So the question on the table is:
What does it mean to follow Jesus Christ?
I have read or been told, or it has been suggested several times over the past few weeks that attempting to be just like Jesus in every way is being presumptuous. Details follow.
I say, "Pretend you're Jesus. What exactly do you say to...? What exactly do you do to...?"
One reply: I am not Jesus; I am a repented sinner, I have His Holy Spirit and His Word, and I practice Christianity.
Another reply: Pretending to be Jesus is presumptuous; ascribing motive to people is bad enough, but ascribing motive to God is worse.
I was still kind of into the whole WWJD (What Would Jesus Do?) thing, and maybe I took it too far? If so, what am I to do with such suggestive statements as these?
Be a mimic of me, even as I also am of Christ. (1 Corinthians 11:1)
Who has known the mind of the Lord, and who shall instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ. (1 Corinthians 2:16)
Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus (Philippians 2:5)
This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. (1 John 3:16)
And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. (2 Corinthians 3:18)
Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. (Romans 12:2-3)
Come, follow me (Matthew 4:19)
It sure sounds like "As goes Jesus so go I" to me.
7 comments:
Ah, this is something I've been working on lately.
Normally, in this life we're living, the visible world speaks of the invisible world. The two reflect one another.
Think of all the metaphors Jesus spoke. Describing the invisible world by using visible pictures.
But, sometimes the real world merely 'follows' a divine invisible image, in an absurd, irrational, slave-like way. For example, the temple curtain ripped in half when Jesus died.
Real life, a slave to the unseen. The visible world bowing to the invisible. That which can not be seen making itself visible. Forcing nature to follow. Unnaturally.
Just like God to think of that.
So, I've been thinking lately, the whole idea of 'walking with God' (or of following Jesus) is like that, I think. That is, our lives are bent, shaped, enslaved, to that inner voice that says, "Follow me."
And the end result is, we do stuff that's as odd as the curtain of the temple ripping down the middle. There is nothing in nature that could have spoken so clearly about what was going on when Jesus died. God had to intervene with a special picture. Therefore, He ripped the curtain.
So it is with following Jesus. There's just not a good metaphor for it. So God moves us.
We don't learn about following by reading about how others have followed. Do we literally follow behind Him? Not really. He's not around to follow anymore. Do we imitate? Not good enough. Do we simply obey what He's already told us to do 'in the word'? Mmmm, that doesn't really capture it.
But from time to time, people will look at 'the followers' just like they did when they saw that curtain torn in half. Why? Because we make no sense. We're following the inner, invisible voice, which might be asking us to do anything.
The still small voice. The tiny whisper of a wind. Barely enough to make a flame tremble, strong enough to rip us in half.
We'll know we are His if we hear that voice.
That voice is no metaphor. Neither is following.
So what you're describing as following is probably best imaged in nature by leaves that follow the wind blowing across them, or better, blowing them off to fly. Or perhaps even better--the air of which the wind is made following the wind to who knows where.
And it's silly to argue whether the air is pushed or pulled. It's neither and it's both.
I just looked in my favorite online dictionary for the word follow and found twenty-something definitions. This may be part of problem. It is a rich word that has come to mean many things. Perhaps I'll comment on each of them, but this one really caught my eye:
Phrasal verb
follow along
To move or proceed in unison or in accord with an example: followed along with the song.
Isn't that part of what it means to follow? God makes His music, Jesus taps his toe, we get into rhythm with the One we can see, listening to what we cannot see, find our voice, and follow along with the divine song that set this entire story into motion.
In the first book of The Chronicles of Narnia, The Magician's Nephew, we find out that the Great Lion Aslan sang Narnia into existence. And everyone followed along. At least, everyone but the "queen" and those drawn into her discord.
I went to a Bible study last wknd, and the lesson was on hearing God's voice.
Before I go further, the brother who led the study does have a heart for God, and he and his wife have been very gracious, kind and giving to me. He means well and his heart is hungry and growing.
That said, the lesson was definitely baby formula.
The gist of it was: hearing God's voice (aka following, right?) may come through reading the Word, hearing a sermon, listening to Christian radio in your car, or a conscience that steers you in a blatantly ungodly situation.
