W#ho Said Following Jesus Would Be Easy?

WHO SAID FOLLOWING JESUS WOULD BE EASY?

Warsaw Christian Church, Richard Bowman, Pastor

Scripture: Luke 14:27-33

When in the Bible did God ever give anyone an easy job? God comes to Noah and says, “I have a job for you. I’m not happy with the way things are going in my world, so I am going to destroy it and you and your family will start over again. Build an ark and survive the flood.” Noah doesn’t fully understand, but he obeys. It wasn’t easy. I am sure he was ridiculed by his neighbors as that huge ark took shape. David took on the giant Goliath in battle with a slingshot. It wasn’t easy. Joseph was betrayed by his brothers and ended up in prison. He finally assumed a high position in the court of the Pharaoh of Egypt, but it wasn’t easy. Daniel’s faithfulness led him to the lion’s den. He survived, but it wasn’t easy. Paul was commanded to bring the Gospel to the Gentiles, and he did, but it wasn’t easy. Our Lord was sent to redeem the world, but He had to die on a cross to accomplish it. It wasn’t easy.

I believe God called me to be a pastor, and while I have enjoyed the ride, it hasn’t always been easy. What about you? God has called each of us to faith in His Son, and to a life of radical obedience. The prize that awaits us is glorious beyond our comprehension, but the pathway to the prize will never be easy. Jesus once told us to count the cost if we wished to be His disciple. “Then Jesus said to His disciples, ‘If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me’” Following Him involves self-denial and taking up the cross.

Martin Luther felt he had to challenge the authority of the church in the Middle Ages. He was excommunicated three times, sent to prison, and generally harassed by his opponents. He succeeded in launching the Protestant Reformation, but it wasn’t easy. John Wycliffe was an early reformer before Luther. He produced the first English translation of the Bible. He died a natural death but was declared a heretic by the Catholic Church. His body was exhumed and burned by the church. Following Christ for him was not easy. One modern preacher reports that at the end of his sermon a man walked up to him and punched him in the mouth! Following Jesus on that day was definitely not easy. If any of you feel like punching me in the face after a sermon I hope you will consider my age and reconsider!

Christ Jesus has called many to live as His disciples. Often that call leads to adversity, persecution, hardship, and sometimes death. Jesus warned us that we may be called upon to pay a heavy cost if we seriously seek to follow Him. Notice in our text how Jesus defines a disciple. A disciple is a person willing to forsake all that he has for Jesus' sake. Another way to say that is that a disciple is a person who gives to Jesus first place in her heart and life. Our Lord used two everyday illustrations to make his point clear. You don’t begin a building project unless you know you have the resources to finish. A half-finished building may lead to mockery. A king does not go to war unless he is reasonably confident that his forces are sufficient to defeat the enemy. Many military leaders have sacrificed lives in a hopeless war. They failed to sufficiently count the cost. Then Jesus hits us with the clincher: “So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple.” Those are sobering words. “Whoever” - - - that means me. “Cannot” - - - That means true discipleship is impossible until Jesus has first place in my heart.

Are there no positive benefits to being a Christian? Of course there are, and we have looked at them often over the years. Our heavenly Father does shower His people with blessings. Those I mentioned earlier who suffered because of their faith in Christ would be the first to tell you that following Jesus brought enumerable blessings, ending with eternal life in His presence. They would also say that following Christ was not always easy. There is a cost to discipleship.

Some pastors only emphasize the positive side of discipleship. They don’t want to drive people away by referring to sin, opposition, persecution, judgment, divine wrath, or hell. While I don’t like to dwell on the negative aspects of the Christian faith, neither do I avoid them altogether. They are integral to the teachings of Jesus, and to omit them altogether amounts to robbing the people of God of important truths we all need to hear.