Salvation is a gift from God that costs you nothing; but discipleship will cost you everything. Regeneration is that work of the Spirit of God that occurs in a moment. Discipleship is a moment by moment, day by day decision that takes a lifetime. Salvation is something that God gives to you by grace through faith in the sacrifice of His Son Jesus Christ for you. Discipleship is something you do with God. Sadly, many only preach a life of decision, not a life of discipleship.

In our passages today, we will see that Jesus is not a salesperson. He didn’t come to this earth to sell us anything, He came to this earth to redeem us from the debt of sin and give us the privilege of living a life for Him and His glory. In Luke 14:25–35, Jesus is talking about the cost of discipleship, and in these passages Jesus uses some of the clearest and strongest language possible in the New Testament. He is being brutally honest about what is means to follow Him. And Jesus is going to continue to pound the same nail over and over and over and over, and that nail is this: If you and I are going to lay claim to being a disciple of The Lord Jesus Christ…..do not quit.

We are living in a world of quitters, and the quitters mantra goes something like this. If life gets hard and demanding, if ministry gets hard and demanding, if marriage gets hard and demanding, if school gets hard and demanding, if work gets hard and demanding, quit. Because once something gets hard and demanding, it certainly cannot be God’s will. Those words of Jesus, His yoke is easy and His burden is light, are so grossly taken out of context today, because quitting has become the norm and is acceptable in today’s society, including in the church.

How sad to see people quit on God; they quit praying when the going gets tough. They quit serving when the going gets tough. They quit giving when the going gets tough. They quit on their marriage vows, they quit on their children. Beloved, when you choose to quit on God, the options are horrifying! Many people have erroneously been told that following Jesus will put your life on the path of least resistance. That is a bona fide lie. Following Jesus is the path of most resistance. Living right in a wrong world is the path of most resistance. Living holy with a flesh that is continuously seeking to be fed is the path of most resistance. The world system is against those who choose to live for Jesus. Our unregenerate flesh wars against the Spirit that desires to live for Jesus. The enemy of our souls is constantly plotting on ways to get us to stop living for Jesus. Beloved, anything that really matters in life does not come easy. Everything that matters in life is costly.

So my exhortation to you today beloved is 2 sets of 3 words….”Don’t look back” and “Do not quit.”