Foolish and Weak
So you’re serious about following Jesus, are you? You really want to be a faithful, mature disciple of the Lord of heaven and earth, do you? Okay, but I need to warn you - it’s not all it’s cracked up to be in many churches and Christian ministries around our world today.
Faithful discipleship:
Is not measured by which political party you support.
It’s not about which denominational camp or Christian tradition you belong to.
It isn’t seen in what percentage of your income you give to your church or Christian ministries.
It’s not reflected in your Bible knowledge or theological expertise.
It can’t be measured by your involvement or lack of involvement in your church.
I could list plenty of other things, but you get the idea.
So, what does it mean to be a faithful follower of Jesus?
There are plenty of Bible passages I could refer to, but the one on my mind today is found in Galatians 6:14 —
May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.
Or to put it another way: the ways and thinking of this world are dead to me, and I am dead — of no account, an outsider, strange, rejected by, seen as foolish and weak - to the world.
What has been called “the crucified life” has absolutely no appeal to those wrapped up in the thinking and ways of this world. Their freedom, rights, privileges, and reputation matter too much. But to follow Jesus means to regard these things as the apostle Paul did, as garbage.1
If you really want to follow Christ, if you really want to walk in an awareness of “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done,” you must be willing to accept the disdain and rejection of both Christians and non-Christians caught up in the futile attempt to “save their lives” while you’re busy losing yours.
But here’s the good news, the “gospel,” if you will - you will discover a passion, purpose, and joy beyond anything this world has to offer. Best of all, you will be a visible sign of hope and a bright, shining light to those crushed and wounded by a hard, merciless, dog-eat-dog world.
One of the things I love most about our little church here in Pensacola is our “Celebrate Recovery” meetings on Friday nights. The attendance at these meetings is phenomenal. All kinds of people from all kinds of backgrounds attend. A whole lot of them are not members of our little church. But all of them are drawn to a place of healing and hope, love and acceptance, which, frankly, they aren’t finding anywhere else.
It’s a little-known ministry in a tiny church in what has been called the “Redneck Rivera,” located in the panhandle of northwest Florida. But it’s ministries like these, by people like these, that remind me of what it means to be a faithful follower of Jesus.
In Christ,
Dan
Philippians 3:8.