Grace mercy and peace to you from God our Father through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. Our text today is the Gospel lesson that was just read (Luke 14:25-35) especially verse 27, "Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple." Thus far our text.
Dear friends in Christ. What is the cost? How much will that be? We are used to calculating the cost for other things aren't we? $3 or so for a gallon of gas. $4 for a gallon of milk. Even in big things, we like to count the cost: $30,000 for a new truck or $100,000 for a new house. For everything there is a cost. We have all heard the saying, there is no such thing as a free lunch. But here today, we are at church, and Jesus is telling us to count the cost? What is the cost of being a follower of Jesus? How much do I have to pay to be a disciple? Our text answers that question, telling us
The cost of being a disciple of jesus is more than we can afford, but even then Christ pays the price for us.
i.
Let's count the cost. In our text today, Jesus says "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yea even his own self, he cannot be my disciple." Wait Pastor, what are you saying? To be a follower of Jesus I am supposed to hate people, especially those people who are closest to me? That doesn't sound like Christianity. How can I hate my father, mother, wife and children? Is that really the cost of following Jesus?
Yes. To really be Jesus' follower, it costs everything. I want to be clear, Jesus does not expect us to be cruel or mean to our family He has given. Rather, we are to love Him first. Jesus is to be number one, with absolutely no competition. We are to love Jesus so much that we follow him forsaking our family and friends if need be, leaving them behind. This relates directly to the first commandment, which our confirmation students will tell you (especially since this is their memory work for the week) is "You shall have no other Gods." Meaning we should fear love and trust in God above all things. In other words, Jesus should be number one.
That is difficult for us to do isn't it? How often is Jesus really number one in our lives? Instead don't we have all sorts of other things and people that we worry about? We worry about our Children, and what is going on in their lives. We worry about our friends, and what they can do to help us. We worry about how we are going to make ends meet this month. We worry whether or not the crops will be good this year or whether they will struggle. Have we had enough rain, or too much?
We worry about all these things, and in the midst of all this worry, Jesus often gets lost. When we do this, Jesus is no longer most important. When we think things like these, we are not paying the true cost to be a disciple of Jesus, we leave it an unpaid debt. "Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple." Instead of paying the cost, we often care more about the things of this world, including family and friends, more that Jesus. The cost of following God, requires us to give up our friends and family, and all our Earthly possessions to follow Jesus.
II
Jesus goes even further, stating that we ourselves also can be the problem. "If anyone comes to me and does not hate…. even his own life, he cannot be my disciple." Yes, we even must hate ourselves in comparison to Jesus. We cannot allow our own selfish thoughts and concerns to separate us from Him.
But even so, often times they do, don't they? We like to be in charge. We like to make our own decisions and do our own things. Given the choice, I would like to sit on the couch and watch football all day, (especially when Nebraska and North Dakota State both win) rather then spend some time in reading God's word. I would rather go fishing then pray about what is happening in my life. It is what I want. It is what I desire. Sometimes, I don't even think I am that bad of a person, as to need Jesus around all the time. Is it the same with you? Do you have something that separates you from Jesus? Something in yourself that you like just a little too much to give it up should the need arise?
The answer, is yes. Sin is that thing in your life that separates you from Christ and that you cannot and will not give up on your own. Sin infects our entire being, it makes us completely self absorbed and unable to pay the cost required by God. In theology we say that sin makes us completely turned in upon ourselves (incurvatus se). In our sin we cannot see past our own nose enough to even consider being Jesus' disciple.
The cost for being Jesus' disciple is complete and total. It involves giving up everything we have, giving up our family, our friends and our selves to follow Jesus. Perhaps it is best said by Dietrich Bonhoffer, a great Lutheran theologian from the 1930's. He says "When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die." In other words, God requires us to give up everything to be in relationship with him. God wants you to give up everything in this sinful world, even your own life, and instead to be His possession. That is the true Cost of discipleship. As Jesus says in our text, "Therefore any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple."
III
So how do we pay? How do we make sure that we can afford to really be Christ's disciple? Dear friends, we on our own cannot do this thing, and so we must rely on one who can. Jesus Christ walked the way of the perfect disciple of God. He was sent do to the works of His Father, and He did them to perfection. He was the obedient Son, giving up everything on this Earth, his Family, his friends, his possessions, yes even his own life to pay the price required of you. That obedience was a pure and perfect love for God. As Jesus hung bleeding and naked on the cross, there was nothing left for him to give up, he had given it all up for you.
Jesus paid your cost. He paid the price you owe because of your sin. He paid the price required of you to be a disciple of Jesus. In your baptistm, you were clothed with Jesus, and share in his death. You have taken up your cross, and followed Jesus. In your baptism, all you have and own was given away. In your baptism, even your life is taken and killed with Christ, and then raised it again into glory eternal. With that death and resurrection of Jesus, your lust and passion for sin has been destroyed. Your have been freed from a bondage to the wants and worries of this world. You have paid the cost of discipleship with the very blood of Jesus.
And now, with that cost paid, you are set free. No longer need you worry about how ends will meet, or how the bills will be paid, for the highest cost is paid by Jesus. No longer do you need to worry about anything, for Christ has called you to be his disciple, and paid the price for your life. Yes there are struggles here, but ultimatelyh Christ is victorious over them all. Your sin is now as far from you as the east is from the West. It no longer can haunt you, or separate you from anyone. It is completely and totally forgiven.
Everything here on Earth does have its cost, but Christ has paid the cost required of you. Christ has paid the price that has brought you admission into the heavenly kingdom of God. Christ has made you his own. Amen.
Now may the peace of God which surpasses all human understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus Our Lord. Amen.
