15TH Sunday of Pentecost
Sermon: “Dig Deep”
September 5, 2010
Sermon Scripture: 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 his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple. 27 And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. 28 "Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? 29 For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him, 30 saying, 'This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.' 31 "Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Will he not 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, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.
Jesus is giving us a “reality check.” He’s asking, “You want to be a disciple, here’s what it takes.”
His words are very difficult. They seem to contradict everything He taught about love of neighbor.
He raises the bar for discipleship to the very top. A disciple should HATE his parents, his father and his mother, his wife and children, his brother and sister. In some cases that wouldn’t be too harsh; after all, father could have given me more money and a better car, mother could have been a little more lax on my misbehavior, my brother is about 5 cards short of a full deck, and my sister is a spoiled brat; I can see where hating them wouldn’t be too big a stretch.
But when Jesus says I am to hate my own life…hey, that’s another matter. I can’t hate my life, I like my life…maybe I could even go so far as to say I love my life.
And when Jesus goes on to say “any of you who does not give up EVERYTHING he has, cannot be my disciple,” who, in his right mind, would want to do that! Next to my life, my possessions are what I value the most, not something I want to give up. No way.
Unless….there’s some quid pro quo, (a Latin expression which means something for something). We might be willing to give up all our possessions, and even our life, if we were to receive something of equal or better value in return.
So…what can we expect to receive for our sacrifice?
If we were to stumble on a magic lamp, and were given the opportunity to make one wish, would it be, “I want to be a disciple of Jesus.”
If that wish were to be granted, what kind of life could we expect to have?
There are churches that promise heaven on earth, glory and honor, riches and health, peace and tranquility; and guess what, they are the fastest growing churches in America! They are the modern-day version of the indulgences that were being sold by the Church in the 1500’s; with the motto “As your coin into the coffer rings, your soul into heaven springs.” It was a “pay before you go,” scheme. You were promised forgiveness for all your sins, past, present, and future as your coin was deposited.
There was a story of a man who asked the one carrying the treasure box, “Is it true that when I put my coin in the box, I’m forgiven of everything?” Yes, was the reply. So he threw in his money, and then robbed the courier of all the money that had been deposited. Shrewd guy!
Is our pro quid quo that we can have it all right now? The churches that promise riches and honor and glory here and now, may be the fastest growing, but they are not being honest or truthful.
As a disciple of Jesus, He doesn’t promise you a Rose Garden….far from it. When James and John asked Jesus if they could have a position of glory in His kingdom, He told them, “You don’t know what you’re asking. Are you able to be baptized with the baptism that I am to be baptized with? And they glibly answered, “Yes, we are able!”
Well, as it is said, “ignorance is bliss.” But Jesus doesn’t offer us a dream-world; He tells it like it is. “The foxes have holes, and the birds have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” “Because the world has hated me, it will hate you, as well.”
Our pro quid pro is not tangible. It is not of this world. Our soul up to heaven truly springs; but not because of a payment of money. It springs to heaven because Jesus has given His all…even His life on the cross; and believing in Him, we are reconciled back to God, who becomes our Father, and we His children.
So, we give up our possessions, and receive in return, the Kingdom.
Not quite. The Kingdom doesn’t come to us, BECAUSE we have given up our life; but we are able to give up our life BECAUSE we have already received the Kingdom. It isn’t our action that brings the Kingdom; it comes as a gift from God to all who believe.
Then, discipleship becomes a way of life. A lifestyle. It’s taking up our cross and following Jesus.
Don’t worry that you don’t have a cross in your life….like this huge wooden one we have hanging above our altar. Each of you has your very own cross to bear, and it is unique to you. God knows in what manner you are to suffer for Him, and sees to it that it happens; so that you learn to trust Him, in all things.
You can give away all of your possessions and say, “so what?” They weren’t doing me any good, anyway.
What you really need is to washed in the blood of Jesus, forgiven of your sins, now and for all time, and to know that He is going to come for you when this life is over, and will take you to be with Him, wherever He is. For, wherever He is, that is heaven.
That’s your pro quid quo. And it’s more than that; for where pro quid quo is something for something, you have everything for nothing. Thanks be to God. Amen.
Scriptures September 12th: Exodus 32:7-14, Psalm 51:1-10, 1Timothy 1:12-17, Luke 15:1-10
