All In

There are some things that never go on sale because people have no problem paying full price for them, like Super Bowl or World Series or Notre Dame football tickets. These things require saving up, sacrifice, and surrendering some things, but in the end the experience was worth the cost (GO IRISH!). Today Jesus tells us that discipleship is never discounted nor will it go “on sale” and it will never be found in an outlet store. We must go all in, we must pay full price and you know what, eternity is totally worth it. 

So we need to start by replacing the word “hate” with the word “detach” or “put aside” and it might make it a little easier to get into. Love, in the ancient world, meant to be attached to, and hate meant to be detached from. While we are called to love our families and our neighbors as ourselves, we are never to do that apart from loving God first and foremost, whole-heartedly. Jesus’ point today is that sometimes in living a Christian life, we may be required to detach from the things that perhaps get in the way of us being whole-heartedly focused on God’s will and plan for us. He identifies that our attachments to people, our fear of suffering, our lack of planning and discipline, and our possessions are all things that can and do become the idols that we worship before God. I know for me, I suffer from all of the above. Being a follower of Christ also requires surrender, sacrifice, and discipline. 

A familiar example of this is the testing of Abraham. God had no plans of allowing Abraham to actually kill Isaac, but rather he was testing Abraham’s heart to see if he was really “all in” or not. God greatly blessed Abraham for his willingness to pay full price for the promise of eternity and his trust in that promise made the promise so. The same is true for us. God wants our whole hearts, undivided, and in that undivided-ness, our trust without borders, will fix our eyes on the prize, and that prize will be so. 

So let’s detach from people and stuff today so as to go “all in” for what truly matters. Let’s not settle for less than when it comes to our souls. Let’s not expect a sale on the cost of being a disciple. Let’s not wait for eternity to show up in some outlet store. When we put God first, when we go all in for Jesus Christ, everything else in our lives will be rightly ordered and our blessings will be as abundant as the stars. Discipleship requires us to save up for, sacrifice, and surrender, and it is well with my soul. 

Reading 1 PHIL 2:12-18

My beloved, obedient as you have always been,
not only when I am present but all the more now when I am absent,
work out your salvation with fear and trembling.
For God is the one who, for his good purpose,
works in you both to desire and to work.
Do everything without grumbling or questioning,
that you may be blameless and innocent,
children of God without blemish
in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation,
among whom you shine like lights in the world,
as you hold on to the word of life,
so that my boast for the day of Christ may be
that I did not run in vain or labor in vain.
But, even if I am poured out as a libation
upon the sacrificial service of your faith,
I rejoice and share my joy with all of you.
In the same way you also should rejoice and share your joy with me.

Responsorial Psalm PS 27:1, 4, 13-14

R. (1a) The Lord is my light and my salvation.
The LORD is my light and my salvation;
whom should I fear?
The LORD is my life's refuge;
of whom should I be afraid?
R. The Lord is my light and my salvation.
One thing I ask of the LORD;
this I seek:
To dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life,
That I may gaze on the loveliness of the LORD
and contemplate his temple.
R. The Lord is my light and my salvation.
I believe that I shall see the bounty of the LORD
in the land of the living.
Wait for the LORD with courage;
be stouthearted, and wait for the LORD.
R. The Lord is my light and my salvation.

Alleluia 1 PT 4:14

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
If you are insulted for the name of Christ, blessed are you,
for the Spirit of God rests upon you.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel LK 14:25-33

Great crowds were traveling with Jesus,
and he turned and addressed them,
"If anyone comes to me without hating his father and mother, 
wife and children, brothers and sisters,
and even his own life,
he cannot be my disciple.
Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me
cannot be my disciple.
Which of you wishing to construct a tower
does not first sit down and calculate the cost
to see if there is enough for its completion? 
Otherwise, after laying the foundation
and finding himself unable to finish the work
the onlookers should laugh at him and say,
'This one began to build but did not have the resources to finish.' 
Or what king marching into battle would not first sit down
and decide whether with ten thousand troops
he can successfully oppose another king
advancing upon him with twenty thousand troops? 
But if not, while he is still far away,
he will send a delegation to ask for peace terms. 
In the same way,
everyone of you who does not renounce all his possessions
cannot be my disciple."