ARE YOU A FAN OR A FOLLOWER OF CHRIST?

ONE OF THE MOST SOBERING PASSAGES OF SCRIPTURE TELLS OF A DAY WHEN MANY WHO CONSIDER THEMSELVES TO BE FOLLOWERS OF JESUS WILL BE STUNNED TO FIND OUT THAT HE DOESN’T EVEN RECOGNIZE THEM.

IN THE GOSPELS OF MATTHEW CHAPTER 7 AND OF LUKE CHAPTER 13, JESUS TELLS OF A DAY WHERE EVERYONE WHO HAS EVER LIVED WILL STAND BEFORE GOD. ON THAT DAY MANY WHO CALL THEMSELVES CHRISTIANS AND IDENTIFY THEMSELVES AS FOLLOWERS WILL STAND CONFIDENTLY IN FRONT OF JESUS ONLY TO HEAR HIM SAY, “I NEVER KNEW YOU. DEPART FROM ME.” (MATTHEW 7:21-23; LUKE 13:22-28)

IF YOU’VE JUST ASSUMED YOU ARE A FOLLOWER OF JESUS, I PRAY YOU WILL BE CONFIRMED OR CONVICTED AS YOU EVALUATE YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS AND IT BRINGS YOU TO A COMMITMENT TO FOLLOW HIM.

AT SOME POINT IN EVERY SIGNIFICANT RELATIONSHIP, THERE MUST BE A “DEFINE THE RELATIONSHIP” MOMENT. MANY OF THOSE WHO CONSIDER THEMSELVES CHRISTIANS HAVE NEVER TAKEN THE TIME TO CLEARLY DEFINE WHAT THEIR RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS LOOKS LIKE. EVERY BELIEVER MUST EXAMINE CLOSELY WHETHER THEY ARE A FAN OR A FOLLOWER. THESE CONVERSATIONS HAVE A TENDENCY TO BECOME UNCOMFORTABLE. BUT THEY DETERMINE THE LEVEL OF COMMITMENT ONE HAS FOR CHRIST.

IN JOHN 3 WE FIND THE STORY OF A MAN WHO HAD A DEFINE THE RELATIONSHIP CONVERSATION WITH JESUS. “THERE WAS A MAN OF THE PHARISEES NAMED NICODEMUS, A RULER OF THE JEWS.

THIS MAN CAME TO JESUS BY NIGHT AND SAID TO HIM, “RABBI, WE KNOW THAT YOU ARE A TEACHER COME FROM GOD; FOR NO ONE CAN DO THESE SIGNS THAT YOU DO UNLESS GOD IS WITH HIM.” JESUS ANSWERED AND SAID TO HIM, “MOST ASSUREDLY, I SAY TO YOU, UNLESS ONE IS BORN AGAIN, HE CANNOT SEE THE KINGDOM OF GOD.” NICODEMUS SAID TO HIM, “HOW CAN A MAN BE BORN WHEN HE IS OLD? CAN HE ENTER A SECOND TIME INTO HIS MOTHER’S WOMB AND BE BORN?” JESUS ANSWERED, “MOST ASSUREDLY, I SAY TO YOU, UNLESS ONE IS BORN OF WATER AND THE SPIRIT, HE CANNOT ENTER THE KINGDOM OF GOD. THAT WHICH IS BORN OF THE FLESH IS FLESH, AND THAT WHICH IS BORN OF THE SPIRIT IS SPIRIT. DO NOT MARVEL THAT I SAID TO YOU, YOU MUST BE BORN AGAIN. THE WIND BLOWS WHERE IT WISHES, AND YOU HEAR THE SOUND OF IT, BUT CANNOT TELL WHERE IT COMES FROM AND WHERE IT GOES. SO, IS EVERYONE WHO IS BORN OF THE SPIRIT.” NICODEMUS ANSWERED AND SAID TO HIM, “HOW CAN THESE THINGS BE?” JESUS ANSWERED AND SAID TO HIM, “ARE YOU THE TEACHER OF ISRAEL, AND DO NOT KNOW THESE THINGS?
(JOHN 3:1-10)

THE LATE PASTOR ADRIAN ROGERS WAS QUOTED AS SAYING, SO MANY OF US READ THE BIBLE LIKE IT’S A RECIPE BOOK, BUT WE NEVER EAT THE MEAL.

