“You do not want to leave too, do you?”Jesus asked the Twelve. John 6:67

Following Jesus comes with personal risk. Jesus has many followers at the height of His ministry but with a few statements concerning the personal cost of following Him, most turned away. Jesus asks His closest followers if they too wanted to turn away. This is a question each of us must answer individually. The crowd will seek to influence us all but the question and answer is an individual one.

The question of turning away is a deeply penetrating question, cutting to the heart of every motivation and intention.

Why are we following Jesus? What is it we seek? Jesus cuts us to the core with these questions. Many followed Him no longer after He said some hard things concerning personal cost and all the risks involved. The cost was too much. And now Jesus asks us the same question: will you turn back too?

It’s not that these people were bad people but they were not willing to continue on because the love of this world outweighed their devotion to Christ. They were looking more to get something than to give to Someone. Following Jesus and serving His kingdom purposes comes at the cost of losing ourselves in Him.

Have you counted the personal cost of following Jesus?

Are you willing to give yourself completely to His work in worship?

How deeply do the things of this world have their grip on you?

What is the price you’re willing to pay to be a Christ-Follower?