Following Jesus

Following Jesus

Following Jesus isn’t something you can do at night where no one notices. It’s a twenty-four-hour-a-day commitment that will interfere with your life. That’s not the small print—that’s a guarantee.

Kyle Idleman

Following Me requires commitment. In your early days of knowing Me, you felt light and carefree. Your sins were forgiven, and you experienced the joy of your new relationship with Me. You joined Bible studies and prayer groups and pointed others to faith as you extolled the benefits of salvation by faith in Jesus Christ.

But as your faith matured, something changed. Your spiritual growth brought the conviction that followers of Jesus care about justice, even when it’s unpopular. They reach out with compassion to others, even when it’s messy. They sacrifice financial gain to get personally involved in furthering My mission. They hang out with homeless people, prostitutes, and criminals at the risk of their own reputations. My people have always gotten into trouble like this—you’re no exception! Following Jesus is not a once-in-a-while commitment. It’s keeping an open connection with Me and saying yes when I want you to feed the poor, visit the prisoners, love the unlovely, and defend the rights of those who cannot speak up for themselves. It’s costly, difficult, and inconvenient—but it’s worth it!

Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me.”

Matthew 16:24