The first thing that we see when we start looking at this notion of discipleship is the first command that Christ gave to the fishermen, “Follow Me.” So it stands to reason, almost without saying it, that a disciple is a follower of Christ. Since there was no twitter then, I looked at all of the times that Christ said “Follow Me,” came up with an interesting list of characteristics of one who is asked to follow:
Meditating on these, thinking through what they mean to each of us individually, is a good place to start on this journey. They seem to me to describe one who, using a poker term, is all in; one who has put Christ ahead of personal goals including family, work, wealth, position, reputation, and pleasure. On the surface that seems like a radical choice, until one considers it is the creator of the universe who is issuing the invitation.
- Fishers of men
- Allow the dead to bury their own dead
- Must deny himself, and take up his cross daily
- Sell all your possessions and give to the poor
- Will not walk in the darkness
- Hear His voice
- Is working where Christ is working
- Is not envious of another’s standing with Christ
Meditating on these, thinking through what they mean to each of us individually, is a good place to start on this journey. They seem to me to describe one who, using a poker term, is all in; one who has put Christ ahead of personal goals including family, work, wealth, position, reputation, and pleasure. On the surface that seems like a radical choice, until one considers it is the creator of the universe who is issuing the invitation.
No comments:
Post a Comment