What is a disciple? What does it mean to follow Jesus? To really walk in his footsteps every day...
Who is a disciple? Who can truly walk throughout life with Jesus? Living like him in every way...
Jesus shows us the cost of being a disciple. Jesus shows us clearly the cost of following him.
Luke 14: 25-33
25 Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: 26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. 27 And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.
28 “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? 29 For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, 30 saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’
31 “Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Won’t he first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? 32 If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace. 33 In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples.
34 “Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? 35 It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown out.
“Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”
Jesus is the BETTER guest.
Who humbles himself from the greatest throne in the universe, to sit with the lowliest on earth.
Jesus is the BETTER host.
Who invites all "the lowest people" in the world to the greatest feast in the universe.
Luke 14:7-14
7 When he noticed how the guests picked the places of honor at the table, he told them this parable: 8 “When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. 9 If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, ‘Give this person your seat.’ Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. 10 But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all the other guests. 11 For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
12 Then Jesus said to his host, “When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. 13 But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, 14 and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
We must stop craving for wealth, fame and popularity and going for the best places at a party or a feast.
We must stop wanting to always be pampered and treated as very special and very important compared to everyone else.
We must always humble ourselves and exalt God and then let that teach us to lift up and encourage those who the world oppresses and pushes down.
We must stop the urge to always have the "best" places in society...the "exalted" places in communities.
The urge to sit first-class, the urge to go to the "best" schools, wear the "best" clothes, drive the "best" cars.
After all, this is the world's definition of "best" ...mainly due to marketing in order to sell a script of how life should be. But God has defined the BEST for us. The BEST is Jesus. He is our reason for living and our example for how we should think about "our place in society"
We must taste the fullness of God's love and power IN Jesus Christ and let that satisfy us; instead of always wanting to be very important and very special in the eyes of other people.
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