{"id":3105,"date":"2025-09-09T09:08:00","date_gmt":"2025-09-09T16:08:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/?p=3105"},"modified":"2025-09-08T11:37:15","modified_gmt":"2025-09-08T18:37:15","slug":"counting-the-cost-of-carrying-the-cross","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/?p=3105","title":{"rendered":"Counting the Cost of Carrying the Cross"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

(Luke 14:25-35)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ask anyone looking for employment right now and you\u2019ll find that getting hired is not as easy as one may think. There are many factors involved in the process that employers have to consider, as hiring someone new isn’t cheap. The cost of hiring involves much more than just determining the wages. Is health insurance offered or required? Is there any sort of retirement? Is the employee required to be in the office or can she work from home, or some sort of hybrid arrangement? Can AI carry out the work that some employees used to be responsible for? The hiring process is a lot more involved than it used to be. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jesus\u2019 teaching in Luke 14 almost sounds as if he\u2019s sitting down one-on-one with potential hires, interviewing them to determine their qualifications and whether or not they\u2019re well-suited to for the job. Honestly, if that were the case, his words would be much easier for us to handle – if only! If it was just a potential job, we would have the option of saying no to his ridiculously lofty expectations and continuing our job search elsewhere.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Jesus is actually addressing a matter of far greater importance than simply getting hired for a job. He\u2019s forcing us to wrestle with a much more serious question: how much is your salvation worth to you? This is a hugely important matter for us to consider! Because when you don\u2019t value something, you don\u2019t take care of it. When something isn\u2019t worth much to you, you don\u2019t really care what happens to it. So when Jesus invites us to count the cost of carrying the cross, what he\u2019s asking is this: how much does your salvation really <\/em>matter to you? How much do I <\/em>really matter to you?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What hits home about Jesus\u2019 teaching is that he\u2019s refusing to let us off the hook by just paying him lip service. We can fool an awful lot of people with what we say, including ourselves. But we can\u2019t fool Jesus. We can tell others how much he matters to us. We can say all the right things. But then when the sacrifices surface – and they will always show up for the Christian, because Jesus promised the crosses would come – is Jesus worth it or not?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jesus\u2019 pictures about a builder planning to construct a tower or a king planning for battle emphasize the point he\u2019s making: think before you proceed. Did you do that before you signed up for this thing called Christianity? Do you still do it on a daily basis? As helpful as Jesus\u2019 examples are, sometimes we\u2019re so dull and slow that I think we need even more concrete examples of counting the cost of carrying the cross.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For practical purposes, let\u2019s take that a step further and consider it in light of membership in a Christian congregation. When you became a Christian\/member of a congregation, did you give much thought to what types of crosses you\u2019d have to bear or what it might cost you? People will typically ask what sort of class or requirements are necessary to become a member, but Jesus pushes us to give much more thought to the matter than that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For starters, did you know that you\u2019d be expected to actually be involved in carrying out your church’s mission (ours is \u201cSeeking the Lost, Serving the Found\u201d)? Did you consider that disciples should actually read the Bible and study it? Did you know what you signed up for when you married an unbeliever? Were you aware how heavy that cross would be at times? When you took at job that you knew would involve working on Sundays, did you anticipate how heavy that cross would be over time without regular worship? When you racked up a mountain of debt and hear the words of Scripture calling God\u2019s people to grow in the grace of giving, did you factor in the cross of how debilitating that debt would be? The cross of permitting kids\u2019 schedules to put church activities on the back burner – did you count that cost? Friends choosing alternative lifestyles or just rejecting your beliefs in general – did you count that cost?\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our answers to those questions, and so many others like them, take on huge significance when we look back at the conclusion Jesus drew in his illustrations. What did he finally say about being the builder who blundered on the cost of his tower or the king who carried out a war without considering how the size of his army compares to the enemy\u2019s? He said, \u201cIn the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples\u201d (v.33). <\/em><\/strong>Jesus didn\u2019t say it would be tough or an uphill battle or the chances are slim; he said you cannot <\/em>be my disciple! As in, it is not even possible! You cannot be unwilling to give up everything and<\/em> call yourself a disciple at the same time. It doesn\u2019t work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And, if you didn\u2019t notice, when it comes to counting the cost of carrying the cross, those examples weren\u2019t the only ones Jesus used. Look at the whole list of disqualifications that Jesus provides to vet potential disciples. Look at the requirements. Don\u2019t hate family? Can\u2019t be his disciple. Don\u2019t hate your own life? Can\u2019t be his disciple. Don\u2019t want to carry your cross? Can\u2019t be his disciple. Not willing to give up everything you have? Can\u2019t be his disciple. At this rate, it\u2019s a wonder Jesus has any disciples!\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Actually, something just like that happened during Jesus\u2019 ministry. Luke introduced this section of his Gospel by pointing out that \u201c[l]arge crowds were traveling with Jesus\u201d (v.25).<\/em><\/strong> That was also the case in John 6, where Jesus gave what has become known as his \u201cBread of Life\u201d discourse. Jesus had just fed the 5,000. Then he turned the concept of physical feeding into a spiritual teaching that essentially told the crowds if they didn\u2019t fill up on Jesus and his Word, they would be lost. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Guess what happened once Jesus used his physical miracle as an introduction to a deeper spiritual truth? \u201cFrom this time many of his disciples\u00a0turned back and no longer followed him\u201d (John 6:66). <\/em><\/strong>The crowds dwindled. The followers said farewell. It would have been a noticeable difference, too, going from a crush of crowds to just a trickle of disciples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But it isn\u2019t as noticeable today, is it? Because today it\u2019s much easier for us to fake it without making any real sacrifice. Today we know how to look the part well enough for others, and the more we focus on looking the part instead of genuinely carrying the cross, we actually start to deceive ourselves as well. So who is worse off – the crowds who visibly demonstrated their decision to no longer follow Jesus by turning away, or those today who are good at giving the external appearance of following, but are unwilling to make any real sacrifice (and only end up fooling themselves)?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We can pop in at church occasionally, which of course looks the churchgoing part. Or, we can be sure to let others know our \u201cthoughts and prayers\u201d are with them, which sounds spiritual enough. We can slap a few Bible passages and spiritual-sounding stuff on our social media here and there. We make sure to sign up or participate in stuff at church once in a blue moon, just enough to add to the appearance of being active and engaged. We do these things and \u201cVoila!\u201d – we look just like Jesus\u2019 disciples.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But all of that misses the point of Jesus\u2019 vetting process: his disciples make sacrifices. Where, in the examples just mentioned, is there any real sacrifice? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s consider a pretty impressive record of someone who counted the cost of carrying the cross. \u201cI have worked much harder,\u00a0been in prison more frequently,\u00a0been flogged more severely,\u00a0and been exposed to death again and again.\u00a0Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes\u00a0minus one.\u00a0Three times I was beaten with rods,\u00a0once I was pelted with stones,\u00a0three times I was shipwrecked,\u00a0I spent a night and a day in the open sea,\u00a0I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews,\u00a0in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city,\u00a0in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers.\u00a0I have labored and toiled\u00a0and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food;\u00a0I have been cold and naked\u201d (2 Cor. 11:23-27).<\/em><\/strong> You know those words as the words of the apostle Paul. Paul didn\u2019t just pay lip service to being a disciple of Jesus; he displayed it sacrificially with his whole life.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s be honest – there are a lot of Dollar Tree Disciples today, aren\u2019t there? Now that\u2019s not a knock on Dollar Tree as much as it is a harsh reality we need to own up to. You know why anyone shops at the Dollar Tree. They want something for almost nothing. They want a certain item or product, but it\u2019s obviously not something they\u2019re willing to spend a lot on, so they shop at the Dollar Tree to get it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Isn’t it possible that a lot more of us are Dollar Tree Disciples than we think? We want something for almost nothing. We want all the good Jesus stuff, the forgiveness and grace stuff, the salvation stuff – we want all of that, but we don\u2019t really want to have to give up much to get it. That\u2019s the mindset of a Dollar Tree Disciple.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And you know what makes that mindset so dangerous? It\u2019s actually on the right track. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We want something for nothing, and that\u2019s exactly what we have through Jesus. What Jesus came to bring couldn\u2019t be bought or purchased by you or me. There was no price tag that would ever make salvation affordable for us. There was no option for bartering or working out a deal with him. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