UNFORTUNATELY, TOO MANY OF US ARE GUILTY OF DOING THAT. HOWEVER, THIS IS ALSO HOW I VIEW THE PHARISEES AND SANHEDRIN. JESUS CONTINUED TO SPEAK TO NICODEMUS SAYING, THAT WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM SHOULD NOT PERISH BUT HAVE ETERNAL LIFE. FOR GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD THAT HE GAVE HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON, THAT WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM SHOULD NOT PERISH BUT HAVE EVERLASTING LIFE. FOR GOD DID NOT SEND HIS SON INTO THE WORLD TO CONDEMN THE WORLD, BUT THAT THE WORLD THROUGH HIM MIGHT BE SAVED. HE WHO BELIEVES IN HIM IS NOT CONDEMNED; BUT HE WHO DOES NOT BELIEVE IS CONDEMNED ALREADY, BECAUSE HE HAS NOT BELIEVED IN THE NAME OF THE ONLY BEGOTTEN SON OF GOD.
(JOHN 3:15-18)

IN JOHN 3:15-18: “BELIEVES” IS STATED MULTIPLE TIMES, EACH TIME IT IS THE EXACT SAME WORD, WHICH MEANS TO COMMIT AND TO ENTRUST ONE’S SPIRITUAL WELL-BEING TO CHRIST. DO YOU COMMIT AND ENTRUST?

*ARE YOU GOING PUBLIC?

-NICODEMUS WAS A MEMBER OF THE SANHEDRIN, THE ELITE GROUP OF RELIGIOUS LEADERS.

-HE CAME TO JESUS AT NIGHT. NO ONE IN THE ELITE SEES THE INTERACTION, SO NICODEMUS AVOIDS AWKWARD QUESTIONS FROM OTHER RELIGIOUS LEADERS, THEREBY SAVING HIM FROM GOING PUBLIC.

-NICODEMUS, LIKE ALL THE OTHER PHARISEES, WOULD HAVE BEEN VERY GOOD AT FOLLOWING THE RULES AND DOING THE RIGHT THING. HE WOULD HAVE BEEN RECOGNIZED BY MANY PEOPLE AS BEING A REALLY GOOD PERSON AND RESPECTED BY HIS PEERS.

BUT HE WOULD NOW HAVE TO CHOOSE BETWEEN RELIGION AND RELATIONSHIP. JESUS WASTES NO TIME TO GO AFTER NICODEMUS’ HEART. JESUS KNOWS HE HAS SPENT MOST OF HIS LIFE STUDYING ONE WAY OF LIFE, BUT JESUS TELLS HIM TO EMBRACE AN ENTIRELY NEW WAY BY BEING BORN AGAIN. WHAT DOES YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS LOOK LIKE? A FAN IS DEFINED AS AN ENTHUSIASTIC ADMIRER. THE TRUTH IS THAT FANS CHEER FOR THEIR TEAMS AS LONG AS THEY ARE WINNING. BUT AS SOON AS THEY START TO LOSE, WHEN HARD TIMES HIT, WHEN OUTLOOK IS BLEAK, THEY TEND TO COMPLAIN AND WALK AWAY OR FEEL THE SEASON IS OVER. THIS IS OFTEN THE WAY IT WORKS FOR THOSE WHO ARE FANS OF JESUS. THEY CHEER LOUDLY AND WITH GREAT ENTHUSIASM WHEN LIFE IS GOOD, BUT AS SOON AS LIFE GETS TOUGH, AND THEY CAN NO LONGER SIT SAFELY IN THE STANDS, AND ARE ASKED TO SACRIFICE, TO TAKE WHAT THEY KNOW ABOUT HIM AND PUT IT INTO PRACTICE, AND BECOME A FOLLOWER RATHER THAN A FAN, THEY BACK OUT.

FANS WANT ALL THE BENEFITS OF BEING CLOSE TO JESUS WITHOUT IT COSTING THEM ANYTHING.

