Going Naked
What is the cost of commitment to our faith?
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 14:25-35
Jesus says to be a follower, one must totally separate from family and friends, and be totally committed.
That's a lot to ask, isn't it?
The examples Jesus gives us in these questions of the builder and the king don't work for me.
I don't see the connection between their assessments of the potential success of their endeavors and the conclusion, which is to give up all our possessions.
What is he getting at?
I think it may be that I am looking at this backwards.
Instead of determining what I need to build or win, I need to determine what will hold me back.
In order to be truly read to follow, I need to be totally committed, and that means going naked, with no possessions at all.
That could be scary, right?
But if we have faith, won't God provide?
More to come...