23RD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
Wis 9:13-18; Ps 89
Philemon 9-10.12-17; Lk 14:25-33
THE COST OF DISCIPLESHIP
Our gospel today plunges Jesus into the crowd once more where he speaks about what it takes to be a disciple. He makes two statements that tell us what it must cost those who wish to be his disciples. He says (1)“if any one comes after me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.
(2)Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me, cannot be my disciple” Lk 14:26-27
These words may sound like hate speech or hate preaching but it is a poetic way of emphasizing the importance of following him. What he means is that we should love him(Jesus) above all others. If we ever have to make a choice between our loved ones and Jesus, he expects us to choose him.
He calls on all potential disciples to carry their crosses. What does this mean? The cross was an instrument of legal punishment and torture. It means that the disciple should be ready to bear with the pain and persecution that may come from family on his account. Since the cross is also an instrument of legal punishment, the disciple should be ready to bear the burden of civil disobedience to the point of legal punishment on account of the Lord. To be a disciple is to make JESUS FIRST in your life.
Jesus gives two parables to further illustrate this point of what it means to be a disciple. The first is likened to building a tower. The builder must plan carefully otherwise the project will be started and not finished. He will become a laughing stock and a failure. Following Jesus is the same. We must take time to take stock of our lives, count the cost and make a choice for him. Jesus does not want a part of us, he want all of us. He does not want to be a part of our lives; he wants to be all our life.
When we follow him half heartedly, we would soon become an object of ridicule. We would become unclear and uncertain in our convictions and faith. The world would laugh at us. We would become like uncompleted buildings.
The second parable about a king who finds his forces out numbered, as he prepared for war, reconsiders his move and rather appeals for peace. Only a foolish king would insist on going to war with a foe who is stronger and much superior. There is a more powerful person to deal with in our lives than Satan, i.e. God. He is the one who is calling us. To refuse to give up all and be committed to him alone is foolishness. This is because he is so powerful that he can “destroy both the soul and body in hell” (Math. 10:28). It is better to have God as a friend than a foe. To suffer defeat, humiliation and persecution on account of the lord is better than hiding in our own false promises of the world.
Discipleship is very important to Jesus. It is a good idea to belong to Jesus totally.
Giving up everything we hold dear in order to be his disciple disposes us to become better in whatever we do.
Pope Benedict XVI says “friendship with Jesus will … lead you to bear witness to the faith wherever you are, even when it meets with rejection or indifference”
May the Lord bless and strengthen us.
By Fr. Delight Arnold Carbonu
