Luke 14:25 - 33
25 Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them, 26 “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. 27 Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. 28 For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? 29 Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, 30 saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ 31 Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? 32 And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. 33 So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.
Questions:
ReplyDelete1. We need to hate our families? What does it look like to hate our families?
2. What does it look like to bear our cross and come after Jesus?
3. What is Jesus telling us with the two parables?
4. Is there a point to the second parable about sending a delegation of peace when the enemy is far off?
5. How are we renouncing all that we have in this American society? What would it look like?
https://biblehub.com/commentaries/luke/14-25.htm says:
ReplyDeleteAnd there went great multitudes with him — It seems they accompanied him from place to place, with eager desire, doubtless, to have the Messiah’s kingdom erected; proposing to themselves all manner of wealth and temporal advantage therein. One day, therefore, as they were on the road with him, he thought fit to show them plainly their mistake: he turned and said, If any man come to me, and hate not, &c. — As all the hopes of temporal felicity under his reign, which his disciples entertained, were to be blasted; as he himself was to suffer an ignominious death; and as they were to be exposed unto all manner of persecutions, he declared publicly to the multitude, that, if they proposed to be his disciples, it was absolutely necessary that they should prefer his service to every thing in the world, and by their conduct show that they hated father, and mother, and wife, and children, that is to say, loved the dearest objects of their affections less than him. As in this, so in several other passages of Scripture, the word hatred signifies only an inferior degree of love. Father and mother, and other relations, are particularly mentioned by our Lord, because, as matters then stood, the profession of the gospel was apt to set a man at variance with his nearest relations.
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Our Saviour explains this by two similitudes; the former showing that we must consider the expenses of our religion; the latter, that we must consider the perils of it. Sit down and count the cost; consider it will cost the mortifying of sin, even the most beloved lusts.
https://biblehub.com/commentaries/luke/14-32.htm says:
ReplyDeleteIf we do not deliberately resolve to leave all things, to suffer all things that may be laid on us, and to persevere to the end of our days in the service of Christ, we cannot be his disciples. No man can be a Christian who, when he makes a profession, is resolved after a while to turn back to the world; nor can he be a true Christian if he "expects that he will" turn back. If he comes not with a "full" purpose "always" to be a Christian; if he means not to persevere, by the grace of God, through all hazards, and trials, and temptations; if he is not willing to bear his cross, and meet contempt, and poverty, and pain, and death, without turning back, he "cannot" be a disciple of the Lord Jesus.
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desireth conditions 0f peace] This is sufficient to overthrow the interpretation which sees Man and Satan in the warring kings. Another view is that it implies the hostility of man to God, and the urgent need of being reconciled to Him. That however is never a calculated hostility which deliberately sits down and expects to win the victory; otherwise it would be a good inference that “a Christian’s weakness is his strength.” It is a mistake, and one which often leads to serious errors, to press unduly the details of parables; as when for instance some would see in the 10,000 soldiers a reference to the Ten Commandments. The general lesson is—Do not undertake what you have neither the strength nor will to achieve, nor that in which you are not prepared, if need be, to sacrifice life itself.
https://www.preceptaustin.org/luke-14-commentary says:
ReplyDeleteJ C Ryle on the large crowds - The conduct of our Lord on this occasion stands out in strong contrast to that of many ministers of the Gospel, in the present day. The temptation to admit people to full communion, and endorse and approve them as true Christians, before they have given evidence of decided grace, is very strong. The inclination to set before young enquirers the joys and comforts of the Gospel, without any proportionate exhibition of the cross and the fight, requires constant watching against. The close imitation of our Lord’s conduct in this passage would probably greatly lessen the number of our communicants. But it may be doubted whether we should not gain in quality what we lost in quantity, and whether we should not be freed from many of those disgraceful backslidings, and gross inconsistencies, which so often now-a-days bring discredit on religion. It may be laid down as a general rule that communicants cheaply admitted are worth little, and that to call people Christians upon lower terms than those which our Lord sets forth, in the long run does more harm than good.
