Red Letters: ‘Come, follow me’

In the ‘Red Letters’ series, we spend time listening to the words of Jesus.

As he was going along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew. They were throwing a net into the sea because they were fishermen. Jesus said to them, ‘Come, follow me! I will teach you how to catch people instead of fish.’

It’s interesting how much of religious life involves remaining stationary.  We sit to read the Bible, and often to pray.  You may stand up to sing in church, but never more than a few inches away from your chair or pew, to which you quickly return in time for the sermon!

Being a student of Jesus, on the other hand, must have been a very active experience.  It involved constant travelling by foot and boat, hands-on healing and pushing through crowds, and the occasional mountain-climb to pray.

There are many churches which seem to adopt a ‘huddle’ strategy:  sit tight and wait for Jesus to come back.  These Christians live relatively normal lives, punctuated by their weekly church attendance.  When they evangelise, their goal is to get other people to huddle along with them.  Just waiting.

How often has that been me in that huddle?

What if following Jesus meant quitting your day job?  Or leaving your family?  Or risking injury or death?  Being a student of Jesus doesn’t mean all of those things for all of us.  But it should mean something for all of us.  Change is coming.  Can you afford to be stationary?

‘Sabbath Reflections’ is a weekly meditation from a Christian perspective. You can find out more by clicking here.