"COUNT THE COST!"

LUKE 14:25-38

Edith Cavell established a nursing school in Brussels, Belgium. Then WWI broke out and the fierce fighting endangered everyone residing in Belgium. The Kaiser's troops defeated the British troops at the Battle of Mons and many of the wounded were cut off from their units. British soldiers were arriving under cover at the hospital-nursing home run by Edith Cavell. Edith knew the moment the war broke out that she was in danger, but she also realized that the war itself would make her services all the more essential both for the wounded soldiers and the civilians. She knew what her work was and determined to carry it out, danger or no danger. She considered the risk, counted the cost, and stepped up to the job at hand with her eyes wide open. Jesus counsels us all to count the cost. His advice is not intended to make us turn aside, but to follow with awareness and to pursue the task at hand with preparation. He would not have us ignorant of the demands, the risks, the cost of being His disciple. He has called us to a work, to a ministry, to service, to a cross. And if we want to faithfully follow, we must do so with our eyes wide open. Jesus told us to count the cost, and to do that we must first:

• DETERMINE OUR TASK:
• In the text there was a definite job to be done:
• Verse 28: The first man was going to build a tower. Maybe it was a watch tower to look for approaching enemies. Maybe it was in a vineyard to watch for thieves and animals which would consume the crop. Unlike Dagwood Bumstead who builds and then decides what it is!
• Verse 31: The king was going to war with another king. He didn't stand on the corner waiting a chance rumble!
• Throughout the Bible, individuals had specific tasks to do:
• Adam and Eve knew they were to take care of the garden, to be fruitful and to multiply.
• Moses knew exactly what God had commanded him to do in reference to delivering His people from Egypt.
• Jesus knew His task and purposed to do it though it meant going to the cross. Luke 9:51 "and it came about, when the days were approaching for His ascension, that He resolutely set His face to go to Jerusalem;"
• Paul the apostle knew well what his task was: 1 Corinthians 9:16 "for if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of, for I am under compulsion; for woe is me if I do not preach the gospel."
• What is your ministry? What is your role in the body of Christ?
• For some it is teaching. Has the Lord gifted you in that manner?
• For some it is showing kindness and mercy. Has the Lord given you the ability to feel with and for others?
• For some it is music. Can you play an instrument, sing, compose?
• For some it is transportation. Can you help someone get to church, to the doctor, to the grocery store?
• For none it is pew warming, spectating, side-line sitting or shirking. For all it is service and ministry.
• Each of us has a role to play in the church; each has a ministry to perform. Check your talents, check your giftedness, check your opportunities. Then in light of that, determine your task.

Edith Cavell knew what her task was, and she put her hand to it with all her might. She began, first, teaching others how to be nurses; then she opened 3 hospitals, several nursing homes, a number of schools and many home-care situations. She knew her task. She also knew the obstacles the war presented. In addition to her medical work, treating the wounded British soldiers and injured Belgian civilians, she provided a hiding place for those about to be helped out of the country by the Belgian under-ground. Considering the risk, and considering the need, Edith stayed in Belgium and helped the war effort in any way she could. We, too, are presented with many opportunities in life. Not all of them are good ones, not all are the most noble ones. So we must carefully evaluate the opportunities and then be courageous enough to step out in faith to serve. Jesus told us to count the cost, and to do that we must:

