Feb 23: All or Nothing.

Lk 14:33 So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple.

I used to be picky when I ate my food as a child. Even with my favorite piece of meat, if there was bone involved, I would carefully pick the most fleshy part and leave the parts closest to the bone there. Enough to say, there was a lot of wastage on my plate.

Following Christ for some of us can be like this. We chose the parts that we like the most, and leave the rest there. Take a few moments to think about it. Do you tend to be selective in when and where you follow Jesus? Or do you go all in to follow Him?

In today’s verse, Jesus gives us the true cost of following Him. A few verses earlier, He likens following Him to building a house, or going for war. In the former event, the person building must ensure that they have sufficient funds to complete the construction of the house. In the latter event, the ruler must ensure his army can handle the opposition coming against him, before he starts fighting. The advise from Jesus for both events was, if you think you cannot complete what you started, don’t do it.

In that context, He says that following Him will cost many things in our life – our near and dear relationships, our ambitions and desires, and our entire life itself. What that sacrifice looks like cannot be predicted ahead of time. Once you start walking the path of discipleship, you will quickly figure it out. Each person has their own cross to bear.

I’ve often wondered, why did God make it so hard to follow Him? Why can’t we just enjoy a bit of everything in life and follow God at the same time? May be that is the wrong question to ask.

God has not made it hard to follow Him. The devil throws distractions and disillusionments in our life that makes it sometimes difficult to follow God. He’s been doing that right from the start (in the garden of Eden). And he continues to wreak havoc in the life of a Christian. But there’s a lot more than just blaming the devil. What if all that we are going through in this earth is a training for the real deal in the afterlife? Like an athlete going through endurance training and winning the gold medal. Or a pro-football player training hard to win the championship.

If those men and women training for earthly events cannot be distracted with unhelpful things, how much more a disciple of Jesus Christ following the path of his master looking to enter a place of eternal rest and reward in the heavenly realms!

Be reminded today dear follower of Jesus. There is no middle ground when it comes to being a Christ follower. Jesus said in Matthew 6:24 - “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”

It’s all or nothing. What is your choice?