Bible, Purpose, Faith, Jesus, Unexpected, Spiritual Growth

A Faith That Costs

Many feel drawn to God yet hesitate when faith costs comfort or disrupts plans. It’s tempting to disengage when spiritual roads diverge from what we envisioned. But Jesus surprised disciples by challenging assumptions on following Him. No sugarcoating. Complete surrender – of security, reputation, resources – would amplify meaning. Centuries later, we still wrestle with trusting God’s wisdom over self-protecting logic. But what if yielding control unlocks courage and purpose despite uncertainty? In this video, see how Jesus calls ordinary people to walk away from their fears and insecurities to pursue something greater. Discover how relinquishing control unlocks courage and unconventional purpose despite uncertainty.

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MESSAGE NOTES

[Mat 9:35-38 NLT]
Jesus traveled through all the towns and villages of that area, teaching in the synagogues and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom. And he healed every kind of disease and illness. 36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 He said to his disciples, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. 38 So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields.”
[Matthew 10:5-10]
Jesus sent out the twelve apostles with these instructions: “Don’t go to the Gentiles or the Samaritans, 6 but only to the people of Israel—God’s lost sheep. 7 Go and announce to them that the Kingdom of Heaven is near. 8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cure those with leprosy, and cast out demons. Give as freely as you have received! 9 “Don’t take any money in your money belts—no gold, silver, or even copper coins. 10 Don’t carry a traveler’s bag with a change of clothes and sandals or even a walking stick. Don’t hesitate to accept hospitality, because those who work deserve to be fed.
1. To be a Christian is to be on mission with Jesus

[Philippians 2:12-13 NLT]

Dear friends, you always followed my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away, it is even more important. Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.

 

2. To be on mission is to serve with other believers

 

3. The Mission is to give to others what God has given to us

 

4. The Mission is to give to others what God has given to us

 

[Matthew 10:8b NLT]

Give as freely as you have received!”

 

5. The Mission requires that choose Jesus over everything

 

[Matthew 10:16-22]

“Look, I am sending you out as sheep among wolves. So be as shrewd as snakes and harmless as doves. 17 But beware! For you will be handed over to the courts and will be flogged with whips in the synagogues. 18 You will stand trial before governors and kings because you are my followers. But this will be your opportunity to tell the rulers and other unbelievers about me. 19 When you are arrested, don’t worry about how to respond or what to say. God will give you the right words at the right time. 20 For it is not you who will be speaking—it will be the Spirit of your Father speaking
through you. 21 “A brother will betray his brother to death, a father will betray his own child, and children will rebel against their parents and cause them to be killed. 22 And all nations will hate you because you are my followers. But everyone who endures to the end will be saved.

 

[2 Corinthians 3:5-6]

It is not that we think we are qualified to do anything on our own. Our qualification comes from God. 6 He has enabled us to be ministers of his new covenant. This is a covenant not of written laws, but of the Spirit. The old written covenant ends in death; but under the new covenant, the Spirit gives life.

 

“He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.” – Jim Elliot

 

[Hebrews 11:39-40]

All these people earned a good reputation because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised. 40 For God had something better in mind for us, so that they would not reach perfection without us.

 

“The cross is laid on every Christian. The first Christ-suffering which every man must
experience is the call to abandon the attachments of this world. It is that dying of the
old man which is the result of his encounter with Christ. As we embark upon
discipleship we surrender ourselves to Christ in union with his death—we give over our

lives to death. Thus it begins; the cross is not the terrible end to an otherwise god-
fearing and happy life, but it meets us at the beginning of our communion with Christ.

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

 

[John 15:11]

I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!

 

“Costly grace is the gospel which must be sought again and again and again, the gift
which must be asked for, the door at which a man must knock. Such grace is costly
because it calls us to follow, and it is grace because it calls us to follow Jesus Christ. It
is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only
true life. It is costly because it condemns sin, and grace because it justifies the sinner.
Above all, it is costly because it cost God the life of his Son: ‘Ye were bought at a
price’, and what has cost God much cannot be cheap for us. Above all, it is grace
because God did not reckon his Son too dear a price to pay for our life, but delivered
him up for us. Costly grace is the Incarnation of God.”
― Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship

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Application Questions

  1. What stood out to you from this message and why?
  2. What is one thing God is telling you to START doing because of this message?
  3. What is one thing God is telling you to STOP doing because of this message?
  4. How will this message change how you act at home, at work, and in your relationships?

Many feel drawn to God yet hesitate when faith costs comfort or disrupts plans. It’s tempting to disengage when spiritual roads diverge from what we envisioned. But Jesus surprised disciples by challenging assumptions on following Him. No sugarcoating. Complete surrender – of security, reputation, resources – would amplify meaning. Centuries later, we still wrestle with trusting God’s wisdom over self-protecting logic. But what if yielding control unlocks courage and purpose despite uncertainty? In this video, see how Jesus calls ordinary people to walk away from their fears and insecurities to pursue something greater. Discover how relinquishing control unlocks courage and unconventional purpose despite uncertainty.

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