07.07.2013 The Price is Right - Consider the Cost

20130707 from Grace Summit on Vimeo.

20130707 from Grace Summit on Vimeo.

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This is a day You have made – you’ve ordained this day. We woke up with food in our refrigerators and for refrigerators – and I pray as Your humble servant that Your word would go forth – that those of us who believe would live for You.
I am from Kansas City – so when the Chiefs or Royals come to town – I root for them. If the Steelers come to town, I root for the Browns.
I have been a pastor in several different congregations. We have a daughter who was born in our 40s who is a joy. I met Lana in Minneapolis – she is from New Orleans – we were both involved in the Navigators –
We ended up at The Rock – we were supposed to be here for 5 years – and it is going on 15 now. Praise God – that is His plan. I would rather go to Nineveh than to end up in one of God’s fishes.
The Price is Right – remember Bob Barker? An American made game show – contestants guess the price and win the merchandise.
Looking at Luke 14:25-45
This talks about a price that Jesus proposed to those who wanted to be Jesus’ disciples. It is going to cost you something. That is what we will talk about – what it costs to be Christ’s disciple.
Luke 14:25-35 – NIV –
25 Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: 26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. 27 And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.
28 “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? 29 For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, 30 saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’
31 “Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Won’t he first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? 32 If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace. 33 In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples.
34 “Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? 35 It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown out.
“Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”
May we be challenged by God’s word and stirred in our spirits to apply it. We could stop right here – now that You’ve heard it – there may be hell to come! There are some points to expound upon.
The cost concerning family –
There is a cost to pay
What hinders us from wanting to pay the cost?
The cost – Jesus said – 26-27 – If anyone comes to me and does not hate (his family) and even his own life – He cannot be my disciple.
Hate is such a strong word. I remember reading this passage – it rattled me – it bothered me.
You must hate your family! HATE – Misseo – primary Greek word – hatred – detest – dislike strongly – this word hate is to be understood to mean loving your family less than the Lord.
V33 – who does not give up – does not refer to total abandonment of a family or belongings – but to put them in proper priority – the Greek word – give up – to place in order – to place your family in order. Jesus said – you should hate your family so much that you put them second behind me. Again, this rattled me – I had a problem with this scripture – I had to get counseling for this scripture! I grew up in a family in Kansas City – My mom and dad didn’t get along – a lot of arguments – but I had it all as far as material things – but there wasn’t peace in the house. I longed for it to be like Leave it to Beaver. First my sister came to Christ – then my brother – you have to hate your family – put them in priority – and I struggled with that.
Whenever I went around KC, this scripture messed with me. Some of you might struggle with this. Put your wife, children, family – in perspective – follow Me with all of your heart – don’t let them get in the way of what I’ve called you to do. I began to understand that it was not about abandoning them, but putting them in proper perspective.
If I am following God and putting Him first, I can love my family the way I should. But if I put my family first, I love them more than God and I can’t love them the way I should.
Jesus has said – come on down – the price is right – and because the price is right, we have to ESTIMAT E the Cost – that is point 2
Estimate the cost – suppose one is building a tower – would he not estimate the cost?
I thought when I came to Christ – that everything would be easier – but no, all hell broke loose!
We have to put it all on the line – families, education, friends – put it all on the line – that is estimating the cost – consider that cost – it will rub against our flesh and the way the world does things.
Consider the cost – you are like a salmon swimming upstream. Salmon have considered the cost – my job is to do this – I have to plant and or fertilize these eggs – and I know – once I do this – I die!
1 John 2: 15 Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father[d] is not in them. 16 For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. 17 The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.
The world is passing away – so you better live for something that lasts forever.
We are aliens and strangers and outcasts with our families and friends. We are estranged with the ways of the world.
Jesus warned his disciples – these things I have spoken to you so that you may be kept from stumbling. You will be kicked out of the synagogues – and those who kill you will think they are doing a service to God.
NASB – Outcast – put you out. You will be put out – ostracized and mocked and mistreated.
Here is the thing – we have to calculate the cost by this reasonable deduction. We have to look at the eternal long term heavenly benefits –and not the short term suffering.
At the moment you are going through it – the suffering does not seem short term.
I get a splinter – I Know I need to disinfect it – and if it doesn’t hurt, it must not be working – so I put alcohol on it! And it hurts – but only for a short time!
This reveals the point of cost –
Salt is good - 34 “Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? 35 It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown out.
What is it good for – Cooking – preserving – tasty – melt ice – it is also good for Ice Cream! It makes us thirsty! If used in moderation and used correctly – it is good! We love our salt, but have to watch it!
But what does salt have to do with being a disciple of Christ?
V. 34 – the salt that it was talking about was this – pure salt cannot lose its taste – but impure salt could – that was what was used then – and it lost its flavor. There are many interpretations for this – when you look at scripture – you have to look at it by Sola Scriptura – Scripture interprets scripture. Scripture gives me an understanding of what this term means – it means the willingness to follow Christ. The one who is a committed disciple can, like salt, enrich the lives of others. But the ones who are not committed – are of no value to anyone or the kingdom of God.
Salt affects the atmosphere of where it is placed – salt on snow makes it melt – salt on food makes it taste better. But if we are not being the salt that God has called us to be – we are not following His will and not paying the price. There is a price to pay to be God’s salt – The price is right – come on down!~
Fourth and final – after we have understood the cost – putting our family in proper perspective – aligning our will with God’s will – but what hinders us – what gets in the way of us wanting to pay the price? What is it? Hmmm – let’s look at Luke 9
Luke 9: 57 As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”
58 Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” 59 He said to another man, “Follow me.” But he replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” 60 Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” 61 Still another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.”62 Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”
Wow. What hinders us? I would say – excuses! We give excuses for not wanting to pay the price –
1 – Let me go bury my father – that person’s father hadn’t even died yet! He wanted to go back and wait for it! Then I’ll serve you Lord. It sounds like Jesus was being callous – first things first – your business is life –not death. I am the way, truth and life – Jesus should be our focal point – put me before your family. Put Me first. But that was an excuse. I’ll give it all out for you – but let me bury my dad! This was tough for me.
Over 16 years ago, my Mom passed away after a long bout with cancer – struggled with it most of my life. Unexpectedly – 39 days later – my dad dropped dead. I told my siblings – I can’t do dad’s funeral – I just can’t. But what got me ready was putting Christ before my family. Did I struggle, have to grieve, get depressed? Yes. But I didn’t lay there.
When Rocky got knocked down by Apollo Creed – get off the mat you lazy bum! Yeah, your parents died – but get off the mat! The only way to get off the mat is to put God first. It does not come from psychology from Dr. Phil or Oprah.
Excuse 2 – 61 Still another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.”
What? Really? You have to travel back home – not just across the street – if you do, you won’t follow me.
62 Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”
No looking back – you have to look at Me. We cannot put off God’s kingdom for tomorrow. Most likely – if you go back, you won’t follow Me.
Many other excuses – Career – education – personal issues – let me take care of those. I need to get more training! Then there is Matthew 28:19-20
Go! We’ll just stop there!
It just says Go – Go in your career, personal problems – to all ethnic groups and teach them – and I am with You – as you go through it all.
We would say all the more – we live in a society that needs money – once I make more income – I’ll serve you with all of my heart! God wants all of our hearts NOW. Most likely – we don’t do it later – because of where our heart is.
The foremost command – what are the foremost commands – Jesus condensed the ten commandments into two – they deal with man and God.
Mark 12:29-3328 One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”

