THE COST OF FOLLOWING JESUS | Northstar Church

“A large crowd was following Jesus. He turned around and said to them, “If you want to be my disciple, you must, by comparison, hate everyone else—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple. And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple. But don’t begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost to see if there is enough money to finish it? Otherwise, you might complete only the foundation before running out of money, and then everyone would laugh at you. They would say, ‘There’s the person who started that building and couldn’t afford to finish it!’“Or what king would go to war against another king without first sitting down with his counselors to discuss whether his army of 10,000 could defeat the 20,000 soldiers marching against him? And if he can’t, he will send a delegation to discuss terms of peace while the enemy is still far away. So you cannot become my disciple without giving up everything you own.” – Luke 14:25-33

There’s a popular misconception that accepting Christ leads to health, wealth, prosperity, or a comfortable life. Christians know better. Following Jesus is not for the faint of heart. Following Jesus can seem like swimming upstream when the rest of the world is happy to go with the current. It takes courage, faith, humility, selflessness, discipline, commitment, boldness, strength, and endurance to live a life committed to Jesus.

“The Cost of Discipleship” is a book written by Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a pastor in Nazi Germany who directly opposed Hitler and the Nazis because of his Christian convictions. He was arrested, imprisoned, sent to multiple concentration camps, and the Nazis ultimately hanged him just months before the war ended.

The theme of the book was that while grace is a freely given gift from God, there are real costs involved. Early in the book, Bonhoeffer notes that Jesus’s first three recorded words to Peter were “Come, follow me.” He also notes that Jesus’s last three recorded words to Peter were “Come, follow me.”

The big difference was that the first time Peter heard those words, his response was to set out on an adventure with the young rabbi who did extraordinary things and quickly gained notoriety. The second time he heard these words from Jesus, he had been following Jesus for three years and learned about the demands and costs of that invitation. He had seen the power of Jesus in his miracles, but He also saw what His mission on earth cost Him on the cross. The invitation to “Come, follow me” would also cost Peter his life.

And that is Jesus’ unchanging command to all of His disciples. We are to follow Him. That is what being a disciple means. Being a disciple of Jesus isn’t just attending a worship service every week. It means to follow Him daily, regardless of the costs.

Discussion Questions:

What are some of the costs people normally associate with what it means to follow Jesus?
In Luke 14, Jesus delves further into the costs of following Him. In verses 26-27, how does Jesus describe the cost of discipleship? What do those tell you about following Him?