There is a familiar saying, “you are what you eat”. That is not only true with food, but also true with what we put into our mind. In this culture we are bombarded with varying opinions. How do we sort out the right ideas, from meaningless ideas, and from harmful ideas?
Social media gives us multiple opportunities to “follow” someone or a group of people. Sports fans “follow” their favorite team. Some people “follow” politics while others “follow” podcasts of people with strong opinions. Who we listen to and what they say shapes our understanding of the world around us and our relationships with others.
In the four Gospels it is recorded 21 times that Jesus said follow Me. When He approached James and John and then Peter and Andrew as they were working their fishing businesses, He said to them, “follow Me and I will make you fishers of men”.
The twelve Disciples and others we read about in Scripture did literally follow Jesus. They walked with Him and He taught them Kingdom ways for three years. They saw His power over creation through the many miracles He performed as they followed Him. If they had a question about Kingdom living, He was there to give them the answer and guide them through each situation.
Then the big change came. In John’s Gospel, chapters 13 through 19 covered two days of shocking events for the Disciples, from the Last Supper to the Crucifixion of Jesus. Their world was turned upside down. Even though Jesus had been trying to prepare them for some time, Jesus was no longer physically there to guide them and answer every question.
In the Father’s plan of redemption, it was time to expand the Kingdom reach. Jesus in human form could only be in one place at a time. He let the Disciples know about the next step in Kingdom growth on earth. After He was crucified and resurrected, He opened the way for those that would believe to connect to the Father and the Father would send “another Advocate”, the Holy Spirit, to guide them. Jesus told them in John 14:16-17,
16I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate to help you and be with you forever— 17 the Spirit of Truth. The world cannot accept Him because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you know Him, for He lives with you and will be in you.
Therefore, anywhere the Disciples went they were still connected to Jesus and the Father through the Holy Spirit who came to live within them. This was different than having Jesus in human form to talk to, but they learned to “hear His voice” as the Holy Spirit guided them.
Here we are today 2000 years later. There have been approximately 100 generations since the first disciples that had face-to-face time with Jesus. Scripture says we have the same connection to the Father and Jesus that they had, once we surrender our lives to Jesus and “follow Him”. Do we really understand the Holy Spirit is with us just like Jesus was with them? They were called disciples because they learned from Jesus. Do we have a similar moment by moment connection with our Advocate, the Holy Spirit?
I feel like this is a disconnect for a lot of Christians. They spend most of their time independent of the Holy Spirit living life without seeking advice on every detail of life. That takes me back to the question of what we let into our minds that guides our decision making. Are we disciples of Jesus, or do we follow others’ guidance? Do we really “know” the Spirit is always within us?
Paul used the analogy of our bodies being a tent where the real being we are lives, our heart, soul, and spirit. Our tent will perish but our spirit lives for eternity. Using that analogy, if I recognize that the Holy Spirit has moved into my “tent” with me, it is now up to me to form a relationship with Him. Do I listen to Him or relegate Him to a lesser role in my tent while the “world’s voices” occupy my time.
So, then I asked myself what is a disciple? Webster’s definition of a disciple is, “A true disciple is not just a student or a learner, but a follower: one who applies what he has learned.” How do we become a disciple of Jesus today. Jesus answered that question in Matthew 16:24,
24 Then Jesus told His disciples, “If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me.”
Jesus said disciples “deny themselves”. We are all born with a sin nature that tells us we are the “center of our world”. Observing any child will show you that statement is true. Our natural self-centeredness drives us to do things that please self, some are sin and some not, but all are not Spirit lead. Jesus said we must deny ourselves; we must remove our self-center bent. We need to love God and those our Lord puts on our path of life more than the things of this world.
Then Jesus said we must “take up our cross”. A cross is an instrument of death. Jesus carried His cross to the place He was crucified and died. if we want to be His disciple, we must “die to ourselves” and follow the Spirit’s leading to use our God-given abilities in a Kingdom way.
Last, He said “follow Me”. Many times, in Scripture, Jesus said, “If you love Me, follow My commands”. That is the true mark of a disciple. He also said, “By their fruit you will know them”. The Fruit of the Spirit, not our natural ways, is the fruit He was talking about.
Galatians 5:22-23-
22 The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
At the end of Matthew’s Gospel Jesus gave the 11 Disciples what we call The Great Commission.
Matthew 28:19-20-
19Make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.
It is clear to me when Jesus said, “follow Me” He meant “to obey everything I have commanded you”. How do we know the things He has commanded us? The only way I know is becoming a student of the Bible. This is the most important thing we can do. Don’t just read the Bible, study it. Let the Scripture “speak” to you.
Do not let the preformed ideas you have block you from learning deeper truth. If a principle in Scripture seems different than what you currently believe, research it, read commentaries, talk to others you know have deep understanding of Scripture. If you can’t understand something, know the Spirit will make it clear in time. Don’t just accept ideas as truth without seeking help to understand the truth.
The disciples in the early Church knew “follow Me” meant 24/7, not occasionally when we can fit it into our busy schedule. Their lives changed radically. Those that knew them could not miss the change in their lives. The early Church had an amazing growth rate. Compare that to our culture today. The Church in this culture is shrinking. I have heard the term post-Christian cultured used to describe our culture today. The world’s ways are taking over our culture.
Here is my favorite analogy to help determine who is leading your journey of life. Picture your life journey as a trip in a car. Where is the Holy Spirit? Are you driving, and He is in the back seat where you ask Him occasionally for directions? Or are you driving, and He is in the passenger seat where He can see more clearly and gives you advice more often? Or is He driving, and you let Him take you where the Father tells Him to take you? Which fits your normal day? Who are you following? Remember Jesus said, “follow Me”.
Christian Life Coach 