LUKE 9:23 DEFINES A FOLLOWER: “IF ANYONE WOULD COME AFTER ME, HE MUST DENY HIMSELF AND TAKE UP HIS CROSS DAILY AND FOLLOW ME.” THIS IS HOW JESUS DEFINES THE RELATIONSHIP HE DESIRES TO HAVE WITH US. THE PROBLEM IS THAT WE WANT TO BE THE ONES WHO DEFINE THE RELATIONSHIP. WE WANT JESUS TO DENY HIMSELF IN ORDER TO BE IN A RELATIONSHIP WITH US. JESUS SAYS WE MUST DENY OURSELVES AND FOLLOW HIM. HERE IS A CONTRAST OF JESUS’ THINKING AND OUR THINKING WHEN IT COMES TO FOLLOWING.

NICODEMUS HAD TO MAKE A CHOICE WHETHER TO MOVE TOWARD A RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS OR KEEP THE PEOPLE AROUND HIM HAPPY. THE LAST TIME WE READ ABOUT NICODEMUS, IT SEEMS HE HAD BECOME A FOLLOWER. IN JOHN 19, “AFTER THIS, JOSEPH OF ARIMATHEA, BEING A DISCIPLE OF JESUS, BUT SECRETLY, FOR FEAR OF THE JEWS, ASKED PILATE THAT HE MIGHT TAKE AWAY THE BODY OF JESUS; AND PILATE GAVE HIM PERMISSION. SO, HE CAME AND TOOK THE BODY OF JESUS. AND NICODEMUS, WHO AT FIRST CAME TO JESUS BY NIGHT, ALSO CAME, BRINGING A MIXTURE OF MYRRH AND ALOES, ABOUT A HUNDRED POUNDS. THEN THEY TOOK THE BODY OF JESUS, AND BOUND IT IN STRIPS OF LINEN WITH THE SPICES, AS THE CUSTOM OF THE JEWS IS TO BURY (JOHN 19:38-40). THIS WAS NICODEMUS’ PUBLIC MOMENT. JESUS ISN’T INTERESTED IN HAVING MORE FANS, BUT FOLLOWERS. IF JESUS IS NOT INTERRUPTING YOUR LIFE, THEN YOU MIGHT FIND YOU ARE MORE OF A FAN THAN A FOLLOWER. BEING A FOLLOWER OF JESUS SHOULD TAKE OVER EVERY ASPECT OF YOUR LIFE.

YOU MAY KNOW A LOT ABOUT A PERSON, BUT JUST BECAUSE YOU KNOW A LOT ABOUT SOMEONE DOES NOT MEAN YOU REALLY KNOW HIM. REMEMBER JESUS DEFINED WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A FOLLOWER IN LUKE 9:23, “IF ANYONE WOULD COME AFTER ME, HE MUST DENY HIMSELF AND TAKE UP HIS CROSS DAILY AND FOLLOW ME.” THE PHRASE “COME AFTER ME” HERE IN LUKE 9, MEANS “PASSIONATE PURSUIT.”

IN MATTHEW 15:8, JESUS DESCRIBED A GROUP OF RELIGIOUS LEADERS, OR PHARISEES, WHO KNEW A LOT ABOUT GOD, BUT DIDN’T REALLY KNOW HIM. “THESE PEOPLE HONOR ME WITH THEIR LIPS, BUT THEIR HEARTS ARE FAR FROM ME.” KNOWING ABOUT SOMEONE AND KNOWING SOMEONE ARE NOT THE SAME. THIS IS THE WAY WE APPROACH OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS. WE MEMORIZE ALL THE FACTS, BUT WE DON’T REALIZE WHAT’S MISSING IS THE RELATIONSHIP. KNOWLEDGE IS NOT A SUBSTITUTE FOR INTIMACY.

GENESIS 4:1: “ADAM KNEW HIS WIFE EVE.”

