Year C
Luke 14:25-33
The Very Rev. Denise Vaughn
To Count the Cost
In my Disciples Study Bible, our gospel passage for today is titled “The Cost of Being a Disciple.” This title gives me a pretty good clue that these verses are about what it costs to be a disciple of Jesus. Even before I read the verses, the title lead me to speculate as to just what that cost might be. Is it a cost paid in dollars and cents? Is it something I can afford? My understanding of the Christian faith leads me to guess that the cost of discipleship would include: loving God and all people; and giving a percentage of my income, the biblical tithe is 10% given to the work of the church. Therefore, without even reading the text I’ve got a pretty good idea of what the cost of discipleship is.
So now, because I know what being a disciple would cost me, if I were applying for the job of disciple, I could work out the business of salary and benefits and even talk about a retirement plan with the Lord. I know what it will cost so now, what will I get out of it. And it may just be that kind of attitude of ‘following’ that Jesus sensed in the large crowd gathered around him. Jesus wasn’t impressed by numbers. Yes, the larger the crowd the better to hear his words and see his deeds but had these people come to hear the word of God or were they just curiosity seekers? Did they really want to get closer to God or were they along for the ride to see what they could get out of him: a healing possibly?
There had to be those in the crowd who were interested in being disciples, but did they really have any idea what it might cost them to follow Jesus? It seems to me that what Jesus is asking the large crowd of possible followers that day is: if you think you want to follow me, have you considered what that decision will mean for you, and are you willing to pay the price? Certainly, the crowd could not grasp the significance of this journey to Jerusalem. In a matter of days, Jesus will be arrested in the Garden of Gesthemene. He will pay the ultimate price for his ministry and there will also be a cost to the followers.
Most of the apostles will be martyred. Stephen, the first deacon in the church, will be stoned to death for teaching of God’s love in Christ Jesus. Paul, who wrote much of the New Testament, will be tormented, ridiculed, arrested, imprisoned, beaten, and finally put to death for being a follower. For the next couple of centuries, many Christians will worship in secret simply to avoid arrest. In the Roman world before the time of Emperor Constantine, being a Christian required more than putting the symbol of a fish on the bumper of a car and attending church a couple times a month. Truly following Christ for the early Christians opened the possibility of facing lions in the Roman arena.
As the crowd walks toward Jerusalem, they have given little thought to the cost of being followers of Jesus. They are clueless about the demands of the faith. Jesus tells them they must give serious thought to their walk with God. He reminds them that no one in his right mind starts to build a tower without calculating how much it is going to cost to complete it. No king decides to go to war without first determining whether or not it is possible to win the war. In that same way, they must count the cost of faith and be willing to pay the price. That cost, Jesus insists, takes everything.
“So, therefore, none of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions.” “Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.” “Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes even life itself, cannot be my disciple. Who isn’t shocked at those strong words? The cost is higher than anyone in the crowd that day and even today must have figured. If that is what discipleship costs, the cost is too high! So, how do we make sense of the strong words on the lips of Jesus? It hardly makes sense to hear him tell us to hate family and even life itself.
When Jesus tells us to hate life and family, we know that is not natural or easy, nor is it consistent with the witness of Scripture, which calls us to love, to understand, to forgive, to care for others, and to provide for our family. I don’t believe the word hate as Jesus uses it here carries the same meaning we often give it; rather, it is a way of comparison. It is a way of expressing a willingness to be detached or to turn away from something or someone. That may be the price, or the consequence, of following Jesus. Nothing can be more important than a commitment to follow Jesus. Not family, nor possessions, not even one’s own life. The demands are not violent but uncompromising. It requires total commitment.
During the 1960’s there was a great deal of talk in our society about commitment. The talk of commitment often led to action that sought to bring about immediate and lasting change. It was a time of high passion and no compromise. Personal feelings and personal relationships, and personal possessions were set aside for a larger vision. No one, Jesus says, who does not carry a cross and come with me can be a disciple of mine. The mandate is clear to be a disciple requires total commitment to God’s vision for our world. In comparison to our love for Christ, do we “hate” everything else? Is there anything, or anyone, that stands in the way of our loyalty to Jesus?
This text gives us an opportunity to examine our own loyalties and to ask ourselves if we are ready to place Christ’s will before our own interest and ambitions. The cost of discipleship is not an amount of money we pay for some perks to the job, but rather the consequences we may experience because of our commitment to Jesus Christ. That commitment means giving up the notion that the pursuit of money is the greatest good that leads to the greatest happiness. It means learning to give and ask for forgiveness. It means putting the needs of others first. It means turning the other cheek. It means loving your enemies and doing good to those that hate you. It means being faithful stewards of God’s creation. The fact of the matter is that being a Christian is costly.
To count the cost, to be ready to pay the price-this is what Jesus had in mind the day he turned to a large crowd of eager listeners and talked about “hating family” and making sacrifices. Hard choices and high priorities would be the cost of following him. Why then would anyone count the cost and still choose to follow Jesus? Because, in paradoxical way, it is to choose life rather than death. What the crowd did not know, of course, was that Jesus himself was already making hard choices in leaving family behind, that he might endure the cross and give up his life for all. The cross was the cost he was willing to pay, for our salvation. Are we willing to pick up the cross and commit our lives to God? We must be willing if we ever hope to experience the promised perks of following the way of Jesus.