ALL FOLLOW
If you’re a parent, you have probably had a child try to follow you out of the house. One day, my son screamed, “But I want to go with you!” from the top of the stairs as I was headed out the front door. I could hear him crying as I got into my car. The discomfort of that moment tugs on a dad’s heart. If you are a parent, you already know what I’m talking about. You have lived it.
If you love someone, you want them to go with you. It’s that simple. We want to be with people we love. We almost always recognize this even if it seems impossible in some circumstances. So why is it so hard to nail this when following Jesus?
We all follow someone. I want to follow Jesus. I want to follow him in every aspect of my life. I’ve been trying to do that for a long time now. You’re reading this, so chances are pretty good you do, too. We want to follow Jesus. But we must acknowledge that the distance between our desire and behavior is often greater than we’d like. Why? Because stuff seems to get in the way.
Think about that for a moment. You have this desire to follow Jesus with your life, but it conflicts with your everyday circumstances. In other words, some obstacles get in the way. Impediments that keep us from following Jesus well.
Following Jesus is the best way to live. Only following Jesus leads us somewhere good. Only following Jesus leads us to someone good. But everyone is following something or someone.
Many things that people follow are not good. Many people follow their stuff. They go in search of external satisfaction. This happens when we think something we can attain will satisfy us. They chase possessions, a bigger and better home, a faster car, and more toys. This leads to debt, the rat race, comparison, envy, and more. They chase pleasure, even though following pleasure can never satisfy them in the long run. Following stuff is about worshiping satisfaction.
Many other people are following feelings in search of internal justification. This happens when we think something we can do will make us better. So they chase status, notoriety, worth, and self-esteem. This often leads to becoming a workaholic, falling into depression, fixating on selfishness, or something equally destructive.
It’s a dogged pursuit of wanting to be “okay with ourselves,” “feel good about ourselves,” or whatever. Following feelings is about worshiping ourselves. These are dangerous ways to live!
It’s critical to consider. What are you following? Because we are all following something.
The stakes here are huge because what you follow is what you worship. I don’t want to worship stuff. I don’t want to chase the bigger house or the nicer car. Not because those things are bad. There is nothing wrong with having nice stuff. I like my stuff. I’ll probably buy more stuff this week. But the stuff in our lives will control our lives if we allow it.
I don’t want to worship feelings and accolades. I am going to keep working hard. I have three jobs right now. And I don’t care one bit about titles. I’d be okay if no one ever called me “Pastor Nate” again. No one has to call me “Professor King” at school. In fact, I ask them not to. Why? Because I’m not chasing accolades and feelings.
The danger of following our stuff and our feelings is that they make pretty terrible gods. Because ultimately, it means we are worshiping ourselves. What you follow is what you worship.
BLIND RELIGION
Jesus developed a bad reputation among the religious people of his day. But the everyday dudes like you and me liked him. Crowds gathered around Jesus. Tradesmen laid down their tools and followed him. Why? They learned firsthand what Jesus wants you and I to take to heart. Everyday with Jesus is better than any day without him.
The religious folks didn't like Jesus. In fact, they murdered him. He got a bad reputation because he “hung out with tax collectors and sinners”. He ignored the man-made religious rules and only honored God’s law. This especially ticked them off. Jesus made life with God simple. He penetrated the religious bureaucracy, calling its cosmic bluff with every offense.
The religious guys followed their rules—not God. Well, guess who made the rules? They did. They worshiped themselves and played like they were worshiping God. When Jesus showed up, many of them started “following” him. They would cause trouble, ask questions, and ridicule his teaching in front of crowds.
So, one day, Jesus called them out in front of the crowd. Jesus spoke blatantly out of his authority as the Son of God, saying “These people give me lip service, but not their hearts. They are full of vanity, following human rules.”
What was Jesus saying? You can’t follow him with only words. Following Jesus has to be more than lip service.
Being a follower of Jesus is about more than a prayer. People pray a token prayer and then act like there’s nothing else to it. That’s a really disastrous way to live. Jesus doesn’t want us to follow him by going through the motions. Jesus wants us to follow him with our life. I’m not talking about moralism. I’m not talking about pursuing a bunch of man-made ideas. I’m not talking about religious duty or rules. That’s the junk the people who hated Jesus focused on. You know, the ones who murdered him.
Jesus called those guys “blind guides.” He encouraged the crowds to leave behind their blind guides as they followed him. He told them, “If the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.” What makes it extra spicy is that Jesus so often went out of his way to heal blind people. I’m probably wrong, but I’d like to think he turned and gave the religious guys a stare-down every time he healed another blind guy.
If you’re following man-made stuff, you’re blind. You’re following the blind. You’re still living in the dark. You can’t follow Jesus and live in the dark. He’s the light of the world.
One night as a kid, I was running through a friend’s yard. We were playing tag in the dead of night. There was no moonlight that night. It was pitch black, and we didn’t have any lights. It was dangerous. In other words, it was the perfect little hillbilly game. I was sprinting and stepped off a sidewalk into blackness, right into a ditch four feet deep. I literally never saw it coming. I was so lucky I didn’t get hurt.
Plenty of people are blindly following the blind. They follow the outrage culture because it makes them feel good. They follow some politician because he says just the right things. They follow a singer or actor because they like their style. They follow some writer because he is so witty or intelligent. They may follow a buddy who has a few answers or some mom who makes cool videos on social media; but none of those are Jesus. It's the blind leading the blind.