Gary Inrig - Rather than actively recruiting supporters for His program, the Savior seems to be effectively discouraging followers. What immediately precedes is the parable of the great banquet, a story that celebrates the free grace of God. The gospel banquet is for all who will accept the invitation. Immediately following Lk 14:25-35 are the three parables of seeking, which describe God’s joy in calling the unworthy and the lost. There could be no clearer reminder that salvation is by grace through faith. It is not reserved for those who meet certain conditions, but is for any who will trust in Christ. However, there are people whose relationship to Jesus is one of attachment without commitment. Physically, these people are on their way to Jerusalem in Jesus’ entourage. But there is a suggestion that they are merely “going along” with Him spiritually as well. They certainly have beliefs about Him, but it is not clear that they truly believe in Him. Probably some are truly saved while others are not. Like many groups of people, this is a mixed company spiritually. But whatever their spiritual status, they need to understand the full implications of being a Christ-follower.
Steven Cole notes that "Lu 14:25 is crucial for interpreting what follows. “Great multitudes were going along with Him.” Every pastor would love to have that kind of congregation. Every ministry desires more followers. Pastors with large congregations get their books published and are invited to speak all over the world because they are successful. We measure success by numbers. But Jesus was different. Large crowds did not fool Him. He knew that many were following Him for selfish or superficial reasons. It was the exciting thing to do. Maybe you or someone you knew would be healed. But Jesus was not a false recruiter. He wanted to weed out those who followed Him for superficial reasons, because when the battle heated up, He knew that they would fall away and cause damage for His cause. So He turned to the great multitude and laid out these demands of discipleship."
https://www.preceptaustin.org/luke-14-commentary continued:
ReplyDeleteGreg Allen - Jesus was never guilty of false advertising. There were no 'bait-and-switch' tactics with Him. The word He uses in this phrase literally means 'not able'. That is to say, whoever is unwilling to pay the price would not merely find it difficult to be His disciple, or that such a person would have to settle for being a second-rate disciple. He literally says that they are "not able" to be His disciple at all. "When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die."...the Holy Spirit is calling us - who call ourselves 'disciples of Jesus' - to an abrupt halt through this Scripture passage. He is calling us to do something that we wouldn't ordinarily do if it were up to us. He is calling us to stop in the midst of our pursuit of being followers of Jesus, and take very seriously what Jesus says. He's calling us to count the cost of being His disciples; and then, to examine ourselves before God and ask, "Am I truly willing to pay the price that Jesus Himself says must be paid, or have I been kidding myself all along in counting myself among His disciples?"
Steven Cole - Salvation is both absolutely free and yet it costs you your very life. You receive it freely at no expense to you, but once you receive it, you have just committed everything you are and have to Jesus Christ. Suppose I had a desire to climb Mount Everest. But it costs about $70,000 to do it and I don’t have that kind of money. Suppose a wealthy businessman heard of my desire and offered to pay for the entire expedition. It’s totally free for me. But if I accept his free offer, I have just committed myself to months of difficult training and arduous effort. It could even cost me my very life, because many good climbers die trying to climb Mount Everest. It is free and yet very costly. Jesus Christ freely offers the water of life to everyone who thirsts. But, we need to understand that when we receive His free offer, we are no longer our own; we have been bought with a price. Thus, to truly follow Christ, we must consider the cost and not begin to follow Him superficially, only to turn back later when things get tough. That is what Jesus warns against in our text.
https://www.preceptaustin.org/luke-14-commentary continued:
ReplyDeleteWhen God's way conflicts with our way, we will feel betrayed by the shallow, me-first faith we have bought into. If we have not counted the cost of being His child, we will turn away at the threat of sacrifice and find something else to gratify our selfish desires (cf. Mark 4:5, 16-17). In Jesus’ earthly ministry, there came a time when the free food stopped and public opinion turned ugly. The cheering crowds became jeering crowds. And Jesus knew ahead of time that would happen.
If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own - When we compare the passage in Matthew, we can understand that Jesus is not using hate in an absolute sense, but in a relative sense. In other words, Jesus calls for such love and devotion of Himself, that by comparison all other relationships appear to be hatred. Jesus does no prohibit love of those close to us, but calls for our greatest love to be toward Himself.
ESV Study Bible on hate - “Hating” is a Semitic expression for loving less.
Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and a man’s enemies will be the members of his household. (Matthew 10:34-36)
Guzik - Think of how audacious Jesus is! He asks for this kind of ultimate commitment, and we give it to Him-why? Because of love. When we know the love of Jesus; when we are in a love-relationship with Him, only then can we be committed to Him with this great devotion.
