Sept 5, 2010
The Cost and Benefits of Discipleship
Grace mercy and peace from God the father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
The text for this sermon is Luke 14:25-27, 33 Let’s read it again.
The Cost of Discipleship
25Now 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. 33In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.
Doesn’t Matthew 11:30 say For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
What’s going on here? This cross business doesn’t sound so easy.
Matthew 10:34-39 states the same concept.
34 "Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. 36 And a person’s enemies will be those of his own household. 37 Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39 Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.
In all three synoptic gospels - Matthew (10:22), Mark(13:13), and Luke (21:17) -- Jesus says that all men will hate you because of me. He tells us to stand firm to the end and we will be saved.
In John 16:2 Jesus says a time is coming when anyone who kills you
will think he is offering a service to God. We have seen this in history, we
have seen it in our lifetimes.
Where is that easy yoke?
To the original hearers, the words of Jesus certainly came very clear over time. We know what happened to Judas Iscariot.(Math 27:5) and James the brother of John. (Acts 12:2) Their deaths are recorded in scripture. With the exception of John, according to tradition, the other ten were all martyred. Matthias, Judas Iscariot’s replacement, was stoned and beheaded.
History records the intermittent persecution and martyring of more disciples. Starting with Stephen in Acts 7 and continuing with subsequent generations of disciples martyred by various enemies of Christ up to the present time. There is also a disturbing history of Christians killing each other in fights over perceived heresy, reformation or power struggles. We must also, regrettably, admit that there were many forced conversions to Christianity by the sword. Many of the crosses that we are asked to carry are made of human ---- but not humane ---- construction.
From AD 33 to 1900 there were an estimated 14 Million martyred. During the 20th century alone there were an estimated 26 million martyrs. The current estimated rate of martyrdom is 159,000 per year - down from 330,000 per year during the cold war. As the Christian Church grows there are more Christians to kill, and more reasons on the part of persecutors to do so, Ironically the church is growing the fastest in areas where it is persecuted most.
(Monday Morning Reality Check, Global Evangelization Movement), (John Mark Ministries)
Lets get back to Jesus words from a more contemporary translation. You cannot be my disciple, unless you love me more than you love your father and mother, your wife and children, and your brothers and sisters. You cannot be my disciple unless you carry your own cross and come with me. So then, you cannot be my disciple unless you (are willing to) give away everything you own. CEV
Jesus is saying that He must come first in our lives. He is asking us to tear ourselves away from all other commitments and follow Him. We are not automatically required to give away everything we own --he is talking about attachments and priorities. He is asking that we be willing to give up every thing and everyone to follow him when he asks. We must be willing to abandon parents, families, golf clubs or mustang convertibles -- all of our stuff --- if necessary.
There are cultures, religions and social systems where one would be required to choose between family and Christ or Between community and Christ. It could happen to us -- a family member or spouse --possibly of another faith -- might issue an ultimatum to abandon Christ or be shunned if you receive Christ. We must love Jesus more than security, more than family, more than life itself. We are asked to put Jesus first in our lives, our commitments and our attachments.
Could this be why we aren’t persecuted here? Is our commitment so poor
that the enemy doesn’t recognize us as legitimate disciples and not a threat?
We haven’t actually defined discipleship. There are various definitions and Degrees. Webster’s Dictionary defines disciple as a pupil, a follower, or adherent of any teacher or school of religion, learning, art, etc.
Theopedia - An Encyclopedia of Biblical Christianity defines a disciple by
Defining discipleship.
--Discipleship" is a term used to refer to a disciple’s transformation from some other worldview and practice of life into that of Jesus Christ, and so, by way of Trinitarian theology, of God himself. Note the Apostle Paul’s description of this process, that the disciple "not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.(Romans 12:2) " Therefore a disciple is not simply an accumulator of information or one who merely changes moral behavior in regards to the teachings of Jesus Christ, (submits to Christ --law) but in response to God’s work in him or her seeks a fundamental shift toward the ethics of Jesus Christ in every way.(Surrenders to Christ --gospel)
Do not be conformed to this world --- be transformed --- renew your minds ----discern the will of God -- seek a fundamental shift toward the ethics of Jesus Christ in every way. We are not talking about pietistic works that look good in the eyes of men or in our own minds -- we are talking about transformation, renewal. We are talking about the Holy Spirit working in us writing God’s law on our hearts and empowering us to obedience. We are talking about surrendering self to Christ, not just submitting here and there to look good in front of others..
When we finally surrender self to Christ, the yoke becomes easy.
The title for this section of scripture is the cost of discipleship. The cost for Jesus was very expensive. He left the throne room to be with humanity-- to enter into our history by way of incarnation. He lived a sinless life in our place, was crucified for our sin so that we could be clothed in His righteousness, rose from the dead and returned to the right hand of the Father so that we could also rise from the dead and live with Him eternally. He paid the total price for our redemption. The total cost of discipleship is also paid by Him one hundred percent. He paid the entire price and we get the benefits. We get the benefits now -- we don’t have to wait until our death.
We get the benefit of living a transformed life. Why don’t we grasp for this life -- why is it so elusive -- why do we limit it to forty five minutes in church once a week or less and maybe a Bible study now and then? Why are we content to be Christ’s disciple on a part time basis? The Holy Spirit works continuously to form us to the image of Christ yet we keep one ear tuned in to the worlds message and conform to the world’s expectations. And sadly, we even allow worldliness and worldly values to affect our thinking in the Church -- erroneously equating the Church with business or even sometimes “show business.“ Transformation is up to God --our part is to recognize it and stop fighting it -- conform to Christ and not the world. I would call this the benefits of discipleship as opposed to the cost of discipleship.
