In the Bible in the book of Luke 14:28, Jesus said to count the cost, when Jesus talked about a man, who was building a tower and a king who was going to war. But what did Jesus mean by counting the cost? Why do you have to count the cost according to the Bible?
Jesus said to count the cost
For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it? Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him, Saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish. Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand? Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he sendeth an ambassage, and desireth conditions of peace. So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be My disciple (Luke 14:28-33)
Jesus said to count the cost to the large crowds traveling with Him. Jesus had many followers, but in the end, there were only 120 followers left. This shows, that many wanted to follow Jesus, but only a few were able to really follow Jesus. They had not counted the cost before they decided to follow Jesus. Only these 120 were prepared to give up their own lives and follow Jesus.
Jesus knew that many were called, but only a few were willing and able to pay the price.
Jesus knew, that only a few were able to give up their own lives, their own will, and to live after His will. That’s why Jesus said to count the cost before you decide to follow Jesus Christ.
Many people love their own lives and the world more than they love Jesus. Therefore they are not able to lay down their own lives and follow Jesus wholeheartedly.
If you really want to follow Jesus, it means that you have to pick up your cross and give up your own life.
Jesus said, that if a person comes to Him and doesn’t hate his father, his mother, and wife, and children, and brothers, and sisters, yes even his own lives, he can’t be a disciple of Jesus.
Jesus not only said to count the cost, but Jesus even made it harder, by saying to the crowds: “Whosoever does not carry his cross, and come after Me, cannot be My disciples.” Wow, those were hard words, which Jesus spoke!
The many crowds, that followed Jesus had to give up everything, to become a disciple of Jesus Christ. Who was willing and prepared to give up everything for Jesus?
What did Jesus mean to hate your father, mother, wife, children, brothers, sisters, and your own life?
What did Jesus mean, when He said, that you have to hate your father, mother, wife, children, brothers, sisters, and even your own lives? Did Jesus’ followers have to treat their family members hatefully and disrespectfully?
No, that wasn’t what Jesus meant. Jesus meant that no one and nothing might become an obstacle in your life to follow Jesus and to do the will of God and represent, preach and bring the Kingdom of God upon this earth.
You can’t follow Jesus and serve Jesus and be His disciple, if you are not willing and prepared, to lay down your current life. If you don’t hate your life as a sinner, you can’t give up that life (style). Therefore you have to count the cost first before you decide to follow Jesus.
Jesus laid down His life for you, are you prepared to lay down your life for Jesus?
Only when a person becomes born again and becomes a son of God and walks as a son of God, a person is saved from eternal death. If you want to become born again in the spirit and walk after the Spirit then you have to lay down your flesh and kill the works of your flesh.
No relationship, no desire, not even your own will, and your own life may become hindrances to fulfilling the will of God in your life.
As long as you stay carnal, you can’t follow Jesus completely. If you don’t put off the old man, you can’t fulfill His will for your life.
That’s why Jesus required a complete surrender to Him. He required true repentance of someone’s life, so that the new creation, could fulfill His will upon this earth (Read also: ‘God has a plan for your life‘).
Jesus laid down His life to fulfill His Father’s will
Jesus left everything behind, to fulfill the will of His Father upon this earth. He had given up everything: His life in heaven with God and His life as a carpenter with his earthly family. Jesus preached the Kingdom of God unto the house of Israel and called the people to repentance; to turn away from sin. Jesus reconciled man back to God through His redemptive work at the cross. That was the mission of Jesus Christ and nothing stood in His way to fulfill His mission.
Where there no hindrances? Of course, there were hindrances. But Jesus was single-minded and therefore Jesus was focused on the Kingdom and only did the will of His Father. Many times, Jesus was tempted by the devil, and by the people. But because Jesus didn’t live after the flesh but after the Spirit, Jesus saw their evil intentions and didn’t give in.
Jesus had laid down His life through water baptism (symbolic), and in the wilderness (practice). His flesh didn’t reign in His life anymore but was subjected to the Spirit.
Wasn’t Jesus able to sin? Of course, Jesus was able to sin, because Jesus was fully human (Read also: ‘Was Jesus fully Human?‘)
Jesus could have fed His flesh anytime and lived after the flesh, but Jesus didn’t.
Not even, when fear tried to tempt Jesus, in the garden of Gethsemane.
The fear, that Jesus would become a Partaker of sin, that Jesus would be separated from His Father and that the devil would become His master, was so intense, that Jesus sweat drops of blood. But even this fear couldn’t stop Jesus to fulfill the mission of His Father.
Jesus loved His Father above all, with all of His heart, soul, and mind. The love that Jesus had for His Father was bigger than any temptation.
Is the message of the cost of following Christ preached?
There are not many pastors and preachers anymore, who speak the same words like Jesus and preach the same message as Jesus preached. Many preachers don’t preach the message of the cost of following Christ aka the cost of discipleship; to give up your own life, die to ‘self’, and to count the cost, before you decide to follow Jesus.
