15th Sunday after Pentecost
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Luke 14:25-33 -- The Cost of Discipleship

Focus (means): Even when we were not committed to him, Jesus Christ was completely committed to us and to dying on the cross to win our salvation. Malady: We don't examine our commitment to follow Jesus because we are afraid that it may change the way that we live our lives. Function (Goal): That the hearer would consider his or her commitment to follow Jesus Christ.

Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our father and our Lord and savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

I have to be honest with you all, I do not like the gospel lesson for today. It challenges me in just about every way. It has caused me a large amount of difficulty and grief this week. I'm not simply talking about difficulty in finding something to say about the text; I mean, how do I put what Jesus is telling me into practice? How do I live my life in the way that Jesus says a disciple should? And how can I preach about such things when I'm unable to live them out myself?

    I have known for weeks that this text was coming but I still found myself unprepared for its arrival. I talked to several other pastors about the text this week, the best advice that I probably got was that I should just preach on the epistle lesson or the Old Testament lesson. This idea was tempting, but I don't want to shy away from a particular word from Jesus just because it is hard or because I find it personally challenging. The words which are challenging and hard are so often the ones that we desperately need to hear. So I decided that we should press on with our gospel lesson for this morning.

    Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem. He is being followed by a great crowd. All of a sudden, Jesus stops and starts saying some really hard things to hear. He tells the 1 crowd what he expects of them if they are going to follow him. He gives them three requirements -- three things that he expects from his disciples.

    First, Jesus says, “Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, cannot be my disciple.” These words seem extremely harsh. What about the fourth commandment -- to honor my father and mother? What about the promises I made to my wife? What about my obligations to my brother and sister?

    Many Bible commentators I saw (and even some translations of the Bible) will try to make this a little more palatable. A little less terrible. They will tell you that what Jesus really means is, “love less.” We should love father and mother less than him. We should love wife and children less than him. We should love our own lives less than him. That would be convenient but it would also let us off the hook.To be sure, Jesus is not talking about an emotional hatred. And he is not urging his followers to dismiss the fourth commandment or to shrink from our responsibilities to spouse, children, or family members.

    So what does this mean then? Are we to dishonor and mistreat our parents? By no means. I want to share with you what the Dutch Lutheran theologian, Soren Kierkegaard, had to say about this text. He said, “If I regard the requirement as a paradox, then I understand it...in the way one can understand a paradox. The absolute duty can then lead to what ethics would forbid...This is shown by Abraham. The moment he is ready to sacrifice Isaac, the ethical expression for what he does is this: he hates Isaac. But if he actually hates Isaac he can be certain that God does not require this of him...He must love Isaac with all his soul. When God asks for Isaac, Abraham must if 2 possible, love him even more, and only then can he sacrifice him; for it is indeed this love of Isaac that in its paradoxical opposition to his love of God makes his act a sacrifice.”

    Kierkegaard's point is that this requirement of Jesus actually requires us to love those people more. If we detest them, then we aren't really sacrificing what Jesus requires.

    The second requirement that Jesus lays down for his disciples is to carry their crosses and follow him. Jesus was headed to Jerusalem. He knew that when he got there, the cross would be waiting for him -- death would be waiting for him. He was going there to suffer and die for the sins of the world. To take on the punishment for our sins. And so he is calling us into this same journey. This journey of dying and rising again. Of being crucified and raised to new life. In a very real sense, this also means that we must be willing to die for Jesus.

    The third, and final, requirement which Jesus lays out for those who wish to be his disciples is that they must give up all their possessions. Not be willing to give up all your possessions, but plain and simple -- give up all your possessions.

    What these three requirements really get down to is our absolute devotion and allegiance. Jesus is telling us that if we are going to be his disciples, then our devotion has to be to him and him alone. If something else gets in the way of that, then that thing has to go. There is no room for compromise or half-hearted allegiance. It has to be 100%, complete devotion! Jesus is asking us to count the cost of discipleship and to honestly asses whether or not we have what it takes to follow him.

    Now that you have heard that Jesus expects from his disciples, does it make you feel a comfortable? Does it sound easy? Do you have what it takes? I'm not sure I have what it takes to follow Jesus...hating father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters...giving up all my possessions...being willing and ready to die for Jesus...living like this seems nearly incomprehensible to me. No, I'm not sure I have what it takes...in fact, I'm pretty sure I DO NOT have what it takes to be a follower of Jesus. I'd be surprised if there was anybody here today who has what it takes.

    But perhaps this is the point. Perhaps Jesus wants us to see that we don't have what it takes. We can't meet these requirements perfectly -- not even close. We can't do it on our own. I'm pretty sure that Jesus issued these requirements knowing that we can't meet them. He gave them to us because he wants us to reflect on our devotion to him. He wants us to see just how unworthy we are...just how utterly incapable we are of following him like we should.

    When we look at our own inability to follow Jesus and to meet his requirements, there is temptation to despair. Temptation to look at our situation and to despair our not being able to follow Jesus. But maybe this is the place where we really need to be. A place where we know that we cannot do it on our own. A place where we must rely on Jesus Christ to do it for us. I am reminded of God's words the the Apostle Paul, “My power is made perfect in weakness.” We are weak, but God is strong. We are unable to practice absolute faithfulness and devotion, but Jesus practiced absolute faithfulness and devotion to his father's plan to save us. In fact, it was because we could not do anything to make ourselves worthy that God sent his Son to make us worthy.

    And so when we read this text; when we hear what Jesus requires of his followers, we are left feeling drained of our own powers. And this is exactly where we should be! Because when we have given up on doing things on our own, God will come and do things for us. Because we are unworthy on our own, God has sent his son to make us worthy. Amen.

    And now may the peace of God which surpasses all understanding, keep our hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus to life everlasting. Amen.