Luke 14: 25-33
by Rev. Carson Overstreet
Van Wyck Presbyterian Church
September 8, 2019
Now large crowds were traveling with Jesus; and he turned and said to them,
‘Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.
For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it will begin to ridicule him, saying, “This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.”
Or what king, going out to wage war against another king, will not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one who comes against him with twenty thousand? If he cannot, then, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks for the terms of peace.
So therefore, none of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions. Luke 14: 25-33
Earlier this year I attended a conference and a question was asked among our tables: If you could sing one song – your favorite song – what would it be?
The presenter gave us no context, just a fun question to get to know those around the table.
I picked a song from Foo Fighters – one of my favorite rock bands; “Times Like These.” Front man David Grohl wrote this single when the group was on the verge of disbanding. I love the song because the lines of the chorus bear some spiritual wisdom from my perspective:
It’s times like these you learn to live again.
It’s times like these you give and give again.
It’s times like these you learn to love again.
It’s times like these time and time again.
This is the song for my own carpool karaoke when I am wrestling with tough times.
We are made more fully aware of the grit and grace of life during times of crisis and tragedy. We no longer take things in life for granted. Instead when crisis strikes we learn what really matters in life and we, we learn to really live again. We are more willing to give. We learn to love again when we see the good in humanity rallying together in unity. It’s times like these time and time again.
We have seen times like these this week with Hurricane Dorian. For twenty-four hours the 185 mile per hour winds, the torrential rain, and the storm surge leveled the islands of Grand Bahama and Abaco. The destruction that the category 5 hurricane has caused is harrowing with the death toll rising daily .
And yet, as Dorian approached Florida, one man from Jacksonville turned feelings of heartache and helplessness into action. He purchased more than 100 generators and food to send to our Bahaman sisters and brothers; one generator costs $450. A fellow patron posted a picture onto facebook of this one man’s kindness saying, “All I could do was shake his hand and thank him! There still are good people in the world!”
Today Jermaine Bell is celebrating his 7th birthday; Jermaine lives in Allendale, South Carolina, two hours west of Charleston. He has been saving all of his birthday money to go to Disneyland. But when Dorian began heading to South Carolina Jermaine’s priorities changed. He took his Disney World birthday money and traded it in for hot dogs, chips, and water to serve to coastal South Carolina evacuees.
Jermaine said, “The people that are traveling to go to places, I wanted them to have some food to eat, so they can enjoy the ride to the place that they’re going to stay at. I wanted to be generous and live to give.” Jermaine stood along Highway 125 in Allendale with two handcrafted signs on each end of the highway to make sure he got evacuees’ attention. He served nearly 100 evacuees.
Jermaine’s grandmother served along his side. And what she witnessed was amazing. She said, “Jermaine even prayed for a family while they were here in reference to their house being okay when they got back, so that was really tear dropping.” Jermaine was blessed to be a blessing to evacuees in these tough times.
Isn’t it amazing that in times like these a little child shall lead us? The kingdom of God is still breaking in during times like these.
Jesus tells us that the gift of faith is not just for times like these, but all of the time. The gift of God’s grace cost Jesus everything. Therefore, the gift of God’s grace in the cross requires something of us. If we desire to truly be a follower of Jesus Christ, then the life of faith is to surrender all and live in response to God’s faithfulness revealed in our Lord and Savior.
When Jesus talks about this, it sounds like a tall order, doesn’t it? His words are sobering.
Jesus says if we are to follow him then our relationship with God is to be primary above all others. When the unthinkable happens we Christians immediately put God first. Our knees hit the floor and the prayers keep flowing, even if all we can say is, “Lord help us.”
However, when life is smooth sailing then the human heart is much more self-reliant and less God-reliant. It is in times like these when life is calm that our spiritual walk with God is so very important. When you and I follow the Spirit’s guidance to build our spiritual foundation on the rock of God’s Word, and as we commit ourselves to maintaining that strong foundation of faith, then we are able to endure the storms of life with a sure and certain hope in God’s ability (Luke 6: 46-49).
Jesus says if we are to follow him then we are to carry our cross. That ole’ rugged cross is a symbol of bearing God’s reconciling love for others. Just as Jesus poured out his sacrificial love for all humanity on the cross, Jesus’ example prepares us to be sent out into the world to continue the Lord’s ministry of reconciliation. Jesus is the only one who could carry the cross for the sins of the world.
And yet we are called to carry our cross to join God in making the world more just, more hope-filled, more faithful, more peaceful, and more loving. In times like these when the world is becoming more cynical and more broken, the world needs to see more than good people are still the world. The world needs to see the body of Christ is living out the love of Jesus Christ with relevancy and authenticity. The cross blesses us with enough foolishness to believe that faith can make a difference in the world.
Jesus says if we are to follow him then we are to give up all our possessions. It is easier to give away our treasures in times of crisis when others are in need. When we are in tune with the Holy Spirit, this is one way that God turns our helplessness into hopefulness. The Spirit empowers us to do as Jermaine did – live to give.
And yet when life is smooth sailing, it is easy to be tempted to define our self-worth by what we have or don’t have. Therefore, Jesus is really saying for you and me to renounce the comfort and security that our possessions bring. In times like these - you and I know that life seems to be defined by one truth: life is always changing.
Our possessions come and go. The storms of life rise and fall. The circle of life goes on with every birth and every death. But God alone is our comfort. God alone is our security. God alone is our constant anchor of the soul. It is in God alone that we are to place our trust.
God is faithful. God’s word will not return empty until it accomplishes the Lord’s purposes (Isaiah 55:11). The Lord, who began a good work among us, will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ (Philippians 1:6). This is good news!
Being a disciple of Jesus Christ is not for the faint of heart.
Do you have what it takes to follow Jesus Christ?
Have you ever counted the cost of following Jesus Christ?
Have you ever considered how much support you might need to sustain this gift of faith?
The way we answer these questions matters in times like these.
In the name of God our Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer. Amen.
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