FOLLOW ME

~By Pastor David McIntosh

In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus had just come out of the desert where He had fasted for forty days and defeated the devil by using the Word of God. Jesus had passed the test! He now would begin the most powerful ministry this world would ever see. In Matthew 4:17 Jesus proclaimed the heart of His message, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Right after this, Jesus shared the second step of the Christian life in verse 19: “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” This statement comes in the form of a command from Jesus. Jesus is commanding those that choose to repent to follow Him! If you ask people today what it means to follow Jesus, you get a variety of answers. But I have discovered that Scripture has only one interpretation; however that interpretation can have many applications. So, what does it really mean to follow Jesus? Here is the message behind the command.

To follow Jesus Christ is a decision. One must decide to follow Jesus. To follow Jesus is to set aside our own goals and to embrace the purposes that God has for our lives. Each person must pursue his own specific purpose; however, the specific purpose for God creating and calling a person is found “inside” the general purpose that God has laid out for all of us in His Word. Everyone is called to know God through Jesus Christ in a personal way and to make disciples of others by teaching them all of His commandments. Jesus made this clear in Matthew 28:18-20. No matter who you are or what your gifts, talents, desires, or experiences are, God has called you to pursue a daily living relationship with Him and to teach others His commands. This can look very different in each of our lives. You may be a mom at home fulfilling this purpose by training your children or you may be a business person modeling this in the market place. Remember, there is one interpretation but many applications to following Jesus.

Someone has put it this way: “All who follow Jesus must exchange their affections, goals, and priorities for His.” Remember, when Jesus called Peter, James, and John, their goal in life was to be successful fishermen, and there is no “sin” in being a fisherman. However, they had to lay aside their goals and follow Jesus. Not everyone will have to actually leave his vocation, but all will have to exchange their personal desires in life for God’s desires.

I remember when I made the decision to follow Jesus. I was a public school teacher and content to be so. As my personal relationship with Jesus grew, it was clear that He had other plans for my life. Through the prompting of the Spirit, the Word of God, my wife, my parents, and my spiritual authorities, God made it clear that I was to lay aside my teaching “nets” and become a pastor. It was a scary time for me to leave the comforts of what I knew and to move into the unknown, but I learned that my daily relationship and call to obey His commands had never really changed at all. They were my anchor.

In this call from Jesus to follow Him, I have discovered that if I am not intentional I will just try to be a fisher of men, thinking that if I try to convince people to “accept” Jesus, that is what it means to follow Him. But I have discovered that it is my responsibility to follow Him and His responsibility to transform me into a fisher of men. Let me end with a quote that has helped me in my pursuit of following Jesus: “Following Jesus means