'Following Jesus' Tagged Posts
Hard to Follow
One of the great fallacies of discipleship is that once you become a follower of Jesus life gets easier. That’s just not true. Nowhere in the Bible are we promised that following Christ makes life easier. In fact, the Bible indicates that the exact opposite is true. Just consider what Jesus said in Matthew 7:13-14… Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by…
The Crowds
This weekend, pop superstar Taylor Swift is in town. I imagine that some of you went to the tour, and this first line immediately grabbed your attention. There are others who saw the first four words and decided you would no longer read this. I can’t help but be in awe of society as I watch hundreds of thousands of people flood into a city for three days in a row to scream the words of songs together. The crowds…
Declining The Invitation
In Luke 14:16-24, an invitation to a super-awesome banquet has gone out to many. This likely represents the “calling” of God – the Lord inviting others to share in His kingdom (fellowship with Him, eternal glory, an eternal inheritance, eternal life) while, at the same time, summoning them to partake in His holiness and to obey Him even when it is difficult. In the parable, three different people make excuses for spurning the invitation. The first two refer to business…
Baggage Check
Has an airline company ever lost your luggage while you were traveling? I believe there are few more frustrating experiences in this life than traveling a long distance from home only to arrive in that location and not have any of your stuff. The possibility of our luggage being lost is why many of us choose to utilize carry-on bags whenever it is feasible. The carry-on bag is a lifesaver because you can put everything in it you need for…
Don’t Get Comfortable
A comfort zone “is a psychological state in which things feel familiar to a person,” resulting in “experiencing low levels of anxiety and stress” because “they are at ease and in control of their environment.”1 And while that sounds like the optimal place to be, comfort zones can actually become danger zones because they can foster a conditional approach to discipleship. Conditional discipleship is the practice of placing conditions on your spiritual commitments. So, when I say that our comfort…