25 Large crowds were traveling with Jesus. Turning to them, he said, 26 “Whoever comes to me and doesn’t hate father and mother, spouse and children, and brothers and sisters—yes, even one’s own life—cannot be my disciple. 27 Whoever doesn’t carry their own cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.
Luke 14:25-33 (CEB)
28 “If one of you wanted to build a tower, wouldn’t you first sit down and calculate the cost, to determine whether you have enough money to complete it? 29 Otherwise, when you have laid the foundation but couldn’t finish the tower, all who see it will begin to belittle you. 30 They will say, ‘Here’s the person who began construction and couldn’t complete it!’ 31 Or what king would go to war against another king without first sitting down to consider whether his ten thousand soldiers could go up against the twenty thousand coming against him? 32 And if he didn’t think he could win, he would send a representative to discuss terms of peace while his enemy was still a long way off. 33 In the same way, none of you who are unwilling to give up all of your possessions can be my disciple.
Imagine that becoming a disciple of Jesus Christ was a service available to be purchased on an online auction site like eBay.
I know, I know. It sounds ridiculous, but just go along with me on this for a minute.
You do a search for “Jesus” and suddenly you find a listing for an auction where you can bid on an opening to become Jesus’ newest disciple. You click on the link and read the following description:
Up for auction: One spot as a disciple of Jesus of Nazareth who is called CHRIST, the one and only Savior of humankind, the Holy Son of God, the Divine Word made flesh, crucified, dead and buried and resurrected on the third day. DON’T WAIT UNTIL IT’S TOO LATE!!! Secure your eternal future NOW while Jesus is still seated at the right hand of God, BEFORE he comes back to judge the living and the dead! ALL SALES ARE FINAL!!! THIS SELLER DOES NOT ACCEPT RETURNS. PLEASE READ THE AUCTION LISTING CAREFULLY BEFORE BIDDING. PAYMENT REQUIRED IMMEDIATELY! GOOD LUCK AND HAPPY BIDDING!!
Sounds good, right? Then you go to click the button to enter your bid, but you stop because you see the following:
Starting Bid: Everything You Have
You think to yourself, “That’s a high price to pay!” You begin to consider the cost. Maybe you decide to sleep on it and make a decision tomorrow. Surely no one will bid ahead of you and win the auction overnight.
When you click that “Bid” button or “Buy It Now” and you click “Submit” on a site like eBay, you are entering into an agreement to purchase the item listed for that amount should you win the auction, or for that price if it is a “Buy It Now” listing. In other words, you are making a commitment.
Discipleship is a commitment. Jesus does not ask that we give away all of our money, or that we give away all of our possessions, or that we sell all of our possessions and then give away the proceeds. Nor is Jesus actually commanding us to hate our families. The point that Jesus is making is that, in order to be one of his disciples, Jesus must be the single most important thing in your life. Our discipleship takes precedence over everything else. That does not mean that we are to neglect our families or live in poverty. Quite the opposite, in fact. However, it does mean that when anything else conflicts with our discipleship, we are called to choose our covenant relationship with Jesus over and above that other thing.
This Sunday, we will gather together once again at the table of Holy Communion. It is an outward sign of an inward grace, a sign of the covenant God has made with us through Jesus Christ. We come to the table having made a decision to enter into and honor that covenant as disciples.
Whoever you are, you have a place at that table. I hope to see you there.
First United Methodist Church 