Towers, Wars, and Discipleship

Luke 14:25-33

Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them, "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 bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.  For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it?  Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him,  saying, 'This man began to build and was not able to finish.'  Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand?  And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace.  So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.

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We are always glad to see a teaching that ends with a "therefore" because then we will know the main point, right? In this case, the main point is anyone who does not renounce all he has cannot be my disciple. Clear? Yes. Easy to understand? Hmm...

It sounds like Jesus is demanding that his followers abandon material things and all connection to this world. Even our most dearly held relationships - parents, spouses, children, and siblings - we are called to "hate." What can this possibly mean?

Well, we know from several other passages that we are to love our families (1 Tim. 5:8), our neighbors (Matt. 22:34-40) and even our enemies (Matt. 5:43-48), and that asceticism has no intrinsic value, since we could never renounce enough things to gain merit with a holy God or to make us more holy (Col. 2:16-23). And, while one of Luke's main themes is God's interest in the poor, he has repeatedly condemned religiosity that is external, petty, and self-righteous. Whatever this passage is saying, it cannot be an endorsement of thoughtless sacrifice of the needs of our families or a strict command to follow a monastic lifestyle.

But this passage is about following Christ as a disciple who puts Him over and above anything else. The use of the tower and battle metaphors should tell us a few clear things about the nature of this call to discipleship:

1. This is big, so you better think about it first. Don't approach Christianity as just one option in a buffet of religious choices. This is a decision that will change the course of your life and may require the ultimate sacrifice. Think first and consider how big this is.

2. This will be costly, so prepare yourself.  There is a death that takes place when we put off our old selves and become identified with our suffering savior. In very tangible terms, Jesus told his followers that if the world hated him, they should expect to be hated too - and worse. The call to follow Christ will take dogged perseverance and faithfulness in the midst of weariness, pain, doubt, and fear. Our faith will be tried.

3. This will be worth it, so look to the finish line.  I am tempted to think that counting the cost is just a call to feel inadequate and be afraid of what horrors lie ahead in the Christian life - like God is saying "Man-up, its time to die!" But, no good or glory comes from this fear. What this passage reminds us is that we don't build unless there's a tower in mind. We don't fight the war unless there's a kingdom to defend. And we should face the cross of christian life, not as those without hope, but as those who believe in the empty tomb, the resurrection to eternal life, and the new heavens and new earth, where every tear and all sorrow will be no more.

So prepare yourself, by looking to the joy set before you in Christ.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. (Hebrews 12:1-3)