At one point he
describes the occupations, material success, and living arrangements of
Americans in the 1700’s, including a description of their homes. Page 100
includes the following about what was to be the most magnificent home built
during the 1700’s:
"The greatest
early 18th-century house in America was Rosewell, erected by Mann Page ... in
1726 on the York river. Page had this superb house built using designs ...
published in London ... Page overspent, his grand house was unfinished when he
died in 1730, and his debts exceeded the value of all his property ... Rosewell
... was burned down in 1916."
Compare this to
Luke 14:26-30,33, where Jesus said:
"If anyone comes
to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and
sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. And whoever does
not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. For which of you,
intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether
he has enough to finish it – lest, after he has laid the 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.’ ... So likewise, whoever of you does not
forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple."
Consider the
lessons we can learn:
The Cost of
Discipleship
===============
Jesus said one
cannot be His disciple unless he first hates his own father, mother, wife,
children, brothers, sisters, and even his own life.
"Hate"
here does not mean to have no love at all nor to actively seek the harm of
others. Jesus also said we must even hate our own lives. Surely this is not
absolute or literal. We should love others as we love ourselves, and no one
hates his own flesh (Matthew 22:36-40; Ephesians 5:29). The Bible teaches us to
love all people, especially our family (Matthew 22:36-40; Titus 2:4; Ephesians
5:25-29).
The meaning here,
as shown by context, is to love them less than we love others. In this case we
must love Jesus more than we do our family members, so we are willing, if
necessary, to give up our relationship with them or give up our lives in order
to follow Jesus fully.
We may never
actually be required to literally give up our relationship with our loved ones
to please the Lord, and we may never be required to actually die for His cause,
but we must be willing to do so.
This is what it
costs to be a disciple. And Jesus says that people who are not willing to pay
this price simply cannot be His disciple. They may think they are disciples,
and they may appear to others to be. But Jesus does not consider half-hearted
followers to be true disciples. There is no point starting to serve the Lord,
unless we are willing to give true, whole-hearted commitment, seeking His will
above all else.
[Compare Matthew
6:19-33; 10:34-39; 16:24-27; Romans 8:5-8; 12:1,2; John 6:27,63; Luke 12:15-21;
1 Timothy 4:8; 6:6-19; 2 Corinthians 4:16-18; 8:5; 10:3,4; Colossians 3:1,2;
Galatians 2:20.]
Consider the Cost
===========
To be a disciple
of Jesus one must pay a severe cost. Sacrifice and hardship are required. So
Jesus urges people to consider the cost before becoming disciples. Many, after
becoming disciples, will be rejected because they are unwilling to continue. So
one should realize from the outset what he is getting into.
Jesus illustrated
the need to count the cost of discipleship by describing a man who would begin
to build a tower without first considering how much it would cost, to see
whether or not he could afford it. If one does not consider the cost
beforehand, he may begin to build but be unable to finish. People will then see
how silly he was.
Likewise, if we
are not willing to pay the price to serve Jesus, there is no point in
beginning. We should consider this beforehand.
Of course, Jesus
is not really hoping people will decide not to become disciples. He wants all
to be saved (2 Peter 3:9). We need to consider, not just the cost of being a
disciple, but also the cost of not being a disciple. That cost is far greater
(Matthew 10:28).
The point is that
we are better off not to start at all than to start and quit (2 Peter 2:20-22).
And even further, if we start serving Jesus without realizing the sacrifices
involved, we are likely to be discouraged and quit when we learn what it
requires. However, if we know from the outset what is required, we are more
likely to make a true commitment and then remain faithful when the hardships
come.
Jesus then said
that the price we must be willing to pay is to forsake all that we have (verse
33). Again, we may not physically lose all we possess, but we must be willing
to do so if necessary to please the Lord. And many have made exactly this
sacrifice. And even if we do not lose all our possessions physically, we must
commit ourselves to using them for His service.
Far too many of
us are too attached to our material pursuits: possessions, pleasures, sports,
travel, entertainment, recreation. If we are not willing to sacrifice them for
His cause, we simply cannot be disciples.
Are we willing to
pay the price?
(C) Copyright 2017, David E. Pratte You are free to keep copies of this material on computer and/or in printed form for your own further study. If you have any other requests about the use of this material, please read our copyright guidelines at www.gospelway.com/copyrite.htm.
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