate.

That you will love them less than the Lord indeed that you will so love the Lord and be so committed to him. That your relationships with your parents or your spouse or your children. They are consumed by that love for the Lord.

You love them as a way to love the Lord you love them because you love the Lord. It's not that the Lord gets 51 percent of your love and then the rest you kind of divide up, you know. Maybe 40 goes to your spouse and maybe the rest to your children or parents or whatever.

Now the Lord gets all of your love consume within all of your commitment 100 and so now your relationships with your spouse your parents your children is a way to love and.

Serve.

Jesus it's not a rival that you have to wonder if I love in him or her too much. I Getting. I'm not getting where I'm loving him. 51 now. No, it's a way to show your love for Jesus practically. How does the Lord want me to love this person this?

Husband or wife of mine. Many think it's the other way around. They think that God exists, you know, this church this religion is here to help them enhance their relationships. God's out there to help me Have a better relationship with these people.

That's why churches that are focused on drawing great crowds instead of Pushing them away like Jesus was here, but the churches are focused on drawing in more often major on series. Series after series and things like how to have a better marriage how to raise better kids how to have a happy family.

That's just I don't think there's anything wrong with studying or reading or thinking about those kind of things. It's just that's their focus. Why is that their focus? Well people want a religion that serves these relationships, but here Jesus says that the costs are sacrificing.

Those relationships that's the cost. And he uses attention-grabbing terms I hate so you don't think this is just the usual kind of meaningless religious double-talk that you can just kind of turn off and.

Ignore.

You know, it's not the kind of thing you just suggest it would be nice if you gave more. Maybe if you can. But you're free to give a little tip to the Lord and splurge on yourself like some popular Preachers do on houses and cards and vacations.

It's not that kind of don't wishy-washy Talk that we're just so immersed in today. That's that's the cheap grace that Bonhoeffer was scolding and then asked nothing real from us. And so we indulge ourselves and we put relationships first no differently than the world around us.

No, he grabs our attention with that word hate because he wants us to get the point if you're to be his disciple. He must be.

Your all-in-all.

Notice a word that comes here. You might not have expected. Because there's other passages like a Matthew Jesus of similar things, but it's not in that past those passages. It is here in Luke. You know leaving our father and mother.

We can understand that. You know. We might have to go to what we have to go away to college or may have to move away because of a career or Because of marriage, okay. Understand that leaving our brothers and sisters.

That it might even be a relief for some of us. Right. I want to see if either David or Joe said amen on that. No, we neither did. Our Lauren or Santa or Noah? They didn't but speaking to speaking to the men here.

Jesus said they have to hate. Did you notice that? Hate your own wives. That's almost unbelievable today, I Mean this passage is unbelievable. Today, they were called on to put the Lord ahead of our wife or husband.

I've heard preachers that they're probing their their hearers. Doing a good job of it. I thought for all the things that they might love more than the Lord and they'll go through almost everything in life imaginable.

Their success their income their house their pets their boats their cars, you know, whatever you can think of. They'll leave out this one thing. I've never that far as I can remember heard this. Touched on.

I don't. I don't know if I've heard any preacher ever challenged us to that. We must not love our spouse more more than the Lord. I think it's almost considered. It's bad manners. To say that we're supposed to be promoting that relationship not.

Not downplaying it you can scold people for indulging on expensive vacations or too big of houses or Skipping church so they can take their poodle to the dog groomers because that was the sorry preacher.

But that was the only time open on Sunday morning, you know, yeah, this is a priority. But but it's like you mustn't touch.

You must not.

Touch the Relationship remember this passage comes immediately after his parable before. That passage about the kingdom of God is being a banquet. Many were invited. Remember that parable the mini invited the banquet.

Now once they said yes to the invitation they were supposed to come. But when the announcement was made that when the announcement was right, it was ready. They were supposed to come but instead they made excuses when I bought a field.

And I'll feel is for farming for putting food on the table. For us it's like having a career. Okay, we get it. We're not supposed to put the put the career ahead of the Lord. We're not we're not it's not a good excuse.

Well, we got to keep the business open on Sunday morning to make a little more money. Because you know, sorry we can't come to the worship. We can't come hear the Word of God because I got to make more a little few more dollars on Sunday morning.

We understand. Okay. No. Got it. The next one had had bought five yoke of oxen. Remember that he's got stuff. Equipment like tractors, maybe cars or maybe iPhones even airplanes if you're a successful prosperity preacher.

But but we get it that it takes. Being able to sacrifice the stuff to give generously not being so greedy for the newest gadget the newest luxury the newest vehicle that. That we got out we hoard our money and we don't give okay.