They’d rather preach about false love and hyper-grace and tell you that you may live the way you want to live and live after the flesh, doing the works of the flesh, and that you do not need to change and that God understands your decisions and approves of it. But that’s of course a big lie from the pit of hell.
Why do many preachers rather tell lies than the truth of God? And only preach carnal sermons about carnal prosperity, riches, wealth, success, blessings, etc. Because these ‘feel good’ and motivational messages attract many people, because who doesn’t want to receive a ‘magic word’ to pay the bills? To get out of debt? And get what they want and become prosperous, successful, and wealthy in the world?
Carnal messages please the flesh
The carnal messages are focused upon the flesh instead of the Spirit. Therefore, in many churches, the flesh is fed instead of the spirit.
Due to the fact that the flesh is fed, the flesh remains alive and the senses, emotions, and feelings rule, the church has to please and entertain the senses, feelings, and emotions of the people.
Therefore not only are feel good messages and motivational sermons preached, but the normal white lights have been replaced by ambiance neon lightening in all kinds of colors to get the people in a certain mood and loud music is played, so that people will experience pleasant feelings.
By playing loud music and by repeating the words of the chorus over and over again, people enter into some kind of trance and think they have an encounter with the Holy Spirit. But the truth is, that they are misled by their own feelings.
When people enter the spiritual realm out of their soul, the devil will enter and work through them. The devil will give them exactly what they want: carnal manifestations, pleasant feelings, etc. and so they are deceived by the devil.
Because of the fact, that most people remain carnal and live after the flesh, the feelings and emotions of people are stirred up during service, many people, who are led by their feelings, make a thoughtless choice for Jesus Christ.
On what basis does a person make a decision to follow Jesus
Because on what basis, does a person make a personal choice to accept Jesus as their Saviour and Lord and follow HIm?
- On the basis of prosperity?
- A promise of physical or mental healing?
- A promise that God will pay all your bills?
- On the basis of prosperity in love and that God will provide you with a partner?
- A social aspect; that in the church you are not a loner anymore, but will be surrounded by people and fellowship with them?
- On the basis of a fear of hell?
On what basis, have you made a choice to accept Jesus and follow and serve Him?
Too little or wrong information is given
Many choices are made on basis of too little or wrong information. Many people make a choice for Jesus, without being well-informed about what it means to be a disciple of Jeus Christ and before they count the cost. Because of this, many choices are made out of a wrong conception, a wrong idea of what the gospel is truly about. Therefore many choices are made out of the flesh; out of a feeling or an emotion.
It often happens, that people will only walk partially with Jesus. They are not willing to put away their sins and lay down their own will and desires. What happens is, that after a while they quit and leave the faith and pick up their old lives as a sinner.
Maybe they keep going to the church, but during the week they live like the world (Read also: ‘Why the faith of many suffer shipwreck?‘)
Their conviction and their love for Jesus were not strong enough to follow Jesus and to live after His will.
They had not counted the cost before they start building. Therefore they were not able to finish the work and because of that they have mocked the gospel of Jesus Christ.
They showed people, that the power of the world is stronger and the deceptive pleasures of the world are more satisfying than Jesus Christ and the power of the Kingdom of God.
Be the salt of the earth
Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men (Matthew 5:13)
Jesus says, that salt is good, but if the salt has lost its savor, wherewith shall it be salted? It is neither fit for the land nor yet for the dunghill, but men cast it out.
Unfortunately, many people will be lost, due to false doctrines. Because how can people count the cost, if they don’t get the right information? (Read also: ‘False doctrines that are an insult to God‘ and ‘Doctrines of devil are killing the church‘)
As long as the message of the cross, Christ’s redemption work, repentance, dying to self, putting away sins out of your life, regeneration, sanctification, new creation, persecution in life, how to resist evil, temptations, etc. is not preached, people don’t get a clear view of what true discipleship really means. They don’t get a clear view of what a person must give up, to become a follower of Jesus Christ and what the new life, as a son of God, will be like.
In other words, the messages that Jesus and the apostles preached, have to be preached again. Jesus, the cross, His blood, and His resurrection and sanctification must be preached in the churches again. Instead of these ‘feel good’ motivational messages.
The essence of real Christianity
The essence of real Christianity and the Word is not preached the way God intended the gospel to be. The gospel of Jesus Christ has been changed into a self-made man gospel. It is being torn out of its context. The believers don’t build upon the Rock, but on doctrines of man and therefore they are ‘blown away,’ by the first little breeze (Read also: ‘Jesus, a precious corner Stone or a Stone of stumbling?‘, ‘Hearers vs doers‘ and ‘Many pastors are leading the sheep into the abyss‘)
Let us return to the Word. Let us follow Jesus Christ with our whole hearts and let us remove every obstacle in our lives, that can become a hindrance to following Jesus.
Count the cost, before you decide to follow Jesus Christ. Only then will you be able to submit yourself to Jesus and devote your life completely to Jesus. When you submit and devote your life to Him, you will be able to build His Kingdom upon this earth.
“Be the salt of the earth”
