"My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me" (John 10:27, NIV).
"Let us know; let us press on to know the LORD..." (Hosea 6:3, ESV).
"Acquaint now thyself with Him and be at peace..." (Job 22:21, NKJV).
"To know Him more clearly; to follow HIm more nearly, and to love Him more dearly." (Richard of Chichester).
We learn to lead by first being good followers, just like a commander learns first to take orders. Jesus calls us all to discipleship and to follow Him, which is the essence or summation of our Christian ethic. When we go astray from the straight and narrow we need a course correction of divine discipline to prod us on the right path again. We all tend to lose our way as sheep and need a shepherd to show the way. Jesus is not the best way, nor one of many ways, but the only way to life eternal, it has been well put. Jesus was the teacher par excellence and our Exemplar of life to follow, not just a superlative example, but the one of perfect manhood and perfect Godhood. But Jesus didn't just intend to be a role model but to be a Savior
When we have decided to follow Jesus we will be tested because our faith is more precious than silver or gold. We often have to suffer for the cause of Christ and this only occurs when we are considered worthy of the kingdom's honor and name. The principle is that without a cross there is no crown! The problem is that many who name the name of Christ do not wholeheartedly follow Him and are doing more harm than good to Christ's honor by their life witness. The damage to the Name is severe by those who are nominal Christians or who only half-heartedly follow Him. We only can know Christ by following Him; we cannot know Him second-hand or by just hearing of Him--we must find out for ourselves and put our faith into practice.
True faith manifests itself only in obedience. The testimony that cannot be denied is how Christ does the transformation of an individual's life once he decides to follow Jesus--this is a miracle in itself. The lesson of Reality 101, when the chips are down, is to learn that we must relinquish the throne of our lives to Christ and be willing to go wherever He leads us through thick and thin as it were. But note that we are not saved by asceticism or martyrdom; we aren't holier by virtue of having suffered more. We must always bear in mind that Christ left us an example that we should follow in His steps in obedience (cf. 1 Pet. 2:21). Dietrich Bonhoeffer said, "Only he who believes is obedient; only he who is obedient believes."
NB: GOD WANTS OUR OBEDIENCE, NOT OUR ACHIEVEMENTS! THE ESSENCE OF RELIGION IS THE STRESS ON MAN'S ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE.
In sum, there's more to Christianity than imitating Christ; we know Him progressively as we follow Him in discipleship demonstrated in obedience and love; thus our marching orders should be to know the Lord and to make Him known. Soli Deo Gloria!
"Let us know; let us press on to know the LORD..." (Hosea 6:3, ESV).
"Acquaint now thyself with Him and be at peace..." (Job 22:21, NKJV).
"To know Him more clearly; to follow HIm more nearly, and to love Him more dearly." (Richard of Chichester).
We learn to lead by first being good followers, just like a commander learns first to take orders. Jesus calls us all to discipleship and to follow Him, which is the essence or summation of our Christian ethic. When we go astray from the straight and narrow we need a course correction of divine discipline to prod us on the right path again. We all tend to lose our way as sheep and need a shepherd to show the way. Jesus is not the best way, nor one of many ways, but the only way to life eternal, it has been well put. Jesus was the teacher par excellence and our Exemplar of life to follow, not just a superlative example, but the one of perfect manhood and perfect Godhood. But Jesus didn't just intend to be a role model but to be a Savior
When we have decided to follow Jesus we will be tested because our faith is more precious than silver or gold. We often have to suffer for the cause of Christ and this only occurs when we are considered worthy of the kingdom's honor and name. The principle is that without a cross there is no crown! The problem is that many who name the name of Christ do not wholeheartedly follow Him and are doing more harm than good to Christ's honor by their life witness. The damage to the Name is severe by those who are nominal Christians or who only half-heartedly follow Him. We only can know Christ by following Him; we cannot know Him second-hand or by just hearing of Him--we must find out for ourselves and put our faith into practice.
True faith manifests itself only in obedience. The testimony that cannot be denied is how Christ does the transformation of an individual's life once he decides to follow Jesus--this is a miracle in itself. The lesson of Reality 101, when the chips are down, is to learn that we must relinquish the throne of our lives to Christ and be willing to go wherever He leads us through thick and thin as it were. But note that we are not saved by asceticism or martyrdom; we aren't holier by virtue of having suffered more. We must always bear in mind that Christ left us an example that we should follow in His steps in obedience (cf. 1 Pet. 2:21). Dietrich Bonhoeffer said, "Only he who believes is obedient; only he who is obedient believes."
NB: GOD WANTS OUR OBEDIENCE, NOT OUR ACHIEVEMENTS! THE ESSENCE OF RELIGION IS THE STRESS ON MAN'S ACHIEVEMENTS AND PERFORMANCE.
In sum, there's more to Christianity than imitating Christ; we know Him progressively as we follow Him in discipleship demonstrated in obedience and love; thus our marching orders should be to know the Lord and to make Him known. Soli Deo Gloria!
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