John 12:26 –
Anyone who wants to be my disciple must follow me, because my servants must be where I am. And the Father will honor anyone who serves me.
Wow this ties into a teaching by Pastor Miles at Water Edge (search the podcasts, it is wonderful) about following God. This verse ties into his teaching so I will tie into what Miles has said. First did you know the words “believer” and “Christian” do not appear in the Gospels? They start showing up in Paul’s writing in Acts. The word “follower” and “disciple” show up hundreds of times in the Gospels. So did Jesus want people who believe or people who follow? The numbers say it all.
Our salvation stems on believing and John 3:16 spells it out in a nutshell. But is that really it? Do we just believe and rest on that? This verse is very clear, that we should become Christ’s servant. That does not mean we ask Him for favor, but we follow His “asks” first, than favor follows. Not saying you will win the lottery after serving in Nigeria, but following Jesus is more than just a belief. At the same time we all do not need to follow Jesus in some far off land to serve Him well.
No following is more than just a belief and really without true belief following is difficult. This is where the rubber meets the road when you start to analyze your beliefs. Just how deep are your beliefs? Miles’ wife had cancer and at the time they were very much into holistic and organic things. Their “doctor” wanted them to stay away from chemotherapy and try this root. As much as they believed in healthy living, their real faith fell to the medical profession to cure the cancer, which it did! The point was beliefs guide your actions. Being a follower of Jesus required belief or your actions are nothing.
Revelations 3:16 talks about being lukewarm for God, not really going either way for Jesus and how you will be spat out if not one or the other. We cannot all be “on fire” all the time, but it’s more that we follow the prompting. It’s one thing to pray for a brother in need, it’s another to help a brother in need. Oh and does it get dirty much of the time, but the “asks” of God are different from the “asks” of man. Following requires belief and faith, otherwise the “asks” will not be easy to follow.
God is not asking us to live in squalor, but at the same time we cannot sit in our castle and roll up the bridge over our moat. I like to think of God as my benevolent DI from PI (Drill Instructor from Paris Island … the Marine recruit training facility). When he says jump, I say how high. I may not want to do what he is asking, but at the same time I need to have faith that He knows best. Like the DI, he may seem ornery, but his interested are in giving you the skills to survive and protect others in battle. We need to step out of our comfort zones and demonstrate the love of Jesus.