New to Faith: Count the Cost

Table of Contents 

Introduction 

1. Deciding on Whether or Not to Follow Jesus? First, Count the Cost.

2. Who is God?

3. Who is Jesus?

4. Who is the Holy Spirit?

5. God's Covenant with His People (or include in the Gospel of the Kingdom)

6. The Gospel of the Kingdom - There is Another King  

7. Fellowshipping with God - Prayer, the Bible and Worship 

8. Fellowshipping with Other Believers - the Church 

9. Obeying Jesus, Living to Serve and to Please God 

10. The Great Commission

11. Caution: Do Not Get Ensnared In American Christianity or Its Traditions

12. Maintain a Teachable Spirit 

Introduction 

This article is intended to be a guide for people who are considering becoming a Christian and for new Christians. However, whether you are seeking Christ, or you have been a Christian for years, I hope you find the information in this article helpful and useful. The intended purpose is to help people understand who God is, why they should follow Jesus, and how to follow Jesus. 

Part 1

Deciding on Whether or Not to Follow Jesus? First, Count the Cost. - Luke 14:25-35

You will hear in very few churches and from very few Christians who encourage others to follow Jesus, a warning to count the cost before making the decision to follow Him. Therefore, I want to begin with the subject of counting the cost, because it is a warning from Jesus to be wise, and to know what you are getting yourself into, so you can make a wise, informed decision.

There have been many people throughout the history of the church who did not count the cost, and ended up falling away from Christ when being a Christian became too difficult. There are many others who were not informed to count the cost, but who have been persuaded by others to become a Christian because of promises of blessings, a better life, and good things that God will give to them. And still others were not told to count the cost, but were led to believe that there is no cost to follow Jesus, but that anyone can freely follow him without any expectations from God or any accountability to Him. They are led to believe that if they profess faith in Christ, go to church, and tithe, they are saved and will go to heaven, whether they follow Christ or not. 

This type of evangelism has been very detrimental to Christianity and to Christ, so it is very important to understand that being a Christian can be and should be, expected to be very difficult. This is because as a Christian, you are included among the people of God, who are set apart for Him and His purposes, which are very different from the world and its purposes. A Christian should expect to be challenged by non Christians and to face opposition by them simply because non Christians do not look to God to live their lives, however Christians live to glorify God. They look to God to determine what they should believe, how they should conduct themselves, how they should spend their time, what they should value, and how they should view important issues, whereas non Christians do not.

Even though non Christians do not look to God for these things, it is not the Christian's duty or obligation to force non Christians to obey God by forcing them to do so. In ancient Rome, the emperor Constantine mandated Christianity as the state religion, however it caused revolts against the government and a disgrace to the name of Jesus. Many nations in the world have mandated state religions, such as Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Communism, and Atheism. People typically rebel against the government and the religion when religion is mandated by the government. 

In America, we have the Constitution of the United States which allows people to freely worship whatever god they please without the government infringing on their rights. This means that in America, people have the right to worship the Christian God, the god of Islam, the gods of Hinduism, the Jewish God, new age spirituality, or no god at all. Along with that freedom, comes the freedom to believe and to practice whatever our religion teaches. This causes challenges and creates opposition for practitioners of different religious ideologies, because different religions have differing views regarding God and beliefs.

For example, Atheists do not believe in God, and therefore they want Him removed from society because they find Him offensive. On the other hand, Muslims believe in a god who want all people who do not follow him to be destroyed. Christians believe that God wants all people to be reconciled back to Him so that they can spend eternity with Him. 

It is obvious that there are many different views and value systems between these groups that are based on their belief system, and that these views become incorporated into the ideologies and laws of the nation. With that being the case, it is only natural for Christians to face challenges and opposition from those who disagree with them because of other religious beliefs. However, we should expect such challenges and opposition because God's ways are going to clash with those who follow other gods. We live in the world, but we are not of the world, and therefore we should joyfully accept challenges and opposition, and should not expect to make our lives easier by forcing the world to conform to the laws of a God who they do not believe in. God's law is intended for God's people. God's people are not commanded or obligated to develop Christian nations with Christian laws that are isolated from the rest of the world. On the contrary, God's people have been transferred out of the kingdom of darkness and into the kingdom of Light, and therefore they should expect opposition from those who are in the kingdom of darkness. His people are commanded and obligated to participate in the development of this Kingdom, by leading others out of the kingdom of darkness and into the kingdom of Light. This Kingdom is not isolated from the world, but is among it, within its midst. 

Christians should expect to face great opposition from Satan when leading others out of the kingdom of darkness. It is his kingdom after all. He vehemently opposes God and His people. His purpose is to steal and to kill and to destroy (John 10:10). All throughout the history of Christianity, Christians have been persecuted and killed for following Jesus because of Satan’s opposition.

Jesus himself was insulted, mocked, persecuted and killed by the people who God chose to be His own. They conspired to kill him throughout his ministry and eventually succeeded in persuading the Roman's to put him death by accusing him of blasphemy under Jewish law. They killed him because of his teachings about God; because many Jews did not recognize him as their Messiah and therefore refused to believe his teachings and that he was their Messiah; because many Jews believed that he spoke blasphemy when he said that he was the Son of God; because he said that God was holding that generation of Jews personally responsible for the persecution of God's prophets; because he taught against the religious institution of Judaism; and because he said that God was taking the kingdom from them and giving it to another nation who would be faithful to Him. Jesus said, "No servant is greater than his master. If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you" (John 15:20). Based on Jesus's words, Christians should expect to be persecuted because Jesus their master was persecuted. 

