The Teachings of Jesus in Luke: Dying

Now large crowds were traveling with him; and he turned and said to them, “Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it will begin to ridicule him, saying, ‘This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.’ Or what king, going out to wage war against another king, will not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one who comes against him with twenty thousand? If he cannot, then, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks for the terms of peace. So therefore, none of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions.
“Salt is good; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; they throw it away. Let anyone with ears to hear listen!” ~ Luke 14:25-34


When Christ calls a person, he bids that person to come and die. ~ inclusive language translation of Dietrich Bonhoeffer 
Are you really sure you want to be a Christian?

 The early Christians were called "People of the Way." Way invites - no, demands - action. It isn't sedentary.

 Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the 20th century German pastor and martyr, called Christ's followers to discipleship. It wasn't enough, he said, to rely on God's grace as something cheap and easy. Grace is meant to work on us, through us, spurring us to repentance, discipline, practice, action.

 We are called to die to ourselves.

 Not literally die, although Bonhoeffer himself did this, dying at the hands of the Nazis right before the end of WWII.

 Instead, die to the stuff that keeps us from following Christ: our possessions, our anger, our selfishness, our greed, our egos.

 Christ calls us to be salt to the world - adding flavor and life to it. And that means going out into the world to do that.

 It means giving up parts of ourselves, including parts we hold dear: our time, our talents, our energy, and even sometimes the beliefs we have clung to for years.

 The way is hard. It isn't for the faint of heart.

 But it is filled with grace. It doesn't have to be perfect. It doesn't have to be right all the time even.

 Instead it is meant to be filled with love, compassion, faith, and grace that we ourselves share with a world in need.
Prayer: Have mercy, O God. Give me the strength and courage needed to follow you - despite all the things I put in the way of that. Amen




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