I remember years ago, soon after we had moved to Sherman, Texas, driving east of town on State Highway 56 we would see a fairly large brick home that was about 75% completed. And it stayed that way. We never saw any workers there, and no progress was being made. After several years, it was still exactly the same. I finally heard someone say that a man had told his wife she could build a new home, and he gave her a dollar amount that she was not to exceed. She started the project, hiring someone to design the home and then a contractor. She kept going until one day her husband said she had reached the limit and he was not going to spend any more money on that house. So it sat there unfinished.

Luke 14:28–30 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.’

Jesus was telling those who follow Him that there would be a cost. He spells it out a few verses later.

Luke 14:33 So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.

Total surrender. Giving control of your life to Jesus. Letting Him be in first place and in control. That is the cost of discipleship. And the benefits? Peace. Love. Acceptance. Forgiveness. Eternal life that starts here and goes on with your Savior in heaven. Jesus lived a life and perfection and offered it as the sacrifice for the sins of the world so that you could have those things.

I had someone respond to one of my recent devotions very angrily. He identified himself as atheist and said he believed everyone should be able to believe whatever they want to believe. I agreed with him that everyone could believe whatever they wanted, including me. He then said I was trying to extort people by encouraging them to follow Jesus. I won’t bore you with the rest of his rant. He had obviously been hurt by someone and was looking for someone to lash out against. I have been praying for him. Jesus said there would be days like this.

John 15:18–20 “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. Remember the words I spoke to you: ‘No servant is greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also.

Cost to being a disciple of Jesus. Wants us to put Him first. The reward is already ours, the gift of eternal life we have for Jesus’ sake. We live in response to that. And we share the Good News, knowing that not everyone will listen or be happy to hear it. The reality is there are too many who still do not understand the message of God’s love that comes from His Word. You and I do know it, and our Lord wants us to share it.