The following are just a few of the passages in the Bible that Jesus and the apostles teach regarding suffering and persecution:

2 Timothy 3:12

Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.

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John 15:20

Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. 

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1 Peter 3:13-18

And who is he who will harm you if you become followers of what is good? 14But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you are blessed. “And do not be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled.” 15But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear; 16having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed. 17For it is better, if it is the will of God, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.18For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit...

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John 16:33

"In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”

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Matthew 5:10-12

"Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake,

For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11“Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you."

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Philippians 3:7-11

But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. 8Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; 10that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, 11if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.

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The passages above are some of the examples in the Bible of suffering and persecution that we as followers of Jesus can expect. Many churches teach that if you become a Christian, your life will get better. You will become a better parent, a better spouse, a better child, a better employer or employee, you will attain good health and wealth, you can overcome sickness and disease if you have enough faith, you will have your best life now. 

My objection to these teachings is that, though becoming a Christian should cause us to change our old behaviors and have faith in God, they are an inaccurate depiction of what the Bible is really teaching - what the big picture really is. Some of these are just plain false teaching. But there is also a HUGE emphasis on family in churches today, which is not a bad thing, but family is not the main theme of the Bible or the primary focus that a follower of Jesus should have. I'm not saying that it's not important, because it is, but it's not the main thing of Christianity that the modern evangelical church has made to be, secondary only to politics. 

What the Bible really teaches, is that God has a people who are set apart for His purposes which are to participate in building His kingdom, and if you are included in those people who are followers of Jesus, you will suffer from tribulations and from persecution. But as the apostle Paul states in Philippians 3:7-11, a true follower of Jesus is willing to give everything he has for Christ, and suffering for Jesus produces an intimacy with him that we will otherwise never know. A person needs to decide before making the decision to follow Jesus, if Jesus is worth the suffering and persecution that they will encounter. They need to count the cost of following Jesus.

Jesus and the Early Church

Jesus

Jesus, whom Christians acknowledge as Lord, and whom Christians submit to and serve as their master, demonstrated to his disciples how to conduct themselves as Christians in an anti-Christian society. Furthermore, he demonstrated how to conduct themselves when going through suffering and persecution which comes from living and conducting ministry in an anti-Christian society. He did so by going through it himself. He confronted the challenges head on, and did not slink back when the pressure became too difficult to handle. There were times when he left an area or a confrontational meeting because his life was in danger, but this was because his time had not yet come to die; God still had work for him to do. 

The work that Jesus did and that he taught his disciples to do, was kingdom of God oriented, and that is what led to him being persecuted and killed. When you read the prophets in the old testament, you see that the assignments they were given, were always an attempt to turn God's people back to Him, and that led to them being persecuted and sometimes killed by the Israelites that they were preaching to.

This is also what we see when we read of Jesus's life in the gospels, and the lives of the apostles in Acts and the epistles. Jesus's ministry was to call "the lost sheep of Israel" to turn back to God, and by doing so, he was persecuted by them, just as the earlier prophets were. They lived under the authority of the pagan Roman empire, therefore there were many gentiles in the region, and many believed when they saw him. In fact, there were probably more gentiles who believed than Judeans. However, the persecution did not come from the gentiles, it came from the Judeans whom Jesus was calling to repentance. The Romans tortured and killed Jesus by their brutal torture methods of flogging and crucifixion, but only because the Judeans were going to cause a revolt if they didn't. The Judeans were the ones who conspired and sought for opportunities to kill him, not the Romans or the Greeks.

The reason the Gentiles were not seeking to kill Jesus, was because Jesus was focused on his mission of calling God's people to repentance and establishing God's kingdom. He maintained the focus of his mission while living in an anti-Christian environment, and he did not allow the wickedness of the pagans around him, or the politics of the empire to deter him.

Because Jesus was establishing the kingdom of God by calling God's people to turn to Him, and because he was offending the Judeans by confronting them regarding their religion and corruption, as I previously said, they conspired to kill him and sought opportunities to do so. He spent most of his ministry eluding the Judeans who wanted to kill him. They eventually succeeded after one of the disciples of his inner circle betrayed him. Jesus was arrested and put on trial before the Jewish Sanhedrin before being turned over to the Romans to have them put him to death. Prior to sentencing Jesus to death, the Romans sent him to Herod the tetrarch who oversaw the region of Galilee. When Jesus refused to acknowledge anything that Herod said to him, he returned him to the Romans for judgement. Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of that region, found no reason to have Jesus put to death, but the Judeans pressured him to do so, and because Pilate wanted to avoid a revolt by the Jews, he washed his hands of the matter and sentenced him to be killed by crucifixion.

After he was arrested, Jesus was mocked, spat upon, slapped, flogged until he was unrecognizable, thorns were forced into his head, spikes were driven through his hands and feet, and he was hung on a wooden cross to suffer until he died. If he wouldn't have died before the Sabbath, his legs would have broken by the Roman guards so that he would not be able to raise himself up to take a breath of air. 

This is what the Lord went through and taught his disciples they must also be willing to go through. He taught them by going through it himself and demonstrating that God's people must be willing to suffer for God and His kingdom. Just as he suffered for God and His kingdom, so must his disciples. He said, "a servant is not greater than his master; if they persecuted me, they will also persecute you." Jesus expects no less of his disciples.

