What would be our reaction if a Christian speaker stood up and began to declare all the reasons why we shouldn’t become a Christian? Picture it. The speaker pleads with us, not to come forward on the next chorus, but to think more about the decision before giving our lives to Jesus. He points out how demanding our new lives will be and ends by saying, as people get up from their seats to move to the altar, “Are you sure? Do you really want to do this?”

We would be so shocked by that approach we might conclude he wasn’t a Christian at all. But wait a minute … didn’t Jesus often take this tack with the people He encountered? Unlike us, He didn’t welcome everybody before asking some serious, kingdom type questions. “Will you also go away?” He asked the Twelve after most of His followers left Him because of one of his teachings (John 6:67).

Jesus’ questions probe every part of our human lives. Here are just a few I picked out from Scripture. They challenge us as deeply as they did the people of His day.

• “What about you? Who do you say I am?” (Matthew 16:15)
• “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” (Mark 4:40)
• “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” (Matthew 9:28)
• “Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?” (Mark 10:38)
• “Does this offend you?” (John 6:61)
• “Do you think I came to bring peace on earth?” (Luke 12:49)

And the real kicker…

• “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord’ and do not do what I say?” (Luke 7:46)

Following Jesus sounds great if you don’t look too closely at what’s required. In some ways, it’s like having a baby. Sure, becoming a parent has its own unique blessings and rewards. But the truth is, it’s harder than we could ever imagine in our romantic dreams of someday becoming a parent.

We are drawn to Jesus because of His winsome ways. The promise of eternal life and a personal relationship with God our Creator is too good to resist once we understand it. But we do need to know, before we start down that road as one of Jesus’ disciples, it will be demanding. Like parenthood, it requires a consuming devotion that dwarfs all other devotions. It’s not a part-time job. You can’t be on again, off again from day to day according to how you’re feeling. There are no breaks – no return to life as it was before. Once we cross over into the kingdom of God everything changes.

If we look at the passage in Luke 14 where Jesus explores the high cost of discipleship, we are immediately struck by the fact that His challenge emerges at the worst possible time by modern church standards — when “large crowds were traveling with Jesus” (v. 25).

Why they were following is up for speculation. Excitement maybe (one never knew what Jesus was going to say or do next!) or maybe a genuine spiritual hunger. Some might have been following because they’d heard about the miraculous bread and fish feast enjoyed after one of His sermons. Or perhaps they hoped to be healed from some physical ailment. We can’t know why they followed, but obviously, Jesus knew some were not there for the right reason and He wanted to cut to the chase so they wouldn’t waste any more time looking for something He wasn’t offering.

He knew how to cut the numbers down quickly: make it difficult to attain and offer few incentives. Quite the opposite of what advertisers do to attract customers! “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters – yes, even his own life – he cannot be my disciple. And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow cannot be my disciple” (vv. 26-27).

Following that He gives two illustrations of tasks requiring lots of thought upfront before beginning … going to war against someone bigger than you and building a tower. Both require wisdom, plenty of resources, strategy, and stick-to-itiveness (perseverance/tenacity). Through these examples, He foreshadows for anyone desiring to be His disciple just how difficult the task is going to be. Then he asks, Are you sure you have what you need for this? Have you counted the cost?

To become His disciple isn’t a frivolous decision because it will require far more than we have in us. To truly follow Him we are going to have to rely on HIS resources, follow HIS plans, and draw from HIS strength to be able to finish. If we start out on our own, believing we can do everything in the power of the flesh, we’ll crash and burn. We will end up being ridiculed for having started to build a tower we could not finish.

We could get the idea that Jesus is being exclusive and unwelcoming, but if we look at the passage just before this one, we can see that isn’t the case. In Luke 14:15-24 Jesus gives the parable of the great banquet, which illustrates how anxious God is to fill up his banquet hall and bless those who come in response to His open invitation. He urges His servants to seek out anyone who will heed the call, even “the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame … for everything is now ready” (vv. 21, 17).

The only requirement for the guests was to view their invitation as a priority. Of utmost importance. A gracious provision to them in their undeserved condition. Those who made excuses to get out of coming never got to experience all God had prepared for them.

This necessity to make Him the number one priority in life is often glossed over in many churches today. As preachers and Sunday school teachers give the invitation to come and follow Jesus, it is often so watered down that hearers think salvation is just an add-on to their lives, a spiritual benefit they will receive to be added to everything they can glean from the world.

But Jesus saw our act of commitment to Him as an all or nothing venture. We are all in or all out. If we want Him more than we want all other relationships and if we are willing to even die to our own ideas and submit our lives to His will, we will find Him sufficient. But if we try to tack Him on to the lives we have fashioned for ourselves, it won’t work. We will fail miserably.

I found the following quote by A.W. Tozer in his book Leaning into the Wind. It begins with “Are you sure” and gives some great examples of what it means to take up your cross and follow Jesus. For those of us who already know Him, it will hopefully encourage and strengthen us as we continue to walk out the demanding role of following Him. And for those who are still thinking about inviting Jesus into their lives to be Lord and Savior, perhaps it will help them see if they are ready to take the plunge.

“Are you sure you want your personality to be taken over by One who will require obedience to the written Word?

Who will not tolerate any of the self-sins in your life: self-love, self-indulgence?

Who will not permit you to strut or boast or show off?

Who will take the direction of your life away from you and will reserve the sovereign right to test you and discipline you?

Who will strip away from you many loved objects which secretly harm your soul?”

Jesus only turns away those who are coming to Him for the wrong reasons. He welcomes anyone who wants to lay everything down at His feet and discover how awesome life is with Him in control.

If we’re sure we’re ready for that kind of life, He will supply all the resources we need to get that tower built, spiritually speaking. He will make sure we have what we need to battle our enemy who would surely overrun us if we battled him in our own strength. The resources, strategies, wisdom, and perseverance we will need are all found in the unlimited depths of the Holy Spirit. He can cover all the costs of discipleship if we will seek Him with a loyal, undivided heart.

We never regret trading our sinful, empty lives in order to enter into a loving relationship with Jesus, the altogether lovely One. But we have to know, He’s not interested in attracting crowds. He continues to look for the few who will make Him first.

With them, He can change the world.