-HEBREW WORD FOR “KNEW” IS YADA: TO KNOW COMPLETELY AND TO BE COMPLETELY KNOWN.
MOST OF YOUR BIBLES PROBABLY SAY, “ADAM LAY WITH HIS WIFE EVE.” YOU GET THE IDEA OF WHAT IS BEING COMMUNICATED. IT’S AN INTIMATE CONNECTION ON EVERY LEVEL. IT’S FAR MORE THAN KNOWLEDGE ABOUT SOMEONE, BUT INTIMACY WITH THEM. “COMMUNICATION IS THE MOST INTIMATE THING WE CAN DO.” GOD WANTS TO “YADA” YOU. HE WANTS TO KNOW AND BE KNOWN BY YOU. JUST LIKE A MARRIED PERSON SHOULD KNOW EVERYTHING THERE IS TO KNOW ABOUT THEIR SPOUSE. THAT’S THE WAY GOD WANTS TO KNOW YOU. THIS SHOULD CHANGE THE WAY WE APPROACH JESUS. IN LUKE 7:36-50: THE PHARISEES KNEW ALL ABOUT JESUS, BUT THEY DID NOT KNOW HIM.

SIMON, THE PHARISEE, INVITED JESUS TO HIS HOUSE, WHICH WAS CUSTOMARY IN ORDER TO LEARN MORE ABOUT JESUS AND WHAT HE WAS TEACHING.
A FEW THINGS ABOUT MOST OF THE PHARISEES:
USUALLY PRESENT THEMSELVES AS PERFECT. MORE CONCERNED ABOUT IMPRESSING THAN KNOWING (INTIMACY). THE MESSAGE WAS “IF YOU ARE GOOD ENOUGH YOU MAY JOIN US. THEY ARE INVITING, BUT NEVER WELCOMING. BUT NOW, A SINFUL WOMAN COMES IN AND STANDS OVER JESUS’ FEET. FIRST CENTURY DINING TABLES WOULD HAVE BEEN IN THE CENTER OF THE ROOM WITH ALL THE ELITE GUESTS RECLINED AT THE TABLE LOOKING INWARD TOWARDS THE GUEST OF HONOR. OTHER LESS IMPORTANT GUESTS WOULD BE ALLOWED TO COME IN AND STAND ALONG THE WALL TO LISTEN TO THE CONVERSATION WHEN VISITING RABBIS WOULD COME TO VISIT. THE MOMENT GETS AWKWARD BECAUSE THIS WOMAN WAS CONSIDERED A PROSTITUTE. SHE LETS HER HAIR DOWN; WHICH, WHEN DONE IN FRONT OF ANOTHER MAN THAT WAS NOT HER HUSBAND, IT WAS GROUNDS FOR DIVORCE. SHE TOUCHES JESUS IN PUBLIC, WHICH WOULD HAVE BEEN ANOTHER UNACCEPTABLE PRACTICE. ALL EYES WOULD HAVE BEEN DRAWN TO THE WOMAN DUE TO HER REPUTATION, AND THE CLEAR BROKENNESS OF HER TEARS, AND THE SMELL OF THE PERFUME POURED OUT.

THE NORMAL ETIQUETTE FOR WELCOMING GUESTS WOULD HAVE INCLUDED A KISS, WASHING OF FEET, AND ANOINTING WITH OIL. THE PHARISEES DID NONE OF THESE FOR JESUS BECAUSE THEY DID NOT WANT TO KNOW HIM. THE INTIMACY OF HER WELCOMING WAS OBVIOUSLY SHOCKING TO SIMON AND THE REST OF THE GUESTS, AND YET JESUS WELCOMED THIS. MORE THAN KNOWLEDGE, JESUS WANTS LOVE. MORE THAN BASIC KNOWLEDGE, HE WANTS YOUR HEART.