Got it. We got a part with the stuff. Then the third one says that he's married a wife and most of us today, but thank you. You're right. You can be excused. But the master of the house symbolizing God is angry at them all.

They were all.

Lame excuses. He does not accept marriage as an excuse to skip the invitation to the kingdom of God. He doesn't. Now today many people think it's just incredible that we criticize someone usually some young person, you know.

They could they've been sold by the movies and the songs. That the relationship is the meaning of life and maybe and they got the hormones going to. That usually some young person for dropping his or her church commitments to go dating on Sunday morning after all.

That's what you're doing. If you go to the you drop you don't go to the church you're committed to and go with your honey to his or her church. You're going on a date. But instead of it being a movie, it's a church service.

Now many our culture think that's just crazy to find anything wrong with that but understand what it takes to be a Christian. It takes a commitment a love in a delighting in God that sees his kingdom as a banquet.

It's more attractive than marriage. It puts the Lord above the relationship. That makes the relationship a way to serve God. That's what it takes. And going on a date on Sunday morning at the first sign that this might be the one.

It doesn't suggest you paid that price. But you might say but all these are good things. So it's a good relationship. I have a good girlfriend boyfriend, whatever. Why should we sacrifice good things?

Well, John Piper put it well. The greatest enemy of hunger for God is not poison, but apple pie. It's not the banquet of the wicked that dulls our appetite for heaven, but endless nibbling at the table of the world.

It's not the x-rated video, but the primetime dribble of triviality. We drink in every night for all the ill that Satan can do. When God describes what keeps us from the banquet table of his love it's a piece of land a yoke of oxen and a wife.

The greatest adversary of love to God is not his enemies but his gifts. Not only the relationship of sacrifice. Notice he says yes, I was. Can you believe it? Here's the cost. You must hate even yes, believe it or not your own life and Again, don't interpret it what this a way into meaninglessness.

You must hate your own life. That's what it takes. That's the cost. If anyone is able is not able to pay it. Jesus then says he cannot. Notice that at verse 26 cannot. He is unable to he lacks the ability.

He does not have what it takes. To be his disciple. So in verse 27 Whoever does not bear his own cross. And now think how shocking this was to the people in his day when Jesus said that this large crowd.

The mostly Jewish people are probably entirely Jewish people. He's saying this to you have to bear your own cross. Whoever does not do it. They're thinking they're following him to glory into power to them the cross, you know to them.

It wasn't a piece of jewelry. It wasn't a metaphor about you know, I have to bear my own cross. I don't have cartilage in my knee. He was far severer than that. They had seen men. It probably most of them had probably seen men.

Hauling crosses to their deaths being lashed by Roman soldiers as they go. It was a brutal Obscene form of execution is so loathsome. It was reserved for only for non Roman citizens for people that the Roman government first wanted to Humiliate then torture then used to terrorize all the other people around and then and only then finally.

To kill them.

That's what the cross meant to them. So whoever does not embrace that shame the torture of being denied what you crave What you what you think you have to have the comforts of this world.

Cannot.

Again, cannot.

Be my disciple. Anyone who isn't able to be humiliated before others and Mocked called a hater and a bigot or whatever and and even still die like like Jim Elliot cannot be Jesus's disciple. Jim Elliot was a missionary just in his 20s.

I believe his wife Elizabeth Elliot died just a few months ago and. So it's conceivable that if he had not been martyred when he was he that he could still be alive today. But he was he was killed. Speared to death in by natives in South America 60 years ago this past Monday.

He said he is no fool who gives what he cannot keep. To gain what he cannot lose. Anyone who isn't like him Cannot be Jesus's disciple. That's what it takes. That's the cost. Now he says Count them. Count the cost.

You know count that. It might mean breaking off a relationship that doesn't help you follow Jesus. It might mean being lonely from time to time. It might mean you can't afford that fancy vacation because you gave so much money.

You might mean you you you go without something that you would have liked to have had. Count the cost and then ask yourself honestly. Whether you're willing to pay it. That's what Jesus is saying to this great crowd.

If you're building a tower Or a house any structure first you need. You need an accurate estimate of how much it will cost, you know, don't just think it's kind of silly. Thank you. I want to build this and you just start out.

You know and then only later do you find out how much is involved with it. If that happens, you know. Everyone will see a half-completed building and mock you. Oh, there's that guy thought he could build a barn.

Look at that got a few pillars to get stuck up on the ground. That's it. Well, Jesus here is telling the great crowds be honest with yourself. About whether you have what it takes. You want to go with me to Jerusalem?