The Apostles and the Early Church

The twelve apostles are believed to have personally taken the gospel to various places outside of Galilee. Though not one of the twelve, we know from the book of Acts and the epistles that the apostle Paul took the gospel to various parts of the world on numerous occasions. Because of this, they were persecuted and some were killed, both by Jews, and by the Gentiles who lived in the places they went to. They were not persecuted for trying to turn their pagan nation into a Christian nation, but for bringing people who belonged to the devil into the kingdom of God.

The result of wicked idolaters coming into God's kingdom, often impacted the economy of the religion that was being practiced, and this greatly upset the religion's practitioners, causing them to persecute the apostles. We see this happened to Paul on more than one occasion. When Paul cast a spirit out of a girl who was fortune telling for profit, her masters had him and his companion Barnabas flogged and imprisoned because they would no longer make any money from her (Acts 16:16-24).

On another occasion in Ephesus, when the silversmith Demetrius's business and profits were being greatly impacted by Paul's preaching of the gospel, he gathered other workers in the area whose businesses were being impacted, and roused them to anger, causing a riot throughout the entire city against Paul and his companions (Acts 19:21-41). Demetrius and these other business owners were craftsmen who sold their items for the worship of the false gods in Ephesus. When the message of the gospel started turning people away from the worship of these gods, they stopped purchasing the craftsmen's merchandise, which led to their persecution of the Christians who were sharing the message that was negatively impacting their business. Christian tradition records that some of the other apostles were persecuted and killed for similar reasons.

The reason I point out the fact that the prophets, Jesus, nor the apostles ever attempted to change pagan nations into Christian nations through avenues of government and politics, is because this is a primary focus of the institutional church within the religion of American Christianity. Their concern pertains exclusively to the United States either reverting back to its roots as a Christian nation, or becoming a Christian nation. I will discuss this more in detail in Chapter 11, but I will suffice to say here that in my opinion, those Christians who have made the salvation of the United States their main objective, have the wrong objective as it pertains to following Jesus.

We do not have all of the persecution that the apostles and early church encountered, or the deaths of all of the apostles recorded in the Bible, but according to Christian tradition, eleven of the twelve apostles were killed for reasons pertaining to Jesus and God's kingdom.

The apostle John, the son of Zebedee, is believed to have died a natural death, however he was persecuted, attempts were made on his life, and he spent time imprisoned, all for following Jesus.

Judas Iscariot who betrayed Jesus, killed himself for betraying Jesus. However, his replacement Matthias is believed to have been hung on a cross, stoned, and then beheaded for "the blasphemy he had committed against God, Moses, and the Law." Matthias refused to deny Christ, and is believed to have said, "Thy blood be upon thy head, for thine own mouth hath spoken against thee."

It is not known for certain how Philip died, but it is believed that he was crucified and stoned in Hierapolis about AD 80 for turning worshippers of their false god Sabazios to the one true God.

Matthew was beheaded in Ethiopia in AD 60 for being obedient to the Great Commission and going to the nations to make disciples.

James the son of Alphaeus is believed to have been stoned to death in Syria in AD 63 by Jews who rejected his message about Christ.

James the son of Zebedee's death is recorded in Acts 12:1-19. King Herod was persecuting the church and had captured James. Shortly afterwards, Herod put him to death by the sword. This happened in Jerusalem about AD 44.

Peter is believed to have taken the gospel to Rome, where he was then captured and imprisoned in the Mamertime Prison. While there, he was chained in stocks, tortured and mistreated. Eventually, he was taken to Nero's Circus and crucified upside down because he did not consider himself worthy to be crucified upright like Christ. He was killed about AD 69.

Andrew was arrested in the city of Patras in Greece about AD 70 for converting a Roman governor's wife. While in prison, he was threatened, scourged, and tortured, however Andrew refused to renounce his faith in Christ, and was tied to an "X"-shaped cross to die a slow, painful death.

Judas, also known as Thaddeus, is believed to have been killed by arrows or javelins about AD 70 when conducting ministry in Armenia.

Bartholomew, also known as Nathanael, also went to Armenia with the Gospel, where he was arrested and tortured by the pagan religious leaders of the region. He was skinned alive and then crucified, possibly upside down about AD 70.

Thomas is believed to have been speared to death by Hindu priests in Mylapore (Meliapore), India in AD 70.

Simon the Zealot may have taken the gospel as far as Persia, where he was crucified upside down and then sawn in half in AD 74.

Paul's suffering and persecution is recorded in Acts and in the letters that he wrote to the churches he started. However, his death is not recorded in the Bible. Tradition holds that he was beheaded just outside the walls of Rome in AD 69.

Luke, who accompanied Paul on some of his apostolic journeys, and who wrote the Gospel according to Luke and Acts, was martyred in Greece about AD 93 according to one account.

John Mark authored the Gospel according to Mark, which contains the life of Jesus from Peter's perspective. He also assisted Paul and Barnabas on their journey to Cyprus, and then later returned to Cyprus with Barnabas, and then joined Peter on his journeys. John Mark planted a church in Alexandria, Egypt where he met opposition from the pagan religion that already existed there. He was tied with ropes and hooks and dragged through the streets of Alexandria for two days until he finally died. He was martyred about AD 64.

Stephen's death is recorded in Acts 7, and occurred in AD 34. He was preaching a message to the Jews about their rebellion against God, and they did not want to hear it, so they stoned him to death. 

John the Baptist was beheaded by King Herod about 28 AD in Jerusalem, because Herod was committing adultery with his brother's wife Herodius, and John told him that it was not lawful for him to have her. Herodius saw the opportunity to have John killed at her daughter's birthday party, and siezed it. John's head was delivered to her on a platter. 