DO YOU ALIGN AS A FAN OF GOD AS THE PHARISEES:
DO YOU FEEL THE NEED TO PRESENT YOURSELF AS HAVING IT ALL TOGETHER AND BEING PERFECT?
ARE YOU MORE CONCERNED ABOUT IMPRESSING JESUS, OR KNOWING HIM? WHEN IT COMES TO OTHERS, DO YOU PLACE EXPECTATIONS ON THEM BEFORE THEY CAN BE PART OF YOUR FRIEND GROUP OR CHURCH? DO YOU SETTLE FOR SHALLOW RELATIONSHIPS BY INVITING PEOPLE TO THINGS, BUT NEVER REALLY WELCOMING THEM TO BE A PART OF YOUR LIFE? OR ARE YOU A FOLLOWER LIKE THE SINFUL WOMAN:

ARE YOU DESPERATE TO BE FREED FROM YOUR PAST?
DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU WILL BE REJECTED IF YOU BRING YOUR SIN OUT IN THE OPEN? DO YOU HAVE A DEEP DESIRE TO HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS?
IS TODAY THE DAY YOU POUR OUT YOUR ALL AT THE FEET OF JESUS? ARE YOU ARE TIRED OF BEING A FAN?
SPORTING ARENAS ARE FILLED WITH ENTHUSIASTIC FANS WHO HAVE DRAWN A LINE AND CHOSEN A TEAM TO ADMIRE. THESE FANS HAVE HOPPED ON THE BANDWAGON TO CHEER FOR THEIR FAVORITE ATHLETES. TAKING AN HONEST LOOK, WE SEE THAT THE COST OF BEING A FAN IS MINIMAL. HOWEVER, BEING A FOLLOWER MEANS DRASTIC AND SIGNIFICANT SACRIFICE. WHEN IT COMES TO JESUS, BEING A FOLLOWER COMES AT A STEEP PRICE. JESUS MAKES IT CLEAR THAT FOLLOWING HIM WILL AND MUST INTERFERE WITH YOUR LIFE. A TRUE FOLLOWER WILL LIVE A LIFE MARKED BY SACRIFICE, DEDICATION, AND A DRIVE TO PRIORITIZE THEIR RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS OVER EVERYTHING ELSE. FOLLOWERS ARE ALL IN.

SECOND TIMOTHY 4:7: “I HAVE FOUGHT THE GOOD FIGHT, I HAVE FINISHED THE RACE, I HAVE KEPT THE FAITH.”

1.
JESUS WANTS TO BE “MORE THAN.”

IN JOHN 21:15, JESUS ASKS PETER IF HE LOVES HIM MORE THAN ANYTHING. SOME WOULD SAY JESUS WAS REFERRING TO THE OTHER DISCIPLES, BUT IT SEEMS MORE LOGICAL JESUS IS ASKING IF HE LOVES HIM MORE THAN FISH, MORE THAN FISHING, MORE THAN YOUR JOB, MORE THAN WHAT GETS YOU MONEY, MORE THAN YOUR HOBBY. DO YOU LOVE ME MORE THAN THESE?

WHAT DO YOU LOVE? IF YOU DON’T KNOW, WHAT IT IS YOU LOVE, JUST THINK ABOUT WHAT YOU SPEND YOUR MONEY AND YOUR TIME ON. JESUS SAID, “WHERE YOUR TREASURE IS, THERE YOUR HEART WILL BE ALSO
(MATTHEW 6:21).

JESUS SAYS YOU HAVE TO CHOOSE. DO YOU CHOOSE JESUS OVER EVERYTHING ELSE? ARE THERE RELATIONSHIPS WE WON’T BREAK FOR HIM, HABITS WE REFUSE TO STOP, OR PRIORITIES THAT SURPASS HIS? IN JOHN 6:53: JESUS SAYS, “UNLESS YOU EAT THE FLESH OF THE SON OF MAN, AND DRINK HIS BLOOD, YOU HAVE NO LIFE IN YOU.” JOHN 6:66 SAYS, “FROM THIS TIME MANY OF HIS DISCIPLES TURNED BACK AND NO LONGER FOLLOWED HIM.”

