Luk 14:26 | KingComments | STEP | If something is available for free, it attracts a lot of people. The offer of grace is wide and attractive. However, the fact that the dinner is free of charge does not mean that it is cheap. Therefore the Lord also highlights the other side of the invitation. He also has a word for those who follow Him without realizing what it means to follow Him. He turns around and speaks to all about the truth of discipleship. There are no conditions attached to the grace of God. However, the gospel in which this grace is proclaimed places our feet on the path of the disciple, which can only be trodden under these conditions. The disciple must follow Christ that simply and resolutely that it seems to others’ eyes that he completely neglects natural family ties and that he is indifferent to all claims from close relatives. It is not the case that the Lord calls for lovelessness, but that is how it can and must appear to those from whom one bids farewell, as it were, in His Name. To someone who wants to be a disciple, the attraction of grace must exert a greater influence than all natural bonds and all other claims of any kind. “Hate” is not cherishing hate feelings, but consider irrelevant when it comes to following the Lord Jesus. Neither did He let Himself be led by His mother and His brothers and sisters and hated them in this sense. Furthermore, it is not enough to come to Him and begin to follow Him, but we must follow Him day after day. He who does not do this cannot be His disciple. Thus we see in that we must give up all things for Christ and in that we must follow Christ despite effort and suffering and with perseverance. The Lord makes it a matter of calculating the cost. All those who start a project are first going to make a budget. No one is rushing into an uncertain business. So it is with discipleship. Following the Lord Jesus is not a matter of emotion, but of sober deliberation, resulting in a clear choice. A tower speaks of a visible testimony, of vigilance and of a view of the future. We can say that we live for the future to then be with Christ, but that means that we give up everything on earth. That’s what it costs. Following Christ can only be continued if we remain vigilant and keep an eye on His coming. Otherwise, after a shorter or longer time, we will stop following Him because we are no longer willing to make sacrifices. Ceasing to follow Him will bring us and also Christ reproach. Then we are like someone who has started a business, but stops after a while because he has budgeted wrong. Such a person becomes an object of ridicule. It really does not remain unnoticed that someone who first followed the Lord, quits. His environment has noticed that he had started building and also notes that after a while the building has stopped. In addition to a building project, the Lord compares discipleship with a battle. He tells the crowd that a disciple is at war. If one thinks about following him, let him see first if he can cope with the battle. Is the army in which he serves strong enough to fight the enemy? The opposition is great. Being a witness in the world also causes battle. It costs a lot to be a witness. In a war it is true that in the case of a battle in which you will certainly lose, you are wise to ask for the terms of peace. You should ask for it when the other has not attacked you yet. If we really give up everything we have, we will have to rely entirely on the help of the great Master. Then the path of discipleship is also open to us as a great challenge.

‏ Luke 14:26

Calculate the Cost

If something is available for free, it attracts a lot of people. The offer of grace is wide and attractive. However, the fact that the dinner is free of charge does not mean that it is cheap. Therefore the Lord also highlights the other side of the invitation. He also has a word for those who follow Him without realizing what it means to follow Him. He turns around and speaks to all about the truth of discipleship. There are no conditions attached to the grace of God. However, the gospel in which this grace is proclaimed places our feet on the path of the disciple, which can only be trodden under these conditions.

The disciple must follow Christ that simply and resolutely that it seems to others’ eyes that he completely neglects natural family ties and that he is indifferent to all claims from close relatives. It is not the case that the Lord calls for lovelessness, but that is how it can and must appear to those from whom one bids farewell, as it were, in His Name.

To someone who wants to be a disciple, the attraction of grace must exert a greater influence than all natural bonds and all other claims of any kind. “Hate” is not cherishing hate feelings, but consider irrelevant when it comes to following the Lord Jesus. Neither did He let Himself be led by His mother and His brothers and sisters and hated them in this sense.

Furthermore, it is not enough to come to Him and begin to follow Him, but we must follow Him day after day. He who does not do this cannot be His disciple. Thus we see in Lk 14:26 that we must give up all things for Christ and in Lk 14:27 that we must follow Christ despite effort and suffering and with perseverance. The Lord makes it a matter of calculating the cost. All those who start a project are first going to make a budget. No one is rushing into an uncertain business. So it is with discipleship. Following the Lord Jesus is not a matter of emotion, but of sober deliberation, resulting in a clear choice.

A tower speaks of a visible testimony, of vigilance and of a view of the future. We can say that we live for the future to then be with Christ, but that means that we give up everything on earth. That’s what it costs. Following Christ can only be continued if we remain vigilant and keep an eye on His coming. Otherwise, after a shorter or longer time, we will stop following Him because we are no longer willing to make sacrifices.

Ceasing to follow Him will bring us and also Christ reproach. Then we are like someone who has started a business, but stops after a while because he has budgeted wrong. Such a person becomes an object of ridicule. It really does not remain unnoticed that someone who first followed the Lord, quits. His environment has noticed that he had started building and also notes that after a while the building has stopped.

In addition to a building project, the Lord compares discipleship with a battle. He tells the crowd that a disciple is at war. If one thinks about following him, let him see first if he can cope with the battle. Is the army in which he serves strong enough to fight the enemy? The opposition is great.

Being a witness in the world also causes battle. It costs a lot to be a witness. In a war it is true that in the case of a battle in which you will certainly lose, you are wise to ask for the terms of peace. You should ask for it when the other has not attacked you yet.

If we really give up everything we have, we will have to rely entirely on the help of the great Master. Then the path of discipleship is also open to us as a great challenge.