Now when Jesus saw great multitudes about him, he gave commandment to depart unto the other side. And a certain scribe came, and said unto him, Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest. And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head. Matthew 8:18-20

The world today has a very cheap perspective of Christianity, even most of the Church today does as well. Many claim you just repeat a few lines and magically you get a golden ticket to Heaven. But as Jesus taught us Christianity has a cost, what is the cost? True Christianity will cost you everything, Jesus said “Anyone who wants to save their life, must lose it” (Matthew 16:25) Jesus also said “Deny yourself, carry your cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23)

Many want the salvation of Christ but they don’t want to be transformed by Christ. This is an important step, as Jesus said “Unless you are Born Again, you will not see the Kingdom of Heaven” (John 3:3)Again there is a price to pay to become a Christian, it’s not a cheap grace, it’s eternal life bought by the price of Jesus Christ himself.

The man said “Master I will follow you wherever you go” Really? Are we willing to follow Christ to the cross? Are you willing to let your old self die and let your new self be risen and transformed? Many want paradise but don’t want repentance or obedience to Christ. You are either a slave to sin or a slave to Jesus Christ (Romans 6:20) 

And another of his disciples said unto him, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father. But Jesus said unto him, Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead. Matthew 8:21-22

Jesus is saying “You really think you want to follow me”? You really think its going to be a glamorous road following Christ? Think of the opposite, if they killed your Master, they will kill you also. They will hate you, they will spit on you, they will curse your name, why? Because the world hates the real Jesus, because the world is ruled by the evil one

So before you identify yourself as a Christian, ask yourself did I really become Born Again? Did I really die at the cross to my sins, and I was baptized by the Holy Spirit and transformed? If you truly want to be a disciple of Christ, deny yourself, carry your cross and follow your Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Amen