What Does It Cost?

It snowed so much overnight that our church service was canceled. So we went to a church nearby where we attended years ago. The church is so different from it was when I pastored there in the 70's. Now it is almost all Spanish with enough music to challenge the ears of an older man. But I heard something else, a challenge on “The Cost of Discipleship”.

Three men were challenged to follow Jesus in Luke 9. The first one expressed determination, “I will follow you wherever...” But Jesus replied that he had no place of his own, even less than the the birds or the foxes. Would the man give up his secure life for the insecurity of his life to follow Jesus? Would we give up our secure lives and life style to follow Jesus?

The second man was challenged to follow Jesus in the strong invitation: “Follow me”. The man did not say no. He just wanted to wait to follow until he was ready; after he had buried his father, who apparently hadn’t died yet, if he was out in the crowd with Jesus. After we have graduated from college, or done what we want to do, it was suggested; then people may propose to follow Jesus. In our time frame. When we're ready. When we have our priorities accomplished.

The third man also had good intentions: first saying good by to his family. First of all, going back even though asserting determination to follow Christ. He had divided interests. He wanted to pursue his own interests and the call to follow Christ. Jesus challenge was, you can't be going forward looking back and be fit for service in the Kingdom of God.

When I responded to the call of Christ, we were led in a lengthy commitment that promised we would give all to Christ, “all we are, all we have, and all we hope to become.” We still sing it in church worship services, “All to Jesus I surrender”. I wonder how many Christians would be willing to give up the secure life in the US and live on survival level in a third world country, walking with Jesus even thought we might not always know where we would sleep. Or do we insist on waiting to go until we are good and ready, perhaps when our children are grown up, or our house is paid off. Or does the life with family make it just too big a jump to follow, when it may mean leaving our children behind. Some of these were the kind of questions we faced when God called us to Belize years ago.

The cost of discipleship, is not cheap- never was. Are we willing to do whatever it takes to “follow Jesus”? Perhaps we need to examine again whether we harbor some of the excuses made to Jesus when the call was to abandon all and follow him. It was a blessing to be almost snowed in today. The message helped me examine again my excuses for following Jesus more in profession than in reality. I pray for that church that all those believers will remember what it means to follow Christ. It costs something, actually everything. Still a good message for me as well.