The Cost of Following Christ, Part 2b

Tonight, if you have your Bible, I would invite you to turn back with me to Luke Chapter 14 as we continue our study on the parables, specifically the parable of counting the cost. In Luke chapter 14, there was a crowd, and Christ said that we need to go out and compel men and women to come in, compel them to be a part of the great kingdom feast, because those who had been invited, I'm not going to be there. That was the Jewish religious leaders. And Christ made that very clear in verse number 24, for I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste of my dinner.

And so the disciples obeyed the Lord. They went out and compelled people to come. But just because they came, it didn't mean that they were true followers of the Lord Jesus Christ. And so when you come to verse number 25, there was a great multitude of people going along with Jesus. And Christ all these people and their great curiosity, wanted them to understand the totality of following Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. And so by, he just spells it right out for him. Here's the deal. If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children, and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.

Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. there it is that was the heart of the message of Christ and then he gives the parable about counting the cost he wants them to understand everything up front and then he says okay now count the cost and he gives that parable and we'll talk about that in great detail in our next session together but it's important for us to understand what Jesus is saying in Luke 14 verses 25 and 26 he's calling them to a life of consecration he's calling them to a life of commitment.

He's calling them to a life of true Christianity. Three things I want you to see about Christ in his comments, about what Christ said in Luke 14, 25, 26, and verse number 33. Okay? First of all, there must be a willingness to serve God as the priority.

What does Jesus actually mean when he says, if any man can't up to me, hate not father, mother, brother, sister, yea, even his own life. He cannot be one of my disciples. and Christ talks about a willingness to make him the priority, that he will be at the forefront in every situation. You love God so much that the love you have for your family looks like hate because you are so committed to God. If God's not number one, you cannot love your parents the way you need to love them, as the Bible says.

But there needs to be a willingness to serve the Lord. The Bible says in Matthew 16, verse number 24, that we are to deny.

ourselves. You see, to understand verse number 25, you need to understand, yea, even your own life. In a society that preaches, you got to love yourself, you never know Christ's Lord. You won't. Number two, a willingness to stand for me no matter what.

Second Timothy, great book, 25 times. There is a comparison between being ashamed of Christ or suffering for Christ. He goes on and given an illustration about Onosiferous. Onosiferous is a name that means bringer of prophet. And it says down in verse number 15, you are aware of the fact that all who are in Asia turned away from me, among whom are Fagilius and Hermogenes. The Lord grant mercy to the house of Onusiferous, for he often refreshed me and was not what, ashamed of my chains. But when he was in Rome, he eagerly searched for me and found me.

The Lord grant to him to find mercy from the Lord on that day, and you know very well what service he rendered at Ephesus. Here was on the set for us. He wasn't ashamed of Paul. He wasn't ashamed to the chains that Paul was in or that occupied him. He wasn't ashamed of the gospel. He wasn't ashamed to the Lord. And Paul would pick him out as a man who would stand strong for him. That's what the Bible teaches. We must be willing to serve Christ. We must be willing to stand for Christ. Over in Revelation, second chapter.

the church of Pergamum, the church that compromised, says this. In verse number 12, when the angel of the church in Pergamon write, the one who has the sharp two-edged sword, says this, I know where you dwell, where Satan's throne is, and you hold fast my name and did not deny my faith. Even in the days of Antipus, my witness, my faithful one, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells. There was a man in this church. His name is Antipus. His name means against all. Great name, isn't it? Against all.

He was against everything that was against God. Tradition tells us that Antipus was a man who was compelled to go before the pro-counsel, and he was to proclaim Curious Kaiser. Caesar is Lord. Sprinkles some incense on the fire. He refused. So they put him in a brazen bull altar, and they roasted him alive. It killed him because he would not deny his Lord Jesus Christ. And Christ is commended these people. You did not deny my name. You followed the faithful one, Antipus, who stood strong and was the kind of man that I speak well of, and that I will confess before my father who is in heaven, because he confessed me before man.

That's why it's important for you to understand that the true Christian is the follower of the Lord Jesus Christ and does not deny Jesus as Lord. and confesses him before man, because that's what God calls for. And if God calls for it, he enables his people to do that. And you go over to Revelation chapter 20, and what do you have? In Revelation chapter 20, it says this in verse number four, and I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given to them, and I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of the testimony of Jesus, and because of the word of God, and those who had not worshipped the beast or his image, and then I received the mark upon their forehead, and upon their hand, and they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.

