READ: Luke 9:57-62.
Luke records for us in this passage an account of THREE (3) MEN whom Jesus met as He travelled along with His disciples. Two of these men declared that they wished to follow Jesus; to become His disciples. The other was one whom Jesus SUMMONED to follow Him.
What immediately strikes me is the way in which Jesus handles these inquirers (and I think that this is Luke’s reason for recording the details of these meetings). MOST men with a cause are busy trying to recruit as MANY as they can. Most preachers are busy trying to get as many members for their church as they possibly can (and most have good intentions). I like seeing new members myself!
It’s natural. It’s what we expect to see. But Jesus is radically different in His approach. He seems to spend a great deal of His time trying to DISSUADE men from following after Him - or at least that’s what it looks like.
A minister friend of mine was sharing with me recently some advice he was given by an aging preacher whom he greatly respected. The old man said to him, “Son, always endeavour to keep your church as SMALL as you can!” That’s strange talk isn’t it?! And that was coming from a man who himself had pastored quite a large congregation. But what he meant was, preach the truth of God’s salvation, and the demands of following Jesus, SO CLEARLY that ONLY those who have counted the cost and are ready to give up ALL for Christ will join themselves to you.
Friends, it’s my desire to see as many as possible come to Christ - I pray to see them come in their hundreds and even thousands - BUT I DON‘T JUST WANT TO GET A CROWD . . . that doesn’t interest me at all! I want to see men and women, young people, boys and girls turning to Christ with whole hearts; becoming TRUE sold out disciples of the Master. Hallelujah!
And so, it’s interesting to read of Jesus’ way of dealing with those who expressed a desire to follow Him; He seems to be trying to DISCOURAGE them. BUT NOT REALLY. In actual fact Jesus’ desire is that people WILL follow Him - but He wants them to think it through first . . . to count the cost involved . . . so that once they DO follow Him they’ll never turn back. Even as He spells out what is required in such clear, shocking terms, inside He is longing for them to accept it - He’s rooting for them - but the cost is the cost . . . it’s non-negotiable . . . and they MUST be prepared for it.
Would you look with me tonight at these three men who Jesus confronted with His demands, and consider with me “THE COST OF FOLLOWING JESUS”.
We read of the first man in VERSES 57-58. And from Jesus’ conversation with him we learn that:
1. THE FOLLOWER OF JESUS HAS NO EARTHLY SECURITY.
[READ vv57-58]
It’s quite a bold statement this one makes, isn’t it?! “I will follow you WHEREVER you go!” Can you say that without any idea of where this Jesus may be headed . . . what may be involved in the journey?! Perhaps you need some more information first, and then if you’re still willing to follow all well and good.
Jesus replies that to follow Him “WHEREVER He’s going” will not be an easy road. He’s not one of these “high-flying” Rabbis who jets from village to village, staying in the best hotels, and collecting nice offerings from the crowds that come to hear them. No sir. His is a true “FAITH” ministry!
When Jesus stepped out of His throne in glory to come to the earth and live and die for us, He left behind all that He had. He exchanged wealth for poverty - out of the ivory palaces into a rude cattle shed. He exchanged rulership for servanthood.
He says, “Foxes have holes, and birds have nests, but the Son of man has nowhere to lay His head”. What an irony . . . the King of glory - heir apparent to the throne of the Universe - doesn’t even have a place to call “home”. He has no earthly security. He was loaned accommodation by those who loved Him. He borrowed a coin to tell a story. He borrowed a donkey to ride into Jerusalem and fulfill prophecy. Why, He was even buried in a borrowed tomb! (It was just as well that He didn’t need it for too long!) HE had NOTHING. Oh, but here I see His glory shining! He gave up all when He came and stood by me!!!
And those who follow Him must be prepared for the same road. NO EARTHLY SECURITY. Now note, I HAVEN’T said “NO SECURITY”. Oh, there is security in following Jesus all right - but it’s NOT any earthly security. It’s not the security of possessions, or money, or homes, or such things. ONLY the security of God’s faithfulness, and a life beyond this one that NOTHING can take away! Though the Christian have nothing to his name in this life, yet he is more secure than the richest, most powerful of men.
But the follower of Jesus has NO EARTHLY SECURITY. If you’re going to follow Jesus - and walk His road - it may well cost you everything! So COUNT THE COST! But remember the words of Jesus elsewhere, He said: “WHOEVER LOSES HIS LIFE FOR MY SAKE SHALL FIND IT!”
Then we read of a second man in VERSES 59-60. And from Jesus’ conversation with this one we learn that:
2. THE FOLLOWER OF JESUS HAS NO EARTHLY TIES.
[READ vv59-60.]
Here we have a conversation that has shocked many people; it shocked me when I first read it! Jesus CALLS this man to be His disciple, but he begs leave to go and bury his father first. Doesn’t this seem like a reasonable request?! You feel sympathy for the man, don’t you, as you read it. BUT JESUS REPLIES: “Let the dead bury their own dead: I’ve called you to preach for me.” WOW!
