Luke 14:25-28 (MEV)

"Large crowds went with Him. And He turned and said to them, ‘If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple. And whoever does not bear his cross and follow Me cannot be My disciple. For who among you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost to see whether he has resources to complete it?’"

Count the Cost

When we read the Gospels, we see that Jesus used to go around preaching, healing the sick, casting out demons and raising the dead... as well as telling lots of stories – called parables. He was a great story teller and people were fascinated by His parables, even though most of them did not understand the hidden meanings behind them. Many people would gather to listen to Him and crowds would start to form; then He would suddenly speak plainly – not in parables – and many times say something that would sound offensive to them, like the verses above in Luke 14.

Isaiah 41: 10-14 (NIV)

"So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. All who rage against you will surely be ashamed and disgraced; those who oppose you will be as nothing and perish. Though you search for your enemies, you will not find them. Those who wage war against you will be as nothing at all. For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you. Do not be afraid, you worm Jacob, little Israel, do not fear, for I myself will help you," declares the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel."

In these verses, we are commanded not to be dismayed for God is with us. Regardless of the circumstances we must trust in God. At times we will feel scared and way out of our depth but as Christians, we have the knowledge and understanding to know our God is for us. These will be times we are called to take action and times we are called to stay still. We must be in tune with the Holy Spirit to determine which is which.

Hebrews 5: 8 (NKJV)

"though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered."

Philippians 2: 8 (NKJV)

"And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross."

The truth is that when we are going through sufferings, we don’t always find it easy to obey God. When we are in the heat of hardships, trials, tribulations and opposition, enduring long standing challenges, it is easy to cave in and no longer obey God. We can sometimes begin to think, is there any point in obeying God and doing His will. We can move into self-management mode, where we do what we want to alleviate what we are going through in whichever way even if it sometimes mean go against God’s will.