29 “The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.[e] 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’[f] 31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[g] There is no commandment greater than these.”

32 “Well said, teacher,” the man replied. “You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. 33 To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”
When you get your career together? No.
When you solve all of your problems? No.
When you give it all to Him – he releases you.
To shrug off the call of becoming Christ’s disciple in action is to shrug off having a deep relations hip with God.
One more thing – I have to do a Colombo on you.
The price is right.
The older you get, the harder it is.
If you are like me – doing all kinds of ministry – you think you shouldn’t even be going through this – and God says – O Really?
And then we are like Moses – slamming a rock when God said to speak to it.
Every day when I wake up – I can walk by the Spirit or live for myself.
This is a spiritual battle. It affects us.
What Christ did to pay for our sins was unadulterated humility. It takes humility. Christ took on our human flesh – he had a crown of thorns on his head – mocked, spat on, abused, bloodshed – condemned to death – to be the ultimate and perfect sacrifice for our sins - past, present and future.
Here is the standard – foxes have holes… Are you willing to do that?
Paul said – it is difficult to do ministry and have a family – that is the cost.
Jesus showed us how we should suffer.
We are all called to be a living sacrifice. Jesus helps me. Help us.
A living sacrifice – I would lay on this table – and I won’t try that – I tried that once – the top was not screwed to the base. The real expensive communion set hit the floor and it broke real good.
I won’t lie on that table – but He wants us to be a living sacrifice.
Romans 12: Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. 2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Reasonable service – only found in KJV – other translations – they use the term Spiritual service of worship! Wow! When I hear that – reasonable – yeah, that is reasonable – but this is your spiritual obligation in worshiping God. Being a sacrifice is not a physical thing – it is a spiritual thing.
Being a living sacrifice – you have to be an action figure for Him. It is reasonable. God is not unreasonable
The price really is right – and now that we have heard what God requires of us –
He who has ears to hear – let him hear – REALLY LISTEN and respond to your purpose and call.
If we are having problems with this – maybe we need to recommit – or even commit – our lives to Christ.
It will cost you – being ostracized by believing in a God you cannot see.
It may cost you in your job when you decide to do what is right.
It will cost you at the family reunion when you are called the holy roller
We are the only aliens on this earth – sorry to tell you that – if you decide to follow Christ, you will go through it.
As people. He went through it. Paul – persecuting and then went to the other side.
Isaiah 58:8 – God gotchyo back! I will be with you!
For those who have not asked Christ into your life – I have two questions – what price do you want to pay? The price of your soul in hell for all eternity? OR do you want to pay the price of a little suffering here on earth? The choice is yours.
Romans 10: 9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. 11 As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.
It is with the heart – hmm.
God is into the business of the heart. If you know Him – He wants your heart. If you are struggling with it – whatever is in the way – give to Him.
Confess with your mouth – believe in your heart – you shall be saved. Saved from what? The eternal banishment from the presence of God. Hell is not meant to scare people – but a reality of what it will feel like
It is a tough message to swallow – tough to do – but the Lord is with us – Y’all –
The price is right – so come on down – and serve in His Kingdome =-
God, I thank You for Your word – may we who don’t know you – anyone here would come to know You. I pray for those who do know You – it is a tough thing to work through our flesh, the ways of the world, family and friends to live for You – give us the passion to do that. May we put on you and not make any way for the flesh.
In Jesus Name I pray – amen.