To be Jesus’ disciples (Luke 14c)

Luke 14:25-35
Key verse 14:33

A while ago I watched a documentary where I saw one young girl who looked about my daughter’s age. However, she wore a military suit instead of casual clothes and with a gun in her hand instead of a smartphone. Her face was determined but with sadness. She was a Kurdish girl fighting against ISIS. She was a member of so-called YPJ, which is a female militia. During daytime she defended the frontline and at night she patrolled and searched house to house to find enemies. Every day she put her life on the line. The other day she lost her four friends while fighting with ISIS. But they were just some of many she lost in battle. But she had no regret and no hesitation. My heart was broken that such young girls had to fight and die rather than enjoying what girls normally do. The reporter asked her why she was doing that. She said, “I am ready to sacrifice myself to save my people here.” And then she smiled in the hope that her people would be safe from ISIS someday. That is the reality of Kurdish and in some sense that is what we Christians are doing for Jesus Christ. We suffer and give up things because we are Jesus’ disciples. Sometimes, however, we get weary and wonder why we have to do this. What did Jesus say about that? In today’s passage, Jesus teaches us the cost of following him.  

Just after Peter’s confession in chapter 9, Jesus predicted his death twice. And then he said to his disciples that they must lose their lives to follow him by denying themselves and taking up their cross daily. And then he headed for Jerusalem to die there. On the way, he encountered opposition from the Pharisees and the experts in the law. Regardless, more people followed him. In today’s passage, Jesus tells the crowds that just traveling with him does not mean that they are his disciples. There are certain criteria they should meet to be Jesus’ disciples, which is quite surprising and even shocking. Who can be his disciples? By the way, Jesus did not differentiate disciples from followers. Those who follow him and believe in him are all his disciples. I know that you want to be Jesus’ disciples or you are already his disciples. Regardless, it is good to know what makes us true disciples of Jesus. I pray that we may learn the cost of following Jesus.

25 Large crowds were traveling with Jesus and turning to them he said:

As Jesus was going to Jerusalem, large crowds accompanied Jesus. Why did such large crowds follow Jesus? Some followed him to learn the word of God from him. Some wanted to benefit from him. Probably many of them followed him in anticipation of the coming of his kingdom in glory as he was heading for Jerusalem. (9:51) Their expectation was higher than any time and more people were gathering around Jesus. Then, Jesus turned to them and gave them a surprising warning.

26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple.”

Jesus said to them that they could not be his disciples unless they hated their family members and even their own life. “What? Hate our family members and even our own life?” They must have been dumbfounded to hear this. What did Jesus mean by this? The word “hate” in Jewish settings means to love someone less than someone else. So hating their family members meant loving them less than someone else, who is Jesus. In Matt 10:37 Jesus said, “Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.” The family members are the most important than anyone else. In other words, to hate family members means to put Jesus first over whatever they valued the most in the world, even their family members. It can also imply that family members could be enemies if they rejected Jesus. Sometimes, there can be hatred between believers and their unbelieving family members. This came as a great shock to the crowds because it was unthinkable to have such a conflict in Jewish family. By saying this, Jesus meant that hating their family members might be inevitable, which was unbearable.

But the most difficult thing is that Jesus’ disciple should hate their own life. We are distressed if we lose our cell phone or our money and property. How much more with our own life? We have fear of losing our life deep in our mind. So we struggle not to lose our life. Some people try to keep their lives even if it means harming others. It is unthinkable and foolish to hate our life. But Jesus said that his disciples must hate their own life. This includes our ego, our human desire, our ambition, our own living style, and our own value system. Following Jesus is not to achieve or obtain through Jesus what we want. Rather, it is to give up ourselves and even hate and oppose ourselves for Jesus. But that is not all about following Jesus.

27 And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.”

Jesus said that his followers must carry their cross to follow him. In Jesus’ days, those who carried the cross were criminals taken out to be crucified. It meant shame, guilt, and death in public. Though Jesus’ disciples were not criminals, they could have such pain and suffering to follow Jesus. They would suffer rejection, mockery, loneliness, persecution, excommunication, and death. That was the way Jesus was treated by people and that would be the same with his disciples. They hated Jesus because he obeyed God’s will against people’s desire. His disciples would be also hated by people in the same way.

