Luke 14:26-27 (ESV) “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 own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.
Jesus now continues with His teaching to tell us that following him costs everything. Following Jesus must come before family and keeping your own life. Our devotion to serving and loving Jesus must be so much higher than our devotion to our family, it appears to be hate. Jesus of course is exaggerating by using the word hate to make His point. We know from many other Scriptures that we are to love our families. To bear your own cross is to die to yourself and your plans for your life in order to follow Jesus.
Luke 14:28-30 (ESV) For 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 begin to mock him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’
Jesus gives an example of a person who wanted to build a tower. Before He begins, he needs to make plans and count the cost so that he can complete it. In the same way, those who choose to follow Jesus must count the cost before making the commitment. The cost of following Jesus is 100% commitment for the rest of your life.
Luke 14:31-32 (ESV) Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace.
A second example with a king counting the cost of going to battle. If the king doesn’t count the cost, he would experience a tragic loss. Counting the cost enables the king do ask for terms of peace. Each of us is like the king of our own lives before we meet Jesus. Jesus the king of kings is infinitely stronger than anyone of us. So, the only rational decision is to surrender to Jesus under His terms. The alternative is to suffer eternal loss. Jesus concludes in …
Luke 14:33 (ESV) So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.
In order to be a disciple of Jesus, one most give up everything he has. When you give up everything, you give it up to Jesus to use however He directs. To hold onto anything for yourself alone is not permitted for a follower of Jesus.
Luke 14:34-35 (ESV) “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 who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
In this final example of Jesus, salt represents the follower of Jesus who adds flavoring and preservative to the world around him. In Jesus’ day, salt was taken from the Dead Sea and was a mixture of salt and insoluble minerals. If the salt was washed away, the remaining deposit was useless representing the world. Of no use at all. A follower of Jesus must remain salty, different from the world, in order to influence the world. A disciple must count the cost and give up everything to Jesus.
What is God calling you to give to Him as a disciple of Jesus? Is it a secret sin that no one knows except you, that He is calling you to give up? Or is it something good that keeps you from spending time with Jesus? Or it may be a relationship or habit that is drawing you away from Jesus. Or maybe Jesus is calling you to do something you don’t want to do and you must give up your own feelings and fears to follow Him.
If you’re honest with yourself, I think each one of us could think of something God is calling us to do that we’ve been resisting doing. For some, it might be repenting of your sin and putting your faith in Jesus. For others, you may never have been water baptized since believing. For yet others, you may never have been Spirit baptized and are not seeking it.
Today, God is calling you to give up everything to Jesus. If there are excuses coming into your head right now, those are not from God. Put them out of your mind and tell the Lord that you are giving Him everything this morning. Then get specific with the areas that you haven’t surrendered to Him. Ask for His forgiveness and give Him thanks for being invited to His banquet.
The kingdom banquet that Jesus is inviting us to is worth giving up everything we have in this life, including our very lives. Those who take up their cross and follow Jesus will find true life worth it all.