Count The Cost

Count the Cost

Matthew 10:32-40, NLT

Everyone who acknowledges me publicly here on earth, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. 33But everyone who denies me here on earth, I will also deny before my Father in heaven. 34Don’t imagine that I came to bring peace to the earth! I came not to bring peace, but a sword. 35“I have come to set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. 36Your enemies will be right in your own household!” 37If you love your father or mother more than you love me, you are not worthy of being mine; or if you love your son or daughter more than me, you are not worthy of being mine. 38If you refuse to take up your cross and follow me, you are not worthy of being mine. 39If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it. 40Anyone who receives you receives me, and anyone who receives me receives the Father who sent me.

Setting the Scene

Here Jesus laid it all out for the disciples: Following him would come with a high cost. Thus all who wished to follow him should consider the cost before signing up.

Jesus’ followers would encounter enemies on all sides, even in their own homes. They would feel great pressure to turn back, to deny the truth and their Lord. Christ must be everything to them, more important than any family member or loved one. Jesus was not encouraging disobedience to parents or conflict at home; rather, he was showing that his presence demands a decision. In the early church, Jews who became Christians would be excommunicated from the synagogues and often shunned by their families. Jesus did not come to make such divisions happen, but his coming, his words, and his call inevitably causes conflict between those who accept him and those who reject him.

When Jesus used this picture of his followers taking up their crosses to follow him, the people knew what it meant. Death on a cross was a Roman form of execution. To follow Christ means denying self and carrying one’s cross, being prepared to die for him.

Earlier, Jesus had described how the disciples should go about their ministry—staying in homes of worthy people (Matthew 10:11-14). Here he added that even giving “a cup of cold water” (Matthew 10:42, NLT) would be important—serving others, not just preaching.

Getting Personal

What sets you apart from those who don’t know Christ? How do your family members and others feel about those differences?

Besides loved ones, what else do you find competing for your loyalty in place of God?

The best way to find life is to loosen your grasp on earthly rewards so that you can be free to follow Christ. You will risk pain, discomfort, conflict, and stress as you acknowledge Christ’s claim over your relationships, possessions, and career. But in doing so, you will experience the benefits of following Christ. Do not neglect your family, but remember that living for God should be your first priority.

Talking to God

Express to the Lord your willingness to give up your life to gain life with him, your willingness to “take up your cross” and follow his way. Ask him for strength to deal with any opposition that might arise.