Jesus' call to radical discipleship has been tamed by the Evangelical emphasis on a cross divorced from that which preceded and effected it. It is much simpler and easier to accept the benefits of the cross, especially if the "plan" is presented in a propositional manner that offers heaven for a reward. Who doesn't want to go to heaven? The Evangelical gospel does not bring judgment on our desire for self fulfillment but rather promises to enable it. Self interest is not transformed by the power of this gospel but rather given its legitimacy. But not only the Evangelicals are guilty of appropriating blessings without cost. One must sincerely ask if any of us in the religious community truly desires to follow Christ. His life was one without ownership, rights, privileges, comfort, possessions, or sizable following. It seems the only gratification he sought was to "always do those things which please the Father." Obedience was its own reward. His only recourse was to entrust himself to his Father. There was no safety net for Jesus in the form of earthly inheritance or monetary gain from the message he preached or the life he lived. What an irony that so many become so comfortable and wealthy in the name of the impoverished Jesus and that the Evangelical church, especially, sees no contradiction between its lavish existence and the extreme poverty of the one they claim to follow.