Hard to Believe: The High Cost and Infinite Value of Following Jesus

by John F. MacArthur Jr.

Jesus Christ did not die on the cross so you and I could have a nice day.

Ministers and teachers who water down the gospel of Christ in order to make it more popular and appealing may be leading their fun-loving audiences down the road to eternal punishment.

This book is John MacArthur's unflinching, unapologetic treatise on the modern tendency to alter the true message of Christianity in order to meet the whims and desires of a culture hoping for nonconfrontational messages, easy answers, and superficial commitments.

Too many people just want a Madison Avenue Jesus to make them well, make them happy, and make them prosperous. But Jesus Christ isn't a personal genie. He is the Savior. He died in agony to satisfy the wrath of a holy God and to forgive the sins of humankind. Faith in Him demands a willingness to make any sacrifice He asks. The hard truth about Christianity is that the cost is high, but the rewards are abundant and eternal life that comes only from faithfully follwing Christ.

Genres: Christian, Theology, Christian Living, Christianity, Nonfiction, Faith, Religion

252 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 29, 2000

About the author

John F. MacArthur, Jr. was a United States Calvinistic evangelical writer and minister, noted for his radio program entitled Grace to You and as the editor of the Gold Medallion Book Award-winning MacArthur Study Bible. MacArthur was a fifth-generation pastor, a popular author and conference speaker, and served as pastor-teacher of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California beginning in 1969, as well as President of The Master’s College (and the related Master’s Seminary) in Santa Clarita, California.

Reviews

[Kathleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A much needed reminder for all us Christians. This is the first book I've read by Mr. MacArthur. Some reviewers seem to expect too much from men ...who are presenting biblical truth, as though their writings should outshine in comparison to scripture. In fact..they should never do more than point us back to them..& enable us to more clearly understand what they have already said. That clearly seems to be the goal of Mr. MacArthur in writing this book. Reviewers should stick to reviewing the content of the book...& save their personal opinions about Mr. MacArthur for another format.

This book is a powerful tool to engage the mind & heart of every true Christian that we've entered into a difficult journey, we'll be unpopular, unwelcome & unwanted for the most part...and....in addition to understanding the complexities of all that...we're also faced with the fact that it's not by our own choosing...but by the sovereign grace & mercy of God.

I have been of the Arminian persuasion for 19 years...& only began to entertain the possibility of predestination/election when Mr. MacArthur mentioned it very early in this book. To my Arminian brethren...we all know Mr. MacArthur didn't come up with the concept of "election" so no hostility ought to be flung his way for inventing it. Quite frankly neither did John Calvin for that matter. The anti-election reveiwers ought to research even further in history than Calvin..and read Augustine, Martin Luther or better yet..perhaps the Apostles Paul & Peter...scrutinizing each scripture relating to election in it's original Greek language always helps. In addition to rigorous Bible study...if one is interested in pushing the Calvinism/Arminian argument full throttle...buy the well researched documentary called "Amazing Grace" ..which logically & methodically clarifies the Calvinist/Arminian positions in such a way...any Arminian with an open heart would have to concede. Yes....I am now fully convinced. Without question!

Hard to Believe is full of scripturally based evidence.... supporting the very objective Mr. MacArthur sets out to meet. He skillfully & effectively shows us that when all the pieces of the puzzle are put together...Calvinism aside...the Gospel of Christ...the gospel presented in the Holy Scriptures is exceedingly difficult to apprehend...& rightly so...

Mr. MacArthur tells us in no uncertain terms...without God Himself..it's altogether impossible for man to believe, accept it in all it's 'hardness' & finally to live it! Oh the awesome wonder of this gospel message that's so 'Hard to Believe'...how splendid & pure it is in every way...yet many of the words of Christ... are abhorrent to our natural flesh..we're evil through & through..& left to our own devices..we'd forever choose to pursue our own desires over God's.

