THEOLOGY THURSDAY
BY DAVE HOLZHAUER
People will often describe decisions as a fork in the road. My high school econ teacher always talked about them in terms of opportunity cost. His preferred example was that you had a choice between working a few extra hours at your job at Arby's or hanging out with your friends. If you chose to work, you missed hanging out with your friends. If you chose to hang out with your friends, you missed out on Arby's roast beef and wages (the man loved Arby's). Whichever way you chose, there was a cost, something you gave up to get what you wanted.
For small things, e.g., deciding between a mountain hike or going to the beach, the opportunity cost is so minuscule it might not even register. But it's there. As the decision gets bigger, so does the opportunity cost. In Luke 14, Jesus reminds us to count the cost. "Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple" (v.25-27). If we assume Jesus is using the word " hate" in the same way as God uses it in Genesis, hate being " to love less", you get the idea that you will choose Jesus over something else. Every time.
Maybe this seems like an obvious choice. But as Jesus does, he gets to the crux of the issue in the following verses, asking if someone would build a tower before figuring out if they could afford it or whether a nation would make war on another if there was no chance of victory. Jesus is humorously pointing out that if people earnestly reflect before building a tower or declaring war, why doesn't everyone following him consider what they would honestly do if asked to choose between Jesus and a dream/desire/goal they cherish. When the rubber meets the road, can you let go of (fill in the blank) and it never come back?
We aren't told of the crowd's response; the decision is left to us, the reader. Jesus offers eternal life; what is the opportunity cost?
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