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I enjoy talking about God stuff, with those who follow and who don’t. Among the latter, I’ve often heard, “Been there, done that. I tried Jesus, but it just didn’t work for me.” Sometimes they’d explain why, and a thought came to mind. Not for all, but I know some of them fairly well. Perhaps they hadn’t fully tried Jesus--they just got vaccinated against him.
As children growing up in the 50s, to attend school we needed vaccinations to face a multitude of diseases: polio and smallpox among the worst, but including diphtheria, pertussis (whooping cough), and tetanus. Vaccines delivered small parts of the disease germ, either weakened or dead, into the body. This taught the body to recognize and resist the real disease, and they worked—those diseases have pretty much been wiped out.
“Following” Jesus can work similarly. Some try just enough of him to say, “Been there.” But have they been there in the way that Jesus meant? In Matthew 7:15-27, Jesus warned against those who may seem to follow him, who even do some things for him, but miss the mark. Verse 21 hits us hard, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father.” He added to that in verse 23, “I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!”
Here, Jesus wants to caution us against getting just enough of him to get vaccinated, to think we’ve done enough, so we don’t miss out. So, what does it mean to follow Jesus as he wants us to follow? Let’s allow him to speak into that, in two primary categories.
First, from verse 23, we need to know Jesus, as he is, and connect with him. To get a sense of how radical Jesus claims are, please read John 1:1-14 to see how He is God. He Created all things. He’s the stairway to heaven. I suspect that for many who tried Jesus and it didn’t work, they followed a false concept of him. A nice, easy-going guy. Not very demanding. A teacher, a guide. Someone who would give us whatever we want, when we want it, and if he doesn’t, we fire him. Relationship is the key, “Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent” (Jesus, in John 17:3). We spend time with him. We talk to him. We listen to him. We seek to know his heart.
Second, we do his will, even when it conflicts with ours. He’s not a cosmic bellhop to serve us, but a God to serve. Remember, he’s God and we’re not. Jesus said that all the commandments we must obey are summed up in that we love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love our neighbor as ourselves (Luke 10:27). What does it mean to love? Very simply, to act in the best interests of the one we love, like God, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son” (John 3:16). Maybe in each of our interactions, we need to ask ourselves, will this demonstrate love, will it benefit them, or just me?
And a key part of doing his will comes from joining his mission, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:18-20, NLT).
One reason those purported followers displeased Jesus: they had no spiritual fruit in their lives. They had no overarching spiritual purpose. One of the benefits here comes from having a purpose for our lives that corresponds to God’s heart.
Kick Starting the Application
In reading this post, measure your experiences in following Jesus with how he defined what it means. Any changes you need to make?