Sermon for 9/4/22 "Cost Versus Gain"

Luke 14:25-33

This morning I'll be reading Luke chapter 14 verses 25 through 33. And I'll be reading from the Holman Christian Standard Bible. Luke 14:25-33 Jesus has large crowds following Him at this time. Now He begins to ask them questions that will make them think about what they are doing,,, and why. Luke 14:25–33 (HCSB) 25 Now great crowds were traveling with Him. So He turned and said to them: 26 “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his own father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, and even his own life—he cannot be My disciple. 27 Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. 28 “For which of you, wanting to build a tower, doesn’t first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it? 29 Otherwise, after he has laid the foundation and cannot finish it, all the onlookers will begin to make fun of him, 30 saying, ‘This man started to build and wasn’t able to finish.’ 31 “Or what king, going to war against another king, will not first sit down and decide if he is able with 10,000 to oppose the one who comes against him with 20,000? 32 If not, while the other is still far off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. 33 In the same way, therefore, every one of you who does not say good-bye to all his possessions cannot be My disciple. The word of God for the people of God,,,

thanks be to God!

God bless the reading and the hearing of your word this morning. Let us pray: Dear Lord,,, as we begin this morning,,, with everyone here today and all that are listening and watching by video,,, we ask that you open our ears to hear and our hearts and minds to receive the message that you have for us today,,, In Jesus' name I pray,,, Amen. ----------------------------------------------------------- Last Sunday we looked at Jeremiah 2:4-13 and we seen that there are “Consequences” for foolish actions.

The Israelites acted foolishly and because of their mistakes,,, they have to face the “Consequences”.

We are faced with the same dilemma today,,, we will have to answer for the mistakes that we have made.

God has blessed this nation that we live in,,, but we,,, the people of the church,,, have allowed sin after sin,,, a little bit here,,, and a little bit there,,, until it is everywhere!

That’s similar to what happened with the Israelites.

A little here and a little there,,, until God was intent on punishing them.

We are about to find out what happens to our nation,,, and our church as well,,, if things don’t change.

And the change should begin,,, with the church.

We must present ourselves as a living example of Christ,,, by loving one another,,, even while we disagree at times,,, so that we can show the world how Christians are supposed to act.

This attitude can save our nation,,, but it must begin with us,,, each one of us can do our part by learning to disagree without hatred,,, talking without fighting needlessly,,, and tearing each other down.

The battle that is playing out within our denomination today just shows us how far from God that we are.

We have turned our backs on God,,, and if we aren’t careful,,, like the Israelites,,, we will face consequences for our mistakes.

That’s why that it’s critical today that we all understand that it begins with those of us that come to church each Sunday,,, so that we can be the example that Christ intended us to be.

And we do that by obeying Jesus’ command in John 13:34 “I give you a new command: Love one another. Just as I have loved you, you must also love one another.”

Because if we can’t love one another,,, how can we love anyone outside the church,,, so we had better wise up and quit making foolish choices!

Or,,, we can continue making mistakes,,, and like the Israelites,,, face the “Consequences” for our failures,,, as well!

This morning we will look at these verses in Luke and see how they help us in our walk with God this week.

----------------------------------------------------------- Verses 25 and 26 say: 25 Now great crowds were traveling with Him. So He turned and said to them: 26 “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his own father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, and even his own life—he cannot be My disciple.

As I said earlier,,, Jesus has large crowds of people that have begun to follow Him.

He has drawn many to Him,,, but now He wants them to examine themselves and be sure that they are aware of the cost involved in following Him.

My commentary says: Jesus was looking for those who were willing to live devotedly and passionately for Him,,, and even die for Him if necessary.

And so He now began to sift the crowd by telling them about the hardship of discipleship.

At times Jesus wooed men to Himself,,, but after they began to follow Him,,, He winnowed them,,, it says.

He begins to separate the true followers,,, from those who just want to follow for the wrong reasons.

That is what is taking place here.

Jesus doesn’t mean that you truly hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters

He was emphasizing that love for Christ must be so great that all other loves are hatred by comparison,,, look at Matthew 10:37 “The person who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; the person who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.”