• LOOK BEFORE WE LEAP:
• Notice the prudence of those in Jesus' illustration:
• Verse 28: The builder of the tower calculated the cost so he didn't get the foundation down and then run out of resources and become the goat of the neighborhood.
• Verse 31: The king determined with his military advisors whether the 2-1 odds were insurmountable. He didn't lead with his chin. He didn't let his impulse get him into a perilous situation.
• This means that we must not be impetuous; it calls for discriminating commitment: Not all tasks are worth the effort! The worthiness of that to which we commit ourselves is a crucial factor.
• Some are committed to the sensual and jump into all sorts of pleasures which in the end are destructive.
• Some are committed to the selfish and leap into whatever seems to be the most self-advancing.
• Some are committed to personal comfort and hop into whatever is easiest and demands the least effort.
• Some are committed to material gain and opt for whatever pays the highest dividends. But Proverbs 11:28 "He who trusts in his riches will fall, ..."
• Some are committed to the sensational, the glamorous, the showy stuff and are beguiled by gaudy allurements. Solomon tried that and said in retrospect, "Also, I collected for myself silver and gold, and the treasure of kings and provinces. I provided for myself male and female singers and the pleasures of men-- many concubines. ... Thus I considered all my activities which my hands had done and the labor which I had exerted, and behold all was vanity and striving after wind and there was no profit under the sun." Ecclesiastes 2:8, 11.
• Look before you leap! This is not at all to say we ought to avoid all risks. It is to say we ought to be circumspect, alert, duly cautious that we are aware of the step we are taking. We are advised to caution, not cowardice; we are urged to circumspection, not inaction. But:
• Look before you leap into a divorce rather than working out the problems.
• Look before you leap into any relationship that might weaken your Christian life.
• Look before you leap into debt: do you need the thing? Could you better save for it? Could you make do with what you have?
• Look before you leap into an argument or confrontation. Is the issue worth the conflict?
• The Bible makes it clear that we are to watch our step, to be deliberate, to look before leaping.
• Proverbs 1:32 "For the waywardness of the naive shall kill them, And the complacency of fools shall destroy them."
• Proverbs 14:16 "A wise man is cautious and turns away from evil, But a fool is arrogant and careless."
• Proverbs 16:18 "Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before stumbling."
• Proverbs 28:26 "He who trusts in his own heart is a fool, But he who walks wisely will be delivered."
• Ephesians 5:15 "Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men, but as wise,"

Edith Cavell carefully considered the situation and knew the danger. She made a decision to stay and help anyway.  Later she was arrested for helping the Allied soldiers. At her trial she did not deny her activities but claimed that it was her duty and her concern to assist her countrymen who were in danger. She was found guilty of high treason by the German military tribunal and, along with 5 others, was sentenced to death. She was executed the very next morning to spare the German government the trouble of being pressured by other governments to release her. Though she died for it, Edith Cavell did not hesitate to do what she believedwas right. She counted the cost and didn't consider it too high. Jesus tells us to count the cost, and then, once we've done it and are convinced that our course of action is His will, we must:

• BE WILLING TO PAY THE PRICE:
• In Jesus' story:
• Verse 28: The builder had to be willing to pay the full price or fail.
• Verse 31: The king had to be willing to pay the full cost or be defeated and humiliated.
• What price may be attached to following Jesus?
• We may have to pay the price of comfort, ease, and personal pleasure. It may mean a change in personal plans, personal agenda, personal preferences.
• We may have to pay the price of autonomy and self-direction. When Jesus is Lord, He is in control. He gives the commands and we give the obedience.
• We may have to pay the price of money and time. Our things, our moments are no longer our own when we belong to Jesus and they are to be used for His good pleasure.
• We may have to pay the price of popularity. Others may scorn and ridicule us for following Jesus Christ.
• We will surely have to pay the price of the world: Mark 8:36 "For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul?"
• Mark it down and hold it as true: you will pay no price for Jesus that He does not amply repay:
• Matthew 19:29 "And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or farms for My name's sake, shall receive many times as much, and shall inherit eternal life."
• Hebrews 6:10 "For God is not unjust so as to forget your work and the love which you have shown toward His name, in having ministered and in still ministering to the saints."
• Others have paid the price before us:
• Abraham left his home and family to obey God's orders. He paid the price and reaped the gain.
• The fishermen left their nets to follow Jesus. They paid the price and acquired the benefit.
• Paul the apostle gave up his heritage and religious position to obey Christ. He paid the price and received the crown.

There are only two ways about it: we will either count the cost and decide that we want to cling to this world and its things, or we will determine that whatever we do, or give, or lose, or sacrifice for Jesus' sake is worth it. What we give up here, we gain there. What we cling to here, we forfeit there. It only makes sense to invest in that which lasts long after this world has been reduced to ashes. " Only one life, 'twill soon be past, only what's done for Christ will last." Nothing on earth, no grudge, no possession, no pleasure, no pursuit is worth losing your soul to gain. So, count the cost of following Jesus and then count the cost of not doing it. The former will gain your soul, the latter will cost it. Any thinking person will recognize that that's just too high a price to pay. Count the cost and come follow Jesus.

STORY FROM: "ONE WHO BELIEVED" Vol II, Pamplin and Worcester, Christ Community Church, Dundee, OR

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