May 23, is Christ worth it?

If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters,

yes, even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.

Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. Luke 14, 26, and 27.

Jesus is unashamed and unafraid of telling us up front the worst, the painful cost of being a Christian.

Hating family, verse 26, carrying a cross, verse 27,

renouncing possessions, verse 33.

There is no small print in the covenant of grace.

It is all big and bold.

No cheap grace, very costly.

Come and be my disciple. But Satan hides his worst and shows only his best. All that really matters in the deal with Satan is in small print on the

back page. On the front page in big bold, are the words, you will surely not die,

Genesis 3, 4. And all these I will give you if you will fall down and worship me, Matthew 4, 9.

But on the back page, in small print, so small, you can only read it with the magnifying glass of the Bible.

It says, and after the fleeting pleasures, you will suffer with me forever in hell.

Why is Jesus so willing to show us his worst as well as his best, while Satan will only show us his best.

Matthew Henry answers,

Satan shows the best, but hides the worst,

because his best will not counterbalance his worst, but Christ's will abundantly.

The call of Jesus is not just a call to suffering and self-denial. It is first a call to a

banquet. This is the point of the parable of Luke 14, 16 to 24. Jesus also promises a glorious

resurrection, where all the losses of this life will be repaid, Luke 1414. He also tells us that

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