The Bible also contains many other accounts of suffering and persecution of God's people such as in Exodus when Abraham's descendants were enslaved by Egypt. The books of Samuel, Chronicles, Kings, and Psalms contain the events of King David's suffering for being a man after God's own heart. Job is a man who's faithfulness was tested by God who used Satan to cause tremendous suffering. Many of the prophets suffered terribly and some were killed for being the messengers of God. The Acts of the Apostles, the Gospels, and the writings of the apostles Peter, John, and Paul, all include events of suffering or persecution which they personally experienced, or are used to teach and encourage Christians. Jesus and his *apostles, John the Baptist, Jesus's follower Stephen, and many others during Biblical times and throughout history were all killed for the sake of Christ.

*Sidenote: according to Christian tradition, the apostle John was not killed by means of persecution, however he was persecuted, and attempts were made to kill him, but God miraculously intervened. 

In short, the suffering and persecution of God's people is a primary theme of the Bible. 

The Church's Response to Persecution

I see two Biblical responses of the church when persecution comes: Acts 8:4, and Acts 12:5.

In Acts 8:1, the church in Jerusalem was scattered because of persecution from the Jews. When this happened, those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the word (Acts 8:4).

Many of the Christians left Jerusalem and went to live in other places because of the persecution. Wherever they went, they shared about Jesus. God used the persecution to scatter the Christians so that word about Jesus would spread beyond Jerusalem and into other places. The gospel moves forward through the persecution of God's people. 

The other response from the church when persecution comes is prayer. When Peter was imprisoned by King Herod in Acts 12, the church intensely prayed to God on his behalf. It seems that because of the church's prayers, God sent an angel to release Peter. We don't know if the church was praying for Peter's release or not, but regardless, it is apparent that God used Peter's arrest and miraculous release for His glory, and for the encouragement of both Peter and the church. He also had plans for Peter other than prison, therefore He led him out so that he could use Peter elsewhere. 

This is not always the case though. Sometimes a Christian may be imprisoned in order to take Christ into the prison to let them know about his love for them. To us it seems best for the Christian to be released from prison, but that is not always God's plan. If there are no Christians in prison, then Christ is not there either. 

As we read Acts 12, we might focus on Peter and think, "thank God that Peter was released and that he was released in such a miraculous way!". But, Peter was arrested by King Herod after he killed the apostle James! King Herod realized how much it pleased the Jews, therefore he wanted to kill Peter too. So, even though Peter was saved by God from being killed, James was not. The church was likely praying for James when he was imprisoned too, but God had a different plan for him. The church needs to pray for those who are persecuted, but should not expect God to save them in every instance because each person plays a different part in God's plan, and our life and death is for His glory. We may fear death and think of it as something that God does not want for His people, but Isaiah 57:1-2 views death from God's perspective:

[1]The righteous perishes, And no man takes it to heart; Merciful men are taken away, While no one considers That the righteous is taken away from evil. [2] He shall enter into peace; They shall rest in their beds, Each one walking in his uprightness. Isaiah 57:1-2.

So, while we may view James's death as being brutal and against God's will, and while we may think that Peter got the better deal, James was taken from the evil of persecution, and into the presence of the Lord where there is everlasting peace. Peter remained on earth for many years after this, all the while suffering and being persecuted for the glory of God. Now, who got the better deal?!

Acts also records that when Peter was released, Herod ordered that all of the soldiers who watched Peter were to be killed. Even though we rejoice over the release of Peter from prison, we should grieve over the death of all the guards who were unable to prevent Peter from escaping, and who probably did not know Christ. A Christian does not only love his friends, but his enemies as well. 

God may have allowed these men to be killed because of their involvement in the harm of His people. King Herod died after this happened for accepting the praises of the people and not giving glory to God. I wonder if it could have also been due in part to the harm he was inflicting on God's people. We see the souls of those whose lives were taken for the word of God and their testimony, crying out to God:

[10] And they cried with a loud voice, saying, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” - Revelation 6:10

It is not man's job to judge the wicked, but God's. He will deal with those who harm His chosen people. In the meantime, Christians are commanded to love their enemies and to pray for those who persecute them. 

Speaking of God's covenant people, David wrote:

[14] He permitted no one to do them wrong; Yes, He rebuked kings for their sakes, [15] Saying, “Do not touch My anointed ones, And do My prophets no harm.” - Psalm 105:14-15

The people of God are His anointed ones, and He is not pleased when the wicked cause them harm.

Lord, Lord 

Luke‬ ‭6:46‬ ‭

[46] “But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say?  

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‭‭Matthew‬ ‭7:21‭-‬23‬ ‭

[21] “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. [22] Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ [23] And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’

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Matthew 25:44-45

[44] “Then they also will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’

[45] Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ [46] And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

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John 6:34-35

[34] Then they said to Him, “Lord, give us this bread always.”

[35] And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst. [36] But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe."

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Luke 9:57-62

Now it happened as they journeyed on the road, that someone said to Him, “Lord, 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.” Then He said to another, “Follow Me.” But he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God.” And another also said, “Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house.” But Jesus said to him, “No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back is not fit for the kingdom of God."

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‭‭Matthew‬ ‭25:11‭-‬12‬

[11] “Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’ [12] But he answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.’"

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The "Lord, Lord" passages above are some of the most difficult for Christians to want to accept, because it is hard for some to comprehend that some of the people who we know that say "Lord, Lord" may not really be saved. Much of the difficulty derives from the popular doctrine of eternal security, which teaches that if a person accepts Jesus as Lord and Savior at any point in their life, they can be assured that they will go to heaven when they die for all eternity. The purpose of this article is not to dispute the eternal security doctrine, but I will suffice to say that if it were true, then the "Lord, Lord" passages don't make a lot of sense, and they cause a lot of difficulty and confusion for those who hold the view.