I was a college pastor for over fifteen years. Each year, we had an event called Battle of the Sexes. We would divide into teams of guys versus girls and play a bunch of games.
Looking back, I realized one of the games was so dangerous. We would blindfold the whole team, and one person would lay on a stretcher. Then, the blindfolded folks would carry the person on the stretcher. The one on the stretcher had to talk their team through an obstacle course as they raced the other team to the finish line. It was a blast, but it only worked because someone could see.
If we aren’t following Jesus, who are we following? We are following the blind. We are chasing the dark.
COME WITH ME
We need Jesus today. We need him everyday. We need him to rescue us from our own destructive behavior. We need him to help us reject our shame, shortcomings, and condemnation. We need him to help us focus our lives on something good and noble. We need him to help us love those around us. We need him to carry us forward in purpose.
One of the best examples is Jesus’ interaction with a guy named Levi. Jesus saw Levi working one day and said, “Come along with me.” Levi had let work get in the way. He was collecting taxes.
Sometimes, we are influenced from the outside in ways we don’t even realize. One day, we may look up and realize we’ve taken too many steps down a different path. How does this happen? It happens because of our everyday choices and decisions.
Even good things can lead to a life that goes off the tracks. Obligations can become obstacles when we aren’t diligent. Diligent about what? About what God wants for you.
It’s not like it’s a big secret. Jesus wants you to follow him. He invites you to follow him. He compels each of us to follow him.
Jesus takes our shame, so we will follow him shamelessly! His selfless sacrifice is the invitation into the remarkable—a life spent following the Son of God. Jesus lived and died to make a clear path for us to follow. He calls everyone to follow him. And we have to choose how to answer that call.
We see this in the story of Jesus calling Levi. Tax collectors were hated by their fellow Jews. They were seen as traitors. They were corrupt. They extorted their countrymen. Yet Jesus looked at Levi and said, “Come with me.”
If you feel like you’ve gone too far or messed up too much, it’s never too late to follow Jesus. Why? Because He wants you to go with him. If you’ve committed your life to Christ, you want to go with him.
Which is why it’s crazy and confusing when we realize we aren’t doing it very well. Mistakes are inevitable. Distractions are abundant. Perfection lies far outside our reach. But that’s okay. Not because we’re actively looking to self-destruct. It’s okay, because he never expected us to ace it all of the time. He loves it when I ask for his help.
Jesus wants us to follow him. Jesus wants us to hear his heartfelt words declaring, “Come with me”. Upon hearing these words, he hopes we will begin to take our first baby steps in an eternity of following Him.
When I’m playing in the yard with my kids, there’s a significant difference between how my eight-year-old son can follow me and my eighteen-month-old daughter. Ethan can run, play, ride bikes, and be adventurous. Anna tries to run, too. And she falls a lot. There are big differences in the way my kids follow me. One of the main differences is the size of the things that impede them. Ethan might shrug at the waist-high grass if we’re at the family farm. While to Anna, it would seem like an insurmountable green wall.
As we grow in Christ, the impediments change. The hurdles change. A person following Jesus closely for thirty years may not have the same struggles as someone who was just introduced to him. Following Jesus everyday leads to change, but not perfection. There will always be something trying to trip you up. There will always seem to be something else in the way. There’s always the next choice, the next fork in the road, the next potential disaster, or the next hurdle.
Parents try hard to keep their kids from experiencing this, but God doesn’t seem to do it that way. Why? It’s because He knows what we get to learn. Hurdles aren’t disasters. They are part of the race. We’re supposed to embrace what we learn from the impediments. Take them in stride.
Jesus didn’t consider the cross and the discomforts of the road as disqualifying experiences. They were hard, sure. But they made it worth it. What He offers each of us is the opportunity to walk in His love and grace. Not free of fault, but in spite of it.
What happens as we follow Jesus? He takes us on the adventure of a lifetime. One that changes everything when we’re willing to go where he went and do what he did.
WHAT NOW?
Followers of Jesus walked where he walked. When we follow Jesus closely, we walk where He walked. Our life takes us into contact with people needing God’s love. We have a better sense for where our next step should land.
We used to ask, “What would Jesus do?” Everybody wore bracelets declaring “WWJD” when I was in high school. It is the question when it comes to following Jesus.
Decide to follow Jesus closely. There’s a good chance you’ll get tripped up along the way. When you do, you’ll bump into Him all over again. Walk where He walked.
Followers of Jesus love whom Jesus loved. When we walk where Jesus walked, we find the opportunity to love those Jesus loved. Those who are rejected, broken, and in need. Not know-it-alls, but the down-and-outs. We all love a comeback story because we are a comeback story. Following him is our opportunity to add to the story.
Follow Jesus closely. Walk where He walked. Love who He loved. Give what He gave.
Followers of Jesus give what Jesus gave. Faced with the ones Jesus loves, I am presented with an opportunity to give what He gave—myself. All of us have to choose this. It might mean we give our time, our resources, our attention, or any number of things. Mostly, it means we give what we can.
This is the kind of life Jesus has invited us into: one that follows closely. Loving who He loved. Giving what He gave. When I’m getting it right, I have a better sense of where my next step should land. If I have let distance creep in, it might be harder to understand how He wants me to take the next corner.
When you walk where He walked, you’ll always find yourself moving in the right direction. Your life goes in new directions. When you love who He loved, you’ll always find yourself surrounded by people who need Jesus. Your life has a new mission. When you give what He gave, you’ll never stop living from the abundance of God’s big plan for life. What could be better than that?