Count the cost

[B-A-C]

Luke 14:25; Now large crowds were going along with Him; and He turned and said to them,
Luke 14:26; "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.
Luke 14:27; "Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.
Luke 14:28; "For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it?
Luke 14:29; "Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who observe it begin to ridicule him,
Luke 14:30; saying, 'This man began to build and was not able to finish.'
Luke 14:31; "Or what king, when he sets out to meet another king in battle, will not first sit down and consider whether he is strong enough with ten thousand men to encounter the one coming against him with twenty thousand?
Luke 14:32; "Or else, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace.
Luke 14:33; "So then, none of you can be My disciple who does not give up all his own possessions.

I used to wonder if people considered Jesus as controversial back in ancient times as He is now?
I don't really wonder that anymore

miseō
mis-eh'-o
From a primary word μῖσος misos (hatred); to detest (especially to persecute); by extension to love less: - hate (-ful).

Verse 26 says "hate" but the greek word here is miseo. Which can also simply mean "love less".
Jesus needs the most important person in our lives. He needs to be our BFF as kids today would say.
More important than you father, mother, brothers, sisters, and even your children. I wonder how many people can honestly say that? How many times do we put Jesus "on hold" while we do things with our families?

Jesus says... if you don't love them less.... "he cannot be my disciple". It seems that disqualifies a lot of people.

He also says.... whoever does not carry "HIS OWN" cross... and... (there's an "and"?) come after me....
People helps us... I dare say none of us can not carry our cross alone. But He doesn't carry all of it for us.
It takes effort to die to self. To beat down selfishness and ego. I wonder why there is an "and" in this verse?

Could it be that some will "take up there cross"... but still not follow Jesus? It certainly works the other way...
Some say they follow Jesus... but have no need to drag that heavy ole cross around. The thing is... it isn't that heavy (Matt 11:30; 1 Jn 5:3; ) when Jesus is helping you.

Jesus gives several warnings here about starting something that you aren't prepared to finish. Now why would He do that? Could it be that some people start carrying their cross.. and perhaps even start following Him... but don't really want to finish.

He gives an example of a man building a tower.... He says usually people sit down and count the cost before they start building the tower. Otherwise... when you get halfway done and everyone looks at it... they will ridicule you. Worse yet, how many people cause people to ridicule God because they decided the cost was too high after they started? ( Rom 2:24; )

He gives a second example about a king that is about to face an enemy. He counts the cost of war.
Is it too lop-sided? Is it more than he is prepared to pay? The king is wise enough to at least give terms of surrender if he doesn't want to fight and pay the price of battle. Once you are in the heat of battle, the opposing army isn't always quick to throw down their weapons and stop fighting just because you don't feel like it anymore. If this is you, it might be better not to get into the army in the first place.

In verse 33 Jesus finishes this discourse with....

"So then, none of you can be My disciple who does not give up all his own possessions."

Does this really mean we have to give up EVERYTHING to follow Jesus? Our fathers, mothers, suisters, brothers, children... our houses, jobs, cars money... ?

I don't think that's always necessary. It seems the point here is.... do you love these things "more" or "less" than Jesus? If you're not sure... He has ways of testing you. There once was a man named Abraham who had a son named Isaac that he loved more than anything else. Abraham was willing to pay the price.

Are you?

I wonder.. if it is "just coincidence" that the next two verses are...

Luke 14:34; "Therefore, salt is good; but if even salt has become tasteless, with what will it be seasoned?
Luke 14:35; "It is useless either for the soil or for the manure pile; it is thrown out. He who has ears to hear, let him hear."

This seems to coincide with....

Matt 5:13; "You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men.

We are the salt of the earth.... but apparently we can become "tasteless". We were good for something at one point.... but now... "it is "no longer" good for anything.
Luke says it is good for the manure pile

Can the cost be so high... that we lose our flavor?

 

[HisFollower]

[for me anyway] it is not a scholastically achieving endeavor to know the count that we must count, and yet many are still until now falsely taught that nothing is required of them, and so they go forth supposing that all things are good for them with God, because they were told (by someone) that they get to go to heaven, and their sins are already forgiven them, and they need not do anything.

 

[Lanolin]

Yep, Jesus said we are to give our lives to follow Him. That means everything, cos you cannot take your car, job, money with you. You cant take your family with you if they dont want to follow Jesus. JEsus may let you take your car, but why would you take your house unless it was on wheels. Jesus prepares a place for you what will you be needing a house for?! Why would you need money when everything God gives is free. And why would you need a job when we have entered into His rest and just do what He would have us do?

I dont know about the car though. If I cant take car, then maybe a bicycle, but failing that could just walk or catch public transport.

But I'm sure preferred mode of transport would be walking on water or rising on eagles wings.

I think it is necessary. Remember reading a book about keith green and his wife was asked by God whether she could give up her babies. She was like..um...

Anyway her husband died in a plane crash with two of her children. She was pregnant and had one other daughter.

Sometimes, it is necessary. We all going to give our lives to the Lord at some stage, we dont always know when it is for others. For some it is sooner rather than later.

What is the cost, well it is Jesus life for ours,,,but maybe more important is, how are we going to finish, where are we going to end up, is it the expected end...to be with God our Father.

God has been showing me I need to finish what I start, like it would start to annoy me if I left a project undone, for example the baby jacket I took five years to knit and ran out of wool, so I needed to to and buy some more but didnt have the same one i had bought from the shop when I first bought it. And then when I did find it I didnt know how to sew it up but mercifully my neighbour helped me. But...I got it finished and then My friend bought it as a gift for someone else, because the one I originally knitted it for was like five years old and too big for it now. So I think God helped me out there and I didnt lose the savour...I could have thrown it out as good for nothing if had left it half finished!!!

 

[Psalm23Rick]

As a remnant believer, my reply to ANY question the Lord asks of me is "Yes Lord" -- I am incapable of saying "no" to Him. For me, I have lost all that I had in the world, gladly, to follow Him. As such, I will do anything and go anywhere He's asking me to go. I've found myself in prayer a considerable number of times saying things as they flow out of my mouth, led by the Spirit, and my mind is thinking at the same time "uhh. Hmm.. That's going to be painful..." but I'm unable to undo that prayer regardless of the pain involved with whatever was prayed. The Lord spoke through my mouth while in my car back at the end of May after a very moving service I attended. On my way home, the Holy Spirit spoke through my mouth (to myself only - I was the only one in the car) while sitting at a traffic light. He said "Nothing matters. What family wants doesn't matter, what the world wants doesn't matter, what I want doesn't matter.... Only what Jesus wants matters." I think that pretty much sums up my particular walk of faith.

 

[Br. Bear]

And beholding the man which was healed standing with them, they could say nothing against it. But when they had commanded them to go aside out of the council, they conferred among themselves, saying, What shall we do to these men? for that indeed a notable miracle hath been done by them is manifest to all them that dwell in Jerusalem; and we cannot deny it. But that it spread no further among the people, let us straitly threaten them, that they speak henceforth to no man in this name. And they called them, and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John answered and said unto them, Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye. For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard. So when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding nothing how they might punish them, because of the people: for all men glorified God for that which was done
Acts 4:14-21

And when they had brought them, they set them before the council: and the high priest asked them, Saying, Did not we straitly command you that ye should not teach in this name? and, behold, ye have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and intend to bring this man's blood upon us. Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, Whom ye slew and hanged on a tree. Him hath God exalted with His right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins. And we are His witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, Whom God hath given to them that obey Him.
When they heard that, they were cut to the heart, and took counsel to slay them.
Acts 5:27-33