Dare To Be A Disciple!

When Jesus is talking about the king, he’s looking at if from another angle.

The king has to first sit down (notice in both cases the people sit down - meaning that they stop to ponder, to consider - they don’t run whole hog into the situation without a lot of thought).

The king first needs to sit down and consider if the resources he has - in this case 10,000 soldiers, is enough to enter into battle against a foe with twice the resources.

Or should he make peace - even submitting to ‘conditions of peace’ which is a lot like ‘terms of surrender’.

The truth is, everywhere in life we’re called upon to count the cost. When I’m marrying a couple, I always say: "Marriage is not to be entered upon lightly or unadvisedly, but thoughtfully, reverently, and in the fear of God."

A man and woman must count the cost.

33 So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple.

Jesus is saying, Consider ahead of time whether or not you are willing to become his follower. It will take everything you have and more.

Discipleship will figure in every future decision of your life. The will of God will be first in your priority from now on.

So...Jesus wants us to be His disciples, His TRUE disciples who will have Him as their first love beyond all other loves.

Who will re-order their loves, not just once, frankly. I find I have to do this on nearly a daily basis - to examine my heart and see if God is truly still my first love.

When my honest answer is ‘no’, and sometimes it might be - I need to repent and to realign my affections, to re-order my loves, so that God is truly my first love.

Always, always, when I do this, I end up treating my wife BETTER, my children BETTER, this church that I love and this mission that I love BETTER.

Discipleship is a call to complete surrender to God, complete love to God, complete service to God, complete offering of our lives to God. Do you see how that’s different from simply attending church?

If this seems too much, if you’re surprised to find that Jesus says these things, if you’re not comfortable listening to me speak this way;

If you are daunted, intimidated, by the high demands of Christ, you need to remember that you are - we are - not left to fulfil them alone.

He who calls us to the steep road, to the narrow road, will walk with us every step of the way and be there at the end to meet us.

He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. (Philippians 1:6)

Amen? Amen.

So discipleship is a life of love and of obedience to Jesus Christ.

That is what we’re called to. And disciples are called to be baptised. I would encourage you, if you want to explore baptism itself in more detail, to meet with us today at 5:15 PM, after the congregational meeting at 4:40 PM today.