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WEEK 4 SERMON DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR GROUPS

May 5, 2024

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Introduction:

During His time on earth, Jesus invited misbehavers and unbelievers to follow Him. We are all invited to follow Him. You are invited to follow Him, but you need to know something about following Jesus. It will cost you something eventually. It may cost you money, career advancement, or even relationships. That’s because Jesus offers us the choice of denying ourselves now or losing ourselves later. We know many blessings come with being a Christian. But there are also some costs. It’s essential to think about and understand those costs.  But you’ll find that when you pay the price for following Jesus, you’ll be glad you did.

Something To Talk About:

Salvation is absolutely free, yet it costs you your life. You receive it freely at no expense, but once you receive it, you have just committed everything you are and have to Jesus Christ. You may protest, “That’s a contradiction! How can something be both free and costly at the same time?”

  1. Following Jesus will eventually cost us something: Some people misrepresent the Christian walk by boiling it down to a simple raising of a hand on a Sunday morning. Christianity entails the decision to accept Jesus as our savior and the lifelong obedience by walking in a relationship with Him. There are costs involved, maybe everything. It will change your life, job aspirations, spouse, and kids. The good news is that the cost of following Jesus is where total happiness is found. The obedience that God calls us to is the greatest gift we could ever be given because when we lose our life, we gain it. But that means we need to count the costs our relationship with Jesus requires. 
  2. Following Jesus will lead to a moral imperative: A moral imperative is a strongly felt principle that compels that person to act.  Following Jesus is a personal commitment and a personal decision. In reality, we must choose repeatedly throughout our lives to follow Him. Being a disciple is not a one-and-done kind of deal. We decide to commit our lives to Him, and then we must spend the rest of our lives choosing to follow Him because it is the right thing to do. Following Jesus will dictate what we do and what we don’t do.
  3. Following Jesus will feel like a death:  In Christ, we die to live. “Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it” (Luke 9:23–24). While the world has many ideas about what it means to live truly, Jesus offers us a life path that seems counterintuitive––to live, you have to die. Death to self. Jesus says we must deny ourselves and not seek to save our own lives but lose our lives for His sake. This is a call to make Jesus even more important than everything,
  4. Following Jesus will bring you to a defining moment: What is your defining moment? A defining moment is an event that determines all subsequent (following) events or a time when the essential nature or character of a person or group is revealed or identified.  You can have several defining moments in your life. Your decision to follow Jesus is a defining moment of who you are and who you will become. It happens at an intentional point when you place your faith in Jesus instead of in yourself for the forgiveness of your sins. By His grace, you can now live your life differently. As Christians, our lives comprise many defining moments that affect how we live. They come from decisions made in faith — both big and small. Jesus had a defining moment that affected everyone who ever lived. This choice was not easy, but He submitted to follow God’s plan, even to the Cross. Before Jesus was betrayed and crucified, He prayed in the garden of Gethsemane. “Going a little farther, He fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from Him. ‘Abba, Father,’ He said, ‘everything is possible for You. Take this cup from Me. Yet not what I will, but what You will’” (Mark 14:35-36, NIV). It’s not always easy to choose to follow God. Like Jesus, we are often asked to do what feels impossible.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Following Jesus is costly, but how do you count the costs?
  2. What words and concepts do people normally associate with what it means to follow Jesus?
  3. Read Luke 14:26-27. Think of how Jesus is defining discipleship in contrast to our natural assumptions. Why do you think He uses such strong words?
  4. There is no cost you can pay in following Jesus that won’t be made up a thousandfold in the resurrection.  Agree or disagree and why?
  5. Following Christ means dying to yourself. What does that mean in practical terms?
  6. Jesus is saying, you don’t go halfway in other things in life…so don’t follow me halfway.
  7. How is Mark 10:21-31 an encouragement in this total commitment to Christ?
  8. How do we remember daily that Christ has given Himself for us so that we can have everything in Him?
  9. What was your main takeaway from this week’s message?

Take One Thing Home with You:

Nestled in a few verses in Luke’s Gospel (Luke 14:25-35) is a Jesus who was not politically correct and did not try to save people’s feelings. Instead, Jesus explains the life-long cost involved in choosing to follow Him. True Christianity is the most significant sacrifice any person ever makes … but it is in pursuit of the most precious prize ever glimpsed.

Jesus gives two parables that make the same overall point, namely, that a person must give careful consideration to the cost before he rashly jumps into it. Jesus spells out, think with me for a moment about the phrases, “sit down and calculate the cost,” referring to the man building the tower (14:28); and, “sit down and take counsel,” referring to the king considering going to war (14:31). Both refer to careful, detailed, rational thinking in which you consider all aspects of what you’re getting into before you commit. Such careful thinking is opposed to an impulsive decision made in a moment of intense emotion, without much thought about the consequences.