From our Pastor

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Cost of Following Jesus = Everything… It’s Worth It!

Luke 14:25-35, Deuteronomy 30:15-20                                                 September 8/9, 2007

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In my high school, in the room where the wrestlers practiced, were huge words printed on the walls:  “Give 110%.”  That always seemed a little silly to me because you can’t give more than you have.  But the idea is that to succeed in sports, you have to give a lot.  To succeed an athlete has to get his or her body in top condition.  That alone can be a great deal of effort.  In addition one has to master the fundamentals of the sport.  How many times does a basketball player have to practice free throws, lay-ups, etc.?  To win a championship, people will train, and practice every day.  Huge amounts of time and pain and sweat and tears go into achieving the goal. 

            Similarly, starting a business takes huge amounts of time, a great deal of resources, and constant effort to succeed.  People will pour themselves into starting a business.  How far will a person go to win the love of his life?  Guys, who formerly didn’t care about their appearance or about their smell or about their words and actions, suddenly shape up.  They’ll go to great lengths to impress their gal.  They’ll take the risk to ask her on a date, risking refusal.  But it’s all worth it, and so much more, for the hoped relationship with the girl of his dreams. 

            How far would you go to have a relationship with Jesus?  Now Jesus does not play hard to get.  As a matter of fact Jesus makes it very clear that there is nothing he wants more than a relationship with you.  Jesus loves you dearly.  He loves you enough to suffer and die for you!  Jesus certainly does not play hard to get. 

            Jesus does, however, have very high expectations of anyone who would want to be in relationship with him.  Listen to Jesus’ expectations in his own words.  “If someone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters yet even his own soul, he is not able to be my disciple.  Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me is not able to be my disciple.” (26, 27)  That sounds horrible!  But Jesus isn’t done yet.  He describes how people count the cost of a major building project before engaging in the project.  If someone wants to build a tower, he’ll sit down first and figure out as best he can what it will cost.  How embarrassing if the foundation is laid and then the building can’t be completed.  People know to count the cost before building.  Jesus also gives the example of a king who is going to go to war.  Before he engages in battle he figures out if his 10,000 men can stand up against an army of 20,000.  If not, he asks for peace. 

            Jesus is making the point that you count the cost for these things; you should count the cost if you want to be a disciple of Jesus.  ‘Count the cost,’ says Jesus.  “Everyone of you who does not say goodbye to all of his possessions is not able to be my disciple.” (33) That sounds quite extreme.  It is quite extreme.  The cost is huge.  You have to think about that cost and figure out if it’s worth it to you.

            People will spend huge amounts of effort and money and time and everything else for a championship, or for a business or for the love of their life.  They do it because the cost is worth it to them.  The glory and the joy and the fame and the thrill of winning a championship are worth it to so many athletes.  The ability to succeed by getting a business off the ground and meeting the needs of people is so worth all the long hours and risk of money for the many entrepreneurs who enter business each year.  To win the love of one’s life is worth the risk and effort that people put into it.  It’s not just the cost for all these things.  It’s that there is such a huge reward, such a great payoff. 

            There are great benefits to being close to Jesus, such great rewards to being his disciple, and there are also huge downsides to not being his disciple.  Deuteronomy talked about choosing between blessings and curses.  The blessings were for those who followed God’s commands.  The curses for those who turned away from God’s will.  Any reasonable person would clearly choose the blessings over the curses.  The trouble is that we have all chosen to sin.  We’ve sinned in our thoughts.  We’ve desired things contrary to what God calls us to do.  We’ve followed through in words and actions, defying God.  Rather than live in love, we’ve disobeyed and gone off after our own desires.  We’ve chosen the cost without the benefits.  We picked the curses!

            But our Lord did not want to leave us there, so he paid the cost for us.  He paid the price with his life.  Now our sins are paid.  We’ve been brought to faith in Jesus Christ.  Now are we going to continue to belong to Jesus?  The cost is still huge.  It’s basically all or nothing.  Either I give my all for Jesus, my life for Jesus, or nothing and I’ll have nothing, either.  Do you want to be my disciple, Jesus asks?  Count the cost…

It’s worth it!  It is definitely worth it!  The blessings of being with Jesus means forgiveness, which means life, life in all of its fullness here, and life eternal in heaven.  That’s a joy we anticipate greatly.  Being a disciple of Jesus means the fulfillment of all our desires and so much more.  Being with Jesus brings joy beyond anything we could even imagine.  The costs are high:  basically everything.  Put everything aside, family, possessions, everything.  But it is so worth it.  Being with Jesus is worth more than the world. 

            I’ve heard many people talk about what a tough time they had early in life, especially those who grew up in the depression era.  There was very little money.  Nothing could be wasted.  People talk about parents taking 2 or 3 jobs, working such long hours to care of them as children.  I’ve heard of sacrifices for Christmas presents, parents going without so that their children could have a little something special.  For many people, tears come to their eyes as they remember what their parents did for them.  If their parents were with them now, they would do anything they could for them.  Their parents sacrificed for their children, and the now grown children would do anything they could for their parents. 

            Think of what Jesus has done for you.  Think about his sacrifice, to give up the glory and comfort and joy of heaven, to come to this earth.  He gave up, in a sense, his great power, when he allowed himself to be born as a helpless little baby.  There was so much more he gave up, but fast-forward to the end of his earthly life.  He endured mock trials held all night long.  He suffered the 40 lashes minus one for you.  Can you picture Jesus allowing his back to be ripped apart like that for you?  Think about how he let the soldiers mock him and blindfold him and hit him again and again.   Remember how Jesus, in this bruised and beaten down condition, carried the cross until he collapsed under it.  Then spikes were pounded into hands and feet, and Jesus could have stopped it at any time.  He hung from those spikes, and he did it quite consciously for you.  That is the love of our Lord that he would sacrifice for you.  Think about this.  Sin, which is so contrary to Jesus, so repulsive to him, was put on him as he died for us.  What an awful experience Jesus went through for you. 

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