1. The true disciple will have Jesus as his first priority
25 Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them, 26 “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. Luke 14:25–26 (ESV)
2. The true disciple must completely deny himself
27 Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.
Luke 14:27 (ESV)
9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— 10 that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.
Philippians 3:9–11 (ESV)
20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. Galatians 2:20 (ESV)
3. The true disciple will have calculated the cost of following Jesus
28 For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? 29 Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, 30 saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ 31 Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? 32 And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. Luke 14:28–32 (ESV)
The first parable calls us to consider the cost: Can we afford to follow Jesus? The second parable calls us to consider the cost: Can we afford not to follow Jesus? (Philip Ryken)
4. The true disciple will not be mastered by his possessions
33 So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.
Luke 14:33 (ESV)
21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Matthew 6:21 (ESV)
5. The true disciple’s purity will have an impact
34 “Salt is good, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? 35 It is of no use either for the soil or for the manure pile. It is thrown away. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” Luke 14:34–35 (ESV)
Consider the cost of building a tower
It's a narrow way that you must come
For to do the will of the Father
Is to follow the Son
To love Him more than father or mother
You will love Him more than even your own flesh
To give all that you are, for all that He is
This is the gospel according to Jesus (Steve Camp)