THE COST OF DISCIPLESHIP

Luke 14: 25-33

Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Amen. Our text for this mornings meditation is recorded in the Gospel of St. Luke, chapter 14, verses 25 through 33, but particularly these words: “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. ” This is our text.

In the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ dear Christian friends. The story is told of a pastor who had just finished putting the weekly notices on the outside bulletin board in front of the church. The message for the week was the Bible verse; “The wages of sin is death.”As the pastor walked away, he noticed a drunk stagger past the church and stop to read the sign. Not seeing the pastor, the man went weaving on down the sidewalk muttering to himself, “Well, that’s one price that hasn’t gone up!”

In spite of his drunken state, that man never spoke a truer word. When it comes to the cost of sin, no inflation is possible. That’s because sin — any sin — little sin or big sin — demands the ultimate payment — and that is eternal death. The price just can’t go any higher than that — there is no higher price. And the price will never get any lower, because that is one of God’s unchangeable laws — “The soul that sins, it shall die.”We might convince ourselves that we can get away with sin, but God, who sees everything, knows our sin.

There is only one way that we can avoid the wages of sin. There is only one way we can find forgiveness for our sins — and that is to look to the cross of Jesus Christ. The same verse that tells us that “The wages of sin is death”also tells us that “the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

In order to avoid the wages of sin — we must put ourselves in the loving forgiveness of Jesus Christ. He died our death for us. He paid the price for our sins. He set us free. He has given to us the promise of eternal life.

But before we get the idea that since we are forgiven, we now have a free joy ride for life — we had better take a closer look at today’s text. Our text for today warns us that there is a price tag on being a follower of Jesus Christ. And what is more, that cost can skyrocket at any moment. The cost of discipleship can be so inflated that the prices of gas and the prices of groceries will seem like nothing by comparison. And that is where a problem develops for many Christians. When discipleship, following Jesus, starts costing them something — they default. One might get the idea that they think that the wages of sin would be cheaper than the cost of following Christ.

To a great extent that is what is happening in churches all over the world this day. People want their names on the roles — but don’t want to be involved in anything. People sign up for church — but don’t attend worship. Somehow they get the idea that God is looking at church records – and NOT the heart!

Our text is a very timely one — because all around us we see people who are looking for a religion of convenience. They want a faith that doesn’t cost them anything. People of our day and time are looking for a cheaper kind of discipleship than what Jesus demands of his followers. Of course, we’re not JUST talking money — we’re ALSO talking about time and talents — we’re talking about training of our children — we’re talking about Bible study and fellowship,– we’re talking about service to God and man done together. When we are asked to serve — too often the excuse is — “I don’t have the time.” What we’re really saying is — “The cost of discipleship is too high for me. Something else is more important.”

In our text Jesus tells us that one of the problems which leads to the rising cost of discipleship is that many people misread the price tag to begin with.

No one today, would try to build a three bedroom house with only $10,000 of financing available. That much might buy you a small lot in a “not to prestigious” neighborhood. But it certainly would not pay for slab, and walls, and wiring, and plumbing, painting, cabinets, and all the other things it takes to build a house. Jesus said in our text, “Which of you desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise when he has laid a foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it will begin to mock him.”In our text, Jesus also used the example of a king about to go to war. No king would attack an enemy without first finding out how many soldiers the enemy had ready for battle.

A lot of people join the “Christian side” because they think that is the easy way out. Our text tells us point blank — that the Christian life will be a costly life for a follower of Jesus.

I know the bible says that the “Gift of God is eternal life.” But with that gift also comes certain responsibilities. Jesus described it pretty well when he described his own life’s work and purpose, “The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many.”God did not give to you and to me the free gift of eternal life so that we might sit back and enjoy life — but rather, he made us his disciples, by grace, so that we could serve him and our fellow man.

The German Lutheran Pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer, wrote a book during World War II called, “THE COST OF DISCIPLESHIP.” And only a few months later, he was executed by Hitler’s men. He was ready to pay the price of discipleship. Persecution has marked the history of the church from the very beginning as the early prophets, apostles and Christians were ready to suffer even death rather than to deny their Lord and Savior. As Jesus said in our text for today, “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. Whoever does not bear his cross, cannot be my disciples.”

A man stopped at the grocery store and asked for a quarters worth of tomatoes. But the clerk told him they could not cut the tomatoes, he would have to buy at least one whole one. That kind of inflation also affects our cost of discipleship. It costs more to be a Christian today than it did 10 or 15 or 20 years ago. There is so much more violence and immorality in our society today. There is NO respect for the authority of teachers in the classroom, or of policemen on the street, or of Pastors in the pulpit, or of any other person of authority any more — everyone is their own personal authority. Television shows, movies, magazines, and other media throw trash at us and our children day in and day out. The evil world has more influence on people today than the church has, because of peer pressure. It has always been hard to maintain our Christian faith because of the Devil, the World, and our own sinful flesh. But in my humble opinion, it is more costly to be a Christian today, then it has been in the past. The percentage of Christians in the world is dropping fast. There are more of them – and less of us each day. But the cost can go higher still. ARE WE READY FOR THE HIGHEST COST? Jesus said, “Whoever of you does not renounce all that he has, cannot be my disciple.”

Is Christianity worth the cost. You have a Savior who loves you and died for you. You have a God who gave you life and preserves your life. You have God’s promise that he who believes and is baptized shall be saved. You have God’s promise of eternal life — beginning now — and lasting forever and ever.

I have a needlepoint hanging at home that my mother did for me years ago. It is a picture of Jesus with these words, “I never promised it would be easy — just that it would be worth it.” That is the lesson from today’s text. To God be the glory. Amen

May the peace of God which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus unto life everlasting. Amen.