Friends, the point Jesus makes here, and let no-one mistake it, is that if you’re going to follow Jesus Christ then the claims of His Kingdom come before ANYTHING and ANYONE else. Jesus said elsewhere that, “He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me”. NOW you get the picture of the kind of devotion that He is calling for! He’s not calling for us to dishonour parents, or shirk our responsibility to family, BUT IF WE ARE PRESSED INTO A CHOICE BETWEEN THE TWO, HE COMES FIRST! And indeed, some have had to lose family to follow Christ.
The follower of Jesus has no ultimate earthly ties! So, Jesus says: “LEAVE IT BEHIND!”
Let me cast a little further light on this conversation perhaps. When this man says, “Let me first go and bury my father”, it might help us to have an insight into Jewish funeral procedure. An initial burial took place shortly after a person’s decease. This man is not locked away in ‘mourning’, so we may assume that that burial had already taken place. but then ONE YEAR LATER, after the first burial, (and I won’t go into the graphic reasons for it!), the son would return to re-bury the bones in a special box in a slot in the tomb wall. If that’s the situation here, and it seems reasonable to assume it was, then this man who has been called by Jesus could be asking for up to a YEAR’S delay before following! Jesus says, “Others can take care of that, my friend - the demands of the Kingdom are more urgent - MY call cannot wait!
Friends, the follower of Jesus has no earthly ties. Jesus says, “LEAVE IT BEHIND . . . Follow Me!”
I hear young people saying, “I’ll follow Jesus later on. I’ve other more important things to attend to right now. My career, my education, my girlfriend, my boyfriend. I’ve go to provide a nest egg for my family first; wouldn’t God want me to be responsible like that?!” Friend, if God is calling you to follow Him - to commit your life to Christ, or to take up ministry for Him, or whatever it may be, HIS CALL COMES FIRST! No excuse must be allowed to hinder you.
The follower of Jesus has no earthly ties. LEAVE IT BEHIND.
Then finally, we come to the third man in VERSES 61-62. And from Jesus’ conversation with this one we learn that:
3. THE FOLLOWER OF JESUS HAS NO EARTHLY DISTRACTIONS.
[READ vv61-62.]
Again, doesn’t this seem like a reasonable request? Would you deny a soldier going to war one last chance to bid his loved ones farewell?! But again, Jesus clearly spells out the cost of following Him. “Sir, you’ve already declared you are ready to follow me - YOU’VE PICKED UP THE PLOW - if you put it down now because of your hankering after your family back home, you’re not fit for the Kingdom of God!” What is Jesus saying? “DON’T LOOK BACK!”
When Peter, James and John followed Jesus, they literally “DROPPED” their fishing nets to go after Him. And right when it looked like business was picking up too! (Jesus had just got them a bumper catch!) They went back for nothing. The Master had called.
Some have looked back when God called them forward. Let me list some of them for you. LOT’S WIFE. JUDAS ISCARIOT. DEMAS. Is any of them remembered for any GOOD thing? They were not worthy of the Kingdom.
If you’re going to follow Jesus, there must be no going back. Another reason why we count the cost FIRST!
Another way Jesus put it was like this: “Which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost, to see if he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation, and is not able to finish, all who observe it begin to ridicule him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish’”.
Commenting on those words, JOHN STOTT wrote this:
“The Christian landscape is strewn with the wreckage of derelict, half-built towers - the ruins of those who began to build and were unable to finish. For thousands of people still ignore Christ’s warning and undertake to follow Him without first pausing to reflect on the cost of doing so. The result is the great scandal of Christendom today, so-called ‘nominal Christianity’. In countries to which Christian civilization has spread, large numbers of people have covered themselves with a decent, but thin, veneer of Christianity. They have allowed themselves to become somewhat involved; enough to be respectable but not enough to be uncomfortable. Their religion is a great, soft cushion. It protects them from the hard unpleasantness of life, while changing its place and shape to suit their conveniences. No wonder the cynics speak of hypocrites in the church and dismiss religion as escapism.”
The true follower of Jesus allows NO EARTHLY DISTRACTIONS. We don’t look back for anything or anyone.
CONCLUSION:
Jesus’ words are strong, aren’t they?! Here is what it will cost you to follow after Jesus. In short, it will cost you EVERYTHING. He calls for us to commit ourselves completely to Him, and hold nothing back. And THAT is the picture of the authentic Christian.
The follower of Jesus has NOT EARTHLY SECURITY; NO EARTHLY TIES; and NO EARTHLY DISTRACTIONS.
Jesus said to the first man: “COUNT THE COST”. He said to the second man: “LEAVE IT BEHIND”. And He said to the third man: “DON’T LOOK BACK”.
What’s He saying to YOU tonight?!
Well, you’ve heard the COST of following Jesus. You might well say, “Who then would ever consider following Him?”
Well, perhaps to answer that we should briefly consider the COST OF NOT FOLLOWING HIM!
- ETERNAL LIFE
- NO GUIDANCE (or meaning) IN THIS LIFE.
- NO OPPORTUNITY TO GLORIFY GOD.