No one should come between you and Christ,,, even those that are closest to you,,, which are usually your own family.

Actually,,, the most difficult part of this,,, is found in the words and even his own life

It is not only that we must love our relatives less; we must hate our own lives also!

Instead of living self-centered lives,,, we must live Christ-centered lives.

Instead of asking how every action will affect ourselves,,, we must be asking,,, how will it affect Christ and His glory.

Our personal comfort and safety must come second,,, compared to the great task of glorifying Christ and making Him known.

The Savior’s words are absolute.

He said that if we did not love Him supremely,,, more than our family and more than our own lives,,, we could not be His disciples.

There is no halfway measure.

----------------------------------------------------------- Verse 27 says: 27 Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.

When the Roman Empire crucified someone,,, the victim was often forced to carry his cross part of the way to the crucifixion site.

Carrying his cross through the heart of the city was supposed to be an admission that the Roman Empire was correct in the sentence of death imposed on him,,, an admission that Rome was right and he was wrong.

So when Jesus enjoined His followers to carry their crosses and follow Him,,, He was referring to a public display before others that Jesus was right and that the disciples were following Him even to their deaths.

This is exactly what the religious leaders refused to do.

The next few verses are illustrations by Jesus to show that following Him must include planning and sacrifice.

----------------------------------------------------------- Verses 28 through 30 say: 28 “For which of you, wanting to build a tower, doesn’t first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it? 29 Otherwise, after he has laid the foundation and cannot finish it, all the onlookers will begin to make fun of him, 30 saying, ‘This man started to build and wasn’t able to finish.’

Before a person begins to build,,, he should be sure he will be able to pay the full cost of the project.

Jesus’ followers must also be sure they are willing to pay the full price of discipleship.

You don’t start to follow Christ and then begin to let other things get in the way.

You must finish the journey with Him,,, or you will be left behind.

----------------------------------------------------------- Verses 31 through 33 say: 31 “Or what king, going to war against another king, will not first sit down and decide if he is able with 10,000 to oppose the one who comes against him with 20,000? 32 If not, while the other is still far off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. 33 In the same way, therefore, every one of you who does not say good-bye to all his possessions cannot be My disciple.

This second illustration is about a king who went out to battle.

The king should be willing to sacrifice a desired victory if he senses he is unable to win.

This principle of sacrifice is important: -- you must be willing to give up everything for Jesus.

The people following Jesus for the right reasons,,, throughout the countryside of Israel,,, had done that.

They had given up possessions and employment,,, everything,,, knowing that the message Jesus was proclaiming was the most important thing on earth.

----------------------------------------------------------- We can see from these verses that the cost of following Jesus must be considered.

But once that is done,,, and we have fully decided to follow Jesus,,, the “Cost versus Gain” is worth it.

But we must understand the cost,,, and be committed when we make that decision.

God wants the best for us,,, but it’s still a choice that we must make ourselves.

It will never be forced upon us.

If you have never made the commitment to allow Jesus to be your Personal Savior,,, please make that decision today.

We aren't promised tomorrow,,, so the choice must be made today.

We don't know the hour or the day when Jesus comes back nor do we know if we will be called home,,, we are just told to be ready.

And to be ready,,, you must have made the decision to follow Jesus,,, be sure that you have made that decision today!

----------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------- So as we sing our final hymn,,, let me remind you that the alter is always open,,,

If you feel God speaking to you,,, don't hesitate to come,,, maybe you just have questions,,, God will answer,,, you just have to ask Him,,, whatever the need may be,,,

As we sing the final hymn,,, come if needed!

----------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------- As I close this part of the service and we begin our celebration of communion,,, if you have decided that God is calling you today,,, after communion,,, we will sing a closing hymn like usual and at that time,,, remember that the alter is always open,,, even during the times when I don’t mention it,,, and God is always waiting for you to answer His call.

Don’t wait,,, that decision is so important,,, the cost of not answering is too high,,, versus the gain of eternity in heaven with Jesus!

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