Calvinists may not have a hard time with these passages, because they believe that only people who are predestined to be a Christian are saved, so through their grid, someone may think they are saved when in fact they are not, because they are not predestined to be saved.

However, you don't need to be a Calvinist and believe in predestination to make sense of these seemingly difficult passages, which really aren't difficult at all to understand if you are simply a follower of Jesus. The original twelve disciples who Jesus taught were not Calvinists or any other label of Christian, they were simply disciples of Jesus who learned from what he taught and who did as he instructed them to do. They recognized Jesus as being the Messiah - the King - who the prophets foretold of. They also recognized him as being the Son of God. Because of their recognition of who he was, they submitted to him as their Lord. It was their submission to Jesus's lordship that caused them to learn from him, to obey what he instructed them to do, and to share him and what they were learning with others.  

The word "Lord" means:

1. one having power or authority over another
2. a titled nobleman or peer; a person whose ordinary appellation contains by courtesy the title Lord or some higher title
3. a king
4. a territorial magnate (a person of rank, power, influence, or distinction often in a specified area)

We can see that Jesus fits all of the definitions of "Lord":

1. He has power and authority over everyone and everything; he was given all authority by the Father. 
2. He was given the title "Lord" by his disciples and those who followed him, because of their recognition of who he was and their respect of his power and authority that he displayed. 
3. He was and is the long awaited Messiah, the King of God's everlasting kingdom. 
4. He is a person:
1. of high rank - a King; the King of kings and Lord of lords.
2. of power - the Son of God; God in the flesh.
3. of influence - King, Son of God, God in the flesh, Teacher, Prophet, Shepherd, Apostle, Evangelist, Mediator, High Priest, etc.
4. of distinction - sanctified and holy to be the once for all sacrificial lamb; set apart from the world for God for good works; sent to establish a new everlasting covenant between God and His people, which is distinct from the old covenant between God and His people; sent to establish God's everlasting kingdom which is distinct from the kingdoms of the world - His kingdom and His people are not of this world.

Jesus is not only "my Lord" or "your Lord", he is "the Lord". In modern day evangelicalism, it is often asked of potential Christians, "Do you want to make Jesus your Lord?". Whether a person wants to make Jesus their Lord or not, he is already the Lord. He is Lord of all.

But what they are asking is also important, "do you want to make him your Lord, because if he is your Lord, you will submit to his authority because you will recognize him for who he is." Unfortunately, when this question is asked by evangelicals, it is rarely explained what is meant by Jesus being "your Lord." This is problematic because the potential Christian is not being given all of the information before having to make a very important, and costly decision, often in only a moment's time. They are being asked to quickly decide if they want to do something without knowing how this decision will affect the rest of their life. 

The result of this mistake has been many people in churches who call Jesus "Lord", but they have not submitted to his authority as the Lord. They have not repented of their sins, they have not taken the time to know him, they do not learn from his teachings or do as he instructs them to do. They may do things on their own, thinking they are doing them for Jesus, when in reality, he never instructed them to do those things. So, during the judgement they will say, "Lord, look at everything I did for you!", and Jesus will respond, "Depart from me, I never knew you."

Four Soils

It is also very important to understand that being a Christian is not at all about what God can do for you. It's not about receiving blessings, or having a better life, or becoming a better person. It's not even about getting saved so that you can go to heaven when you die.

It's true that God will bless you if you are obedient to Him, and that if you continue to follow Him, He will transform you into someone who is Christ-like throughout your lifetime, but the things that God does for you, the blessings you receive, should not be your primary motivation for following Jesus. A Christian's motivation should be to please and to glorify God, and to obey Jesus the King. If you are a Christian because of all that Christ has done for you and can do for you, then your motivation needs to be corrected. If your life has been changed because of what God has done for you, that is awesome, but at some point you need to become a servant of the King rather than a consumer who continuously expects God to do things for you. If you are a Christian, then you are a bondservant of Christ - a slave of Christ. He bought you at a price, and you are not your own (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). You belong to Him and you are now His servant; He is not yours.

At the beginning of this article, I mentioned a couple different ways or reasons that people fall away from Jesus and end up leaving him and God altogether. Well, Jesus actually describes four reasons in Matthew 13:1-23:

1) ‭‭[19] When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside.

2) ‭‭[20] But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; [21] yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.

3) ‭‭[22] Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful.

4) ‭‭[23] But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.”

What I think Jesus was telling his disciples, was that not everyone they told were going to hear or accept the gospel of the kingdom. Even those people who were excited to hear about Jesus and embraced what they were told about him, had the potential of falling away over time. Therefore, it is important for Christians not to make the mistake of telling people that they are saved after they have made a decision to follow Jesus. This is especially important because as I already mentioned, most people are not informed of the cost of following Jesus, but are "sold" a version of a Jesus who costs nothing and will make their lives better. 

I personally think that this is a great deception of modern day Christianity because following Jesus is the most important decision a person can make and it is the hardest thing that a person can do, so they need to be informed of the cost and the difficulties before deciding. 

Jesus had "multitudes" of followers. In John 6, almost all of them stopped following Him and returned to their old ways of life because they could not accept what He was saying because they were hard. Rather than trying to coax them into staying, he just let them leave. 

Jesus was intentionally sifting the wheat from the chaff. He was only looking for faithful disciples who would be fully committed to Him and His authority. The multitudes were not faithful or committed to him, so they left.

