That’s not a cynical question. It’s a fair one. And a very old passage in the Bible takes it head-on.

The man who walked away from a palace

Hebrews chapter 11 tells the story of Moses, who grew up with everything. He was raised in the household of Pharaoh, the most powerful ruler on earth — the best education, real wealth, a clear path to power. And he walked away from all of it.

The text says he chose “to endure ill treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin” (Hebrews 11:25). In plain terms: he decided a hard life connected to God was worth more than a comfortable life spent away from Him. “Sin” here isn’t a list of naughty behaviors — it’s the whole project of running your life as if God isn’t part of the equation.

Moses looked at the most comfortable life available to him and decided it wasn’t enough.

Why the Bible is honest about the cost

If the idea of following Jesus makes you nervous that it might actually ask something of you — you’re reading it correctly. Christianity has never pretended otherwise.

The letter of Hebrews was first written to people who were losing real things for their faith: jobs, homes, standing in their community. The author doesn’t tell them it will all blow over. He tells them the truth — that sometimes faith means choosing the hard right over the easy wrong.

Most churches would rather not say that part out loud. But there’s something trustworthy about a book that refuses to sell you a version of faith with no price tag. It isn’t asking you to sign up for something and hiding the fine print.

So yes — following Jesus can cost you. The Bible says so plainly. But that’s only half the story, and it’s not the important half.

What actually makes it worth it

Here’s what Moses was really choosing — and it wasn’t a religion. It was a person, and a promise.

The center of the Christian faith is not “try harder and give up more.” It’s the opposite. The Bible says Jesus paid the highest cost first. He lived the perfect life we couldn’t, then stepped into our place and took the punishment our sin deserved — dying a criminal’s death though He had done nothing wrong. He was buried. And on the third day, God raised Him from the dead.

That changes the whole equation. You’re not paying a price to earn God’s approval. He already paid it for you. Following Him isn’t buying something — it’s responding to a gift that has already been handed to you, free and complete.

Moses gave up a palace because he could see, even dimly, that being right with God was worth more than anything Egypt could offer. He was right.

So what does this look like on a Tuesday?

For almost everyone, following Jesus doesn’t mean walking away from a palace. It means smaller, quieter choices — telling the truth when a lie would be easier, staying faithful when no one is watching, trusting God with the parts of your life you would rather control.

It also doesn’t mean God becomes a machine that hands out comfort and success in exchange for good behavior. That was never the promise. The promise is better: God Himself — a relationship with the One who made you, held together by Him, that outlasts everything you can see.

Is it worth it? The people who have actually staked their lives on it keep saying the same thing. Yes. It’s worth it.

If you’re weighing that question right now, you don’t have to settle it alone. That’s a good reason to come sit in a room with people who are asking it too.

First Baptist Church Concord meets every Sunday — Sunday School at 9:15 AM and worship at 10:30 AM. We’re at 200 Branchview Dr SE, Concord, NC 28025, and we’d love to meet you.