COUNT THE COST

One day as Jesus was walking along the shore of the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers—Simon, also called Peter, and Andrew—throwing a net into the water, for they fished for a living.  Jesus called out to them, “Come, follow me, and I will make you a fisher of men!”  And they left their nets at once and followed him. A little farther up the shore he saw two other brothers, James and John, sitting in a boat with their father, Zebedee, repairing their nets.  And he called them to come, too. They immediately followed him, leaving the boat and their father behind.  Matthew 4:20-22 (NLT)

“Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me.” Matthew 11:29 (NLT)

“A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher.”  Luke 6:40 (ESV)

As they were walking along, someone said to Jesus, “I will follow you wherever you go.”  But Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place even to lay his head.”
He said to another person, “Come, follow me.” The man agreed, but he said, “Lord, first let me return home and bury my father.”  But Jesus told him, “Let the spiritually dead bury their own dead! Your duty is to go and preach about the Kingdom of God.”  Another said, “Yes, Lord, I will follow you, but first let me say good-bye to my family.”  But Jesus told him, “Anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God.”  Luke 9:57-62 (NLT)

“For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Anyone who eats my flesh and drinks my blood Remains in me, and I in him.”  John 6:55-56 (NLT)

“At this point many of his disciples turned away and deserted him.”  John 6:55-56 (NLT)

Jesus told him, “If you want to be perfect, go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”  Matthew 19:21 (NLT)

“Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.  For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it.”  Luke 9:23-24 (NIV)

“What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very soul?”  Luke 9:25 (NIV)

Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.”  Matthew 28:18-19 (NLT)

FOLLOWERS BECOME LIKE THE ONE THEY FOLLOW.

 

When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer – The Cost of Discipleship