This evening’s message is entitled, “Counting the Cost,” and it’s taken from a passage of Scripture that is sometimes called, “The Cost of Discipleship.” When Jesus spoke about the cost of discipleship He incorporated two parables to illustrate His point. One parable speaks of a tower builder and the other mentions a king preparing for battle. This evening we will examine closely Jesus’ use of these two parables, in order to gain a firm grasp on His message.
I would like to begin this sermon with an illustration: “A hen and a pig approached a church and read the advertised sermon topic: ‘What can we do to help the poor?’ Immediately the hen suggested they feed them bacon and eggs. The pig thought for a moment and said, ‘There is only one thing wrong with feeding bacon and eggs to the poor. For you it requires only a contribution, but for me it requires total commitment’.”(1) In our passage, Jesus wants us to consider whether we, as Christians, are making only small contributions to the kingdom or a total commitment.
Bearing Your Cross (vv. 25-27)
25 Now great multitudes went with Him. And He turned and said to them, 26 “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. 27 And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.”
Jesus came to share a message of salvation; but right here, you might think He didn’t want anyone to be His disciple. He told all those who were following Him around that if they continued with Him that they would have to forsake their own families, and bear a cross. If Jesus wanted to gain followers, then why would He have told people that they would have to hate their families and possibly die on a cross? Pastors today do not gain a following by telling women to hate their husbands, for example, or by telling the people of their congregation that if they come to church they will have to die.
Jesus wasn’t concerned about gaining a great following. When it came to finding true believers He wasn’t seeker sensitive. He was more concerned about the hearts of those few who would follow. He would have rather had a faithful few than a mutinous multitude. Jesus stated in John 4:23 that He desired to be worshipped in spirit and truth. By “spirit,” He meant that those who worship Him should do so with all their heart and soul. They should be willing to give their very life to Him. By “truth,” Jesus meant that He wanted His followers to be truthful in their relationship with Him; they needed to sincerely desire closeness and fellowship with Him.
In order to convey to the multitude the kind of closeness and dedication that He desires, Jesus taught His lesson through the use of two parables. So, how did these two parables portray the dedication that Jesus desires of His followers? Well, we shall find out as we continue reading.
A Tower Builder (vv. 28-30)
28 “For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it – 29 lest, after he has laid the 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’.”
These verses tell about a person who wanted to build a tower. To what kind of tower was Jesus referring? He might have been speaking of a watchtower that was built to guard against incoming enemy soldiers; but there is another type of tower that appears to bring more meaning to this passage.
Harper’s Bible Dictionary says, “In addition to the military function of towers, farmers built small watchtowers in fields and vineyards. These towers provided elevated positions from which fields were guarded; the ground floor of such structures served as living quarters for fieldworkers or guards, since ripening crops had to be guarded day and night.”(2) An example of one of these towers is seen in “The Parable of the Wicked Vinedressers,” in Matthew chapter 21.
A vineyard watchtower served to guard the vineyard. In many of Jesus’ parables the vineyard represents either the assembly of His kingdom people, or the field of souls to be harvested. If the vineyard represents the field of souls in which Jesus commands Christians to labor, then the watchtower could represent a church situated within the vineyard. When someone confesses Jesus as Savior and Lord, he becomes a part of Christ’s church and has a responsibility to see to the growth of the church. So, why is it important for the person who wishes to build a church to first determine whether he is able to finish its construction? What are some things that first need to be considered?
A follower of Jesus Christ should consider whether or not a church will function properly if left unfinished. Each piece of the tower serves a particular function. First, a tower is built on a foundation. So, on what foundation should a church be built? The answer is Jesus Christ, our firm foundation. If a tower, or a church, doesn’t have a foundation, then it will crumble to the ground and never serve its intended purpose.
Secondly, the ground floor of a tower provided shelter for the workers after a hard day. What would happen if the workers didn’t have this place of refuge? They might have to sleep out in the cold or on the hard ground. The next day they wouldn’t be fully rested in order to work efficiently. To apply this, if the construction of a church is never begun on the foundation of Christ, the church will never be built. Thus, the bottom floor will be missing. When the bottom floor of the tower is built it provides a refuge from the world. It becomes a place where Christians can go for rest and renewal to prepare for another day of work in the field of souls. Without rest, nothing will get done.