THEY WANTED THE BENEFITS, BUT THEY DIDN’T WANT TO MAKE ANY PERSONAL SACRIFICES. WE SEE THIS SAME THING TODAY. PEOPLE COME TO CHURCH AND PARTICIPATE BECAUSE THEY HEAR HOW SCARY HELL IS AND DON’T WANT THAT, BUT THEY DON’T REALLY WANT TO BE ALL IN FOR JESUS EITHER. AGAIN REMEMBER, IN LUKE 9:23, JESUS SAID, “IF ANYONE WOULD COME AFTER ME, HE MUST DENY HIMSELF, AND TAKE UP HIS CROSS DAILY AND FOLLOW ME.” SO, LET’S LOOK IN SCRIPTURE AT WHAT FANS LOOK LIKE.
LIVING IN DENIAL IN LUKE 9:57-62, WE RUN INTO THREE DIFFERENT FANS OF JESUS. THEY EVEN TALK A GOOD GAME TO DELAY FOLLOWING JESUS IMMEDIATELY AND PASSIONATELY. “FOXES HAVE HOLES AND BIRDS OF THE AIR HAVE NESTS, BUT THE SON OF MAN HAS N0WHERE TO LAY HIS HEAD.” (LUKE 9:57) “LET THE DEAD BURY THEIR OWN DEAD, BUT YOU GO AND PREACH THE KINGDOM OF GOD” (LUKE 9:60) I WILL FOLLOW YOU, BUT FIRST LET ME FIRST GO AND BID THEM FAREWELL WHO ARE AT MY HOUSE.” (LUKE 9:61)

– FOXES HAVE HOLES = WE MUST DENY OUR COMFORTS.

THIS MAN SAYS THE RIGHT THING TO JESUS. HE SAYS HE WILL GO WHEREVER JESUS WANTS. JESUS POINTS OUT THAT HE WILL NOT HAVE ALL THE COMFORTS HE HAD BECOME ACCUSTOMED TO. WE HAVE BECOME SO ACCUSTOMED TO OUR COMFORTS; IT’S DIFFICULT FOR US TO GIVE THEM UP.

– LET THE DEAD BURY THE DEAD = DENY WHAT WE CHERISH. ANOTHER MAN SAID HE WOULD FOLLOW JESUS, BUT FIRST HE WANTED HIS INHERITANCE. HIS FATHER WASN’T DEAD. HE JUST WANTED TO BE ABLE TO CLAIM IT WHEN THE TIME CAME. FAMILY IN THIS CULTURE WAS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT. TO LEAVE YOUR FAMILY EARLY WOULD RUN THE RISK OF LOSINGSOME OR ALL OF YOUR INHERITANCE. – SAY GOODBYE FAMILY = DENY OUR CONVENIENCES. SOME OF THE RESPONSES BY JESUS SOUND HARSH. TO THIS LAST GUY HE SAYS, YOU ARE EITHER IN, OR YOU ARE OUT. YOU MUST ENGAGE AND NOT LOOK BACK. YOU HAVE TO COMMIT TO FOLLOW JESUS ALL THE TIME IN EVERY AREA OF YOUR LIFE, NOT JUST WHEN IT IS CONVENIENT. LET’S LOOK AT HOW THAT LOOKS TODAY.

BARNA RESEARCH REPORTED THAT 65 PERCENT OF 24 TO 43 YEAR OLDS IN AMERICA HAVE “MADE A PERSONAL COMMITMENT TO JESUS THAT IS STILL IMPORTANT TO THEM.” ON THE SURFACE THAT SEEMS REALLY ENCOURAGING. BUT HOW MANY OF THOSE ARE FOLLOWERS? BECAUSE THEIR RESEARCH SHOWED THAT ONLY 33 PERCENT OF THOSE PEOPLE BELIEVED THAT SEX OUTSIDE OF MARRIAGE IS WRONG. IN OTHER WORDS, 65 PERCENT SAY THEY ARE COMMITTED TO JESUS, BUT MOST OF THEM AREN’T COMMITTED TO JESUS IN EVERY AREA OF THEIR LIFE. JESUS NEVER LEFT OPEN THE OPTION FOR SELECTIVE COMMITMENT.