There is merit in these, but how do we follow Jesus when the circumstances are murky? Gray? Unclear?
From what I know, there is very little teaching on tarrying. Yet it seems there is quite a bit of tarrying time in our lives.
There are occasions where it is obvious what we should do and how we should follow. What about the instances, periods and stages in our lives where dilemmas and opportunities are not overt?
In a different vein of following, the eunuch in Acts 8 would not have come to Jesus when/how he did had Phillip not followed the instruction of both an angel (v26) and the Holy Ghost (v29).
My (blood) brother recently, during the work day, felt prompted by the Spirit to go into a particular convenience store. While he was in there a man had a seizure. My brother fellowshipped years ago with a lady who had seizures, and he knew how to help this man.
In light of it being clear we are instructed to follow outside of the Word, sermons and Christian radio, there's a Follower in the city where I live (we used to work together) who commented (disbelievingly) to another Follower about me, that I "believe in an inner voice that guides".
How cheapened (and heartbroken, or even ticked) must Jesus and the Holy Spirit be when they hear Followers say things like "I believe God works through circumstance."
Well, yeah, that is one way. Does that mean that I'm to enlist in the Armed Forces when I get a goarmy postcard in the mail? Does that mean I'm to sign up for every credit card whose application passes before my eyes?
To me, being a Follower is a combination of principles from the Word and situational guidance by the Holy Spirit.
The Word says to take care of orphans and widows. Jesus says that I not cast my pearls before swine. These are examples of things I am/we are to do.
The Word does not say which car I should buy or which job I should apply for, or whether I should go talk to that man in a restaurant or that lady in a hospital.
Following is a blend of the Word (generic and specific) and the Spirit (specific). Some people are more Word-based in their following, and others more Spirit-based. Is it not both?
The circumstances of my life tell me very little about who I am or what I should do.
That God and satan can either one control my circumstances is a testament not to their guidance, but to their power, just as my ability to control my circumstances is a testament to my own power. And it is precisely this power that God asks me to give up. Or, rather, it is precisely this power He asks me to submit to His spirit rather than to the flesh of my old life. His spirit lusts against the flesh, and the flesh lusts against His spirit, so that I’m never actually doing what I want.
But in no case are my circumstances to tell me what to do—what my circumstances can tell me is what has happened to this point in my story. Nor do the nature of my circumstances blame me or praise me, because “I” have not been in control of my circumstances. Romans 7-8 makes this CRYSTAL clear. So does Galatians 5. Either God’s very Spirit has been in control of my life or “the old man”, “my flesh”, the “sinful nature” has been in control of my life. So either my sinful nature or God gets the praise or the blame in whatever “message” my circumstances are saying about my story to this point.
But neither do I advocate assessing my story to this point as a means to determine if I am in fact led by the Spirit or led by the flesh. A snapshot won’t do. Teleport back in time to when Jesus was being spat on or when his beard was being plucked out, or when he received his sentence of capital punishment, death by excruciating pain ultimately of a slow, agonizing, exacting suffocation on a cross. “Led by the Spirit?” the devil mocks. But “He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.” No, you have to stick with him until the next chapter, or maybe the next few chapters, to understand His story. Same with me. Same with everyone I come into contact with—sinner and saint.
Ultimately, the test for each of us is the same. If we are willing to lay down our lives for others, to bear the burdens of the weak, the oppressed, the poor, the sick, the blind, the lame, and all the sinners, and even the dead, then we too will “get a portion among the great, and share a cut of the spoils with the strong.” Isaiah 53 is beautiful on this. So is John 15:13 and 1 John 3:16. But on the other hand, if we promote ourselves, we lose everything. Jesus was clear on this. “He who seeks to save his life will lose it.” But it is very difficult if not impossible to tell whether any of us is in fact doing this by the circumstances. Certainly Jesus’ closest friends who hung on His every word didn’t recognize it when the fatal circumstances came His way. And as little as Jesus’ circumstances told Him about what had really happened to that point in His story, they told Him even less about what He was to do next. That came from within.
There is another part of Jesus’ story when He was led. “Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil.” That’s so interesting when Jesus Himself told us to pray, “Lead us not into temptation.”
