Jesus

October 2 

Luke 9:57-62

The cost of following Jesus

One day, when Jesus and His disciples were walking along the road, a man said to Jesus, “I will follow You wherever you go.”

Jesus replied, “Foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lie down.”

Later, Jesus said to another man, “Follow me!”

But the man replied, “Sir, let me first wait until my father has died, then I will follow You.”

Jesus replied, “Let those who don’t have eternal life take care of things like that. You go and tell people about the kingdom of God.”

Someone else said, “I will follow you Lord, but let me first go home to say good-bye to everyone.”

Jesus said to him, “Anyone who is distracted from doing the work I have planned is like a farmer who tries to plow in a straight line, but keeps looking behind him.”

What does it cost to follow Jesus?

If you were to ask a sports coach if you could join the ‘A’ team, do you think he would invite you to play in a match without training?

No, he’d tell you about the many hours of training and practice that lie ahead before you can even hope to be selected. (And no excuses for not attending practices!) Fitness and skill only come with proper training and lots of practice!

Jesus told the man who was interested in joining His team that being a follower would not be easy. When we join the winning team, led by Jesus, we can expect things to be tough! We must learn the rules and study examples of others in the Bible. We must listen to the Holy Spirit who is our coach. We need to stay spiritually fit by praying every day. Living a holy life is not easy, but the prize at the end will be better than you can ever imagine!

Ready for the challenge?

Verse for today

I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:14