Who reigns with Christ? Paul told us in Second Timothy 2, 11 to 13. Those who endure will reign with him. Those who deny him, he will deny. And these people, during the tribulation, lost their heads because of their commitment to follow Christ, no matter what. They would not take the mark of the beast. They would not fall down and worship the Antichrist. They would stand strong. and they would confess that Jesus is Lord, and they would lose their heads. And John gets a revelation of these people, this vision of them in heaven.

And he says, and they came to life and they reigned with Christ for a thousand years. The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were completed. Who's that? Those are the ones who denied Christ. Those are the ones who are a part of the second resurrection.

And they will go before the Great White Throne judgment, and they will be judged and be separated from God forever. And John goes on to say, this is the first resurrection.

Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection over these. The second death has no power.

But they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years. These are the ones who will reign with Christ. The Bible says to be a disciple of Christ, to follow Him.

You must be willing to serve Him no matter what. You must be willing to stand for Christ no matter what. And then over in Matthew chapter 10 still, Christ says these words, do not think that I came to to bring peace on the earth.

I did not come to bring peace but a sword. For I came instead of a man against his father and a daughter against her mother and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. And a man's enemies will be the members of his household. He who loves father and mother more than me is not worthy of me, and he who loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me. He who has found his life shall lose it, and he who has lost his life for my sake shall find it.

Now, can it get any clearer than that? Christ says the exact same thing. He said in Luke 14. Same thing he said in Luke chapter 9. Same thing instead of Mark chapter 8. He said, listen, this is the way it is. If you don't love me more than anybody else, you're not worthy of me. Because they didn't come to bring peace in your home. Can he bring sword? Because the man's enemies will be his own household. Say, wait a minute. Wait a minute. Hold on a second here.

You mean to tell me that Jesus Christ wants to divide my family? No. No, but if you stand for Jesus Christ, your family will disown you if they're not safe. Your family will hate you. They'll hate everything you stand for, the way you live, the way you honor God above them, the way you serve God before them, the way you go to church and worship him and seek to be there because you want to honor the Lord Jesus Christ with everything that you have. They'll hate you for it. And that's what Jesus said.

Your stand for me will cause others to hate you. And so Christ says, even your own life. The kingdom of God is what's important. Not my kingdom, God's kingdom. That's number one.

That's the most important thing. That's where I need to be. That's what Jesus is saying. You see, there are many people who profess Christ, but in actuality they deny him with their works. Titus speaks to that in Titus 116. Oh, they profess that they know Christ, but in works, they deny him. They don't stand for him. They walk away from him. And as Billy Graham, who said these words, there is not one verse of scripture that indicates you can be a Christian and live any kind of life you want to. When Christ enters into the human heart, he demands that he be Lord and Master.

He demands complete surrender, end quote. That's true. Complete surrender. A willingness to serve him, a willingness to stand for him. And lastly, a willingness to suffer for him. take up your cross Luke 923 says you need to take it up daily and follow him. Take it up daily and follow him. The cross and scripture is that symbol of death. For the Christian it's the death of self, a willingness to deny it all to follow Christ. Now let me say this because I know some of you out there thinking, you know what, this is a little difficult for me to swallow.

This seems to be a little over the edge. This seems to be a little too much. You mean Jesus wants everything? He wants it all. He's got to be my priority. Jesus did say, you know, you can't serve two masters. You're going to serve one. But, you know, we say, well, you know, I don't get this. And some of you're probably out there saying, you know, I wonder if I'm really saved. I wonder if I'm really born again. I really, if in my own heart, that's where I'm at. Others are saying, man, you know, I can't believe that Christ would expect me to surrender everything to him when I worked so hard to obtain what I have.

Well, you know what? I'm glad you asked questions like that because I do. So I'm going to illustrate it for you in a very unique way. Turn with me to Mark chapter 10.

I want you to understand this. This is so important. In the Gospel of Mark, there are three occasions in which Christ specifically addresses this men and predicts The cross. Mark 8, Mark 9, Mark 10. Mark 8 emphasizes the necessity of the cross. Mark 9 emphasizes the certainty of the cross, and Mark 10 emphasizes the brutality of the cross. If there was anybody who heard the message of the cross, more than anybody else did, it was the disciples, right? You with me? In a Mark chapter 10, verse number 32, And they were on the road going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking ahead of them, and they were amazed.

