Luke 14:25-34
Now large crowds were travelling 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?’
What is Jesus asking us to give up?
In today's passage, we return to a theme that weaves throughout the Gospels: the high cost of following Jesus. Jesus doesn't lay out the cost for just anyone, but usually it is for those with resources or power. Jesus invites them to give up all that worldly power and journey into a new way of being. It is this path that leads to life, and we are often dragged from it by cares and concerns for things that are very normal. But following Jesus is not an easy path, and the path of life and of love that is the way of Jesus clears away all other concerns. We are called to take up crosses, let other relationships go, and sell everything we have. For what? For the sake of love.
What does this mean for us today? How is Jesus inviting us into this radical call? What do we need to leave behind? What do we need to lose, in order to gain the fullness of life?