People to die. Be honest with yourself. Sit down. Count the cost. Alan here makes his living by counting the cost. He has to be accurate and honest about how much a project might cost now. I suppose I suppose you could get away with Telling some client that you can build their building for half of what everyone else out there is estimating.

They are your competition just to get the customer to like you. Sign the contract for you and like the way the prosperity preachers do skip over the skip over this passage. I guess you could Alan. Attract great crowds of customers for a short while by telling them that they hardly have to pay anything.

Well, we equality to show we'll build your building for heart for pennies. You get away with that right up until. Your business goes bankrupt and then Can't do anything for them because there are costs.

The price for not honestly reckoning whether you can meet them is high. It's either being mocked. People see you started but couldn't finish or it's like an army that went out to battle against the superior enemy.

You did devastation. The cost is high. Not counting the cost. So you need to first. Jesus says sit down. You're following me. People sit down. Think it over says that verse. Sit down in verse 28 and 31.

Like a king going out to battle.

Deliberate.

Carefully. If you have what it takes. Remember his face is set to go to Jerusalem to be crucified there then he turns around to these great crowds. And what does he say to them? Didn't say wow, this is great.

You know, we got a be like having a packed gym here. We don't have to have a curtain anymore. We just got it all the way back to the back door. This is great. Come back next week and bring a friend. No, he says you need to count the cost.

This is exactly the opposite of what so much evangelism does today today. We Count the numbers. We count how many heads in the crowd? How how high the attendance is those are the things we count. How much money comes in?

We often lower the cost. Telling people that they don't really have to give up much they don't have to really they're not gonna have to give up their sins. They're their live-in boyfriend or girlfriend.

They can still pursue wealth above all that's fine. We skip over passages like this and in our study Bibles and then if they agree to pay little cost we rush them through a prayer and now often a. Spontaneous baptism.

Spontaneous baptisms are now a fashion even in Baptist churches people come forward on a Sunday morning. Not told they have to pay any cost and are then maybe baptized right then and there on that very morning or maybe.

Maybe they got to warm up the baptistry Sunday night. The thinking is that that's the way to grow crowds. You kind of pay little baby steps get them to say a few they believe in a few doctrines and. You know, they'll come for the show.

There were the thinking is we're just called to make Christians who are somehow aren't disciples. Anyway, but notice here if you want to come to him in any way whatsoever come to him. You must hate all your other relationships and first sit down.

Sit down.

Rush through. Don't rush to it. Think carefully about whether you have what it takes. Deliberate and.

Then.

Well for us then let's remember that Jesus said we are to baptize. Who we baptize. He told us to remember in Matthew 28 baptize. Go therefore and make disciples and baptize. Disciples baptize them. Who are the disciples.

Baptized disciples and to be a disciple. What's it take? Well, he tells us right that right here or must hate every other rival to Jesus and examine oneself whether he or she can do that. Then he or she can be baptized.

That's why we don't do spontaneous baptisms. Can some six year old kid. Say manipulated into a repeat after me prayer by a Sunday school teacher. Does he or she a little kid have what it takes to decide to a little kid little Joey?

Are you gonna hate your father and mother? Give all to Jesus. Renounce everything you have. Does he or she have what it takes to have Jesus is her all in all carefully deliberate count the cost. And come to a decision that yes, I'll deny myself and take up my cross and hate my life.

You think a little kid? Has what it takes to do that? If not Then how can we baptize them? When he turns to this great crowd and he tells them You need to hate everything compared to your commitment to me and you better think it over Before rushing into something that you can't finish.

So therefore in verse 33 here's really the conclusion of it all. The cost that you have to sit down and count. What's the cost?

Any one of you.

To this great crowd he's speaking.

Any one of you.

Today and be comfortable people nicely dressed sitting in comfy chairs. Sorry, our chairs are really aren't that comfy. Comfy chairs at our satellite campuses you who are there and are you know other campus?

Loving our music that's especially chosen to appeal to your taste. Everything in the church especially designed to make you feel comfortable. To give you the feeling that there's no price that you'll have to pay.

That's not what he says he says any one of you who does not renounce all. That he has. You think being asked to give 10 is an old legalistic duty that now that we're free of and so now we're free of it.

We can just splurge on ourself. I'll give me that two thousand hundred and seven thousand and silver gray Mercedes.

No.

You must renounce and the Greek word there means to separate from to withdraw from to forsake. You must renounce Everything and the Greek word there means get this write it down.

Everything.