When Jesus asked his twelve disciples if they were also going to leave, they said, "Lord, to whom would we go? Do you not have the words of eternal life?" (John 6:22-71). They knew that eternal life was only through Him, and therefore they didn't think twice about continuing on as His disciples. 

A true disciple of Jesus will recognize him as God and as their King, so they will remain faithful to him throughout their lives, because when tested, they will say, "Lord, to whom would we go? Do you not have the words of eternal life?"

Faithfulness 

This leads to faithfulness and what this life is all about. Faithfulness is the primary element when it comes to counting the cost. Before deciding to follow Jesus, a person needs to resolve in their heart to always remain faithful to God throughout their entire lifetime, no matter what life throws at them. If you stumble and fall, which is likely to happen at some point, you need to turn back to God and continue to follow Jesus.

Jesus was looking for people who would be faithful to him during his ministry, and he still is today. In fact, he made a covenant with the faithful remnant of Israel, and he sealed the covenant with his blood. Only those who remain faithful to him throughout their lifetime are included in the covenant and the inheritance that he promised to give them. The inheritance that is promised to the faithful remnant is Jesus. Secondary to receiving him as our inheritance is reigning with him on the earth for eternity. 

The word faith is translated from the Greek word Pistis which includes faithfulness as part of its meaning. Faith is trusting and believing God, and faithfulness is staying with God no matter what tests or temptations come at you. Faithfulness requires perseverance and implies obedience. 

God's requirement of faithfulness by His people is evident all throughout the Bible. God's covenant with Abraham was contingent on Abraham's faithfulness and obedience (Genesis 22:18; Genesis 26:5). If Abraham had not been faithful and obedient to God, then God would not have fulfilled the promises that He made to him. Hebrews 11 talks about the faith of Abraham and Sarah, and how multitudes of people came from them because of their faith. Abraham and Sarah believed God and had faith, but they were also faithful to Him by doing what He commanded them to do. 

After Moses led the children of Israel out of Egypt, He promised to make them His kingdom of priests and a holy nation, if they obeyed Him and kept His covenant (Exodus 19:5-6). Israel was not faithful and broke the covenant (Jeremiah 31:32) because they did not want God to be their king, but they wanted to be ruled by a man like the other nations (1 Samuel 8:4-22).

God granted their plea, and they continued to commit idolatry against Him, which God called "harlotry" because of their unfaithfulness to Him. He eventually judged them by the hands of Babylon and Assyria, and the children of Israel were scattered. A faithful remnant returned to Jerusalem to rebuild the city and to dwell in Israel, fulfilling the prophecies of Israel's return to the land. 

Over time, many who were among the children of Israel strayed away from God and instituted their own religion with their own rules. They no longer did the things that God required of His people, such as being merciful or conducting righteousness and justice in His kingdom. Therefore, God sent prophets to call them back, but they persecuted and killed them. Then He sent John the Baptist, who was the Elijah to come, to prepare the way of His own Son, who was also a prophet. But they persecuted and killed them also, therefore God took His kingdom from them and gave it to His faithful remnant. 

Before being killed, Jesus appointed twelve men of the faithful remnant to continue the work which he started of building God's kingdom. One of these men did not remain faithful to Jesus and fell due to the desires of the flesh, but they appointed another to take his place. God also called Paul to be His instrument to the gentiles and because of his faithfulness, the name of Jesus and God's forgiveness of sins became known throughout several parts of the world. These followers of Jesus appointed other faithful men and women to teach others around the world (2 Timothy 2:2) to know Jesus and to build God's kingdom, which started as about 120 followers of Jesus in Jerusalem (Acts 1:15) and is now about *2.5 billion people worldwide.

The Bible says that Jesus is the Bridegroom and the church is his bride. The church is made up of faithful followers of Jesus. The relationship between Jesus and the church is likened to a marriage covenant. Within any marriage, faithfulness is required by both parties in order for the marriage to work. Jesus said that divorce is only admitted within a marriage if there is unfaithfulness by fornication by either party, otherwise if they divorce on any other grounds and marry someone else, they commit adultery. This not only applies to marriage between a man and a woman, but also to the marriage between the church and Jesus. Jesus will always remain faithful to the church, but the church may not always remain faithful to him because of the tests that we are given in order to prove our faithfulness.

If we fail a test and repent - that is, turn back to God - He is faithful and just to forgive us because even though we failed the test, we were proven faithful by turning back to Him. But if we fail and don't turn back to Him, then we prove to be unfaithful by committing adultery against Him, and he will divorce us. Divorce means a separation between things that were once connected or associated. The Holy Spirit who lives within God's people who have been born again and who have been given new live in Christ, will leave someone if they continue to be unfaithful to God and unwilling to turn back to God. The Holy Spirit's leaving is a separation between things that were once connected or associated; it is a separation between God and man. It is the very definition of divorce. God is not going to remain with someone who has left Him and who now lives in ways which are contrary to God and His ways.

God divorced Israel because of their unfaithfulness which was by committing adultery with other gods, and their unwillingness to repent, and He will divorce those within the church who are unfaithful by committing adultery with other gods and who are unwilling to repent. God is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. He never changes. Both faith and faithfulness are required for those who decide to follow Jesus because without faith/faithfulness, it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6). 

*Sidenote: the actual number of true followers of Jesus is probably much lower. Only God knows who is truly faithful to Him. 

What this life is all about

I mentioned that a follower of Jesus must remain faithful to God no matter what life throws at them and no matter what tests or temptations they face. This brings us to what this life is all about. 

