The Costs of True Discipleship

A Hebrew Roots Perspective

Sabbath Thoughts and Reflections–Episode 64

Opening Passage:  ²⁸ For which of you, desiring to build a tower, doth not first sit down and count the cost, whether he have wherewith to complete it? ²⁹ Lest haply, when he hath laid a foundation, and is not able to finish, all that behold begin to mock him, ³⁰ saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish. ³¹ Or what king, as he goeth to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and take counsel whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand? ³² Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he sendeth an ambassage, and asketh conditions of peace. (Luk 14:28-32 ASV)

What are the costs associated with True Discipleship? Have we truly weighed and factored in the costs?

• Of course Hebrew Roots will seemingly fail and that would actually signal its success
• • Little flock versus the millions in Hebrew Roots today
• True Rooters will have counted the costs and will give everything over to Father
• • They won’t be perfect but they will do the right thing in the end
• The human will is at perpetual enmity to the will of Yahovah and thus the struggle within is of such intensity at times it causes many to abandon the Faith
• By contrast, churchianity does not require adherents to do anything but have a cognitive understanding that Jesus

• Matthew 8:18-27
• Many of us have latched on to this Faith and for whatever reason, were taken by a message or something of the sort. We jumped at the opportunity to join the Faith, yet we never really took into consideration all that this Faith really requires of a true disciple of Messiah (Luke 14:6)
• • Know who our Master is–He gives the commands over our lives and dictates what our purpose, our purposes and what our responsibilities must be
  • Provisions are the primary concerns for most humans, especially in here in the west. We do not wish to be inconvenienced in our day-to-day lives; we love comfort; we seek after more and more in our lives that we think will make us happy; we’re never content with the provisions that we already have nor are we content with the provisions that we’ve been given in our walk with Messiah

• • The prosperity ministries of Churchianity in recent times have put forth an erroneous dogma that as disciples of Messiah we are to be prosperous and so forth and if we give of our substance to them and their ministries, we will live in a lap of luxury for the rest of our lives
  • • These fly from place to place in private jets and live in extravagant homes in some of the richest places of the world
    • • T.D. Jakes of the Potter’s House of Dallas, Texas is estimated to be worth $150M
      • Bishop David Oyedepo of Nairobi, Nigeria, has a net worth of $150M
      • E.A. Adeboye of Osun State, Nigeria, is believed to have a net worth of $3 to $4M, but www.naij.com places him #3 in the list of the world’s wealthiest preachers
      • Benny Hinn is believed to have a net worth of $42M
      • Chris Oyakhilome,, of Edo State, Nigeria, runs a church organization with an estimated net worth of $30 to $50M; believed by some to have laundered some $35M through his church on to foreign banks
      • Creflo Dollar is believed to have a net worth of $27M
      • Kenneth Copeland, of Fort Worth, Texas, it is unclear what Mr. Copeland’s net worth actually is. We do know that he owns a church, a private airstrip, a hanger for his $17.5M jet and a $6M lakefront mansion home
      • Billy and Franklin Graham, believed to have net worth of $25M
      • The list goes on
    • But these gentlemen defy that paradigm for discipleship and ministry that Master set forth for us in the Gospel accounts
• Lack of time for discipleship and ministry are some of the most widely used excuses for people not fulfilling the mandate to be followers of Messiah
• • Most believers fail to even find time to pick up their bibles and learn what Master requires of them
  • Most believers allow the cares of this world to consume the hours of their day to such a point that the affairs of the Faith take secondary, tertiary and lower priorities in their lives
  • • These are as the so-called disciple who approached Master at the Kinneret, wanting to be a part of the movement that Yeshua was bringing to the region, but needed enough time to see after the cares of his life: “Another disciple said to Him, ‘Master, let me first to go and bury my father.’ But Yeshua said to him, ‘Follow me and let the dead bury their dead.'”
    • • We never learn what happened to that inquiring individual, but we can only assume that he chose to take care of his personal affairs over joining Yahoshua’s ministry
      • Rood comments of this story: “This man was not looking to dig a grave for his father at that moment…It was the responsibility of the children to care for their aged parents until they die. From Yeshua’s answer it can be deduced that there were other family members who were ‘dead to the kingdom” who could take care of the details at home. Not everyone received an invitation to follow Yeshua as he traveled–it is a rugged life and He had no idea where He would be sleeping the next night. Yeshua had a house to stay in at Kfar Nahum, but traveling in Israel in that day was ‘living by faith’ and uncomfortable compared to the security of a fox den. Yeshua later speaks these things to Samaritans who want to follow Him as He is going up to the Feast of Sukkot in the fall.”
  • Lack of faith in Father’s provision is another key concern of most disciples in the true Faith once delivered
  • • This is the one thing that Churchianity, in large part, has over us who are Rooters
    • • The Baptist Church of my youth, I came across some of the most Faithful people you’d ever want to meet
      • • Faithful in their service to the church
        • Faithful in their giving
        • Faithful in their trust that they would be healed and delivered
    • Concerns over such things as the uncertainty of provision and the lack of time to participate in the ministry are worsened by a drought of faith
    • • Fear is huge–we are just too frightened to step out and trust Father for our provision and security
      • The calming of the storm is an example of Yahoshua’s disciples lack of faith in Master’s provision, that would include seeing after their security
      • Master asks us: “Why are you so fearful, O you of little faith?” (Matthew 8:26, CKJV) “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?” (Mark 4:40, CKJV)
      • • We’re afraid to minister
        • We’re afraid to fellowship
        • We’re afraid to tithe and support ministries that are delivering the true gospel message
        • We’re afraid to participate in the Great Commission because we don’t have the necessary tools such as speaking abilities or credentials

• Hesitancy to obey the commandments of Master–the western world ridicules and is often hostile towards those who fully conform to the lifestyle that Father established for all of us who would be true followers of Yeshua
• • Food laws
  • Feast Days
  • Weekly Sabbaths
  • Refusal to participate in Christmas and Easter Celebrations may cause tremendous upheavals in family systems
  • Getting time away from work to participate in various Faith activities such as the feast days or celebrations may cause a strain at work
  • Work conflicts, especially during weekly shabbats
  • Having to work through Torah prohibitions could cause problems such as dining and travel and special needs–feast and holy days clash with hotel room service; air travel conflicting with weekly and annual sabbaths; getting