count the cost

Luke 14 

25 A large crowd was following Jesus. 

He turned around and said to them, 

26 “If you want to be my disciple, 

you must, by comparison, you must love me more than everyone else;

your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters;

yes, even your own life. 

Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple. 

27 And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple.

28 “But don’t begin until you count the cost. 

For who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost to see if there is enough money to finish it? 

29 Otherwise, you might complete only the foundation before running out of money, 

and then everyone would laugh at you. 

30 They would say, 

‘There’s the person who started that building and couldn’t afford to finish it!’

31 “Or what king would go to war against another king 

without first sitting down with his counselors 

to discuss whether his army of 10,000 could defeat the 20,000 soldiers marching against him? 

32 And if he can’t, 

he will send a delegation to discuss terms of peace 

while the enemy is still far away. 

33 So you cannot become my disciple without giving up everything.

(dan note: As my friend, Beth White, says, "Salvation is free - everything else costs you everything.)