The Cost of "No"

This is the second of two posts addressing the cost of obedience to God. You can read the first here.

"Looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider Him who endured from sinners such hostility against Himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted." - Hebrews 12:2-3

If you're like me, you're not a fan of shopping. There are several reasons why, but I think my primary reason for not enjoying a trip to the store is looking at the prices. Especially when I'm shopping for clothes. I'll see something I like. Then I read the price tag and suddenly decide I don't like it anymore. The cost is too high, and I don't think it's worth it.

Sometimes, that's how it feels when God is showing us something He wants us to do. It looks great. Then we count the cost. We might lose friends. We might disappoint family. We might have to leave everything that is familiar. It could even cost our lives.

Unlike that piece of clothing, I hope you realize obedience is worth it. The reward is so much greater than the cost. And there is also a cost to disobedience.

In Deuteronomy, God set a choice before the Israelites. He told them they could choose the blessings of obedience or the curse associated with disobedience. Like the people of Israel, if we choose disobedience, we remove ourselves from the blessings of God. We harden our hearts toward Him. We block ourselves from hearing His voice. We hinder our relationships with Him and show Him that we don't love Him.

Through their obedience, the Israelites were supposed to show the world what a relationship with God looked like. What if, through our disobedience, we hinder someone else? What if it costs their salvation? What if disobedience prevents us from meeting someone who needed to hear about Him? What if praying with that person in the mall is just the sign they are looking for, and we don't do it?

Isn't their eternity more important than our momentary convenience?

So yes, there is a cost to following Christ. There is a cost to doing what He says to do. But there's an even higher price to pay when we don't. The cost of obedience is temporary. The cost of disobedience is eternal.

Like Jesus, let us not refuse to pay the cost. Let us see, instead, the joy before us and choose to be obedient to Him.

"But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ." -Philippians 3:7-8

Join the conversation:

• When you count the cost, do you also consider the rewards?
• How do you respond when asked to give something up for the sake of Christ?

The Cost of "Go"

This is the first of two posts addressing the cost of obedience to God. The second will be coming next week.

"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?" - Luke 14:28

Not long ago, I was driving down the road and saw a dog. It's not like it's unusual for me to see people walking their dogs. But this dog happened to look like mine - my dog who had died about two months before. My thoughts went something like this. "I miss my dog. Next time I get a dog, I'm going to have to pay for everything. Oh man, that'll include plane tickets to and from Denmark. I can't leave a dog in a kennel on an overseas plane ride. What if I never get to have another dog?"

Counting the cost is a phrase you hear a lot in church. Considering Jesus Himself said it, there's obviously a reason. Following Jesus has its rewards, but they're not free. Early believers were persecuted. They were beaten, stoned, and imprisoned. All but one of the apostles were executed just for proclaiming the Gospel. Millions around the world still face this reality.

With as many missionaries as I know personally, and with the plan to become one myself, counting the cost has become even more personal. Every time I realize I might miss important events in the lives of my friends and family - graduations, weddings, births. Every time I realize I might be leaving the country just as some friends are returning. I've left it all for 12 weeks before, and even though it was hard, I learned that I could do it. Whenever the price starts seeming too high, I remind myself of that. Then I saw that dog. Suddenly, the cost seemed very high - because I actually had to consider it. (Don't get me wrong, the people matter more to me than the dog, but I was always able to ignore that because I've handled it before.)

No matter what God is asking you to do, there's going to be a cost. You have to be willing to count that cost. If you jump in not knowing what it's going to cost, eventually you'll want to quit. The cost will get too high, and you won't want to pay.

But hopefully, when you count the cost, you'll also decide that it's worth it.

"As they were going along the road, someone said to Him, 'I will follow You wherever You go.' And Jesus said to him, 'Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.' To another He said, 'Follow me.' But he said, 'Lord, let me first go and bury my father.' And Jesus said to him, 'Leave the dead to bury their own dead. But as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God'." - Luke 9:57-60 

Join the conversation:

• What's God asking you to do?
• What will it cost you?
• Is it worth it?