Opening Questions and Prayer

• Besides a house and car, what is the most expensive thing you have bought?

  • How did you feel making that purchase?

  • What things did you do ahead of time to make sure you had enough money?

• Pray for wisdom from the Lord as you study and apply the Bible to your life.

Read Luke 14:25-26

25 A large crowd was following Jesus. He turned around and said to them, 26 “If you want to be my disciple, you must, by comparison, hate everyone else—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple.

• Who is the audience that Jesus is addressing?

• What might be some reasons they are following Jesus?

• What are some reasons people follow Jesus today?

• What does Jesus say people have to do to be His disciple?

  • What is shocking about what He says?

• In order to be a disciple of Jesus, why does He have to be first in our life?

• What are some things that get in the way of you following Jesus?

• What’s one thing you can do this week to make sure Jesus is first in your life?

Read Luke 14:27

27 And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple.

• What would the original audience have thought when Jesus said this?

  • What did the cross represent back then before Jesus’ death?

• What does it look like to carry our cross daily?

  • How can you make an effort to do this?

Read Luke 14:28-30

28 “But don’t begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost to see if there is enough money to finish it? 29 Otherwise, you might complete only the foundation before running out of money, and then everyone would laugh at you. 30 They would say, ‘There’s the person who started that building and couldn’t afford to finish it!’

• Before anyone follows Jesus, what does He want them to do?

  • Why?

• How does this parable tie into Jesus’s previous statements?

• What are some things people don’t consider when they make a commitment to follow Jesus?

• What was something in your own life that you had to “sacrifice” because you follow Jesus?

Read Luke 14:31-32

31 “Or what king would go to war against another king without first sitting down with his counselors to discuss whether his army of 10,000 could defeat the 20,000 soldiers marching against him? 32 And if he can’t, he will send a delegation to discuss terms of peace while the enemy is still far away.

• What does it cost to follow Jesus?

• When someone talked to you about following Jesus, did they tell you what it would cost you?

• How do some people sell short the cost of following Jesus?

Read Luke 14:33

33 So you cannot become my disciple without giving up everything you own.

• Why is Jesus saying these things to the crowd?

• Did you give up everything you own to follow Jesus?

  • What does He mean when He says this?

• When it comes to your relationship with Jesus, did you give up everything you own including your own life, or did you just say a prayer and keep living how you were before?

• What is a daily practice you could do to help you give yourself fully to Jesus?

Read Luke 14:34-35

34 “Salt is good for seasoning. But if it loses its flavor, how do you make it salty again? 35 Flavorless salt is good neither for the soil nor for the manure pile. It is thrown away. Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand!”

• Why does Jesus end His talk on the cost of discipleship with a story about salt?

• What happens if salt loses its flavor?

• Have you lost your saltiness?

• What can you do to be like salt and make others thirsty for the things of the Lord?

Memorize it!

Luke 14:33 So you cannot become my disciple without giving up everything you own.

Closing thoughts and prayer

Following Jesus is a costly endeavor. It costs us our life. It’s a daily dying to our wants and needs, and living only for God’s will and what He would have us do. Afterall, He knows how life works best. Think about the areas of your life that you don’t give completely to God. Pray that you would surrender those things over to Him.

Spend some moments praying for those who have lost their saltiness towards the Lord. Pray that you would be able to have a conversation with them this week and help them follow after Jesus once again.