“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. Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.” Luke 14:26-27

Jesus presented an amazing opportunity to the crowds that began following him. He noticed all the people who were following Him and Jesus stopped and told them to take the opportunity He was presenting to them. The people were already interested in what Jesus was saying, but He wanted to show them how to apply His teachings.

First, Jesus told the crowd they must forsake their families, possessions, and anything that would distract them from truly following Him. They must “pick up their cross” and follow Him no matter what the cost was. This meant every distraction or habit that keep them from truly following Jesus and becoming a true disciple.

This would be a new beginning for these people, a new road to walk, and a new attitude to adopt. This would change the way they think and the way they experience life. This meant walking the road with Jesus and only Jesus and making Him the center of your life. Just two people experiencing life together. This was a decision of the heart and not of the mind.

When we make the decision to choose Jesus, there is no other option than to be fully committed to Him. We have to choose to walk with Him daily and to forsake ourselves and others to make Jesus the center of our lives. To truly be a disciple of Jesus we have to chose to commit fully. Jesus very clearly stated what the requirements for being His disciple are.

If you were to look up the definition of disciple, you would see that a disciple means to be a committed follower of a teacher or a group. Jesus chose 12 disciples that He asked to be part of His group and whom He taught daily. He wants us to accept His invitation into this elite group. He wants you and I to accept His invitation and fulfill those requirements.

But what are the requirements of being a disciple? We will continue the lesson during our next sermon and we will outline what Jesus requires for us to truly be a disciple.