阅读经文 

作为一栋房子的主人，我需要在夏季持续修剪草坪，这是我自己应当做的事情。8月份的天气会变得很暖和，所以我会花相当多的精力来修剪草坪。锻炼身体固然很好，但是当我劳动完后，感觉自己的力气和能量都被耗尽了。我从事这些劳动是有代价的。

在今天的经文中，耶稣谈到了跟随祂的代价。祂的一些话听起来显得很刺耳，有时耶稣这样说是为了澄清，跟随祂并不容易。相反，这可能是非常艰苦的工作。

例如，跟随耶稣可能意味着我们与家人和朋友的关系变得紧张，因为他们不相信耶稣。但耶稣并不是说我们真的要“恨”他们，因为我们也知道祂呼召我们爱每一个人，甚至是我们的仇敌。（参路 6:35）在另一段经文中，耶稣以一种更容易使人理解的方式讲述了这件事：“爱父母过于爱我的……爱儿女过于爱我的，不配作我的门徒。”（太 10:37）换句话说，要跟随耶稣，我们需要在生活中把祂放在第一位。我们要愿意放下我们所拥有的一切来做祂的门徒。

朋友们，跟随耶稣会让你付出代价。别人可能会讥讽你，嘲笑你，殴打你，甚至杀害你。但是，请放心，没有什么能够使你与神的爱隔绝。

As a homeowner, I need to keep my lawn mowed in the summertime, and that's something I do myself. The weather can get warm in August, so I can spend quite a bit of energy doing the lawn. The exercise is good, but when I am done, I can tell that I have used up strength and energy. It costs me something to do the work.

In our reading for today, Jesus talks about the cost of following him. Some of his words sound harsh, and sometimes Jesus spoke this way to make clear that following him is not easy. Instead, it can be very hard work.

For example, following Jesus can mean that our relationships with family and friends become strained because they do not believe in him. But Jesus is not saying we must literally "hate" them, because we also know that he calls us to love everyone, even our enemies (See Luke 6:35). In another passage Jesus states the same thing in a way that is easier to understand: "Anyone who loves their father or mother … [or] son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me" (Matthew 10:37). In other words, to follow Jesus, we need to put him first in our lives. We need to be willing to put aside everything else we have to be his disciples.

Friends, following Jesus will cost you. Others might ridicule you, laugh at you, beat you, or even kill you. But, rest assured, nothing can separate you from the love of God.