Bible Text: Luke 9:61-62 | Preacher: G.F. | Series: The Cost of Discipleship

“Grace is costly because it calls us to follow, and it is grace because it calls us to follow Jesus Christ. It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life. It is costly because it condemns sin, and grace because it cost God the life of his Son: “ye were bought with a price”, and what has cost God much cannot be cheap for us. Above all, it is grace because God did not reckon his Son too dear a price to pay for our life, but delivered him up for us. Costly grace is the incarnation of God.” – Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

Because the worship of God is primary, false worship is one of the greatest evils man can practice. Idolatry is a serious problem, and not just for the Israelite of Old Testament times.

Idolatry in its larger meaning is properly understood as anything that substitutes the Creator with created things. People may worship nature, money, power, humans(man)…including our families instead of the God who created them all.

An illustration of this can be seen whenever toddlers are given a new toy. Very often they will wind up playing with the box it came in rather than the toy! Why do you suppose this is true? I think it is probably due to a failure to grasp the intended function of the toy. They choose the box because it is quite simple and makes pleasing sounds when you bang on it or crush it against the floor!

And because they are spiritually dead, unregenerate individuals are unable to recognize or appreciate or differentiate between the Creator and that which He created. As a result, many wind up worshipping the material universe because it is what they can see and experience with their senses. And the innate human need for sensory confirmation is the major reason why pantheism in one form or another, is at the heart of all pagan religions.

Just like Jesus discerned and saw what was in the hearts of the first two would-be disciples, Jesus has seen that there is something else that is first in this third man’s heart. Jesus warns him not to go back, but to start following him immediately, or he may be tempted to stay at home. It seems that this man had good intentions, to follow Christ, but sadly he had other priorities. His heart was divided. He could not help but to look back. I can’t help but think of Lot’s wife, who on her way out of Sodom and Gomorrah had to take one last look back – she had left in body but not in her heart. And she dissolved into a pillar of salt.

So Jesus challenged his heart. “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.” YOU CANNOT LOOK BACK AND GO STRAIGHT FORWARD; YOU CANNOT BE STUCK IN THE PAST AND MOVE FORWARD IN THE FUTURE. The only way to serve Jesus is with absolute, undivided, exclusive affection and obedience. As Paul later wrote (Phil. 3:13-14), “Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

Many struggle with this. They want to follow Jesus but there are other things that still have first place in our hearts. But, as Bishop J. C. Ryle said, “If we are looking back to anything in this world we are not fit to be disciples.”  “He who doesn’t take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of Me”, Jesus said. He who has found his life shall lose it. He who has lost his life for My sake shall find it.

Discussion Questions –                                                                                                                                         

A Disciple of Jesus Must Count the Cost (9:57-58) –

What is the spiritual struggle that Jesus has identified in this man in v.57?
Does Jesus advocate asceticism?
Why is the pursuit of wealth a dangerous path for Christians? -1 Timothy 3:3, Hebrews 13:5, 1 Timothy 6:10, Luke 12:15, Matthew 6:19, Matthew 6:24.

A Disciple of Jesus Must Faithfully Obey (9:59-60) –

What is the main sin issue revealed by this man’s answer in v.59?
Is Jesus forbidding all Christians to bury their parents?
“Secular matters belong to secular people” is this a true or false statement? Explain your answer.

A Disciple of Jesus Must Not Look Back (9:61-62) –

What are the similarities in Jesus answer and the proverb in 1 Kings 19?
Does the Apostle Paul contradict this teaching of Jesus in Phil. 3:13-14?
What is the main issue Jesus is addressing in v.62?

Share some of your own lessons learnt from this passage of scripture…………….