The Cost of Discipleship

The Cost of Discipleship

Scripture Lessons

Deuteronomy 30:15-20

Psalm 1                      

Philemon 1-21            

Luke 14:25-35            

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Did I hear that right? Did Jesus really tell me to “hate” my family? There are a couple things to understand so that you can properly hear Jesus in this gospel lesson. First, the word “hate” here is not used as an emotion or feeling, but is more to describe affection toward someone, and especially affection toward that person relative to your affection toward another. In this case, God receives the highest affection, followed by family. Secondly, this is a Semitic idiomatic expression. Jesus was not teaching His disciples to feel hatred and animosity toward their family. A similar expression is used in Malachi 1:2-3 and quoted by Paul in Romans 9:13, “I have loved Jacob but Esau I have hated.” Also, Genesis 29:31 describes Leah as being “hated,” by Jacob. But it’s not that Leah was hated, more that she was loved less than Rachel. This idiomatic expression describes preference over another, not an emotional hatred. It is a harsh-sounding statement that is meant to draw comparison, not literal hatred.  

Now that we have that settled, what is the point of this comparison? Why create a competition for your affections between Jesus and your family? Jesus calls His disciples to soberly reflect on what it means to be a disciple. Count the cost. That which God has promised to you He will certainly fulfill. But, has He promised a life free from suffering? No. Has He promised perpetual bliss between you and your family? No. Has He promised earthly riches? No.

“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.” Or put another way, you who follow Christ have all that you need and are set free, even to put aside your own earthly life, knowing that you have eternal life. You are free to love your family, truly, by sharing the love of Christ which only His disciples properly understand. You understand that the commandment to honor your father and mother doesn’t comes at the expense of blaspheming God. Furthermore, “honor” means more than “obey.” As Luther says in the small catechism, “[this means] serve and obey them, love and cherish them.”

“Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.” Or put another way, you who follow after Jesus are able to bear the shame and suffering in this life that sometimes comes to Christ-followers. You are free to suffer reproach for the sake of the name of Jesus Christ. Think about the confession that the suffering person makes before the world. There are people who suffer illness and tremendous disability, and yet have the audacity to smile and give thanks to God for their life and express hope for the life to come. Joni Eareckson Tada is such a person whom I mention from time to time. She dove into shallow water in the Chesapeake Bay when she was 17 and has been quadriplegic ever since. I heard an interview with her a few years ago. When she was asked a question looking forward to her resurrected body [you would think that she would look forward to the day when she regains the full function of her body] she said, “I can’t wait to be raised in a body that doesn’t desire sin.” She testified to that which is the true disability that we all face and that is original sin. You’ve inherited it from your parents going all the way back to Adam and Eve. That sin clings to your natural body, but in Christ you are set free from that. You are therefore free to bear A cross, knowing that Christ bore THE cross for you.

“Any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.” Or put another way, you who are disciples of Jesus are free to renounce your possessions. You have treasure in heaven! You disciples understand that “the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof.” Psalm 24:1. That means all belongs to God. Your possessions are those which belong to God and have been entrusted to you. You are free to steward those gifts of God. How you steward them reflects your discipleship. God does not ask you to sell everything so that you are left without a roof over your head, clothes for your children, and food for your family. He gives you wisdom and insight. You have eyes to see that modest clothing for you and the ability to clothe your neighbor is better than resplendent clothing for you and nothing for your neighbor.

Brothers and sisters, in Christ Jesus you have forgiveness of sins! You have eternal life! You have treasure in heaven! You who have ears to hear, hearken to the word of God. You are able to show proper love toward your mother, father, sister, brother, wife, children. You are able to correctly steward God’s gifts which have been entrusted to you. You have the ability to suffer without losing hope. Now, you may say that you don’t possess this ability and that you fall short. Well, yes, sin clings to you, but the ears of faith perceive the precepts of God. Through faith which God works in you, the word reveals to you what you ought to do, gives you the desire to do it, reveals to you your failures, and for the sake of Christ Jesus and His sacrificial death on the cross for your sins, gives you righteousness before God. All of this is done for you. Now live your life in light of this fact: You are a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ! You are forgiven and set free!

The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.