As such, being Jesus’ disciple is a serious matter. It is difficult and you could lose your family and your own life. This was totally opposite what the crowds expected. They expected something great with Jesus but what was awaiting them was suffering. Jesus would suffer and die and they would go astray. Jesus wanted them to know how difficult it would be to follow him. He taught them two parables so that they could think carefully before embarking on discipleship.

28 “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? 29 For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, 30 saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’

Here is a man who wants to build a tower. Probably, the tower is a watchtower for vineyard or city. Usually, a tower was built with stones and needed a lot of labor. So it was not an easy project for a man to build a tower. It could be expensive and take long to be completed. What is the first thing the man should do? He will estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to finish it. It is a common sense that he would not start building the tower if he had not enough money. But what if he began to build it regardless and could not finish it because he ran out of money? Failure to finish would make the builder a laughingstock of the whole town people. “Look at the foolish man! He started building the tower without enough money?” The unfinished tower would stay there long and reminded neighbors of the man’s failure. What a shame!

Following Jesus is like building a tower in that you should first know the cost of following him and see if you can afford it. It is not like buying a small desk at IKEA or grabbing a digital TV from COSTCO’s shelves. Following Jesus is great. But it can cost your family and even your life. It demands your total commitment and sacrifice. So if you want to be Jesus’ disciple, you should know the cost and see if you are willing to pay it.

31 “Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Won’t he first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? 32 If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace.

There lived a king. One day he heard that another king was coming to attack his kingdom. He sent his people to see how large his enemy was and then he was informed that the king was coming with twenty thousand men, which was twice his forces. What would he do first? Would he go to war regardless? No, he would first sit down and deliberate to see if he was able to defeat his enemy with his ten thousand men. Once he went out to war, he must fight no matter how it may cost. Obviously, many of his men, hundreds or even more than fifty percent of his men, could die and be injured. But if he was determined, he would win the war and become victorious. But if he was not determined and willing to pay the cost, it would be prudent to seek peace. He would offer tributes and he might be dethroned but it was better than being defeated. Going to war is a very serious and critical matter. If he made a wrong decision, he and his kingdom would greatly suffer and even can be destroyed. So, the king would deliberate again and again to see if it was feasible to win the outnumbered war.

Following Jesus is like going to an outnumbered war in that it is very costly and tough so you must be determined and willing to pay the cost for being his disciple. Otherwise, you cannot follow him. Being Jesus’ disciple is a serious matter. Like war, it is a matter of life or death.  Unless you are determined and fully committed, you cannot follow Jesus.

33 In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples.

Here Jesus summed up what he had taught: any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be his disciple. Following him is costly that you can lose your stuff and your family and even your own life. Report had it in 2011 that 100 million Christians were facing persecution and approximately 100,000 Christians died for their faith each year. We don’t see this kind of thing here in USA but that is the reality Christians are facing in many other countries. Even here we face different kind of challenges and difficulties to follow Jesus. Christians are unfairly treated in school and at work. We are disconnected from friends or disassociated with people in many areas. We are discouraged and hurt. But there is no way to follow Jesus without losing anything.  

One rich young man came to Jesus and asked, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Then Jesus said, “Go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” (Mark 10:22) Hearing this, the man was disheartened and went away sorrowful, because he had great possessions. He wanted to have eternal life, keeping his possessions at the same time. We can’t follow Jesus without giving up what we have. It costs our stuff, our family, our relationships, and even our life. It is not a membership fee to be his disciple, though. It is the unavoidable fact when we follow Jesus. Jesus’ purpose of saying all this was to help them know the cost of being his disciples against their wrong anticipation and thus encourage them to follow him without giving up. So we Jesus' followers must be sure that we are determined and willing to pay the full price of being his disciple.

Why should Jesus’ disciples give up everything they have? I would say that it is because we are sinful and live in the evil world. They hinder us from following Jesus. Remember we are going to the kingdom of God. We can’t carry them over to his kingdom. When my family moved to a new house last year, we threw away so much stuff because we could not take them with us to the new house. Simply they did not fit for the new house. There was some stuff we really did not want to give up, such as a dresser. It was in pretty good shape. But it was so heavy that even two adults could not move it an inch. It was impossible to move it to the third floor in the new house. So we gave up and gave it to someone who needed it. Likewise, we should give up our things when they hinder us from following Jesus. We put Jesus first and love him more than anything else. If our stuff, our relationship and even our ego go against his will, we must give up them and choose him. Jesus is worth much more than anything we have. We should know that giving up ours for Jesus is actually not a loss but a gain. Jesus said in Matt 19:28-29.

