The greatest adventure in life is found in following Jesus. Jesus’ simple injunction to those he wanted to join him in his mission was “Follow me”.
He calls a young fisherman, Philip (John 1:43), he calls two brothers Simon (Peter) and Andrew with the same words (Mark 1:16-18), likewise a local tax collector, Levi (Luke 5:27), and a growing team of disciples.
After following him for three years, Peter and the other disciples fall away from him, or deny him during the events surrounding his unfair trial and execution on the cross. However, after rising from the dead Jesus renews his calling on their lives with the same compelling words “FOLLOW ME” (John 21:19).
Following Jesus encompasses every aspect of our lives. It is a sacred romance, a lifetime’s commitment, an amazing apprenticeship. Jesus is our inspiration. We see in his earthly life, recorded in the gospels, a man of compassion, wisdom, insight, supernatural power, humility, bravery, enthusiasm, integrity and self-sacrificial love. He is the greatest role-model.
We have called this framework of material “FOLLOWING JESUS – Developing Kingdom Christians”. It will help you to get into a dynamic relationship with Jesus, lay hold of his vision and values, and use your life to impact the world.
In studying the bible, particularly focussing on the life of Jesus, six areas emerge that can help us get hold of what it means to be an authentic follower of him today. I have called these six – God’s Gateways, Dynamic Devotions, Character Building, Personal Witness, Covenant Community, and Kingdom Adventure. They describe firm foundations for our faith and give us areas to explore as we engage in the great adventure of following Jesus. As we do so we can develop into the people God created us to be; “Kingdom Christians” fulfilling our destiny and potential.
Click on a heading to see an explanation:
|
|
|
|
|
|
GOD'S GATEWAYS
To enter God’s Kingdom, to be “born again”, to come into a relationship with God, to be ready to follow Jesus with commitment and God-given vitality, it is essential to pass through four spiritual doors or gateways. These are mentioned many times in the bible, often in pairs, sometimes all together. They are repentance, faith, baptism in water and baptism in the Holy Spirit. You will find that as you make these four things part of your life and experience, you will know God, grow in God, and be ready to serve him.
- Repentance - repented of sins, and living in a spirit of repentance
- Faith commitment - made a definite faith-commitment to Jesus, and living by that faith
- Water baptism - baptised in water
- Spirit baptism -baptised in the Holy Spirit, and knowing what it is to be filled with the Spirit
DYNAMIC DEVOTIONS
In Jesus’ well-known “sermon on the mount” he teaches on three key spiritual disciplines in Matthew 6 – prayer, fasting and giving. In Acts 2:42 we read about the first followers of Jesus devoting themselves to four things – bible study, fellowship with other Christians, “breaking of bread” (remembering and benefiting from the power of Jesus’ death and resurrection, when taking the bread and wine in “communion”), and prayer. These are crucial elements in living as followers of Jesus. Our health and effectiveness as Christians will be greatly enhanced as we weave them into our lives day by day. We will think about fellowship later, under the heading of Covenant Community. The others may be looked at under four key headings – Worship, Prayer, Bible reading and Giving.
- Worship - worshipper of God, privately and in public worship
- Prayer - praying regularly for oneself and others
- Bible reading - reading the bible regularly, growing in understanding, application, and ability to teach others
- Giving - giving to God financially, regularly, responsibly, and with generosity and joy
CHARACTER BUILDING
I use the expression “character building” to embrace a number of important areas in our lives. Following Jesus will have a major impact on our worldview, our attitudes, our relationships, and our lifestyle. Our character is of paramount importance to God. We need to share Jesus’ attitude of humility and servanthood, and of compassion and care for those in need. We must develop a clear Christian worldview. As we grow in our relationship with Jesus we can experience forgiveness, freedom and fullness. We need to honour God in our relationships, and use our talents and wealth to bless other people and bring in God’s Kingdom.
- Inner healing - having experienced healing and release from past hurts and personal issues
- Relationships - having a desire to please God in all things and grow in holiness
- Holiness - living as far as possible in good relationship with others
- Integrity - growing in integrity, character and perseverance, in the face of challenges and difficulties
PERSONAL WITNESS
We are not called to hide our faith, but to reach out to others. This is to be done by the way we live our lives, the way we work, our attitudes to people, and by sharing the message of salvation with anyone who will hear. It is essential that we pray for people, demonstrate God’s love to them, and desire that they come to know Jesus in a personal way.
- Testimony - able to relate to others one's personal testimony of conversion>
- Gospel - able to understand and communicate the gospel message in words and deeds
- Prayer - praying for people to come to know God, and for opportunities to reach them
- Action - actively engaged in outreach with friends, in the workplace, local community or wider world
COVENANT COMMUNITY
We are born again into God's family - the Church. It is essential to have a strong sense of belonging, to find our place and to play our part in serving others. God has given all of us gifts and we are to use them to help the family grow
- Belonging - committed to a local church and having a sense of belonging
- Blessing - aiming to bless the church and pray for it to grow
- Serving - serving others in the church willingly and humbly
- Gifting - aware of spiritual gifts and using them to build-up the church
KINGDOM ADVENTURE
The Kingdom of God is about justice, care, compassion, healing, deliverance and freedom. Our life is to be a Kingdom Adventure of following Jesus. This can be expressed in many ways having loads of Kingdom adventures - helping the poor, praying for healing, being involved in community projects, blessing children, demonstrating integrity in the workplace, giving money away, visiting people in prison.
- >Understanding - understanding the Kingdom of God and desiring to bring it in
- Adventure - personally engaged in a Kingdom adventure or adventures
- Righteousness - standing for righteousness, justice and peace in society, community and workplace
- Wonders - exercising faith and praying for the release of Holy Spirit power
- Spiritual warfare - engaged in spiritual warfare both defensively and offensively by prayer and action
- World missions - having a heart to reach people of other nationalities both locally and globally
Following Jesus in these six areas will help us to fulfil God's calling on our lives and to make a difference in the world.