No, what Jesus came to bring is entirely free to us. It is a gift. We can\u2019t buy it or earn it – it can only be given. It cost us nothing. So if we want something for nothing, we\u2019ve come to the right place. Forgiveness and salvation doesn\u2019t cost us a dime!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But all of it came at a price. A hefty price. And the price tag is so out of reach for us that only God himself could pay it. And Jesus did. You think Paul had an impressive list of crosses that he bore as Jesus\u2019 disciple? None will ever compare to the literal cross Jesus bore. Consider that the whole reason we even use that term – bearing our cross – is but a poor reflection of the unbearable cross that Jesus bore in our place. Talk about sacrifice – literally! How much did Jesus have to give up? Everything. So he alone has the right to demand the same of us – \u201cthose of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples\u201d (Luke 14:33).<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But unlike Paul, Jesus was not just an example to imitate. Jesus didn\u2019t come to show us how to be good disciples and then plan to seek out those who met his impossible standards, because he wouldn\u2019t have found any – not a one! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

No, Jesus came so that only through and in him, we could be perfect disciples. Here\u2019s how Paul described it taking place. \u201cYou see, at just the right time,\u00a0when we were still powerless,\u00a0Christ died for the ungodly.\u00a0Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die.\u00a0But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us\u201d (Romans 5:6-8). <\/em><\/strong>Jesus came to make us what we could never be on our own: perfect disciples. He sought out everyone, including Dollar Tree Disciples, and by grace he made us his own devoted and dedicated disciples.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you see yourself that way? He does. Because of Christ, God sees his church filled with devoted and dedicated disciples. And you know what devoted and dedicated disciples do? They count the cost of carrying the cross. They think differently about priorities. They make sacrifices that others wouldn\u2019t fathom making in a million years. Counting the cost, they embrace the cross in this life because they know they are guaranteed the crown of life at the end of their race, through faith in Christ Jesus.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(Luke 14:25-35) Ask anyone looking for employment right now and you\u2019ll find that getting hired is not as easy as one may think. There are many factors involved in the process that employers have to consider, as hiring someone new isn’t cheap. The cost of hiring involves much more than just determining the wages. Is… Continue reading Counting the Cost of Carrying the Cross<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1015,65],"tags":[1043,143,145,11,451,355,5,109,369,36,108,336],"class_list":["post-3105","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-wounds-that-heal-series","category-sermons","tag-cost","tag-cross","tag-disciple","tag-faith","tag-follow","tag-guys","tag-jesus","tag-preaching","tag-sacrifice","tag-sermon","tag-teaching","tag-worship"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p842FN-O5","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3105","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3105"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3105\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3107,"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3105\/revisions\/3107"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3105"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3105"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3105"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}