Day 2 - Counting the Cost

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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?  Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him,  saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’  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?  And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace.  So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple. Salt is good, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? 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 14:28-35

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This was a lot of scripture. If you kind of glazed over it, skipped it, or just didn’t take the time to let it sink in, the rest of this won’t mean much, so go back and read it again. You know what? Even if you did a thorough first read-through, just go read it again. We need to get this truth cemented in our hearts.

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Okay, you’re back. This is hard teaching from Jesus, isn’t it? It doesn’t really sound like the version of Jesus we hear about from a lot of modern preachers or women’s Bible studies, does it? This teaching hurts a little. What is Jesus saying about following Him costing us? Didn’t He pay the price we couldn’t pay to save us from our sins through dying on the cross and rising back to life three days later? Didn’t He say something about giving us life abundant, blessings, and peace?

Yes, sis. All of that is true, but we do ourselves no favors when we only focus on the aspects of Jesus’ teaching and God’s Word that are comfortable or comforting and avoid the parts that require something from us. It is a lot easier to focus on all the benefits of Christianity—what following Jesus gives us—and ignore what following Jesus costs us. But the harsh reality is, when we do that, we aren’t really following Jesus. We are following some more palatable version of a Savior who can’t really save us, and then we are left destined for destruction while we are deceived and lulled into passivity! Scripture says that the path is narrow and the gate is small and only a few find it.

If you’re ready to evaluate the Savior you have given your life to, first ask yourself this question: Have I had to change my schedule, my preferences, and my priorities in order to follow this Savior? If the answer is not a resounding YES, then you are in danger. If you have only needed to adjust a bit here and there, then you are probably in danger.

Following Jesus—the REAL Jesus—costs us. It will cost you money, time, dreams, relationships, pursuits, schedules, and more. Following Jesus leads us through the valley of the shadow of death, through suffering, trials, and hardships. Following Jesus welcomes persecution and spiritual attack. It is not just sunshine and rainbows over here, and when we believe the lie that our lives following Jesus on this side of heaven are only full of abundance and blessing, we miss out on being like Jesus. He was abundant and blessed, of course, but He was persecuted, He suffered, He faced hardship, and we are called to be in the same way with Jesus.

Our Western mindset has rebuffed struggle and made it something we think we should avoid. If we are struggling, we must be doing it wrong. We look at hardship as a consequence of our own stupidity or lack… and sometimes it is just that. But hardship and struggle are also wonderful teachers. They show us what really matters, where our focus needs to be set, and enable us to grow. We can’t grow without struggle, and if we give up mid-struggle because “it is just too hard so obviously God isn’t in it,” then we will never grow beyond where we are now. We will keep circling back to this point in our maturation and get stuck until we persevere and push through. Resistance builds our spiritual muscles when we continue to push through the struggle until we overcome it.

It is a struggle to live in the victory Jesus purchased for us on the cross. The victory over sin is already won; it has no real power over those who are in Christ anymore. But living out that reality is challenging. We fight against our flesh to walk in the Spirit—in the same way with Jesus. We even fight against the struggle that is struggling to make us look more like Jesus!

The cost of discipleship is denying yourself. Denying your desire for an easy life, for a happy life, for a life built to look the way you want it to look. If we want to really follow Jesus, we have to get really good at saying no to ourselves when we really don’t want to say no.

If we are going to follow Jesus, we need to consider this reality. Otherwise, we make a mockery of ourselves. We start something we won’t finish and lose our credibility. We become useless to our true purpose. Our purpose is what Jesus says it is, not whatever we desire for ourselves. And what we desire may be a good thing, but if it’s not a God thing, then it is useless.

The cost is high. The right to own your own destiny, your own resources, your own finances, your own schedule… all of that must be surrendered to Jesus. The cost of discipleship is being a steward, not an owner, of your schedule, your finances, your resources, your priorities, and your destiny. Have you counted the cost?

Jesus, help us as we look at our life today to really count the cost of following You. Would You, in Your kindness, show us where we have yet to surrender to You, the lies we are believing about our relationship with You, and show us the truth in Your Word about who You are and how we can walk in the same way with You?

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Reflection Questions
Ask yourself these questions and answer honestly, only you see these answers, but also ask God what His thoughts are about these things. He sees all our blindspots and wants us transformed into His likeness - whole and healed. Let Him transform you as you work through these questions.

 

Sight – Your Outlook

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• When you look at your life, do you see evidence that you have counted the cost of following Jesus? Or have you built a version of faith that fits your comfort instead of His calling?
                                                                         

Smell – The Atmosphere You Create

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• What does the fragrance of your faith smell like? Is it the rich aroma of sacrifice and surrender, or has it become stale from avoiding hardship and struggle? What needs to change?
                                                                            

Touch – Your Actions and Behaviors

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• In what ways does your daily life reflect the cost of discipleship? What tangible things—time, money, priorities—have you surrendered to Jesus? What is He calling you to let go of next?
                                                           

Hearing – Your Influences

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• What voices are shaping your view of discipleship? Are they challenging you to count the cost and walk in obedience, or are they convincing you that an easy, comfortable faith is enough?
                                                         

Taste – Your Beliefs

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• Do you hunger for the truth of real discipleship, even when it’s costly? Or are you still trying to satisfy your soul with a version of faith that asks little of you?