Last, the top floor of a tower provided a vantage point from which to view the growth stages of the grapes in the vineyard. Spiritually speaking, without the top floor one is blind to the state of people’s souls. In a church, an incomplete top floor represents Christians going to the church for shelter from the world, but simultaneously closing their eyes to all the ones dying and going to hell around them.
Before we build a church for Jesus Christ, we need to count the cost and make sure that we’re able to complete the construction; or should I say, make sure that we have a genuine desire to complete the construction. If the building is not completed, it won’t function properly. So, what happens when a church doesn’t function as it should? Verse 29 says, “After he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him.” When people see us not reaching souls for Christ, our poor example will bring a bad name to the Lord and His power, and people will begin to mock, not only us, but the One we serve.
It has been said that when you make plans to build a house, that the cost you calculate is never enough; it always costs much more. There is a rule of thumb to follow. It is suggested that a person figure seventeen percent of the estimated cost of construction, and then add that seventeen percent to the first estimate. So, what does this information tell us about building a church, or serving and growing the kingdom for Jesus Christ? It tells us that following Jesus is going to cost much more than we could ever imagine.
A King at War (vv. 31-32)
31 “Or what king, going to make war against another king, does not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? 32 Or else, while the other is still a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks conditions of peace.”
In these verses, Jesus spoke about a king at war. What king would go to battle against 20,000 soldiers if he had an army of only 10,000 soldiers? He wouldn’t want to risk killing the lives of his soldiers if the battle couldn’t result in victory. If he found a tactical advantage then he would fight, but if he didn’t he would have to forego the battle; or else find out after it’s too late that he couldn’t defeat the enemy and then have to surrender. It’s important for a king or military leader to sit down and think before he acts, because many lives are at stake.
If we are to follow Jesus Christ, then we must first count the cost. When we accept Him as Savior and Lord, we automatically become the minority and the underdog. It’s not going to be easy. Christians will engage in battle on many occasions, because we fight in what’s called spiritual warfare. The Christian life is not a bowl of cherries, as some would lead you to believe. If we take a stand for Jesus Christ, then Satan will make sure that we face opposition. Those who tell you the Christian life is easy, are probably compromising somewhere in their faith.
If we have not sat down and considered the cost of becoming a Christian before we accept Jesus into our heart, then we might enter into battle and have to surrender. There are those who claim to be a Christian, but when temptations arise and the battle becomes rough, they surrender to those temptations; and thus, to the devil. Many lives are at stake in battle. When one claims to be a Christian, but surrenders to Satan’s temptations, then numerous lives are lost. When a believer has a moral fall, then many others can fall; meaning that many non-Christians will see the poor witness we portray and never come to faith in Christ.
What Is The Cost? (v. 33)
33 “So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple.”
Jesus said that we must forsake all in order to follow Him. So, what is the cost of discipleship? Paul stated it like this in Galatians 2:20: “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” The cost of following Jesus Christ is being crucified with Him; or in the words of Luke 14:27, “bearing one’s cross.” The phrase “forsaking all” doesn’t just include all of our worldly possessions, but our very life itself. Jesus requires of us our life – heart, mind, and soul. He asks of us our all.
Time of Reflection
Through the use of two parables Jesus said that if we are thinking about following Him, then we should first add up the cost. If we plan on building a church, for example, then we had better be sure we can complete the task. We can only complete it if we have started building on the right foundation, and if we know the task we are undertaking before we begin. If we have not considered the task ahead of time, then we may wimp out and give up; and when this happens, others will mock and be discouraged from believing in God’s power.
If we plan on fighting in the Lord’s army, then we need to realize that not every battle in this life results in victory. Our Lord has already won the ultimate battle over sin and death, but not all battles in life will be won. We are going to get beat up, struck down, and torn apart many times if we take a stand for Christ. Are you ready to take a stand?
Jesus also told us that we will have to bear our cross for Him. We are to have such love and devotion for Him that we are willing to die to self, and to give up our own wants and desires; or perhaps, even be willing to literally and physically die in His name. Are you ready to be crucified with Christ?
NOTES
(1) Michael P. Green, Illustrations for Biblical Preaching (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1997), 73.
(2) Achtemier, Paul J., Th.D., Harper’s Bible Dictionary, (San Francisco: Harper and Row, Publishers, Inc.) 1985.
