It's Going to Cost You Something: What Following Jesus Really Requires

Following Jesus is not free. It demands something from you, and the sooner you understand that, the sooner you can walk in the fullness of what God has prepared for your life. Luke 14 makes this clear, and it is a message worth sitting with.

What Does It Mean to "Count the Cost" of Following Jesus?

In Luke 14:25-33, Jesus turns to the crowds following Him and says something that stops people in their tracks:

"If anyone comes to Me and does not hate His Father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and His own life also, He cannot be My disciple. And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple." - Luke 14:26-27

He then gives two illustrations. A man building a tower who does not first count the cost will be mocked when he cannot finish. A king going to war who does not assess his strength will be defeated. The point is simple: before you commit, understand what you are committing to.

Too many people start the journey with God and stop halfway. Not because they did not want it, but because they never truly counted the cost before they began.

What Does It Cost to Walk with God?

Walking with God is going to cost you something real. It is not a vague spiritual idea. The cost shows up in everyday life.

• It will cost you certain friendships.
• It will cost you late nights in prayer and study.
• It will cost you comfort and convenience.
• It will cost you the approval of people around you.
• It will cost you the things you are not yet willing to let go.

The very thing you are holding back from God is the very thing you need to be praying and fasting about. When you say, "God, you can have everything except this," that one thing is exactly what He is asking for.

Why Does Sin Make It Harder to Hear from God?

When Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden, they did not run toward God. They hid. They were naked before, but sin brought shame, and shame brought distance. That same pattern plays out today.

People are not walking away from God because they do not believe in Him. They are walking away because the weight of sin makes it easier to hide than to come close. But God is calling out, just as He called out in the garden, asking where you are.

Sin does not bring the relief people are looking for. It steals joy. The very thing people turn to for comfort ends up producing more pain. As Psalm 51:10-12 captures in David's cry:

"Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right Spirit within me. Do not cast me from Your presence or take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and grant me a willing Spirit to sustain me." - Psalm 51:10-12

Notice that David asks for the joy of salvation to be restored. Sin takes that joy. Coming back to God restores it.

Why Consistency Is the Real Cost of the Christian Life

One of the biggest reasons people do not fulfill their God-given assignment is not a lack of desire. It is a lack of consistency. They want the results without the daily commitment.

Living for Christ is not a moment. It is a lifestyle. Joshua 24:15 puts it plainly:

"If serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve... But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." - Joshua 24:15

Serving God means serving Him when you feel good and when you do not. When your kids are getting on your nerves. When your boss is frustrating you. When the prayer has not been answered yet. Consistency is the cost that most people are not willing to pay, and it is the very thing that unlocks the next level.

God is not looking for the most talented or the most polished. He is looking at the heart. As 1 Samuel 16:7 says:

"The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." - 1 Samuel 16:7

Does God Really Want You to Put Him Before Your Family?

This is where Luke 14 gets uncomfortable. Jesus says if you do not "hate" your Father, mother, wife, children, and even your own life, you cannot be His disciple. That sounds extreme, but the point is about priority, not emotion.

The enemy knows exactly who to use to keep you from paying the cost. And often, he uses your family. Not because your family is bad, but because your love for them is real, and he will exploit it.

"I would come to church, but I have to feed my kids." "I would pray more, but I am exhausted from working overtime for my family." These are real pressures, but God addresses them directly in Matthew 6:

"Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?" - Matthew 6:26

And then the promise:

"But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you." - Matthew 6:33

Your family was never meant to be prioritized over God. When you put God first, He takes care of everything else. That is not a suggestion. That is a promise.

What Happens When You Stay in God's Presence Every Day

One of the most practical truths about the Christian life is this: the antidote to depression, anxiety, and fear is the presence of God. Not just on Sundays. Every day.

"You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy." - Psalm 16:11

When you step out of God's presence, the joy fades. When you fill your mind and ears with things that pull you down, you will feel pulled down. But when you stay in worship, in the Word, and in prayer, the presence of God sustains you in ways nothing else can.

This is not a Sunday fix. It has to be a daily practice. The people who stay consistent in prayer, even when no one is watching, even when the answer has not come yet, are the ones who eventually see God move in ways they could not have imagined.

Is the Cost of Following Jesus Worth It?

Yes. Without question.

The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 2:9:

"Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him." - 1 Corinthians 2:9

What God has waiting for those who are faithful is beyond what the human mind can fully grasp. The friends you lose, the comfort you sacrifice, the late nights you spend in prayer, none of it compares to what God has prepared.

Mark 8:36 asks the question that puts it all in perspective:

"For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?" - Mark 8:36

The world cannot give you anything that lasts. But if you are willing to pay the cost down here, God will make sure you receive the reward up there and even in this life.

Life Application

This week, do an honest audit of your life, not your finances, your life. Ask God to show you where you are inconsistent, what you are holding back, and what excuses you have been using to avoid paying the cost of following Him fully.

Then pick one area where you have been inconsistent and commit to it daily for the next seven days. Whether that is prayer, reading your Bible, attending a service, or letting go of something you have been holding onto, take one step toward consistency and trust God with the rest.

Ask yourself:

• What is the one thing I am not willing to give God, and why?
• Am I treating my faith like a moment or a lifestyle?
• Where have I been using family, work, or exhaustion as an excuse to put God second?
• What would my life look like if I truly sought God first, every single day?

The cost is real. But so is the reward. And if you are willing to pay it, God is willing to cover everything else.