The Cost of Discipleship

06-28-2020Letter from the PastorFr. Don Kline, V.F.

Today we are reminded again by Our Lord in the Gospel just what the cost of discipleship truly is. Our Lord reminds each one of us that those who love father or mother, son or daughter more than Him are not worthy of Him. Does that mean that you and I are supposed to love our parents less? Of course not! That would be silly to think Jesus is telling us to ease up on loving our family. So what does Jesus mean in today's Gospel? Our Lord is teaching us the importance of prioritizing our relationships. God must come before anyone (or anything) else in our lives. As we seek God above all else, we learn what it means to be a disciple and a Catholic.

Here are the facts: If you truly live out the message of the Gospel and you truly live your life as a disciple, Jesus is reminding you that you could end up having to choose between God and your family and friends. Why? Not everyone loves God like Christians are called to do. You may even meet people who may ask you to choose between God and them. This is where the cost of discipleship becomes difficult.

Why would the Gospel bring about such conflict and division? The short answer is that as a Christian, we are set apart in a beautiful way. We live life as if heaven and hell are real... because they are real. With eternity on our mind and heart, we then make choices that align ourselves with God. We seek to do His will above our own will. When we live our life for Our Lord Jesus, we are choosing to live a life with a total commitment to Him. The cost comes when you live your life for the sake of Christ and the Gospel so that we will gain eternal life. Your daily decisions to follow Christ will lead you away from worldly ambitions and desires. Making decisions to follow Christ is always a good choice.

Making ultimate decisions for God is challenging... dare I say impossible, without the grace and the goodness of God to carry us through the challenge of being a Christian. The ultimate reward for this kind of complete embrace of Jesus Christ and His message is that we will spend eternity in Heaven sharing in the Divine Life with Him. Living a committed Gospel life may be a daily struggle for many of us, but one way that we can know that we are on the right path is that for all of the difficulties Jesus warned would come our way when we choose the Gospel, and when we choose Christ, He also said "my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." Jesus wants us to follow Him most of all because we love Him...and if we love Him, living a Gospel life won't seem very burdensome at all. The result of choosing Christ results in joy and peace and eternal life.

Lastly, if you haven't yet signed up for online giving for our parish. Please do so here: saintbernadette.weshareonline.org . Your gifts are needed now more than ever so we can continue the mission of the Church of making more disciples. Thank you for all who have helped to keep our parish focus on Christ, Our Eucharistic King!

BACK TO LIST