Jesus Is Worth ItSample

Thinking of leaving?

Whenever I hear a story of someone leaving the Christian faith, I’m equally heartbroken and understanding. While it grieves me, I think I understand why people walk away from Christianity because Jesus will cost you.

The other day, I tried to count up all that Jesus has cost me in my life. I calculated all the hours of going to church, reading my Bible, etc. The sum total was 7,514 hours! That number could double before I’m dead.

Time, however, is the easy part. The hard part of following Jesus is letting him be Lord, letting him have the last word about what is right or wrong, what to rejoice in, and what to repent of. There is an absurdly high cost to the Christian faith when you are attracted to your same sex, deeply devoted to a certain political party or your parents are almost impossible to honor. Jesus’ commands to love God first, love every neighbor as yourself, and trust in the Word as truth make my 7,514 hours seem small.

So why would you stay with Jesus? The author of Hebrews, speaking to suffering Christians who were considering leaving Christ, wrote, “Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, whom we acknowledge as our apostle and high priest” (3:1).

Fix your thoughts on those words—holy, heavenly calling, our high priest—and you will realize why Jesus is worth whatever he costs you. Stay, fellow Christian, no matter what you must sacrifice. Jesus is worth it.