He cannot be My disciple - This strong warning is repeated three times for emphasis (Lk 14:26, 27, 33). The Greek negative term (for "not") used here is "ou" which speaks of absolute negation. The point is that if one is devoted to anyone more than Christ, he absolutely cannot be Jesus' disciple. Jesus is very clear about this.
In a religious context, a disciple was a pupil who attached himself to a teacher or rabbi to acquire his religious knowledge and skill. He went through a process of training and testing, but his ultimate loyalty was not to his rabbi, but to the Torah and tradition. Because the Torah and tradition stood above the rabbi, a disciple would join himself to a teacher of his own choosing, much as a modern student makes the choice of a university. The disciple’s real attachment was to the law and to a way of life. Discipleship to Jesus is very different. The disciple’s allegiance is not to the Torah and tradition but to the Lord Himself.
https://www.preceptaustin.org/luke-14-commentary continued:
ReplyDeleteDiscipleship means personal, passionate devotion to a Person, Our Lord Jesus Christ. There is a difference between devotion to a Person and devotion to principles or to a cause. Our Lord never proclaimed a cause; He proclaimed personal devotion to Himself. To be a disciple is to be a devoted love-slave of the Lord Jesus. Many of us who call ourselves Christians are not devoted to Jesus Christ. No man on earth has this passionate love to the Lord Jesus unless the Holy Ghost has imparted it to him. We may admire Him, we may respect Him and reverence Him, but we cannot love Him. The only Lover of the Lord Jesus is the Holy Ghost, and He sheds abroad the very love of God in our hearts. Whenever the Holy Ghost sees a chance of glorifying Jesus, He will take your heart, your nerves, your whole personality, and simply make you blaze and glow with devotion to Jesus Christ.
Men pour them selves into creeds, and God has to blast them out of their prejudices before they can become devoted to Jesus Christ.
John Phillips writes "The words must have struck a most discordant note in the ears of that jostling human crowd. A cross? The cross was the very symbol of Roman oppression and cruelty. It was a gallows, an instrument of unbelievable suffering and shame. Nothing about a cross was glamorous. It was the very symbol of the Curse. "Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree," declared God's law (Deut. 21:23; Gal. 3:13). The Lord's disciples all reacted against the mention of the cross (Matt. 16:21-25), so we can imagine the astonishment of the crowd. They saw nothing in this message for them. They thought that the procession was marching to Zion to crown Him. The notion that He was heading toward Calvary and a cross never occurred to them in their wildest dreams.
Wiersbe - What does it mean to "carry the cross"? It means daily identification with Christ in shame, suffering, and surrender to God's will. It means death to self, to our own plans and ambitions, and a willingness to serve Him as He directs (John 12:23-28). A "cross" is something we willingly accept from God as part of His will for our lives. The Christian who called his noisy neighbors the "cross" he had to bear certainly did not understand the meaning of dying to self.
Notice that Jn 19:17 describes Jesus as "bearing His own cross" which is clearly a unique event which applies only to Jesus. In other words, in none of the passages that Jesus calls for disciples to bear their own cross (Mt 16:24; Mk 8:34; 10:21; Lk 9:23; 14:27), is it suggested that we can bear His cross.
https://www.preceptaustin.org/luke-14-commentary continued:
ReplyDeleteC S Lewis gave a poignant, convicting description of discipleship declaring that what Jesus was saying was “Give me all of you!!! I don’t want so much of your time, so much of your talents and money, and so much of your work. I want YOU!!! ALL OF YOU!! I have not come to torment or frustrate the natural man or woman, but to KILL IT! No half measures will do. I don’t want to only prune a branch here and a branch there; rather I want the whole tree out! Hand it over to me, the whole outfit, all of your desires, all of your wants and wishes and dreams. Turn them ALL over to me, give yourself to me and I will make of you a new self---in my image. Give me yourself and in exchange I will give you Myself. My will, shall become your will. My heart, shall become your heart.”
Kent Hughes - Discipleship requires everything. There are no exceptions. No one has ever become a disciple of Christ and lived a life of ease!
And then I think it’s because He knew that living to please our Father in heaven would be a rough assignment in a world that is under the control of the archenemy of God.
Of course, cross-bearing does not exclude us from the grace of good times and the enjoyment of things He has provided for us. Thank God for the grace of seasons where our crosses are rather light.
denying yourself things and denying yourself aren’t the same. It’s easier to give things than to give ourselves. Yet Jesus gave Himself, and so must we.
