Dear Church of the Open Bible,
How much would you pay to go to church on Sunday morning? $5? $10? Don’t worry, we’re not considering payment at the door but there is a sense of cost to our faith. When I was younger I remember hearing about a church in downtown Vancouver that didn’t have any parking, so people had to pay to park on the street. Would I pay for parking to worship with other believers?
The fact that it struck me so powerfully, pointed to a deeper ignorance about the reality of following Jesus. We looked at this last Sunday, and how we must calculate what allegiance to Jesus might cost us.
Now, I realize that this cost goes well beyond money and Sunday mornings, but it is incredible how much our commitment can atrophy in relative cultural acceptance. For us, the cost is a few hours Sunday morning, maybe not sleeping in when we could have. For most believers around the world, they don’t get a tax receipt for giving to the church. For many, they surrender potential job opportunities and advancement. For some, their names are written down and they are watched by other religious groups or the state. And for a few, they are arrested and/or murdered because they confess Jesus as their Lord.
When we consider these things, it can seem like the cost for us following Jesus in Ponoka, Alberta is less than our other brothers and sisters around the world. But it’s not. That’s a lie. Don’t buy it. The cost is the same. The cost is everything. It’s our lives. So may we be reminded of that cost and be willing to pay it because of the incredible love that Jesus has shown us.
For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised. - 2 Corinthians 5:14–15