WHEN YOU AGREE TO DENY YOURSELF AND FOLLOW JESUS, YOU ARE SAYING: I CHOOSE JESUS OVER EVERY AREA OF MY LIFE. JESUS WAS VERY CLEAR THAT FOLLOWING HIM COMES AT A PRICE! WHEN YOU TAKE A LOOK AT FANS AND FOLLOWERS SIDE-BY-SIDE, BEING A FOLLOWER CAN SEEM PRETTY EXTREME. PERHAPS THAT’S BECAUSE IT IS A RADICAL THING FOR US TO COMPLETELY SURRENDER OUR LIVES TO JESUS. IT’S NO SMALL TASK TO LAY ASIDE OUR OWN PERSONAL COMFORT IN ORDER TO GIVE CHRIST TOTAL LORDSHIP. FOLLOWING JESUS MEANS AN ALL OR NOTHING FAITHFULNESS. FANS WANT ALL THE BENEFITS OF BEING CLOSE TO JESUS WITHOUT IT COSTING THEM ANYTHING.

THIS IS THE WAY MANY APPROACH A RELATIONSHIPWITH JESUS. WE MEMORIZE ALL THE FACTS, BUT WE DON’T REALIZE THAT WHAT’S REALLY MISSING IS THE RELATIONSHIP. WE ALL RUN THE RISK OF MISTAKING OUR CHURCH ATTENDANCE WITH HAVING A RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS. THE DIFFERENCE COMES DOWN TO WHETHER OR NOT WE REALLY HAVE AN INTIMATE RELATIONSHIP WITH HIM. ONCE AGAIN, WE HAVE TO TAKE A GOOD, EARNEST LOOK AT OURSELVES AND SEE WHERE WE STAND IN OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS. DO WE ACTUALLY KNOW HIM OR DO WE JUST KNOW ABOUT HIM? JESUS WASN’T VAGUE ABOUT THIS POINT; HE LET HIS DISCIPLES KNOW THAT THEY HAD TO BE READY TO DENY THEMSELVES AND TAKE UP THEIR CROSS DAILY TO FOLLOW HIM. IN OTHER WORDS, THEY HAD TO BE PREPARED FOR WHATEVER LIED AHEAD. NO MATTER THE COST. AND THERE’S NO ESCAPE PLAN. FANS CAN ALWAYS WALK AWAY WHEN THINGS DON’T GO THEIR WAY. FOLLOWERS RISK IT ALL TO PURSUE A RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS CHRIST. FOLLOWING JESUS IS AN ALL OR NOTHING UNDERTAKING.
THERE IS A HARD-HITTING STATEMENT FROM A FATHER SPEAKING ABOUT HIS DAUGHTER, HE SAID “WE RAISED HER IN CHURCH, BUT WE DIDN’T RAISE HER IN CHRIST.” THE DAUGHTER HAD BEEN EXPOSED TO JESUS, BUT SHE DIDN’T KNOW HIM. AGAIN, WE ALL RUN THE RISK MISTAKING OUR CHURCH ACTIVITIES WITH A RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS. BOTH ARE IMPORTANT. THE DIFFERENCE COMES DOWN TO WHETHER OR NOT WE REALLY HAVE AN INTIMATE RELATIONSHIP WITH HIM. IF YOU PROFESS WITH THE LOUDEST AND CLEAREST VOICE EVERY PORTION OF THE TRUTH OF GOD, EXCEPT WHEN THE WORLD AND THE DEVIL ARE ATTACKING YOU, THEN YOU ARE NOT CONFESSING CHRIST. YOU MUST BE COMPLETE IN ALL THINGS TO HONOR GOD, WHETHER YOU LIVE OR WHETHER YOU DIE, THE COMMITTED FOLLOWER OF CHRIST CARES NOTHING AT ALL OF THE COST. REMEMBER, A FAITH THAT IS NOT TESTED, IS A FAITH THAT CANNOT BE TRUSTED. THE APOSTLE PAUL REMINDED TIMOTHY TO REACH WITH PATIENCE AND PRECISION, AND PAUL REMINDED TIMOTHY TO STAY FOCUSED BECAUSE SOME WILL REJECT JESUS (2 TIMOTHY 4:1-5).