When a person turns away from sin and turns to God, becomes a follower of Jesus, and receives the Holy Spirit, their life is no longer their own. They are now owned by God. He purchased them with his Son's life. They are His bond servant; His slave. He is their Master. Jesus is their King and the lord of their life. They obey him and do what he commands because they love him. They have entered into God's kingdom where Jesus reigns as King, and they are the subjects of his kingdom. 

Their primary goal in this life is to glorify God by serving Him, obeying Him, and remaining faithful to Him. These things are pleasing to Him and brings Him glory.

If they persevere and endure 'til the end, they will inherit Jesus and the great opportunity, privilege and reward to reign with him forever. However, in order to achieve this great reward, they must be proven faithful to God in this life because if they are not faithful to God in this life, they will not be faithful to God in eternity. 

In order to determine whether someone will remain faithful or not, God tests them throughout their life time. That is essentially what this life is about. It is a test.

Jesus tells a parable in Matthew 25 about the kingdom of God, where a man gives three of his servants talents which they were responsible to invest. The parable is about faithfulness to God and how those who are faithful to Him in little things, will be faithful to Him in many things. The two servants who were faithful entered into the joy of their lord and were made rulers over many things. The servant who was not faithful, what he had been given was taken from him, and he was cast into outer darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 

The three servants in the parable were tested to see how faithful they would be with what they had been given. Two passed, and one failed. The two that passed, entered the kingdom of God to reign with Christ, and the one who failed was cast into outer darkness. 

Jesus was led into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit to be tempted by the devil (Matthew 4:1). God intentionally led Jesus into the wilderness for the purpose of being tempted by the devil. Jesus had to be tested in order for God to determine his faithfulness because the assignment he was given was extremely important and extremely costly. Jesus proved himself faithful by resisting everything the devil tempted him with. It wasn't until after Jesus was tested that he began his ministry to the lost sheep of Israel. Jesus was no doubt faithful to fulfill his mission which included severe persecution and the sacrifice of his life. If Jesus had to be tested to determine his faithfulness, then his followers certainly do as well, because a servant is not greater than his master.

Job's faithfulness was also tested by the devil, at the request of God (Job 1:8; Job 2:3). God directed the devil to test Job. The devil - Satan - was created by God to test the faithfulness of God's people in this life, in order to determine if they are worthy to inherit Jesus and His kingdom in the next life. 

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭11:5‬ ‭

[5] The Lord tests the righteous, But the wicked and the one who loves violence His soul hates.

‭‭James‬ ‭1:12‬ ‭

[12] Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.

The Cost of Following Jesus 

We finally come to the question, What is the cost of following Jesus? Is there a cost, or is it free as many modern day Christians teach? 

According to what Jesus taught, there is a cost, and though the invitation to follow him is open to anyone, there are certain conditions that must be met. The conditions are not easy to meet, therefore Jesus cautions potential followers to count the cost. Let's take a look at what he said.

[25] Now great multitudes went with Him. And He turned and said to them, [26] “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. [27] And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.

[28] For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it— [29] lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, [30] saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish’?

[31] Or what king, going to make war against another king, does not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? [32] Or else, while the other is still a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks conditions of peace.

[33] So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple.

[34] “Salt is good; but if the salt has lost its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? [35] It is neither fit for the land nor for the dunghill, but men throw it out. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!” ‭‭Luke‬ ‭14:25‭-‬35‬ ‭

Vs. 25

The first thing to note is that Jesus was speaking to a "multitude" of people. That is a lot of people! There were a lot of people who were drawn to Jesus because of his teachings, his miracles, and probably the love and compassion that he had for the people. However, as we read in the passage, only those who accepted his conditions could be his disciple. 

Vs.26

His disciple has to love him more than his father, mother, wife, children, brothers, sisters, and even his own life. In today's church, many Christians are unwilling to go to the difficult places of the world with the gospel because of the dangers that are involved, especially those who have children. They do not want to jeopardize their life or the lives of their children for Jesus who commands his disciples to go. On one hand it seems wise to protect yourself and your children from the evil attacks of the devil. But on the other, it is wiser to obey Jesus by doing the things he commands us to do. 

Several years ago, a family serving in Afghanistan was attacked in their home by Muslims, and all but the wife/mother survived, only because she was not home when it happened. Afterwards, her and her late husband's decision to take their children into a country as dangerous as Afghanistan to serve the Lord was scrutinized and criticized, not only by non-Christians, but primarily by Christians who think that they displayed poor discernment. Included among these people were the wife/mother's mother.

However, what these people and many Christians in the modern church do not understand is that this son/husband/father, and daughter/wife/mother loved Jesus more than their parents, more than each other, more than their children, and more than their own lives, just as Jesus requires of his disciples. Not only that, but they had counted the cost of following Jesus before going to Afghanistan. They knew that going could potentially cost them their family and their lives, and they were willing to accept it.

Jesus said that if anyone is unwilling to put Jesus before their family or their own life, they cannot be his disciple. 

Vs.27

Next Jesus said, "whoever does not bear his cross and come after me cannot be my disciple."

I have always had a hard time understanding what it means to "bear [my] cross". I do not know if it is what Jesus had in mind when he said it, but I have always taken it to mean a willingness to do anything for Jesus. If we are unwilling to do the things which Jesus commands, we cannot be his disciple. 

"Come after me" means to follow Jesus. If we are unwilling to follow Jesus - where he leads, or what he commands  - we cannot be his disciple. 

