"Follow me!" Jesus said to Matthew who was sitting the tax collector's booth, and so he did! Peter and Andrew were working at their job as fishermen and He said, "Come, follow me!" They did! What an incredibly compelling Man He was. People left behind their livelihoods, familiar sites, and personal comfort and followed Him all the way to death. And they still do.
In the 1950's a young man from Portland, Oregon; very intelligent, with a bright future in this world, chose a very different path from the other men in his college class. He followed the call of Jesus Christ to Ecuador. Three years later he felt the call into the Amazonian jungles. The Spirit of the Lord was leading him to tell the Life Story to a group of native people in those jungles who were extremely hostile to 'outsiders.' Jim Elliott and four other young missionaries prepared to reach out to the Auca people for weeks, flying over their villages dropping gifts and looking for a response. When they felt it was safe, Nate Saint, their pilot, landed their little plane on a river beach where they created a camp, hoping to make contact with the Aucas. They died there a few days later, after having a few friendly contacts, killed by the spears of warriors they hoped to teach the Good News. Two years later, Elizabeth Elliott along with her daughter, and the wife of the pilot who was killed, Rachel Saint, moved to live with the Auca people and taught them about Jesus Christ. Today, Nate Saint's son works and lives with the Auca people as a missionary. "Follow me!" was the call that started it all.
Earlier in his short life, Jim Elliott kept a journal in which he wrote a line that I have written into my memory to help me respond to the Lord's call. Jim wrote: "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep, to gain what he cannot lose." Jim was paraphrasing what Jesus said: "Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." (Matthew 10:39, NIV)
"Follow me!" is both a demand and an invitation. The Lord of Life compels us to follow Him and with that invites us to a life that is rich with meaning and that has no end. "But, Jerry, Jim Elliott ended up dead on a river beach because he followed the Lord's call." Yes, that is true, but he lives eternally! There is the struggle - which life will we choose? Will we choose to live for the 'now,' getting those things that promise us a measure of happiness? Or will we look towards an invisible promise of Eternity, which is only owned by faith, and follow Jesus? It is a choice we make again and again through our days. For most of us it won't be so stark as it was for Jim Elliott. We won't be called to a jungle to die, but we will be called and we will have to 'die' to self. It is impossible to be faithful to two masters, though often we attempt it. We cannot hang onto our autonomy and call Jesus our Lord at the same time.
Take this snap-shot from Jesus' life with you today. Think about it, wrestle with it, and let the Spirit use the Word to clarify your commitment.
"As they were walking along someone said to Jesus, “I will follow you no matter where you go.” But Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but I, the Son of Man, have no home of my own, not even a place to lay my head.”
He said to another person, “Come, be my disciple.” The man agreed, but he said, “Lord, first let me return home and bury my father.” Jesus replied, “Let those who are spiritually dead care for their own dead. Your duty is to go and preach the coming of the Kingdom of God.”
Another said, “Yes, Lord, I will follow you, but first let me say good-bye to my family.” But Jesus told him, “Anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:57-62, NLT)
Ready for adventure? Prepared for sacrifice? Want to leave a legacy and find Heaven's reward? Jesus says, "Follow me!"
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