A false profession causes …
- the world to mock and charge true believers with being hypocritical
- prospective believers to turn sour
- believers to be hampered and hindered in their ministry
- some believers to become discouraged
To be a mere nominal Christian, and go to church, is cheap and easy work. But to hear Christ’s voice, and follow Christ, and believe in Christ, and confess Christ, requires much self-denial. It will cost us our sins, and our self-righteousness, and our ease, and our worldliness. All—all must be given up.
Oswald Chambers - Building For Eternity
Our Lord refers not to a cost we have to count, but to a cost which He has counted. The cost was those thirty years in Nazareth, those three years of popularity, scandal and hatred; the deep unfathomable agony in Gethsemane, and the onslaught at Calvary—the pivot upon which the whole of Time and Eternity turns. Jesus Christ has counted the cost.
Our Lord implies that the only men and women He will use in His building enterprises are those who love Him personally, passionately and devotedly beyond any of the closest ties on earth. The conditions are stern, but they are glorious.
All that we build is going to be inspected by God. Is God going to detect in His searching fire that we have built on the foundation of Jesus some enterprise of our own? These are days of tremendous enterprises, days when we are trying to work for God, and therein is the snare. Profoundly speaking, we can never work for God. Jesus takes us over for His enterprises, His building schemes entirely, and no soul has any right to claim where he shall be put.
https://www.preceptaustin.org/luke-14-commentary continued:
ReplyDeleteSome who grow up in Christian homes may say yes to Jesus without truly understanding what they are doing. Later when their faith is challenged, they turn away from the faith to which they had given lip-service. In contrast, others may initially say no to Christ because they realize that to repent and believe means their lives will belong to the Lord, and they don’t like the demands of following Christ. But eventually they do repent and believe and obey.
Guzik - In the parable of the tower, Jesus says "sit down and see if you can afford to follow Me." In the parable of the king, Jesus says "sit down and see if you can afford to refuse My demands."
When a man counts the cost of following Christ, he needs to think about two things.
(1) It will cost him all he IS.
• his heart: total devotion and commitment
• his mind: being permeated and controlled by Christ
• his eyes: watching what he looks at
• his ears: watching what he listens to
• his hands: watching what he touches and picks up
• his feet: watching where he goes
• his mouth: watching what he eats and drinks and says
• his desires: watching, controlling, and changing his urges and desires
• his energy: committing his strength, initiative, and will to Christ
• his effort and work: dedicating and centering all in Christ, using his efforts and work in the cause of Christ
(2) It will cost him all he HAS.
• family: being put after Christ
• friends: being put after Christ and centered around Christ
• home: all the comforts and extravagances
• job: being centered around Christ and being used to earn enough to give to those who do not have (Ep. 4:28)
• cars: not being extravagant, so as to have more to give to a needful world
• investments: using for God’s cause
• money: taking care of personal necessities and then using the rest for God’s cause
https://www.preceptaustin.org/luke-14-commentary continued:
ReplyDeleteLuke 14:33 "So then, none of you can be My disciple who does not give up all his own possessions.
Who would be willing to give up EVERYTHING? It is the individual who recognizes that Jesus is worth EVERYTHING! This person is willing to make an unreserved commitment, holding nothing back.
MacArthur explains that "Jesus is not advocating socialism, or getting rid of everything and living a life of poverty. His point is that those who would be His disciples must recognize that they are stewards of everything and owners of nothing. And if the Lord asked them to give up all they would be willing, because loving obedience is their highest duty and joy."
Guzik - We have a difficult challenge in understanding and communicating the gospel here; there are two extremes to avoid. We can never give people the impression that they have to clean up their lives before the come to Jesus; that is like washing up before you take a bath.. But also, we can never give people the impression that Jesus won't want to clean up their lives with their cooperation after they come to Him. It is as if we have an apartment and give the ownership of that apartment to Jesus. We don't have to remodel the apartment before we give it to Jesus; but once we do, He comes in and starts tearing down walls and fixing up things. Being a disciple means that you help Jesus in that work instead of resisting it, or changing things back to the old way.
