“Count the cost”

Read Luke 14:25-35

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Why would anyone turn down the invitation to God’s great banquet (14:15-24)? The answer is because there’s a considerable cost involved. God’s grace is free but it is not cheap. “Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance... or discipleship” (Bonhoeffer). Jesus here spells that out, three times saying that someone “cannot be my disciple” without great sacrifice (26,27,33).

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I cannot be his disciple if I put anyone else, even my nearest and dearest, before Jesus (26; Mt.10:37-38). That includes my own life too. Nor can I avoid taking up the cross if I want to follow him (27; 9:23). It costs nothing to become a Christian; it costs everything to be one (33). So Jesus uses two short parables to underline the need to count the cost before becoming his follower.

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The first parable asks us to be sure that we’ve resolved to stick with our commitment (28-30; Mk.13:13). The situation in the second parable is different, for a king under attack has to do something – the question becomes can we afford not to follow Jesus (31-32). Doing so will be costly, but to save our life is to lose it while losing it for Jesus is to save it (Mt.10:39; Mk.8:34-35).