Only as God opens the human heart...by His indescribable mercy...can we embrace whole heartedly the gospel which is the stumbling block of this world. The pride & sin within unregenerate man will forever hate the hard to believe words of Christ's gospel. The Christian himself...must come to terms with many difficult things Jesus said...but that's the way it's always been...and always will be... for God Himself has made it so!

[Evan Staffieri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another excellent book from John MacArthur. He is so consistent with preaching the Gospel and the message of Christ in and through every book of his that I have read thus far.

Hard To Believe is a great read and I was kept attentive throughout the whole book. John has a way with writing that is so personal, yet filled with so much truth, and always theologically rich!

If you want the truth, and nothing else, read this book! The scripture included is sweet to the soul and it's prominent in this book for sure.

[Jenn · Rating 5 out of 5]

MacArthur reminds us of the biblical truths of believing the gospel- the way is narrow and hard to find and the cost and value of following Jesus is high. He also reminds us not to alter the message of the gospel to please others, but we must be faithful to the truth and reach the ends of the earth, and all his sheep will hear and come to Him.

[Veronica · Rating 5 out of 5]

John MacArthur is my all time favorite Christian author and stands in comparison to current, modern christianity that offers a message for everyone. MacArthur makes no excuses and with his foundation steeped in scripture, he gives insight to identifying true followers of Christ and biblical perspective on false faiths. Highly recommend for anyone who thinks or believes he is a follower of Jesus. This book will break it down and reveal the truth.

[The Men's Ministry of Denton Bible Church · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book bypasses a superficial understanding of the Christian faith in order to explore the difficult side of Christian discipleship. Jesus does not desire for his disciples to stop at simple belief, but he longs for them to follow in His steps by becoming completely obedient to God. This book doesn’t mince any words about our opportunity to sit under this loving, yet uncompromising teaching which calls us to deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow Christ (Mark. 8:34).

[Emily K · Rating 5 out of 5]

Probably my second favorite book by MacArthur. Incredibly written and, as always, backed with lots of scripture.

[Jacqui · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book gave a really good foundation of the Gospel in light of the decision theology rampant in today's church. It nailed me hard with the law when I read it and now I think maybe it swings too hard in that direction as the comfort of the Gospel was not as front and centre as it could have been. However that's not John's focus here but I think it should be. A better book for educating your squishy pastor on the Gospel.

[Keith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing book so far. It has given me great insight on what it means to truly pick up your cross and follow Christ. Also MacArthur share why watering down the gospel and the consequences of sin when you are sharing the Gospel is not only a disservice but wrong. This book has really changed my walk with God and helped draw me closer to Him.

[Josue · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Gospel of Jesus Christ is hard to believe. Consequently, it has been diluted and compromised in our modern era in order to sound more attractive. John MacArthur, however, has a desire to proclaim the true Gospel. Within this book, he explains what the true Gospel is as revealed in the Bible, and why it's important to proclaim it.

[Donna G · Rating 5 out of 5]

Phenomenal! This man is a writer like none I've ever read. He cuts to the chase, tells it like it is!!

[Robert Rubio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great biblical argument against "easy believism" or a cross-less Gospel. Must read!

[John Hayward · Rating 4 out of 5]