As little as the circumstances of my life tell me about what I should do, they tell me even less about who I am. For that, I simply must ask God directly. There are surely clues in all the rotten poop in my life. And there are surely more clues written in my desires. But ultimately to know who I am, my identity, I need to hear my Father’s voice.
Generally, the Father's voice has told me, "You bear the image of Christ." Specifically, it has told me many things, but nothing told me was ever other than, "In this moment, in this place, in this way, you bear the image of Christ".
Amen.
It seems so many Christians seek pleasant, smooth, pain-free, trouble-free, "blessed" circumstances in life. That is the goal it seems to many, at least in the American Body.
As mentioned, the very first thing Jesus did upon receiving the Spirit was go to the desert where he was tempted.
I like to ask Prosperity Gospelers to explain Acts 20:23. Never heard a good answer on that one.
Romans 5:3-5, saying our character/faith/etc is built through hardship and difficulties, leading to perseverance, patience, character, etc.
Dying to our old man/flesh is the foundation of being a Follower. Enjoyable? No. Fun? No. Euphoric? No. Fluffy-pillow Jesus? No.
The joy unspeakable comes from seeing a sinner repent, a shortened leg grow to matching/normal length right before your eyes, witnessing the Lord do an undeniable sign/miracle, etc.
The Way is more than mountain top experiences. They are a part of the Way, but we are not to live exclusively for them nor let our faith be determined by their presence or absence.
In a ten-day period this past summer I saw the Lord do five mountain top experiences. I thought that was the beginning, saying "let's go, Lord! I'm ready!" I thought the mountain tops were going to start snowballing.
Guess what. The next two months there were zero. Still engrossed in the Word, still sought Him, etc. Seeking Him was unchanged, and even had more enthusiasm b/c the Lord had just shown Himself mightily. No move of power for two months.
In addition to the joy unspeakable events, the Way is also tarrying, bearing (burdens), dying to self.
Leaning too heavily on certain aspects or events of the Way (the miraculous ones, the positive ones) is going to lead to a schizophrenic walk in my opinion. Put too much faith in the fireworks and you'll get "down" when they're not to scale or as frequent as desired.
I am beginning to form the principle that God responds to His children based on their spiritual age.
For those who are Followers but whose only focus or desire is on the elementary things of the faith (salvation, blessing) and who do not hunger for more, God meets them at their level. He knows they are spiritual milkers, and He could overwhelm their beginner-level faith with trials or persecution(s).
The "seek/find, knock/open, ask/receive" that Jesus spoke of, I am convinced is a dual purpose message.
For those who get slammed by the pain of this world and need an Answer, I give you Jesus. It applies to seeking and finding the Truth, Way, Life.
Seek/knock/ask also has to do with spiritual gifts and spiritual growth. If you're not hungry for the gifts of God, guess what, Father/Son/HS are just as much Gentlemen to believers as they are unbelievers.
If a believer doesn't seek nor desire the gifts of the Spirit, they're not going to be browbeaten with them from above. Likewise, those believers who are content at the salvation/blessing level, and do not hunger for stronger/deeper with Jesus and the Holy Ghost, they likewise are not browbeaten from above to grow.
It's like a parent. Yeah, you usually tell your kids you love them, but when they come to you unprompted and tell you they love you, man that gets to your core. If a child comes to you and says "Tell me about x" or "Why does y....?" or "I want to know what a z is....".
When they thirst like this for a gift or knowledge or growth themself (versus our going to them and saying "Let me tell you about blah blah") it is so much more special.
God is no different is my experience. Some Believers comfortably accept the religion-infused Christianity they learn(ed) from their family and go no further with God. A much smaller percentage reach a point and say "there's got to be more to God than this", and begin to seek/knock/ask.
It is these latter Followers who become the "blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied". God's heart leaps when we seek Him deeply, and that is when He delivers in power, signs, miracles. When we walk in hunger and intimacy with Him is when the full, true Gospel begins to show. It goes from an intellectual 4-steps-to-salvaction philosophy at that point to God showing that the book of Acts is just as real and possible today as it was in the 1st century.
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