Saturday in the Word | The Cost of Discipleship

Good morning! Today is November 1, and, including today, there are 61 days left in 2025! Both Thanksgiving AND Christmas are just around the corner. It’s crazy how time has thundered by this year.

This week I felt convicted when I read the words of the Director of the Men’s Bible Study I’ve been attending this Fall. He wrote “While salvation is free, it is also true that discipleship is costly (in a lot of areas), which may include getting up a little earlier once a week!”

I’ve been considering whether or not I should continue attending this weekly Bible Study that meets at 6:30 Thursday mornings. I’m not a member of the church hosting it, but I know people at the church, including the co-leader of the small group that meets after the teaching. There are men there that I can mentor and disciple. God has shown me that already.

We know from reading our Bibles that the Apostle Paul invested a lot of himself into the discipleship of the Corinthian church. They were a particularly challenging group of believers, stubborn and rebellious by nature. Yet, The Apostle Paul desired for them to grow and be able to stand firm in their faith.

2 Corinthians 12:15 NIV
So I will very gladly spend for you everything I have and expend myself as well. If I love you more, will you love me less?

We know discipleship is costly. The Apostle Paul, perhaps more than anyone, knew how costly picking up his cross daily could be.

Shipwrecked—imprisoned—beaten. Scriptures tells us about the hardships he faced.

2 Corinthians 11:20-27 NIV

Whatever anyone else dares to boast about—I am speaking as a fool—I also dare to boast about.Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they Abraham’s descendants? So am I. Are they servants of Christ? (I am out of my mind to talk like this.) I am more. I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea,  I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers.  I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked.

As a blogger, God has given you and I a garden to tend to and a following to shepherd.

Unless you and I convey God’s truth our words will turn to ash. Writing is sacred and blogging is writing so what you and I are called to do as Christian bloggers is a sacred work.

As Christian bloggers, we face a challenging conundrum when we start to consider catapulting our blogs into the dark vault of the Blogosphere, never to be heard from again because we aren’t happy with the numbers our posts produce. It can be intimidating wondering if anyone “out there” is actually reading what we write.

Luke 9:23 ESV

And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.

Fellow Blogger: When you are tempted to give up, I encourage you to continue answering the call God has placed on your life. Remember your why and your who.

Until my next post…

Be salty, stay lit.

Rainer Bantau —The Devotional Guy™

You can now find my articles in The Christian Grandfather Magazine.

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