The essence of “Hard To Believe” by John MacArthur can be captured with one quote: “Jesus doesn’t want to meet our needs—our worldly, earthly, human needs. He wants us to be willing to say, ‘I will abandon all the things I think I need for the sake of Christ.’” p.8 (on Mt 10:38): "In Jesus' time, people associated a cross with one thing and one thing alone: a cross was an instrument of death. He was saying that if you’re not willing to have conflict with the world to the degree that it could cost you your life, then you're not worthy of Him." p.10/115 (on Lk 9:59): "The implication here was that his father wasn’t even dead. What did he mean, “go first and bury” his father? Did he mean go to the funeral? No, he meant hang around until he got the inheritance!"/"What’s interesting about that is his father wasn’t even dead. He was actually thinking, “Let me go home and wait for the inheritance, then, soon as I get my money, I’m coming.” “Jesus said to him, ‘Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God.’” He was saying, “You let the world take care of its own; you come and preach the kingdom.”" p.12: "According to Hebrews 2:10, suffering made perfect the Captain of our salvation. And so we also will go through the crucible of suffering. What we suffer first of all is the death of all hopes, all ambitions, all desires, all longings, all needs that are human." p.14: "Jesus doesn’t want to meet our needs—our worldly, earthly, human needs. He wants us to be willing to say, “I will abandon all the things I think I need for the sake of Christ.”" p.104: "We pray for forgiveness of our debts, or trespasses, “as we forgive those who trespass against us.” Jesus wasn’t saying, “Here’s the perfect standard, and if you ever fail, you’re out!” He was saying, “Here’s the perfect standard, and part of the perfect standard is that when you fail, you deal with it.” That’s God’s standard. And if these realities do not illustrate the direction of your life, I don’t care what confession you’ve made, you’re not a Christian." p.135: "your cross isn’t your broken-down car or your unappreciative spouse. When Jesus told His listeners to take up their crosses, it meant only one thing to them. It meant willingly facing the possibility of death for His sake." p.142: "Pride is an illusion that curses greatness. The great are the ones who see their failings and work to overcome, not the ones who fancy themselves to be without weakness. And as long as you admit no weakness, you will never grow to your full strength."

[Scott Thor · Rating 5 out of 5]

MacArthur doesn't hold back anything in this book centered on the truth of what God's word says about salvation.

God's word is very clear that Jesus is the only way to eternal life. There is no alternative route to heaven.

Some key Bible verses confirming this fact are:

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." -John 14:6

And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved. -Acts 4:12

These are not difficult words to comprehend, but they are hard in the sense that to have salvation requires a "hard" commitment to Christ and no other.

Jesus commands us to 1) deny ourselves, 2) take up our crosses daily, and 3) follow Him.

In other words, we are to make Him first in our lives, others second, and ourselves last. Taking up one's cross is a willingness to die for what you believe, which, praise God, is something in America we don't have to worry about, however, thousands of Christians outside the US are martyred every year for their belief (Google VOM martyrs to find out more). Finally, we are to follow Him by being obedient to His teaching.

Satan's primary weapon is deception.

He deceived Adam and Eve and is now deceiving billions of people following false religions that include Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Mormonism, Jehovah Witnesses, Judaism, Sikhs, etc.; and the list goes on even to include Catholics who follow the teaching of their church that salvation is a product of not only faith in Jesus, but also by works (see Ephesians 2:8-10).

So why are so many deceived?

Because most people ("Christians" included) don't know the Truth of the Scriptures. It's easy to be deceived when you don't know any better. It's easy to believe simply being "good" will get you into heaven, but the Truth says that's not true at all.

...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, -Romans 3:23

All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one. -Romans 3:12

If you want to know the truth of God's word start reading it, studying it, and meditating on it. MacArthur's book can also help in understanding the high cost, and reward, of learning and living out the truth each day of your life.

What could be more important than knowing the Truth about where you will spend eternity?

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an eye-opening book on taking the Gospel message of Christianity seriously.
Personally, this book was what lead me to study the book of Matthew (Bible) thoroughly.

If you know the story of John MacArthur's long battle against no-Lordship salvation, easy believism, etc., as shown in his books like "The Gospel According to Jesus," "Hard to Believe" is another good read.
John did a really good job enumerating everything that makes the Gospel hard to believe; such as the sovereignty of God, the scandal of the cross, the expected sufferings of Christians, and many more controversial facts that mainstream Christianity refuses to bring up.

[Philip · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading this book feels like listening to a long long sermon from Dr John MacArthur, I can even hear his accent reading.
In my opinion its a great read, I feel my heart ministered to as I read them, though in terms of learning something really new I guess its not going to be it.

There are many scriptures and in depth explanation of why the good news is so improbable, not a convenient subject to believe. Frankly its hard to find a single narrative to this book, but a convicting read that challenges me to read the bible and taking more attention to the text, also helps me to be in awe of God's words as well.