Jesus provides more instruction to those who want to "come after" him in ‭‭Luke‬ ‭9:23‭-‬26:

[23] Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. [24] For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. [25] For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost? [26] For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His own glory, and in His Father’s, and of the holy angels.

Anyone who desires to come after Jesus, must:

1.  Deny himself 

2.  Take up his cross daily 

3.  Follow him

4.  Lose his life for Jesus's sake 

5.  Not be ashamed of Jesus or his words

Note that even though Jesus does not specifically say that you cannot be his disciple if you do not do these things as he did in Luke 14, it is still necessary to do them in order to be his disciple. For example, if you do not follow him you cannot be his disciple because a disciple by definition is someone who follows their master. These are required in order to be a disciple of Jesus. 

Luke recorded a few accounts of different people who wanted to follow Jesus and his response to them in ‭‭Luke‬ ‭9:57‭-‬62‬:

[57] Now it happened as they journeyed on the road, that someone said to Him, “Lord, I will follow You wherever You go.”

[58] 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.”

[59] Then He said to another, “Follow Me.” But he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” [60] Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God.”

[61] And another also said, “Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house.” [62] But Jesus said to him, “No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”

The first person said that he would follow Jesus wherever he went and Jesus only responded that he has no home, perhaps just making the person aware that if they follow him wherever he goes, they could also expect to have no home, which is very difficult for a lot of people to accept. 

Jesus invited the second person to follow him, but they responded "let me first go and bury my father." They had something they felt needed to be done first, before they could follow him.

But Jesus responded, "Let the dead bury their own dead. You go and preach the kingdom of God." Jesus did not think it was necessary for them to bury their father because that was something the spiritually dead could do, and apparently this person had the ability to preach the gospel of the kingdom. Therefore Jesus wanted them to drop everything right then, even the seemingly important task of burying his dead father, to follow him. To us it seems like Jesus could wait a couple days for them to bury their father, but Jesus wanted to make it clear that if the person was going to follow him, he comes first in everything. He must love him even more than his own father. 

In the third and final example, someone said to Jesus that they would follow him, but first, they wanted to say goodbye to their family. Like the person who Jesus invited to be his disciple, this person also wanted to do something first, before following Jesus. When Jesus invited Peter, Andrew, James and John to follow him, they dropped what they were doing and immediately followed him. There was not anything that they wanted to do first. That is the same devotion he wanted from these people who wanted to follow him, and who he invited to follow him, and it is the same devotion he wants from his followers today. 

He responded to the person, "No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.” If you "put your hand to the plow", you have already started the work of plowing the field. If you look back while you are working, you may get distracted and lose your focus, or you might be tempted to go back to the life you left.

The apostle Peter said that a follower of Jesus needs to be "looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God" (2 Peter 3:12). He continues by instructing Christians to look for and to look forward to, a new heaven and a new earth in which righteousness dwells, and to be diligent in having peace and remaining spotless and blameless until His return (2 Peter 3:13-14). These are hard things to do if you are distracted by the world or by things going on in your life.

The apostle Paul likened the work of the Lord to running a race with the sole purpose of winning the prize. He said that all will run the race, but only one will receive the prize. Therefore work harder than everyone else to win the race. Discipline your body to be subject to you, not you to it, and run diligently so that you will win the prize (1 Corinthians 9:24-27).

He provides more instruction on how to obtain the prize in Philippians 3:13-14, which sounds very much like what Jesus said regarding putting your hand to the plow and not looking back:

"Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."

In summary, a disciple of Jesus needs to remain steadfast and laser focused on conducting the work of the Lord. 

Vs. 28-32

Jesus gives two examples of why it is important to count the cost of following him:

[28] For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it— [29] lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, [30] saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish’?

[31] Or what king, going to make war against another king, does not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? [32] Or else, while the other is still a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks conditions of peace.

Both examples are self explanatory. If you don't have what it takes to finish what you started, you will be both mocked by others and defeated. 

Vs. 33

Jesus follows by saying, "So likewise, whoever does not forsake all that he has cannot be my disciple." 

Again, Jesus is saying that his disciple has to be willing to give up everything he has. This does not necessarily mean that a disciple of Jesus cannot have any possessions, but what it does mean is that Jesus requires his disciples to have complete loyalty and devotion to him, and therefore their possessions cannot get in the way of following him. The family who went to Afghanistan did not allow their house or other possessions, or even their children or their safety to get in the way of following Jesus. 

Vs. 34-35

The final portion of this passage about counting the cost is about salt that loses its flavor, where Jesus asked a rhetorical question saying, "if that happens, how can it be seasoned?", or to put it another way, "how can it become salty again?" He answered by saying, "It can't! It is no longer any good and must be thrown out. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"

I think what he is saying is that if one of his disciples loses his loyalty or devotion, and no longer loves him more than his family or more than his own life, he is no longer worthy to be his disciple. He has lost his flavor, and therefore he is no longer any good or of any value to him because he no longer follows him, but has gone back to following the world. Therefore he must be thrown out or disposed of like salt that loses its flavor. 

Conclusion

As I have tried to show you, following Jesus is a very costly endeavor. It is not a decision that should be made without serious contemplation. One must count the cost of following Jesus prior to deciding to follow him. Though modern day American Christianity only includes attending a church service once or twice a week, and maybe an occasional small group meeting or Bible study, this is not at all what it means to follow Jesus. Truly following Jesus will totally consume and impact all areas of your life.  As we have seen, the stakes are high, and so is the cost. God's has high expectations for His people to be faithful and obedient, despite the cost. Anything less, is not truly following Jesus.