In Luke 14, we encounter Jesus as he is being swarmed with people. In fact, Luke leads his story in 14:25-34 with the fact that a "large crowd" was following Jesus. This is precisely what a public speaker leading a burgeoning religious movement would want, right? Not Jesus, apparently. He turns to the crowd and He tells them that if they have any interest in following Him, they need to hate their entire family. This is not a very seeker-sensitive approach. Of course, commentators remind us, Jesus meant that a follower's affection for Him must make his love for his family look like hate. Regardless, Jesus is telling this large crowd that following Him is serious business. Then, He makes an even more shocking statement and tells this group that they need to carry their cross in order to follow Him. Summarized, Jesus was more or less saying "Look, you are going to have to pick up your instrument of torture and death, reserved for the most reviled criminals in the world and publically carry that shame with you for the rest of your life if you want to call yourself My follower." Christ is not following a modern evangelical framework for introducing salvation to this mass of humanity. He isn't leading them through the sinner's prayer or holding an altar call. He is making it completely clear that being a Christian is more than praying a prayer, more than joining a church, more than being baptized. It is wrapped up in lifestyle. Of course, this is a paradox. We cannot earn our salvation with anything that we do, but can we consider ourselves saved if we aren't the kind of disciples Jesus is talking about in this passage?
Jesus goes on speaking to the crowd, discussing the cost of being a disciple. He provides examples from building and from war, explaining that costs must be counted in both endeavors. You don't build a house without being sure you have the funds to pay for the materials, and you don't go to battle without considering your force, your enemy, etc. Jesus then goes on to make one of the hardest statements in the Gospels---"In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples." We tend to soften this statement. Jesus didn't really mean that we have to lose everything to follow Him, did He? For the sake of argument, let's contend that He meant that in the figurative sense that He must be our top priority and not that we literally must give up all our possessions. Fine. That still leaves us with Christ saying, "If I'm not your top priority, you can't be my disciple." If you're not a disciple, are you saved? This is a big question, a hard one. Of course, we can point to an example like the thief on the cross---he was saved in his dying moments and Jesus said he would be in paradise. So, it's possible to be saved without being a disciple. But we cannot simply dismiss Christ's many, many statements about discipleship, fruit, etc that indicate that one must really commit their life to Christ to be saved. I'm fearful that the Church has so cheapened grace that we have given people a very distorted, very wrong picture of what salvation looks like.
Bonhoeffer said that cheap grace is "the grace that we bestow on ourselves. Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, Communion without confession.... Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.” This is the type of grace that the Church often offers people. By telling people that they are now a Christian by praying a prayer, are we missing the mark and missing it badly? Over 70% of Americans consider themselves Christians. Do you think that 70% of the people in this country are so devoted to Jesus that their love for Him makes their love for their family look like hate? Not even close, in my opinion.
So, are there a lot fewer saved people than we think? Well, cheap grace is still grace. I'm hesitant to say that someone who believes they have accepted Christ is not saved. Only Jesus knows the heart of each man. Yet, read the Gospels. Read all of the words of Christ for yourself and then tell me that you are supremely confident that most people who call themselves Christians are really Christians. Tell me that a sinner's prayer without explaining the cost of Christianity is sufficient. If you're a person who is "saved" but has not made Jesus your number one priority, I urge you to make Him number one in your life. Don't take the chance that a mediocre lifestyle will keep you in the Christian camp. And if you're a disciple, understand that you need to be discipling others, not leading them through a prayer. The prayer is a start. Discipleship is crucial for every living moment after that prayer.
DISCLAIMER: Man cannot save himself. You can't be good enough to merit God's favor. The work of Christ on the cross was more than enough to cleanse you of your sins. Recognizing your sin, turning from it, and turning wholly to Christ is the essence of salvation. Yet, there is a cost that must be counted. If you choose to accept the free gift of salvation, you will be asked to follow Christ and make Him your life. He lives through you now. Be willing to live completely for Christ. He provides the grace to save, but those who are truly saved will live for Him.
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