Being A Follower

I hear it all of the time from the pulpit, on Christian radio, from friends and from others – being Christian equates to be a follower of Jesus. Honestly, I do not think that in this society and culture knowledge of what it means to be a follower actually is understood.

Thinking on this subject in light of John 15:15 and Matthew 16:21-28 with other verses as well…...

If you want to be a follower, you would need to be willing to go where Jesus goes and how He goes there. Matthew 9:9

We are to follow Jesus. We are to be where He is. John 12:26

In our culture we do not really understand the concept of Slave, Bond Servant, Servant or Follower. This is easily shown through the various English translations which seem to interchange these words – which of course gives an entirely different meaning to what we are called to be.

A Slave is someone whom is owned and must do as they are told or the wrath of the owner falls upon the slave.

A Bond Servant is someone whom, for a price, goes to work for the master. When the agreed to amount has been repaid, the bond servant is free to go. If the bond servant gets uppity, well there is always the prison they can rot in until the amount is paid.

A Servant is an employee. It gets difficult here because a servant can also be a slave whom draws a salary and may even have slaves of their own! But, from the master’s viewpoint, a servant does what the master tells them to.

A Follower, in the simplest view, does what the master does.

We are called to be both servants as well as followers. Not separate classes but you are to be a servant that is also a follower! That would mean you not only do what you are instructed to do but also do as you have seen Jesus do.

Some good friends of mine told me that since Jesus does not talk to them then they do not know what they are to do. Yeah, they are not real big on Bible reading.

Jesus has not only told us what to do through a rather large book, called the Bible, but he has also shown us exactly how we are to follow as well by his example in the same book. Not the answer most anyone wants to hear. After all, “graphic novels” are such compelling reading. Sigh…..

So, I read what I am to be doing through STUDY of my Bible. I can read about the example Jesus gave for us to follow through the documentation of His life. The important issue however, is that Jesus does the leading and I do the following.

If you think of Paul wanting to go Thessalonica, but being “hindered”, can see how our being stopped from doing what we want to do - can be a part of being lead by Jesus puzzle. However, Paul was given dreams of Macedonia, which he correctly interpreted as being lead to go there. Jesus first, then us…..

It is important though through our studies of Scripture and applying what we learn that we do not redefine whom the master is. A troubling thought as this is what has happened within the modern church across the past fifty years. Jesus, as some whom like to teach us, is not the same Jesus whom was understood in prior centuries. Jesus has been redefined into the image of what our culture demands – a milk toast/fuzzy teddy bear kind of guy. Not the MASTER whom would lead a missionary to his death, knowing that because of that death whole tribes would be reached by the next missionary. The MASTER whom frustrates some from their desire of service, allowing others to accomplish the same purpose and never knowing why.

Sorry, Jesus is not the master whom would want you to have a nice large house, a nice car or nice friends. His ways are so much beyond our understanding. But, His ways are always in support of a single concept – reaching a lost world for Himself. Where do you fall in supporting that single concept? And what is your percentage of commitment to that single concept?

If you are working towards that single goal – you are a SERVANT.
If you have put the rewards of this world behind you and are stumbling in the field of man towards this same goal – you are a FOLLOWER.

Remember Jesus wants us to be servants and followers.

I pray you join the small family of believers trying to do just that…..