We have suffered from the preaching of cheap grace. Grace is free, but it is not cheap. People will take anything that is free, but they are not interested in discipleship. They will take Christ as Savior but not as Lord.
- Vance Havner
Christians have a serious image problem and we could probably benefit from some good P.R. and marketing. Everyone seems to know that Christians are a dull, boring lot of people who have no fun at all. That is perceived as the price of Christianity - forever give up everything fun and exciting in your life and trade it all for a life of long sermons, bible reading, prayer meetings and soft music. Young people today, like the generation before them, actually like their loud music, racy movies, hard partying and exciting lifestyle. No way are they giving all that up! The price is just way too high. If that is what it takes to become a Christian, count them out!
There is much that is true about this idea of "giving up everything" to become a Christian, but it completely misses the point. It is true that once someone becomes a Christian they will leave behind much of what they once were. The mistake is thinking that this is the cause when really it is the effect. One does not become a Christian by giving those things up, but rather, they willingly and slowly leave them behind when they become a Christian. There is no one at the door of Christianity, checking everyone who comes in and making them discard whatever doesn't belong. No, Christianity is a wide open door that all may enter freely. There is no admission charge and no coat check. Your salvation and the grace of God are totally, completely free.
Except, that is not the whole story. There is a cost to becoming a Christian and it is higher than you could ever imagine. It is all of you - everything you have, everything you are and everything you will ever be. Our goal as Christians is to give ourselves completely to Christ so that nothing of our old selves remains. None of us can every do it perfectly, but we will try our whole lives to get as close to that goal as we can. We will lose everything in the process. His desires will become our desires and His will becomes our will. In the process, many things fall away and our lives change. Eventually, we no longer crave late-night parties and the hard drinking. We will come to a point where nothing in the world matters the smallest bit compared to our love for Jesus. We will want to serve Him more than we want anything. But that is the end, not the means, to Christianity. If we all had to change our lifestyles before we became Christians, few of us could do it. It is the Holy Spirit of God who really changes us, but all of this begins once we have accepted Christ, not before. We come to Him as sinners and He will do the work of transforming us. We start by putting Him first, and He will work with us to do the rest. The price of Christianity is indeed high, but we do not have to pay it upfront. It will take our entire lives to pay and the Holy Spirit will be with us every step of the way.
So is it true that Christians have no fun? Not at all! Our joy comes from different and unexpected places. If any of us will be truthful, we will admit that drugs, drinking and partying can be fun but are ultimately unsatisfying. The joy does not last and too often we need more and more of it to get the same satisfaction. It continues to escalate until it kills, or we are saved from the spiral in time to take a step back and see it for what it is. Conversely, Christianity offers a very real peace and joy that stay with you. It comes from time spent with friends and family and it comes from serving the Lord and doing His work. It may sound dull, but it's all a matter of perspective. To some of us who partied hard in our youth, what would have seemed dull at that time now seems like the only time worth spending, while the life of drinking and partying seems empty and pointless. It depends where you stand and what you are living for.
The price of the salvation which Jesus offers is unique in all the world. It costs nothing. It is a gift which is free for all to take. At the same time, to be a true Christian will cost you everything - your desires, your hopes, your dreams, your very life itself! When you are ready, all of these you will gladly and joyfully lay before the Lord Jesus as an offering. What a price to pay! Yet, an amazing thing happens. Jesus does not take them from you. He shares them with you and makes them better, richer and more amazing than you could have ever dreamed of.