I am indebted to Philip Nation, Ministry Development Director at Life Way Christian Resources for his recent internet article entitled “8 Preachable Marks of a Transformed Life. Most of what follows is his work.
Saint Paul in Romans 12 gives us eight marks -- that is benefits --of a transformed life.
1. Surrender:
Romans 12:1 tells us to be a living sacrifice. We need to seek God’s will and surrender to God’s plans. We need to put God’s agenda first. I am not talking short term submitting nor am I talking trading favors. I am talking about turning our will and our lives over to God.
A transformed life is marked by willing surrender
2. Renewal
In Romans 12:2 the transformation is seen as an exercise of the mind. Jesus taught in the Sermon on the mount murder and adultery are committed internally long before acted upon externally. In order to live out the change brought about by redemption, a spiritual mind is required. As we focus on the life of Jesus in particular and the Scriptures as a whole our minds come into the alignment with the thoughts of God. Turn off the voice of the world in our homes -- and study God’s word.
A transformed life is marked by renewed thinking
3. Service
Continuing in Romans 12:3-8 Paul moves from doctrine to practice, his thoughts jump quickly to how all are gifted to serve the church and Christ’s mission. Living the transformed life means participating in the disciple making process for others in the way God has uniquely called and equipped us. Empowering believers to serve in the place for which they were designed allows every Christian to aid others’ transformation.
A Transformed life is marked by Humble Service
4. Love
The word love is horribly misused in our language. Unlike the biblical Greek we only have one word to describe our love for God, our spouse, pizza and our favorite football team. Paul --starting in verse 9 -- is speaking of agape love -- the kind associated with a hero’s death -- like a crucifixion for example -- rather than a romantic story or a great pizza. Agape love is essentially the choice to value the need of another rather than your own need -- a manner of living that is the very antithesis to worldly values. Love is the trait that Christ clearly said would distinguish our lives from the rest of the world.
A transformed life is marked by genuine love
5. Diligence
Romans 12:11 says be diligent, fervent and serve the Lord. The Christian life is a marathon not a sprint. Throughout scripture we are shown that we must persist. In a culture obsessed with instant everything ---persistence seems to be a quality lost with the Puritans. But someone transformed by the gospel learns to persist. Transformation brings about a steadiness that ultimately results in the eternal fruit of spiritual maturity and the external fruit of new disciples.
A transformed life is marked by determined diligence
6. Perspective
Verse 12 carries the impact of moving through difficulties. “Rejoice in hope; be patient in affliction; be persistent in prayer.” These three statements all require the initiation of faith in our lives.
True gospel transformation requires faith. We believe that, through faith in God’s grace, one becomes a disciple of Christ. But faith does not have its ending point at the moment of conversion. Faith is required to please God (Hebrews 11:6). It is through the lens of faith that believers should see the work of God in our own lives. Knowing that we are often bruised by life, the perspective of faith allows us to see beyond present circumstances. Our life of faith must not only be painted as a hope for things to come in eternity. Faith is an active portion of how we view the current condition of life. It is the recognition within the community that life is difficult, but not impossible.
Living out transformation requires the perspective that our strength and ingenuity will never be sufficient. They were not sufficient to secure our souls for eternity, and they will not be able to get us through the years of this life. Faith is being convinced that God is here and He is for us. Maintaining a perspective of faith will keep us in a state of reliance on Christ, and it is in this active reliance that living out our transformation is possible.
A transformed life is marked by a perspective of faith.
7. Community
The bulk of Romans 12 deals with how believers relate to one another. From verses 13-20, a model is given to us for remaining close to one another. The language of the passage points to the needs we have: sharing, hospitality, blessing, weeping, peace, hunger, thirst. Meeting these needs for one another is where transformation shows itself.
But for needs to be met, community must be valued. we live in a place called a community. It has geographic boundaries and a name. But I can promise you that we are not all in community with one another. The citizens of our community argue about how tax money is to be spent, in what order the roads should receive repair, and where the next school should be built. We are a community that is not often in community with one another.
But as a community of believers, we have a unique opportunity. It is our place to bring together those who are individually transformed by the gospel, so they may share their lives. Though people show an inherent desire to be in community, they will often substitute proximity for relationships. In order to weep with someone (v. 15), you have to be more than physically near them. We must pursue transformation in order to take on the heart of Christ, who wept at the tomb of a friend. Community is the place that catalyzes change.
A transformed life is marked by living in community with believers.
8. Righteousness.
The final verse of the chapter reads, “Do not be conquered by evil, but conquer evil with good” (v. 21). Evil seems to hang around churches. Evil tempts us, goads us, and mocks us. And in moments of weakness, we come close to throwing our hands up and walking away. But we do not, because Christ has done too much on our behalf.
The very nature we have been given is that of righteousness. In his second letter to the Corinthian church, Paul taught that we had been given the ministry of reconciliation because God “made the One who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21). Our lives should show that we are more interested in displaying Christ’s righteousness than gaining a transitory victory over someone’s ill will toward us. We are guaranteed righteousness, so why do we waste our lives messing about with sin.
We are taught, “For those He foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers” (Romans 8:29). The issue of “Can I be righteous?” is to be removed from the minds of the believers. Instead, our thought each day can be, “How will Christ’s righteousness be displayed in me?”
A transformed life is marked by righteousness.
The marks of a transformed life are merely the signs of Christ’s presence in us. As we lead our lives in the church and in the world, let’s do so with the mindset that God has guaranteed transformation for His people -- empowering the transforming of our minds -- let us foster discipleship.
