FOLLOW. Day 35 of Lent. You, Me keep on following.
Jesus used a two-word phrase most often when engaging people.
It was a simple, yet profound, call issued with a tone of encouragement.
Follow me.
Jesus used this call, follow me, at least 12x in the gospels.
When Jesus first saw Peter and Andrew his challenging call was “follow me and I’ll teach you how to fish for people.”
Jesus told his followers – take up your cross and – follow me.
He described his followers as sheep – who follow him.
He told us if anyone serves me, he must follow me.
He challenged Peter, after Peter had denied Jesus – follow me.
In New Testament times when a rabbi said “follow me,” he wasn’t simply saying get behind me and go where I go. It wasn’t a recruitment line like “Be all you can be, join the Army.” It was a much deeper appeal—a call— that told the one hearing it, I see something in you, I think you have a heart like mine, a soul like mine. We’re like minded. Join with me, watch me, listen to me, learn from me. I believe you can be like me.
The meaning of the words ‘follow me’ are a challenge to the called to be in the same way as their teacher.
When Jesus said ‘follow me’ it was both a challenge and an encouragement.
“As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at his tax collector’s booth. ‘Follow me and be my disciple,’ Jesus said to him. So Matthew got up and followed him.”-Matthew 9:9 (NLT)
Jesus saw the heart, soul and mind of Matthew; a tax collector.
Back then tax collectors were master extortionist, real bad guys who were crooked and greedy and hated by the Jews because they had aligned themselves with Rome. So hated they had their very own category – tax collector’s, who were considered so evil that they weren’t even lumped in with “sinners”. Matthew was a Jew by name only, he had to renounce his Jewish heritage to become a tax collector. He could no longer go to the temple to make sacrifices. He would be considered a traitor. And considered far from God.
When Jesus called Matthew he called a tax collector hated by everyone. Do a quick study to see the story from another perspective. In Luke’s gospel it says Jesus “saw a tax collector,” the Jewish response would be resentment, and disgust. But notice how Matthew records it in the gospel version he wrote, “Jesus saw a man named Matthew.”
Matthew knew by personal experience that Jesus saw past the façade. He saw beyond the poor choices and bad decisions and greedy motivations. He saw beyond the family line of the inherited position and past the pride that was a shield to his outcast heart. Jesus saw the man.
“Here is one of the greatest instances in the New Testament of Jesus’ power to see in a man, not only what he was, but also what he could be. No one ever had such faith in the possibilities of human nature as Jesus had.” -William Barclay
As Matthew sat at the tax collector’s booth Jesus issued him an invitation, a way out of his former life to begin a new life. With the words ‘follow me’ he was lavishing encouragement-which means to impart strength into someone saying He believed there was something about Matthew that was like Him- you have a heart like mine, a soul like mine, we’re like minded- join with me, watch me, listen to me, learn from me. Be my disciple.
Matthew got up and followed Jesus!
He wanted out. He wanted freedom. He wanted community and union and love more than the emptiness of money and power. In that one moment can you imagine what Matthew experienced? Grace, amazing grace, full and deep and real. Love. Jesus saw him. His inner being understood. Jesus gave him another chance and a new life. Isn’t that the picture of salvation. Yes. Lord, yes, how you love us. Our God sees us.
Matthew experienced a spiritual truth that day … God sees us where we are and calls us to follow him into deeper things.
You might think about Matthew and be tempted to compare your story to his. Don’t.
In C.S. Lewis story, A Horse and His Boy, Aslan recounts his sovereign workings in Shasta’s life. As he listens and reflects he suddenly questions, “Then it was you who wounded Aravis?”
“It was I.”
“But what for?”
“Child, I am telling your story, not hers. I tell no one any story but his own.”
Comparison kills contentment and takes our focus off of the story God is writing in our lives. The apostle Peter learned this truth after he was reinstated through Christ’s three questions, “Peter, do you love me?” that counter balanced Peter’s three earlier betrayals as he answered, “Yes, Lord, I love you,” and was commissioned again to feed and shepherd Jesus people. Jesus then explains that Peter’s life of service would be difficult and he would have to bear his own cross, Peter looks at the apostle John and asks the comparison question- “Lord, what about him?”
Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me.”
Jesus final ‘Follow me’ can be translated like this,
“You, Me keep on following.”
You- your journey, your story is personal and Jesus knows it all.
Me- the Lord Jesus Christ is the one we are to follow.
Keep on- following is a never-ending pursuit.
Follow-like I walked, where I lead you, in my spirit, abiding in me for energy and sustenance.
After 2,000 years Jesus’ challenge hasn’t changed. It is simply…
You, Me keep on following.
Jesus isn’t inviting us to join a lecture group to get to know Him and His ways.
This is an apprenticeship. It’s hands on application we are called to by the words,
“You, Me keep on following.”
The Jews had a blessing said over students of a rabbi –
“May you always be covered by the dust of your rabbi.”
A rabbi would often travel and following close behind would be his disciples. After walking the dusty roads directly behind their rabbi, the disciples would be dusted, covered by the road dirt that was kicked up from the rabbi’s feet.
“May you always be covered by the dust of The Rabbi, the Lord Jesus Christ.”
May you find the dust of your rabbi in his mysterious call within your heart and in his true Word spoken aloud. May dust find you in moments of quiet meditation and settle over you in those times of deep reflection. May his dust sparkle in the air as you worship, giving to those who have less, serving those in need, pouring out to others the good news of the gospel. May the same dust of The Rabbi so infiltrate your life that it begins to cover others behind you as you run the race set before you, your story in His story, of the grace and love of God.
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