Read Luke 14:25-35. Jesus is on His way back to Jerusalem. On the way, huge crowds collected and began following Him. They were expecting Him to fulfill their concept of what the Messiah was to do and be. They were waiting for Him to rise up and throw out the oppressors and set up the Kingdom, and they were ready, right then, to follow Him. They did not understand there were two comings of Messiah, the first to die as a sacrifice for sin, the second as the victorious King of Kings to set up His kingdom. This was His first coming, to give Himself as a sacrifice for us.
1. Three times, Jesus tells the crowd that a person cannot be His disciple unless they do something. What are the three things Jesus requires?
a. To hate father, mother, wife, children, sisters and brothers and even one’s own life
b. To carry his own cross
c. To give up all that he has
2. What do you think it means to hate father, mother, wife, children, sisters and brothers and even one’s own life?
To place all these things second to following and obeying Him.
3. What do you think it means to carry your own cross?
To make sacrifices of your own for the Kingdom of God.
4. What two parables did Jesus tell concerning the costs of discipleship?
a. Parable of building a tower
b. Parable of planning a battle
5. What was the point of these parables?
Before you decide to be a disciple of Jesus Christ, stop and consider what it is going to cost you.
6. Why do you think Jesus told His followers that they had to give up all to follow Him?
The desire for material possessions most often keeps us from truly following Him. Many were of the belief that He was now going to set up the glorious Jewish kingdom. He certainly had miraculous powers; they were definitely aware of this. If He was going to do this, now was the time to join His side. In the coming kingdom, they would have it made. Many saw this as an opportunity for fame, power and riches. But the desire for personal gain is not the motive that our Lord desired in His followers.
7. What is the point of the parable of the saltless salt?
As His followers, we are to be a distinct flavor and preservative for our culture; if we are not, if we are no different from those around us, we are useless.
Read Luke 15:1-32. Most of those who crowded Him on His way to Jerusalem were the common people, the non-religious segment of society rather than the conservative religious element.
8. What was the complaint issued by the Pharisees and the Scribes?
He associates with the unrighteous people
9. What three parables does Jesus tell in response to this complaint? (Summarize each in one sentence.)
a. A man who lost one sheep out of a hundred left those he had to find the lost.
b. A woman, who lost a valuable coin, searches diligently until she finds it.
c. A son who squanders his inheritance is received home and forgiven by his father.
10. What is the point of the first two parables?
If God was seeking those who were lost, where else do you expect that the Messiah to be but seeking these out.
11. What is the point of the last parable?
God loves all His children, no matter how close they stay or how far they stray.
The Applications:
What are the applications of these passages to our lives today? Identify as many as you are able.
1. There are those today who come to God, not because they are grateful for what He has done for them, but for personal gain. There are false teachers who have gathered quite a following proclaiming what is known as a prosperity gospel. It is not new; indeed, it was the common belief in our Lord’s day. It was the general opinion that if you kept the law and were a righteous person, God would reward you by causing you to prosper. Having great wealth was also a sign that you were favored by God. Many people in the crowds that followed our Lord prior to His crucifixion followed because they saw an opportunity for immediate personal gain. If He drove out the Romans and declared Himself the king, they would be in on the ground floor. They could now be the ones in power. So too, today, there are those who proclaim if you believe, then God will bless you financially. Most who teach this do it for the financial rewards they themselves reap from their followers.
The truth is just as our Lord had two comings, two periods of time that He would dwell upon this earth, so also do we. In our Lord’s first sojourn upon this earth, He gave up all to live as a servant, to die as a sacrifice for sin. In His second sojourn, He will rule as King of kings and Lord of lords. In our first sojourn upon this earth, we too are servants just as He was. Often we are called to give up all we have and devote ourselves to His work. Whatever we have is only given to us as stewards, to use for Him rather than make a comfortable life for ourselves. When our Lord returns to rule, then we shall rule with Him.
Too often, we forget this and give up the heavenly dream for the American dream. There is no sin in living a comfortable life, having our own home (with a two-car garage), a good retirement laid up for ourselves. But if this becomes our goal in life, then we are no longer following our Lord but the philosophy of the world. Would we be willing right now to give it all up, sell it, give it to charity and follow our Lord if He were so to ask us? If we hesitate on how we would answer this—and I am convinced, if we are truthful, most of us would—then we seriously need to reevaluate our priorities as believers.
2. As conservative believers, we sometimes judge other conservative believers on the basis of their associations. If we saw a noted evangelist spending more time associating and talking to pimps and prostitutes than he did with conservative evangelical believers, what would we think? We might genuinely question his commitment to the faith. In light of the sins and failures of many well-known evangelists and pastors, this might be a reasonable conclusion. But you can imagine how these conservative religious leaders felt who lived in our Lord’s day. He claimed to be the Messiah, the Holy One of God! Look who He associates with, all the low and filthy segments of society! How can He do this?
The answer was simple. Who was He seeking? The answer is those who were lost. Therefore He goes where they are. He ministers to them. He talks to them. He spends time with them. Where did you expect Him to be?
Sometimes we as believers do not have as great an outreach as we might because we have isolated and insulated ourselves from the world. We try to associate only with those who believe as we do. Perhaps we need to leave the sheepfold and coral and head out into the wild looking for others. It is not as comfortable out there. There are indeed many dangers and many predators. Others will criticize, to be sure. But that is where the real ministry of evangelism takes place. Just as our Lord spent time with those in the world, proclaiming that the Kingdom was at hand, so too we need to follow in His steps. We need to go out there and proclaim that the Kingdom is indeed at hand. There is little time left; therefore, repent and accept the Messiah now before it is too late. That is our message.
3. God’s love is unfathomable. We certainly do not love and forgive as He does. What would our reaction be if we had been the father in this parable? Most of us would have sent the son a packing a second time or maybe granted his request for work, but not receive him back as the father in the parable did. This is how God receives us back. If He did not, how many of us would walk with Him; how many would stand in the courts of glory? It is only because of His infinite mercy, patience and forgiveness that any of us are able to come before Him.
As believers, we all fail. We all fall away. We all abandon the Father that loves us and seek our own pleasures. We take the grace He has given us, and then we go our way. But if we come back, seek His forgiveness, He accepts us back no matter how far we have strayed.
If God has had that kind of love for us, how much more should we display that same love and forgiveness for those who offend us, those who take what is given them and go their own way? This kind of love only comes when God loves through us; it is not a normal human response. Yet, it is the kind of love, mercy and forgiveness that our Father expects us to demonstrate to those around us.