The Deal

In the last few days I've been wondering about who Jesus is and, consequently, who I am in relation to him. I've come to the conclusion that I've barely put my toe into the pool of Christ; that's how much I know him. By "know" I'm not referring to scripture quoting and that sort of knowledge that bounces about in my head; I'm referring to the actual discipleship that emerges from knowing him. The, "And as soon as they landed, they left everything and followed Jesus" kind of discipleship that leads to life.

I suppose the main reason is because there is no physical Jesus walking around Cincinnati calling me to follow. Yet I still feel the urge to do so. I feel as if I'm beginning to see Jesus as worth following. That is, I'm beginning to see him as a complete human being who is a captivating, charismatic, genius that knows the answers to everything, and knows how to make bad people, like me, into righteous people, like he; and who is, quite frankly, better than anyone else.

I'm beginning to realize that the abundant and free life he offers far exceeds anything on offer from the world. To be set free from caring about pecking orders, status, impressing people, account balances, and become a person who does not simply do right for fear of punishment or gain of reward, but who does right because rightness is on the inside, these are some of the things Jesus claims to accomplish in the life of those who would follow.

Jesus is simply the most amazing individual to have ever lived. EVER! (For a fun challenge try and think of one person who even approaches him.) And he offers us a fantastic deal on life. I'm not talking about the heaven when you die stuff; I mean the right now knowing and being transformed through a relationship with the Father stuff. 

It's a pretty good deal. Yeah, it requires sacrifice, pain and suffering; but what thing worth pursuing doesn't require those three things? Ask a gold medal athlete what 3 ingredients were in the daily meal of their lives as they prepared; I guarantee they will say sacrifice, pain, and suffering.

So yes the cost is great, but the cost of not following (non-discipleship) far exceeds the cost of discipleship. If Jesus offers to make us fully human people who live as God originally intended, then the cost of saying "No thanks" to him is substantially larger. Saying no to discipleship is saying no to real peace, real love, real joy, real hope, real vision, and instead settling for the distorted and fleeting versions we have today. Incidentally, I think we are all sick and tired of the promises for real ______ that eventually rusts out or gets replaced and leaves us searching again; right?

So the cost of non-discipleship far exceeds the cost of discipleship. Conversely, the rewards of discipleship have not even been fully realized. The pool is too deep to know how fantastic life with Jesus can be. The possibilities are endless.

Might as well take the plunge. Is there really any other sensible option?

Is there any other person worth following?

Is there?