Jesus gave the same invitation to everyone. It was clear, and it called for a decision. Jesus’ invitation could be accepted or rejected, but it couldn’t be ignored. The invitation was simply, “Follow me.” More than twenty-four times in the Gospels, Jesus invited people to follow Him. It didn’t matter who they were – seeker or skeptic, religious or irreligious, powerful or powerless – Jesus called everyone to follow Him.
What does it mean to follow Jesus?
For Jesus’ first followers, it meant leaving behind their old lives to spend their time with Him. They were fishermen, and they’d known Jesus for a little while, but when he invited them to follow Him, it was time for them to make a decision.
Following Jesus meant learning to live like Jesus, reflecting His character, priorities, and practices in their own lives. It is this same invitation that Jesus offers to each person today. You are invited to follow Him.
While we can’t follow Jesus around physically, following Jesus today means that we stop living our lives on own terms. When you follow Jesus, you choose to live a new kind of life, a life with Jesus in charge.
If you think about it, there are really only two ways to live. You can try to be in charge, going your own way and pursuing your own version of happiness. Or, you can let Jesus be in charge, going His way and pursuing what makes Him happy.
The first way to live always leads to a dead end: separation from God. But the second way, accepting Jesus’ invitation to follow Him, always leads to purpose, peace, and assurance.
