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Distinct Disciples
It is amazing to me how people in the world sometimes use the name of Jesus to justify their behavior. They choose an immoral lifestyle and then say, "Jesus never judged people" to anyone who might oppose them. They have a picture in their mind of a soft, cuddly Savior who never said anything controversial and tried to keep the peace at all costs.
But that is not the Jesus of the Bible. Jesus is a Lord who discriminates. Never in an unjust or prejudicial way, as the word is often used in our political culture. Jesus did not discriminate based on skin color, social standing, or gender; "there is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you all one in Christ Jesus" (Gal. 3:28).
But Jesus did discriminate in the purest sense of the word: "to make or draw a distinction." It comes from the same word discern. He made a separation. He drew a line.
When great multitudes followed Him, He made certain they understood what was required of them. He was not interested in mere followers. He wanted disciples. He made sure they knew the lines that were drawn and the separations that were made.
Three times in Luke 14, Jesus said that a certain kind of person "cannot be My disciple." That is an absolute. He did not say they "may not" or "should not" but "cannot."
Who, then, can be Jesus’ disciple? Where does the Lord draw the line?
Those who choose Him as their first love. "If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple" (Luke 14:26). This is not a literal hatred of your family. Jesus quoted from the Law when He said to "honor your father and your mother" (Matt. 15:4); no hatred there. When you put this passage alongside Matt. 10:37, "he who loves father and mother more than Me is not worthy of Me," it is obvious that it is a comparative love. Jesus does not want second place. He wants to be your first love.
This is a choice that the Lord demands. Jesus said to the church at Ephesus, "I have this against you that you have left your first love" (Rev. 2:4). The word "first" means "best" or "superior to all compared." You must chose a master (Matt. 6:24). You can only have one first love. If not, you cannot be His disciple.
Those who choose death as a way of life. "Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple" (Luke 14:27). Jesus carried His cross to His execution. He calls for the same commitment from those who follow Him. Some followed Him to a literal martyr’s death, but everyone who wishes to come after Him must die to his own personal desires, to self. It is no longer "I" who lives, but Christ who lives in me. In Luke 9:23, Jesus said that we must take up our crosses "daily" and follow Him. This is not a one-time decision. It is a way of life.
And notice, each must carry "his own" cross. We can bear one another’s burdens (Gal. 6:2). But you have to carry your own cross. No one can choose to crucify your flesh for you. Only you can decide to live and die for Him. Otherwise, you cannot be His disciple.
Those who choose to finish what they start. "So then, none of you can be My disciple who does not give up all his own possessions" (Luke 14:33). The word "give up" literally means to "say goodbye to." It is a decision to cut yourself off from anything that would keep you from finishing what you started. A disciple is not one who starts and then quits. Its one who serves His master all the way to the end.
Sadly, this is where the Lord loses a lot of people. They don’t "say goodbye" to their former life. They leave it around just close enough that they become entangled in it all over again. We must recognize this as an impossibility if we want to be His disciple. "God calling yet! I cannot stay; my heart I yield without delay. Vain world, farewell! from thee I part; the voice of God has reached my heart" (J. Borthwick). Heed His pleading voice, or you cannot be His disciple.
There is coming a day in which there will be another division. A line will be drawn, just as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. Which side will you be on? With Jesus and His disciples? The choice is yours.
