Biblical Essays
COST OF FOLLOWING JESUS
Watering down the true message of Christianity, attempting to make it more popular and appealing; meeting the whims and desires of a culture wanting non-confrontational messages, easy answers, and superficial commitments, may result in bigger audiences and greater contributions, but, in fact, it’s a cheap imitation of the Christian life, and it leads to eternal punishment.
“If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me” (Luke 9:23; NKJV). Coming to Christ requires three hard commands: deny self, take up a cross daily, and follow Him.
Jesus taught these principles consistently and repeatedly throughout His ministry, over and over again in different settings. They are not user-friendly, consumer-friendly or seeker-sensitive. The Christianity Lite message promotes an easy faith that only scratches the surface in explaining the all-encompassing power and authority of Christ, the sacrifice required to follow Him, and the reward of eternal life that results.
Just a casual reading of Matthew 10:32 clearly reveals that it is not a friendly invitation; it’s a warning: If you come to Christ, it may make your family worse, not better. It may send a rift into your family, the likes of which you have never experienced before. Giving your life to Jesus Christ puts an impassable gulf between you and people who don’t. In fact, the New Age Hindu mystic Deepak Chopra was right when he spoke on CNN of the difference between himself and those who follow Jesus: “(We) are in two different universities.” And that is true not just for strangers, but also for family members, creating a severe breach in those most intimate of all relationships.
Verse 37 adds, “He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.” In other words, if you’re not willing to pay the price of a permanent split in your family (unless your loved ones come to Christ) – if you’re not willing to pay the price of greater trauma, greater conflict, greater suffering in your family – then you’re not worthy to be Jesus’ disciple.
Verse 38: “And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.” The cross of Christ represents an instrument of death. Jesus is saying that if you’re not willing to have conflict with the world to the point of dying, then you’re not worthy of Him.
Verse 39: “He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.” An echo of Luke 9:23. It’s about losing your life. It’s not a man-centered theology; it’s a Christ-centered theology that says, “I give everything to Christ, no matter what it costs me, even if it costs me my life.”
Our society wants a Madison Avenue Jesus to make us well, happy, and prosperous. But Jesus Christ isn’t a personal genie – He is Savior! He died in agony to satisfy the wrath of a holy God and to forgive the sins of humankind. Faith in Him demands a willingness to make any sacrifice He asks – without exception.
The hard truth about faithfully following Christ is that the cost is high, but the rewards are priceless: abundant and eternal life. Deny self? Love Jesus more than family? Take up a cross daily? Yes, that’s exactly what Jesus requires of you and me and everyone else who would follow Him.
