Counting Costs and Keeping a Balance

"Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it?" ~Luke 14.27-28

"Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is." ~Ephesians 5.15-17

Christ warned his followers to count the cost of becoming a disciple before they committed to following Him. But I think that it is just as important to continue counting the cost after salvation. When I look around me, I see so many Christians who have forgotten what the cost is all together. We're here on earth to do the will of God even if it means using every last breath and every last step.

Why should we go to such extremes for our faith? One reason is that the cost of indifference is immeasurably high. Jesus said in Matthew 12.30 that "whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters." The time and energy we waste is more than just our loss; it's God's loss of a valuable tool. We also live in a dead and dying world. Since we are the representatives of Christ, we must do all we can to reach the lost before their time and our time runs out on this earth.

"Making the best use of the time," Paul says in his letter to the Ephesians. This means weighing opportunities and alternatives. I like to think of it as Opportunity cost. Opportunity cost is a term in economics referring to the return on an investment of an opportunity that was passed by in relation to the return on the investment of an opportunity that was taken. It's basically the difference of profit after comparing the opportunity you pursued with the best alternative. And in other words, if you could be serving God in a better or more efficient way, then everything you're not doing is a loss to you and to God. How we serve God is just as important as when we serve Him.

We've seen that it is still valuable to count the costs of living for God, but what about God's will and omnipotence? If God is powerful enough to do whatever He wills, why bother to do anything at all? Because there are two different wills of God. An excellent example of this is found in 2 Peter 3.9: "The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance." Obviously what He wishes is not what happens (not all come to repentance). So either God has no control (or restrains His control) over His creation, or He has an expressed will and a hidden will.

God gave us the Bible to live by. This is a good example of God's expressed will. But we don't always "live by the Book". And yet Solomon writes in Proverbs 16.9 that "the heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps." God still expresses His will to us so that we can be effective tools for Him, but God is still in control when we've messed up. Our hope for this grace is found in Romans 8.28: "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose." This is the hidden will of God, that He establishes the steps of men and works everything to the good of those who love Him.

As fallen humans, we'd like to think that we can do everything by our own power and scheming. But the truth is that God give life, breath and energy to all living creatures and nothing we do is done without God's approval and planning. In Job, we can read that even Satan has to check in with God and receive approval for his ideas. It's easy for us to move because of our own thoughts and motivations, but it's a lot harder to obey someone else and to accept situations we don't understand or planned.

And this is our challenge as disciples of Christ. We must find the delicate balance between initiative and contentment. If we lapse too far to contentment, we'll become slothful and disobedient to the commands of God's expressed will. If we fall too far to the side of initiative, we err because we will think that we are moving on our own strength alone. Sometimes God asks us to wait and have faith. Sometimes God asks us to do something hard and that also takes faith. But we must always keep counting the cost of indifference and opportunity. The days are evil and our time here is short.

Song Spotlight: Keep Quiet by Barlow Girl


Lyrics:

Oh the things I’ve sacrificed
So that I could bring you to this world
I want them to see you in me
But your name just keeps them far from me

So I’ll keep quiet
Let’s hope they see I’m different

Jesus Jesus why’s your name offensive
Why are we so scared to tell this world you’ve saved us
When all of the hope of the world’s in your name, yeah
Why are we so scared to say yeah
Oh Jesus
Oh Jesus

If I avoid to speak your name
Tell me would you do the same to me
If relevance becomes my goal
Tell me will I lose you to its hold

But if I keep quiet
They’ll never see I’m different

Jesus Jesus why’s your name offensive
Why are we so scared to tell this world you’ve saved us
When all of the hope of the world’s in your name yeah
Why are we so scared to say yeah
Yeah Jesus
Oh Jesus yeah

I’m sorry I’ve cared about my name more than yours
I’m so sorry how could I hide you anymore
But if I keep quiet
They’ll never see I’m different

Jesus Jesus why’s your name so offensive
Why are we so scared to tell this world you’ve saved us
When all of the hope of the world’s in your name yeah
Why are we so scared to say yeah
Oh Jesus
Oh Jesus yeah
Oh Jesus
Oh Jesus

Oh…