Psalm 105:1-3 Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples! Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wondrous works! Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice! Standing on the Promises vs. 1,2,4,5 #410 Footsteps of Jesus vs. 1,3,4#685 1 Chronicles 29:11 Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted as head above all.

Disciples Are Made Not Born (Part 3 of 6) The Cost of Discipleship Luke 14:25-35

DISCIPLESHIP “Discipling others is the process by which a Christian with a life worth emulating commits himself or herself for an extended period of time to a few individuals who have been won to Christ, the purpose being to aid and guide their growth to maturity and equip them to reproduce themselves in a third spiritual generation."

The Franklin Expedition (1845)

 An Auxiliary Steam Engine with 12 days of Coal (2 to 3 year journey)  1,200 volume library  A Hand Organ Playing 50 Tunes  China Place Settings for Officers and Men  Engraved Silver Flatware of Victorian Design  The Flatware was Engraved with the Officer's Initials and Family Crests  No Special Clothing for the Arctic Supplies:

Sir John Franklin and the 138 men perished because they underestimated the requirements of Arctic exploration.

In Luke 14, Jesus did for His followers what Sir John Franklin did not do for his. He told them what it would require of them to follow Him and be His disciple.

Troubling Statistics In the SBC if a church has less than 200 members, only about 50% of those will attend on a given Sunday. (on average) For mega churches the average is about 30%-40% Hundreds of Churches report zero baptisms in the last year

The Need To hear the call of Christ for our lives To heed the call of Christ for our lives To hold the call of Christ close in our hearts

Luke 14:25-35 (ESV) 25 Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them, 26 “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. 27 Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.

Luke 14:25-35 (ESV) 28 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? 29 Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, 30 saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’

Luke 14:25-35 (ESV) 31 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? 32 And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace.

Luke 14:25-35 (ESV) 33 So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple. 34 “Salt is good, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? 35 It is of no use either for the soil or for the manure pile. It is thrown away. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

5 qualifications Christ Himself gave for being His disciple

1) Unquestionable love and loyalty (vs ) 25 Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them, 26 “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.

1) Unquestionable love and loyalty (vs ) “hate” - miseo ̄ - to detest, by extension “to love less” Genesis 29:30-31 (ESV) “So Jacob went in to Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than Leah, and served Laban for another seven years. When the Lord saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb, but Rachel was barren.

1) Unquestionable love and loyalty (vs ) Luke 14:26 (NLT) “If you want to be my disciple, you must hate everyone else by comparison—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple.

1) Unquestionable love and loyalty (vs ) → It was more important to Jesus to have authentic followers than crowds of people making Him popular → It was insulting to Jesus to be treated like a popular rock star than the Son of God

1) Unquestionable love and loyalty (vs ) → One of the greatest sins of the 21 st century church is one of caring more about high attendance and offerings than about having unquestionable love and loyalty to Jesus Christ

2) Undeniable devotion and determination (vs. 27) Luke 14:27 (ESV) Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.

2) Undeniable devotion and determination (vs. 27) Christianity has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and not tried. – G.K. Chesterton

2) Undeniable devotion and determination (vs. 27) 2 truths to remember → The cross means death → The cross is carried on your shoulder

Christ says, 'Give me All. I don't want so much of your time and so much of your money and so much of your work: I want You. I have not come to torment your natural self, but to kill it. No half- measures are any good. I don't want to cut off a branch here and a branch there, I want to have the whole tree down. I don't want to drill the tooth, or crown it, or stop it, but to have it out. Hand over the whole natural self, all the desires which you think innocent as well as the ones you think wicked - the whole outfit. I will give you a new self instead. In fact, I will you Myself: my own will shall become yours.' – C.S. Lewis

3) Thorough investigation, deliberation, and comprehension (vs ) 28 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? 29 Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, 30 saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’

3) Thorough investigation, deliberation, and comprehension (vs ) 31 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? 32 And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace.

3) Thorough investigation, deliberation, and comprehension (vs ) The rash builder (vs ) and The reasonable king (vs ) Count the costs – understand the choice you are making

3) Thorough investigation, deliberation, and comprehension (vs ) How we follow Jesus will either bring ridicule or honor to our life How we follow Jesus will either bring admiration or insult to the Savior

4) Total renunciation of possessions and person (vs. 33) 33 So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.

To be a disciple of Christ is to intentionally have no other options To be a disciple of Christ is to intentionally surrender everything you have to Christ 4) Total renunciation of possessions and person (vs. 33)

But we never can prove the delights of His love Until all on the altar we lay; For the favor He shows, for the joy He bestows, Are for them who will trust and obey. 4) Total renunciation of possessions and person (vs. 33)

5) Understanding of calling and consequences (vs ) 34 “Salt is good, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? 35 It is of no use either for the soil or for the manure pile. It is thrown away. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

5) Understanding of calling and consequences (vs ) → the warning Jesus wanted to impress upon His listeners was the danger of becoming an ineffective disciple

5) Understanding of calling and consequences (vs ) → the desire of Jesus was to have disciples that understood what it took to be His disciple and that passionately followed after Him to fulfill His will in this world

God always gives His best to those who leave the choice with Him. He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose. – Jim Elliot

Wherever He Leads I'll Go vs. 1,3,4 #598 Ephesians 3: Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.