Recently, I’ve suffered the heartbreak of watching a couple of students choose the world over the Savior. Nothing discourages me more in this life than watching young people walk away from the Lord.
I do take some encouragement from this. They’ve heard the true Gospel. Not a Gospel that Jesus can make your life circumstances better that so many preachers love preaching these days, but rather the Gospel that Christ loves to forgive sinners, but that, in return, He expects their lives to be given back to Him. The ones who stick around understand the cost of discipleship and are willing to pay the price.
We’ve all heard the following sentences: Jesus doesn’t want to be a part of your life, He wants to take priority in your life. He doesn’t want to be a piece of it, He wants to be preeminent.
Implicit in these statements is the fact that being crucified with Him might bring about temporary pain in this life. And yet, many Christians remain shocked by the fact that the Christian life may cost a lot in this life.
A lot of us look forward to the comforts of heaven without any desire to lose any comfort on earth, but Jesus not only prepared His disciples for trials, He also taught His disciples to expect trials. We all know the following passage, but it is a passage that we should meditate on often so that when one of these areas of life is affected by the Gospel, we will respond positively and be used mightily by God.
The passage is Luke 9:57-62
. It reminds us of the cost of discipleship and how it affects three areas of life. 3 men, 3 earthly comforts, and 3 times Jesus makes it though to follow him.
As they were going along the road, someone said to Him, “I will follow You wherever You go.” And Jesus said to him, “The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” And He said to another, “Follow Me.”But he said, “Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father.” But He said to him, “Allow the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God.” Another also said, “I will follow You, Lord; but first permit me to say good-bye to those at home.” But Jesus said to him, “No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.” Luke 9:57-62
1) Personal Comfort
“The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”
This guy was pretty excited to follow Christ. And yet, Jesus attempts to warn him, you might even say to discourage him. Jesus wants him to know that following Him means that you must forget about comfort.
The Gospel obviously affects your personal comfort. It affects every decision you make. The Gospel calls us to be selfless. It calls us to prefer others. That means we are called to work hard even when tired. We are to sacrifice ourselves for the good of those around us. We are to share the Gospel and tell people that they are sinners and that they are headed towards an eternity in hell. We are to sacrifice free time for serving the church and evangelizing the lost. We go on mission trips instead of going on vacation. Sometimes, we even take a job oversees rather than in America for the sake of the Gospel. And, ultimately, it might cost us–and does cost many Christians all over the world their freedom and even their lives.
Don’t be surprised when the Gospel makes you uncomfortable.
2) Financial Security
“Allow the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God.”
Jesus knows what’s behind this man’s statement. This man isn’t talking about honoring his father, rather he’s asking to be able to bury his father and walk away with his inheritance. Then, he would gladly serve the Lord.
Jesus calls men and women to be willing to forgo their earthly inheritance for an eternal one. It’s like exchanging one dollar for a billion, and yet so many people have a hard time with it. People will do anything for financial security. They will stab friends in the back figuratively speaking, some will even stab people in the back literally. Others will sell their bodies, and some cheat their way up the corporate ladder. The love of money, as Paul says, is the root of all kinds of evil. Christians should be willing to give up earthly possessions for the sake of following Christ. This is the opposite of the prosperity of the Gospel, whether it’s giving to the church, missionaries, or brothers and sisters in need. Sometimes we might even lose a job or two because of our stand with Christ. Regardless, we gladly buy stock in heaven knowing it is an investment that gives an infinite return.
Don’t be surprised when the Gospel affects your bank account.
3) Familial harmony
“No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”
This man simply wanted to go see his family, and yet Jesus warns him not to. Jesus knows that if this man goes back, his family will convince him not to follow Christ.
The family is an incredible blessing from God, but it can be a source of temptation for many. A temptation to compromise the Gospel and to not serve the Lord as hard as we can. Whether it is parents who for whatever reason don’t want their children to be in ministry or unbelieving relatives who constantly mock and discourage the zeal of the believing family member, Satan can use family for much harm in a Christian’s life. As Jesus says elsewhere, we are called to even hate our family for Christ’s sake and we must resist the temptation of allowing our family’s word to trump God’s.
Don’t be surprised if the Gospel affects your relationships.
It’s very tempting to water down the Gospel and promise great comforts in this life for those around us, but while there is great joy in knowing Christ, we need to be careful to speak the truth. While we should be regularly pleading and encouraging our children, our neighbors, our coworkers, and family members to give their life to Christ, let’s follow His example in evangelism and let’s warn people about how difficult the Christian life is, while always exalting the glories of Heaven. It’s also easy for us to forget the fact that the Gospel will affect out lives, and we should be willing to forgo earthly rights for the sake of eternal rewards.