PAUL IS SAYING TO TIMOTHY THEY ARE NOT REJECTING HIM; THEY ARE REJECTING CHRIST.
NOW, IT ALL COMES DOWN TO TRUST. YOU WANT TO TRUST YOUR ALL TO GOD, BUT YOU MAY FEEL NOT ADEQUATE. YOU MAY FEEL NOT READY. YOU MAY FEEL NOT PREPARED. BUT WHATEVER YOU FEEL YOU ARE LACKING OR MISSING, KNOW THAT GOD HAS ALL YOUR MISSING PIECES YOU WILL NEED. JUST LIKE IN DANIEL, CHAPTER 3. SHADRECH, MESHACH, AND ABENDEGO ARE TO BE CAST INTO THE FIERY FURNACE UNLESS THEY BOW DOWN TO THE GOLDEN IMAGE THAT KING NEBUCHADNEZZAR HAD MADE. WITHOUT HESITATION THEY SAID TO THE KING, “WE DO NOT NEED TO GIVE YOU AN ANSWER CONCERNING THIS MATTER. IF IT BE, OUR GOD WHOM WE SERVE IS ABLE TO DELIVER US FROM THE FURNACE OF BLAZING FIRE, AND HE WILL DELIVER US OUT OF YOUR HAND, O KING. BUT “EVEN IF” HE DOES NOT, LET IT BE KNOWN TO YOU, O KING, THAT WE ARE NOT GOING TO SERVE YOUR gods OR WORSHIP THE GOLDEN IMAGE THAT YOU HAVE SET UP” (DANIEL 3:16-18). EVEN IF. THAT IS WHAT A TRUE FOLLOWER DOES. EVEN IF GOD DOESN’T LET IT GO MY WAY, I WILL TRUST IN HIM ALONE. “EVEN IF” MOMENTS ARE TOUGH. “EVEN IF” MOMENTS DIVIDE THE FAN FROM THE FOLLOWER.

IN 1912, THE TITANIC HIT AN ICEBERG, AND DURING THE LAST MOMENTS, PASTOR JOHN HARPER SECURED A SPOT FOR HIS SIX-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER WITH HIS SISTER IN ONE OF THE LIMITED LIFEBOATS. AS A WIDOWER, HE WAS ELIGIBLE TO ACCOMPANY HIS DAUGHTER. BUT HE GAVE HIS LIFE-VEST TO A FELLOW PASSENGER AND SHARED THE GOSPEL WITH ANYONE WHO WOULD LISTEN. IN THE WATER, HARPER SWAM FROM ONE PERSON TO ANOTHER TELLING THEM TO “BELIEVE ON THE LORD JESUS CHRIST, AND THOU SHALT BE SAVED” (ACTS 16:31). AT A MEETING ABOUT FOUR YEARS LATER WHERE THEY INTERVIEWED SURVIVORS OF THE TITANIC IN ONTARIO, CANADA, A MAN, AGUILLA WEBB, IDENTIFIED HIMSELF AS THE LAST CONVERT OF JOHN HARPER. THE MAN SAID HE REJECTED HARPER’S FIRST INVITATION, BUT AS HE WATCHED AS HARPER DEVOTED THE LAST MOMENTS OF HIS LIFE TO SHARING JESUS BEFORE SUCCUMBING TO HYPOTHERMIA AND SINKING BELOW THE SURFACE OF THE ICY WATER, THE MAN BELIEVED IN CHRIST WHEN HARPER ASKED HIM AGAIN. ANOTHER OF MY FAVORITE QUOTES IS ATTRIBUTED TO PASTOR VODDIE BAUCHAM. IT IS: “SOMETIMES GOD IS GLORIFIED WHEN SICK SAINTS GET WELL. BUT MORE OFTEN THAN NOT, GOD IS GLORIFIED WHEN SICK SAINTS DIE WELL.” THAT IS WHAT I BELIEVE PASTOR JOHN HARPER SHOWED US ALL. HE SHOWED US HOW TO TRULY BE A FOLLOWER OF CHRIST, AND HOW TO DIE WELL FOR CHRIST. WHAT ARE YOU DOING AS A FOLLOWER? WILL YOU LIVE AND DIE WELL FOR CHRIST? OR WILL YOU HEAR DEPART FROM ME, I NEVER KNEW YOU!