What
it Means to Follow Jesus
Matthew 4:12-25
DATE: 23 Sept, 2001
PLACE: BBC Mallow
I.
Introduction – John 10:27
A.
Most people claim to “believe in Jesus”
B.
Fewer claim to be following Jesus
C.
Of those that at least WANT to be following Jesus, there needs to be a
check-up, to see if we really are “following Jesus
D. What does it mean, “…and they FOLLOW me”? What does it mean to “follow Jesus”?
II.
Message – Following Jesus
(Matthew 4:12-25)
A.
It Means Following a
PREACHER (4:12-19)
1.
What does it mean to be a PREACHER? Jesus defined it
a.
Never minced words, or changed the message – just delivered the message
(Jn 8:28; 15:15; Acts 20)
b.
Jesus didn’t whisper, or hide his intentions from anybody
c.
He stood up, and clearly, and plainly declared the truth (2Cor 3:12; Jn
18:37)
2.
Preached from the Old Testament – horror of horrors that anybody would
preach from such an old book!
a.
It is from the Old Testament that all the New Testament is drawn
b.
There would be no New Testament without the Old Testament
c.
They go hand in hand
3.
And Jesus PREACHED!
a.
20,000 people at a time could hear Him
b.
Anybody ever called of God to preach must do it with all their ability
(Isa 58:1)
4.
When a person gets saved, they are being asked to follow Jesus – the
PREACHINGS of Jesus – follow what He said!
5.
I am not following a wimp, or a trepidacious and fearful Jesus!
B.
It Means Following a Life
(4:16)
1.
When a person gets saved, they are being asked to follow Jesus – the
LIFE of Jesus – someone who lived here, and went places, and experienced the
entire range of events that we call LIFE!
2.
Jesus was not a mysterious figure – He lived out in the open
3.
He wanted everyone to see how to live – His was a model life – most
everyone would acknowledge this
a.
How to pray
b.
How to love
c.
How to teach
d.
How to live - simply
e.
How to die
4.
People don’t know how to live life because of the following reasons:
a.
They are following the fake lives of Hollywood
b.
They are living themselves in a make-believe world
c.
They are attempting to follow a counterfeit Jesus – one not described
in the Bible
d.
They are basically ignorant of the life of Jesus – only been spoon-fed
certain bits and factoids of the life
5.
We need to get back to digesting ALL of the Gospels, and ALL of the Old
Testament that are the source for the Gospel
C.
It Means Hearing His Call
(Mt 4:17-19)
1.
A preacher doesn’t just inform – that’s teaching
2.
A preacher requires of his hearers a response! A decision!
3.
You would agree that not everybody is following Jesus
4.
To follow Jesus actually begins when we hear HIS call (Rev 3:20)
a.
There are a lot of impostors – lots of people who do the calling
1)
Momma and daddy – only going to church for THEM
2)
Priests or Preachers
3)
Friends – they determine whether someone follows Jesus or not
4)
Things pressure us into ACTING like christians
b.
There are a lot of reasons to claim to be following Jesus
1)
The needy of the world – humanitarian reasons
2)
The fact that there are so few serving Jesus – pretty good reason
c.
But the REAL reason to follow Jesus is because you hear HIS call
1)
Call to repent – Jesus never calls someone who is already good (Mat
4:17; Mk 2:17) – to let go of your old life - salvation
2)
Call to start-over – start completely over
a)
You may be a fishermen – Jesus wants to make you into a fisher of men
b)
You may be a carpenter of wood – Jesus wants to make you a tool in His
hand for fashioning hearts
D.
It Means Allowing a CHANGE
to Take Place (Mt 4:20-22)
1.
The men that Jesus called had families, jobs, bills
2.
Those men had a choice to make
a.
Ignore Jesus’ call and continue on with their life as usual
b.
Or, allow Jesus to do what He said He would do!
3.
Let’s look at some Scriptures (Philp 1:6; Heb 13:20,21; Rom 12:1,2;
2Cor 5:17) – transformation is what God is talking about!
4.
Nobody who follows Jesus stays the same – you CAN’T!
a.
This is not the following of a doctrine, or a teaching
b.
It is the focus of our heart on a PERSON!
5.
What changes has Jesus been allowed to make in your life? and I mean
ALLOWED (unhindered)!
a.
Change of heart – from anger and hatred to rest and control
b.
Change of attitude – from depression and defeat to joy and rest and
great confidence (see Peter, and Thomas)
c.
Change of desire – from drink, drugs, videos and disco to Christians,
the Bible, prayer, preaching, and living right and clean!
d.
Change of love – from money, control to heaven and eternal treasures
e.
Change of dress – from rebellion, seduction to modesty and godliness
f.
Change of job – from what came naturally to what comes by the Holy
Spirit of God
6.
HAS YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS PRODUCED ANY CHANGE?
E.
It Means Making a Clean
Break (Mt 4:20,22)
1.
The way that Jesus walked required that these men had to dump a lot of
baggage (Lk 18:29,30)
a.
These disciples left their boats, plans, families
b.
They had to – they could not carry a boat with them
2.
Look at your life and see what may not necessarily be wrong to be doing,
but what may be holding you back from following the Lord
a.
Your TV
b.
Your friends
c.
Your extended family
d.
Your job
e.
Your hobbies
3.
To follow Jesus means dumping things that slow you down (Heb 12:1)
4.
EX: Me getting rid of my hobbies when I got saved so that I could start
completely from scratch for my Lord!
F.
It Means Forming a Church
(Mt 4:21,25)
1.
Notice that Jesus was gathering a group of people
a.
Individuals heard His call
b.
But those individuals group themselves with people of the same heart
2.
This is what church is – a place where
a.
People have decided to follow Jesus – the Jesus of the Bible
b.
People love to hear about Jesus, and to learn of Him (Mt 11:28,29)
c.
It is called an ASSEMBLY of believers
3.
If people claim to be “following Jesus” and won’t join-up with a
local, New Testament type of church, then they are only kidding themselves!
G.
It Means Staying With It
1.
Jesus didn’t save us to leave us – will never forsake us
2.
No person should get saved without a life-long commitment
a.
Same with Marriage
b.
Same with friendship
3.
There are far too many Demases in the world (2Tim 4:10)
4.
This is not a try-before-you-buy type of relationship – it is “all to
Jesus, I surrender, all to Him I freely give!”
III.
Conclusion/Application
A.
Most people claim to believe in Jesus
B.
Fewer claim to be following Jesus
C.
Of those that at least WANT to be following Jesus, there needs to be a
check-up, to see if we really are “following Jesus
D.
So, what does it mean to “follow Jesus”?
1.
It Means Following a
PREACHER (4:12-19)
2.
It Means Following a Life
(4:16)
3.
It Means Hearing His Call
(Mt 4:17-19)
a.
Call to repent
b.
Call to start-over – start completely over
4.
It Means Allowing a CHANGE
to Take Place (Mt 4:20-22) HAS YOUR
RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS PRODUCED ANY CHANGE?
5.
It Means Making a Clean
Break (Mt 4:20,22)
6.
It Means Forming a Church
(Mt 4:21,25)
7.
It Means Staying With It
E.
Are we truly following Jesus, or only going part-way because:
1.
We really don’t want to change
2.
We really don’t want to repent
3.
We really don’t want Jesus the PREACHER of righteousness
4.
We really don’t want a godly kind of church
5.
We really don’t want to be committed to anything spiritual!