[Marc Plazola · Rating 4 out of 5]

Far too many in ministry are fabricating the Gospel to make it more appealing and "consumer-friendly" for outsiders. The reason for this, MacArthur says, is because the true Gospel requires one to look at himself and agree with the truths of Scripture: 1) that he is a sinner, 2) he is deserving of hell, and 3) he is need of a Savior. The true Gospel is hard to believe, because it requires one to "deny himself, take up his cross and follow [Christ]" (Matt. 16:24), but sadly, the majority are not willing to do that. This book is riveting and eye-opening. I most definitely recommend it!

[Michael Bully · Rating 5 out of 5]

A hard-hitting and challenging read . It was written in the 2000s and very much draws on the USA.....the writer is an admirer of Calvin, and Luther. I can't comment directly about the state of Christianity in USA, being a British Anglican.
But though I felt uncomfortable when reading the book, even felt under attack, got annoyed with the author at times, I can list several criticisms and disagreements with him, ultimately just felt so glad to have read this book.
A must read for any Christian who wants their faith to be life changing , costly, and hard going at times.

[Grace Grimm · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a well-written reminder that the Gospel is not what so many in modern day America wish it was. Following Christ is a life of sacrifice and self-denial; nothing about it promotes a life of ease.

My only critique is that MacArthur would often make interpretations of biblical text that I have never heard before, state them very matter of factly, with absolutely no context or information given on how he reached that conclusion. Now granted, that was not the point of the book, but it still would have been nice for a little more context to be provided.

[Joel Rockey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been trying to keep a book on my Kindle app for reading during downtime to avoid mindless scrolling on social media, and Hard to Believe filled that slot recently. While it's a habit I'm cultivating, reading this book in scattered, small chunks throughout my days meant I probably didn't absorb as much as I could have. However, it was definitely a more enriching use of time than watching reels on Instagram.

[Dominic Woods · Rating 5 out of 5]

Man! John MacArthur doesn’t sugarcoat anything! But he’s 100 percent right in this book! You can’t dress up the Gospel to be attractive and easy then when the people who were sold on that false Gospel hit hard times they have no foundation to stand on! It’s Hard to believe! But it’s worth it! He that endures to the end shall be saved!

[Jesús Ramos Cardona · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sí eres creyente, debes leerlo.

En este libro encontrarás el glorioso mensaje del Evangelio expresado bíblicamente, debes leerlo y extenderlo a todos aquellos que dicen ser creyentes y no creyentes. Recomendado totalmente.

[Andy Febrico Bintoro · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's hard to find faith and theology which not being tampered with worldly view. Many examples pointed out in this book, and these are not all. The author remind us in this book that It would always be a high cost to stand up rightly.

[Venus Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

MacArthur hits another one out of the park. This was the first book I read on the doctrines of grace and what the gospel truly looks like in the life of a true believer, vs the dangers of easy-believism and it's deadly deceptions. A must-read, for sure, that holds no punches.

[Timothy Glidewell · Rating 4 out of 5]

How Can We Be Sure We Have God's Grace.

Dr MacArthur has written a book that is not for the faint of heart! It is a powerful book that suggests that not all of us who think we're Heaven bound may be mistaken as we may fall short of truly gaining God's grace.

[Kyle Steele · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another solid work on the one true Gospel

Another great read from MacArthur, and a much needed reminder of the one true gospel in an age of confusion and deception.

[Rod Innis · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good book by a great author!

[Nolan Fox · Rating 5 out of 5]

I tend to give everything 5 stars of books I like (its a bad habit I know.) However this has been my favorite MacArthur book so far and look forward to reading more of his stuff.

[Cynthia Hamlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hard Hitting

As always Pastor MacArthur tells it like it is. We may not like everything that God has for us but we must know that all is for our benefit.

[Reginald Detabali · Rating 5 out of 5]

First book I've ever read of John MacArthur. Here I got my good impression on him. After reading this, I've become a hyper defender of the Gospel of Christ since then.

[David Shaw · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent work that confronts the false gospels profligated by many churches today, must read!