Notice that Jesus is saying we are to “give up,” not “give away.” Disciples give authority over their relationships, their possessions, and their resources to Christ. All that I have is to be used consistently with His mission and direction. My house becomes His house; my car, His car; my savings, His savings. This renunciation is a costly act for those of us who love the “stuff” of life.
All his own possessions - Note that Jesus says ALL not some! Jesus is giving great advice to all us in wealthy America. He knows that the problem with possessions is that too often they end up possessing us! And Jesus will tolerate no pretenders on the throne of our heart declaring that
24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth. (Mt 6:24)
Mike Andrus - Jesus does not ask for much–only all that you have–your possessions, your time, your talents, your career, your desires, your ideals, your plans. He may not take them from you, but He does demand that you surrender title to them. He does not ask that you give them away but rather that you give them up.
THE COST OF BEING A CHRISTIAN.
1. GIVING UP ALL SIN.
2. SURRENDERING THE WILL.
3. SEPARATION FROM THE WORLD.
4. OPPOSITION BY THE WORLD.
5. TEMPTATION BY THE DEVIL.
6. SELF-DENIAL.
Questions and findings:
ReplyDelete1. We need to hate our families? What does it look like to hate our families?
To understand this more, we need to understand the culture in which Jesus was making this comment. Family identity was much stronger then. For the most part, your family had your whole life planned out for you - even who you would marry. To deviate in any way from that plan was to spit on your family - literally hating them. Jesus is telling the listeners that to be His disciples, they had to do just that - break with your family's plan, and follow Jesus.
In our American culture today, for the most part, we are expected to forge our own path when we enter adulthood, so Jesus' command to hate your family doesn't really apply - except in the cases and cultures where they do apply. For most of us Americans, the simple application is that we need to follow Jesus no matter what anyone else thinks - family, friends or strangers.
2. What does it look like to bear our cross and come after Jesus?
I think that this is another of Jesus' commands that is highly misunderstood.
Here's what is DOES NOT mean:
- We self-impose hardships on ourself.
- We don't make this life as comfortable as is reasonable to do so (while living 100% for Jesus and His Kingdom).
- We don't take time to recharge, take vacation, etc.
- We say yes to every ask of our time by other Christians (and especially church leaders).
- We make ourselves a martyr.
- We lose all joy in our lives with our self-imposed legalism and make everyone around us miserable.
What it DOES mean: We give ourselves over to the Holy Spirit living within us. We react to the Holy Spirit by:
- Lose interest in gratifying the desires of the flesh, and cling to the overwhelming presence of God.
- Focus on Jesus love and allow that love to flow to others.
- Understand our poverty apart from Christ and relish in the love, humility, meekness, etc. that our communion with Jesus brings.
- Give up defending ourselves.
- Lose sight of ourselves - i.e. Give up managing our image.
- Disregard people's opinions of us (both good and bad).
Questions and findings continued:
ReplyDelete3. What is Jesus telling us with the two parables?
The general rule of thumb in parables is to understand the main point and not get caught up in the details.
In the first parable, it's basic application is that we shouldn't give ourselves to Christ without thinking about the significance of doing so. It's not a casual decision. Although, it is true that we will be mocked if we claim to be something and not know the consequences - worrying about being mocked is not the point of the story.
The second parable is similar, but flipped (I think). The first parable tells us to consider the ramification of joining Jesus. The second parable tells us to consider the ramifications of not joining Jesus. We need to consider both with great alacrity and be serious about gathering enough information to make a choice.
4. Is there a point to the second parable about sending a delegation of peace when the enemy is far off?
It's possible that the point is that we should all consider wisely and make our peace with God, because He is coming to judge us. It's also possible that it's merely a general example showing the need for careful consideration.
5. How are we renouncing all that we have in this American society? What would it look like?
I'm not completely sure of this. It may be that Jesus is calling us to not own (or manage) any posessions, live in communes, etc. Maybe the Amish are the only people who are obedient to God - though I doubt it.
I think that Jesus' command to renouce all has to do with our hearts. Our possessions, our obligations, and how we spend our time must be forfeit to Jesus. A person who is completely obedient to Jesus' command may still have a job, a house, cars, hobbies, and have a life that looks very similar to his unsaved neighbor. However, with the Christ-follower, the purpose for all of those things is to further God's kingdom. Our jobs are for being a light to those we work with. Our house is a place where people come to worship God together, and show hospitality. Everything we own and everything we do is for the purpose of spreading God's kingdom.