28 Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29 And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.

Following Jesus is following his way. He suffered and gave up his life on the cross and then he rose and sat on the throne in heaven. Those who follow Jesus will lose as he did but will also gain as he did. His disciples will sit in glory and receive a hundred times as much they give up and inherit eternal life. We cannot enter the kingdom of God with our own stuff on earth. Rather our earthly things can hinder us from following Jesus and entering his kingdom. Therefore, it is necessary to give up ours on earth.

A man who finds a treasure hidden in a field sells all he has to buy the field. A merchant looking for fine pearls sells everything he has when he finds one of great value. Likewise, we, Jesus’ disciples, have found eternal life in Jesus so we sell our earthly stuff to buy it. By the way all we have on earth will disappear but Jesus will give his disciples eternal life. Do you want to give up your earthly things or Jesus and his kingdom? You have to make a choice.

34 “Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? 35 It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown out. “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”

Salt is good. But if it loses its saltiness, it is not possible to restore its saltiness. It is of no use either for the soil or for manure so it is thrown away. Salt in the ancient time was used as a catalyst for a fire, as seasoning, as a preservative and as fertilizer. But once salt loses its saltiness, it is good for nothing. Likewise, if we do not put Jesus first and give up our earthly things for Jesus, we will lose our saltiness as his disciple. As salt is good, following Jesus is good. What makes us salty is to put Jesus first and thus to give up ours on earth for him.

Jesus said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

Again to be Jesus’ disciple is good. But it is a serious matter. It is not like driving on highway. It is like driving uneven or unfinished roads. We will face and go through difficulties and hardships. It is very costly. To be a disciple, we must be determined and willing to give up all we have. To be Jesus’ disciple is blessing but the blessing comes after we give up all we have. Jesus said all this not to discourage us from being his disciples but to help us follow him without fail.

I still remember when my family came to USA. Soon after we arrived here, there was a Bible conference we needed to attend. But we could not take our children there. At that time I had two children: one was two and a half years old and the other was seven months old. But we did not know anyone who could babysit them for several days. We found an old lady we did not know at all. When my wife and I left them behind, our hearts were broken. I looked back at them again and again while leaving them with a strange person. It may sound crazy to someone, but that was a kind of thing we had to do to follow Jesus if necessary. When we came back, thankfully the lady and her family took care of our children well. I know that my children have suffered in many ways and even now because of my mission life. But I have entrusted them to God’s hand with tears and prayer and by faith. Now they are following Jesus too and they are my coworkers. I thank God for their understanding and suffering for me. I thank God for growing them this far. But I will not pray for them to live an easy life. There is no such thing in the world. Instead, I pray that that they continue to follow Jesus and suffer for him, putting him and his kingdom first.

I love General Douglas MacArthur’s prayer for his only son when he was in the frontline during the war.

“Build me a son, O Lord, who will be strong enough to know when he is weak and brave enough to face himself when he is afraid; one who will be proud and unbending in honest defeat, and humble and gentle in victory.

Build me a son whose wishes will not take the place of deeds; a son who will know Thee—and that to know himself is the foundation stone of knowledge.

Lead him, I pray, not in the path of ease and comfort, but under the stress and spur of difficulties and challenge. Here let him learn to stand up in the storm; here let him learn compassion for those who fail.

Build me a son whose heart will be clear, whose goal will be high; a son who will master himself before he seeks to master other men; one who will reach into the future, yet never forget the past.

And after all these things are his, add, I pray, enough of a sense of humor, so that he may always be serious, yet never take himself too seriously. Give him humility, so that he may always remember the simplicity of true greatness, the open mind of true wisdom, and the weakness of true strength.

Then I, his father will dare to whisper, “I have not lived in vain.”

This is my prayer for my children too. Following Jesus is never cheap. It is costly but it is worthy to give up everything we have. The glory of the kingdom of God is awaiting us. Let’s strengthen our feeble arms and week feet. Let’s move on. Let’s follow Jesus our Lord continually. We are walking the same path he did. This is the way of truth and glory.

Let’s read the key verse together.

33 In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples.

By David Yun