And those who followed were fearful. Now, that's important. Because the phrase amazed, Thumbeto, is the word that means to be utterly dismayed to the point of confusion. Choose three times in the book of Mark, one time in the book of Acts, four times in the Bible. In the book of Acts, it deals with the conversion of Saul on the road to Damascus. When the light would shine down upon him in Acts 9, verse number 6, he stood amazed. What was this? And so these people following Christ were at the point of confusion.

I'm unable to make sense as to what was happening in the life of Christ. Others were fearful. And again, he took the 12 aside and began to tell them what was going to be. to happen to him saying behold we are going to jerusalem and the son of man will be delivered remember this is the third time that christ's pacifically addresses men about the cross he will be delivered to the chief priest and the scribes and they will condemn him to death and will deliver him to the gentiles and they will mock him spit upon him scourge him and kill him and three days later will rise again he spoke about the brutality of the cross he spoke about the animosity of the cross He spoke about the severity of the cross.

He also spoke of the victory of the cross. He will rise again. The third time, Christ addressed it. He would think, if anybody got it, it'd be these guys. But you know what? They didn't get it. They didn't get it. First number 35.

And James and John, the two sons of Zebedee, came up to him saying to him, Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you. Now, Jesus just talks about his death. He just talks about how he's going to die. And everything is going to happen to them. They're going to scourge him. They're going to beat him. They're going to mock him. They're going to spit upon him. And Jesus, John, come up and say, you-hoo, Jesus. Will you do for us whatever we ask you to do? It's like your kid come up to you and saying, you know, I want to tell you something, Dad, but don't get angry with me, okay?

They don't tell you what it is. They want to get a commitment up front. that you're not going to discipline them, you're not going to punish them, it's going to be okay. And these guys, James and John, want to know something that Jesus will do for them. Now, Matthew's account tells us that it was their mother, their mother who comes and asks of Jesus. Jesus, I got two good boys here. I know they're little rambunuchs every once in a while. That's probably called them the Sons of Thunder. But you know what, Jesus?

Could not one sit on your right hand and one on your left hand in the kingdom of heaven? Oh, very important. Remember Matthew 20, and the mother of James and John coming to ask Christ a question. The boys will follow up on that. Lord, we want you to do for us whatever we ask you. Now, this was a common question of the disciples. And they said to him, and Christ said, what do you want me to do for you? As if he didn't already know. And they said to him, grant that we may sit in your glory, one on your right, and one on your left.

Now, I really believe that these guys thought they deserved that. I think James and John were arrogant enough to believe that they deserved it. We sit one on the right and one on the left hand of God. And this was a question that they talked about all the time. On the eve of the crucifixion, same question. Same discussion. Who is the greatest in the kingdom? Well, I am. No, I am. No, you are. I am. And this was a common question among these guys. And listen to what Jesus says.

You do not know what you are. are asking for. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink? Or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized? In other words, are you, the cup is a symbol of, of, in the Old Testament, you realize that you read about it in Jeremiah, and you read about it throughout the Old Testament that in this whole scenario, there's a situation about the indignation of God's wrath and God's judgment. The cup is a symbol of the totality of God's judgment and God's wrath.

In fact, Revelation 14 talks about the cup of his indignation, when it talks about the tribulation period. And so Christ says, are you able to drink the cup, which I drink?

Remember Christ would pray and hold the cup in his hand in the garden of Gassimony? If it be any other way, Lord, remove this cup from my hands. What's the cup? The cup is a symbol of the wrath of God being poured out of the Son of God. If there's any other way, Lord, let it be. So Christ says, are you able to drink the cup?

from which I drink? Are you able to be baptized with my baptism? Are you able to be immersed completely in my work and in my life? James and John. They said to him, we are able. Sure we are. We can do that. No problem, Lord. A little death, a little suffering, a little shame. We can do that. Lord, we're with you. No problem. We are able. And Jesus said to them, the cup that I drink, you shall drink. And you shall be baptized with a baptism with which I am baptized. But to sit on my right or on my left, this is not mine to give, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.

