The Basics
Day 6: Following Jesus
We talked about salvation and surrendering our life to God. But what does it mean to follow Jesus? When you read the Bible, we see the word “follow” a lot. This is in reference to a student following or learning under a “Rabbi” or a teacher. It was common practice in the Jewish community for young men to follow a Rabbi of their choosing to learn all of the Jewish ways and traditions. When we say, “follow Jesus,” what we mean is to learn from Him so that we can accomplish the end goal, which is to become like Him.
Learning from Jesus:
When we want to learn from Jesus, the best place to start is to study about Jesus. That is why we read and become familiar with the Gospel books in the New Testament (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John). These books are all different perspectives and accounts from Jesus’ original followers. They talk about who Jesus was, how he spoke, how he acted, what his response was in different situations, how he treated others, who he loved, and who he rebuked. We also read important things he said about how we should live our life.
Becoming like Jesus:
To imitate Jesus in your life is the daily goal. The way we become like Jesus is by receiving the Holy Spirit. The act of sanctification (a very “churchy” word for becoming a new person) takes time. It is not a microwave meal. It’s a crockpot meal. There will be days you feel like you are taking steps backward, there will be days you feel like you’re taking small steps forward, there will be days you feel like you’re not moving in either direction. I promise that if you practice following Jesus by learning about him and becoming like Him daily, you will not only see a transformation in your own life, but others will see it as well.
Scripture of the Day
“12 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk-in darkness but will have the light of life.”
– John 8:12