#costofdiscipleship

Today’s Scripture “For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it.”— MARK 8:35 (NIV) The Paradox That Sets You Free What You Lose: Temporary comforts Empty pursuits The illusion of control What You Gain: Eternal purpose (Colossians 3:2) Abundant life now (John 10:10) Soul-deep satisfaction (Psalm 107:9) Two Ways to…

24 “The student is not above the teacher, nor a servant above his master. 25 It is enough for students to be like their teachers, and servants like their masters. If the head of the house has been called Beelzebul, how much more the members of his household! 26 “So do not be afraid of them, for there is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. 27 What…

Week 8 was a great big kick in the butt spiritually. It was all about dying to ourselves and giving God everything.One thing Jeremy talked about a lot was “The moment grace gets boring is the moment you don’t understand it.” How true! We can never ever ever fully understand grace and the magnitude of what it means for us eternally speaking.

“We end up trying to redeem our lives rather than living the redeemed life.” Whoa! That’s crazy. What an amazing perspective shift. We can never redeem our lives. We have been redeemed by the sacrifice Jesus made on the cross. That is the only way redemption was possible, and because of that our focus should be living as who we are in Christ rather than trying to make ourselves seem redeemed enough for Christ.

“If you defend something it’s part of your identity. We defend what makes us who we are.” It’s funny how when we are doing bad things we tend to become super defensive. When we are dating someone everyone thinks we should break up with, we constantly defend their behavior. I want to spend more time defending my faith and relationship with Jesus than the sinful desires of my flesh.

Luke 14:25-35 The Cost of Being a Disciple

25 Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: 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. 27 And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. 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.’ 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. 33 In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples. 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.”

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Title: “Salty Salt” Scripture: Luke 14:25-35

Introduction

Luke’s main focus for his Gospel account is that Jesus came to save the least, the last, and the lost. When was the last time you were ask to do something that you really didn’t want to? Or maybe you have resolved that you would go on missions for Jesus or to a faraway land for the Gospel cause. But, it has to have running water, a hot shower, a toilet sit on (not squat), and food that tastes good and is instagram worthy. In our modern North American Christianity, we are comfortable to say the least. We live lives that are largely without persecution and free from real struggles and hardships. Our goal often times is to maintain our comfortability of the Gospel and shy away from the price and the cost of discipleship. Jesus, in today’s passage, challenges the listener to consider our priorities and our things of importance.

Relational Cost of Discipleship (2)

Whoever does not hate father, mother, wife, children, brothers, and sisters, even his own life……...cannot be my disciple. (v. 26)

Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me.…cannot be my disciple. (v. 27)

Material Cost of Discipleship (1)

Therefore, anyone of you who does not renounce all that he has………. cannot be my disciple. (v. 33)

Two illustrations

Building a tower (v. 28-30)

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.’

Looking before you Leap

Fighting a war (31-32)

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.

You MUST Leap

The point is not that we should count the cost and shy away if the task is too daunting. The reality is that we don’t have the means or the solution to our problem. The point is not to gather all we have and see how we squeeze by. The reality is that we couldn’t do it and Jesus did it all. We were helpless, hopeless, and in utter defeat when the Gospel grace met us on calvary’s mountain.

So the question is not the cost, rather is it worth it to follow?

Jesus is the only person in history to ever claim that if you find him you will find yourself.

Matthew 16:24-26 Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. 26 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?

Apostle Paul

Philippians 3:4b-11 If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more:5 circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; 6 as to zeal,a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless. 7 But whatever gain I had,  I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of  the surpassing worth of  knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith—10 that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.

The Gospel isn’t about us, its all about Jesus.

Isn’t this all just the lived reality of faith?

“Gazing of the soul upon a Saving God”- A.W. Tozer

“Faith is not in itself a meritorious act; the merit is in the One toward Whom it is directed. Faith is a redirecting of our sight, a getting out of the focus of our own vision and getting God into focus. Sin has twisted our vision inward and made it self-regarding. Unbelief has put self where God should be, and is perilously close to the sin of Lucifer (Satan) who said ‘I will set my throne above the throne of God.’ Faith looks out instead of in and the whole life falls into line.”- A.W. Tozer

Hebrews 12:1-3 “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.

Salty Salt….Soy Sauce….

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.”

The whole point of a disciple

You have ONE job

Don’t be worthless and useless

Salt

Seasoning

Preserving

Fertilizing