You bet your life you will drink of my cup. And you can be assured of this. You will be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with. You bet. You know, they didn't ask him about redemption. They didn't ask him about ransom. They didn't ask him about resurrection. They ask about the right hand and the left hand. Christ tells them I'm going to die. And what consumed them was the hunger for prestige and power. What consumed them was what place they had in the kingdom. What consumed them was them.

You see? They were consumed with themselves. Even in the midst of Christ prophesying about his death and resurrection. They just passed that off. They want to hear it. They wanted to know about greatness in its kingdom. Blatent self-centeredness, status seekers, hungry for honor, dreaming of success, the whole mentality that's incompatible with the way of the cross. And you would think that if anybody understood the way of the cross, it would be these men. I mean, they heard it every day, yet they didn't get it.

They didn't get it. They were seeking glory, not understanding that The path, the glory was through suffering. So Christ tells them, you will drink the cup. You will be baptized, with which I am baptized. And verse 41 says, in hearing this, the 10 began to feel indignant with James and John. They were upset. You know why? Because they didn't think they asked the question. That's why they were mad. They didn't think of it first.

They got to Jesus before. They did. They were all in the same boat together. They all thought the same thing. They were all into themselves. And calling them to himself, Jesus said to them, you know that those who are recognized as rulers of the Gentiles Lordhood over them and their great men exercise authority over them, but it is not so among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be slave of all, for even the son of man, to not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many.

The whole situation, the whole scenario, is bracketed off with two phrases, one by them and one by Christ. They come and they say, Lord, we want you to do for us. And Jesus says, I came to do for you.

See the difference? And in between those two brackets is this whole conversation about the cup and the baptism and greatness in the kingdom of God and receiving the glory. And Jesus said, you shall drink. You will note in John 19, at the foot of the cross, was Mary and Mary's sister, the mother of James and John. She came with Mary and was at the foot of the cross. cross as Christ hung there by way of rebuke almost by our Lord because she was seeking glory for her boys. John was with her, by the way.

John was there. He was the disciple whom Jesus loved. John had denied Christ. They all denied him. The Bible says in Matthew 26, verse number 56, that they all forsook him, every one of them.

Even though Peter said, though all men deny you, I will not. Peter denied. They all denied the Lord. They all forsook him. John was the first to come back.

He went back to the foot of the cross. He stood there with Mary, the mother of Jesus. He stood there with his mother, Mary's sister. He stood there with Mary Magdalene at the foot of the cross. In silence, as their Savior hung there. The Bible says, in Acts at the 12, versus one to four that the very first martyred man in the church was James.

You know, in Acts 12, one to four, James is mentioned in the Bible the only time without his brother, John, being by his side. They're always mentioned together. James is John, James to John, John and James, John and James, the sons of thunder. The men of zeal, the men of excitement, the men of force and drive. And the very first one, martyred in the church, was James, because he was such a man of force, such a man of strength.

Jesus said, you will drink the cup. You will be baptized. And it wasn't until after they were infused with the Spirit of God on the day of Pentecost, that they were able to do what Jesus exactly said they were able to do to be witnesses for him. Bold, strong witnesses, never again to deny him. And of course, John would be exiled to the island of Patmos and be there all by himself before he died. And yet the Bible says he was exiled there because he was a faithful witness.

of the Lord, not denying His God. I read that, and I realize these men didn't understand what it meant to give it all up for Jesus, did they? They heard the messages, sermons, heard all the time, and they are with the Lord Jesus Christ. They just didn't get it. I think of us, for most part, we don't get it either doing. To serve Jesus, stand for Jesus, to suffer for Jesus? We live in a society where there's very little suffering at all. or anything, the alone suffering for Jesus. But this coming today, not in a too distant future, where those who name the name of Christ will have to stand for him alone and die for him alone.

The Bible says that God has called us to suffer. Secondity 212 says if we suffer, we shall reign with him. First Peter 510 says, after you have suffered a while, God will make you perfect.

Romans 818 says the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed In us, Paul in Acts Acts 9 was told that he would suffer many things for the sake of the gospel. Paul preached about suffering because he knew that was the inevitable aspect of the gospel. You serve Christ, you've got to stand for Christ. If you stand for him, you'll suffer for him. That's why Christ says, now you've got to count the cost.

I want you to count the cost. Are you going to do this? Are you when, and he gives a parable about a man who goes to war. and a king and a man who builds a tower. Count the cost. Have you counted the cost? I trust that you have. Let's pray.