Seventh-day Adventist® Church

There is one great challenge that all of us human being has… Many of us find it really difficult to follow others… many of us want to be in the position where others follow us… we hate being led by others… we seem to always want our own way… and find it really difficult subjecting ourselves to the dictate of others. Everyone seems to want to be a leader… no one wants to be a follower.

But do you realize that to become like Jesus in our words, thoughts, and actions we must be willing to become a follower? Yes, my friend; no one who wants to enter the Kingdom of Heaven will get there if they don’t decide to become a follower of Christ. Let us take a few minutes to look at the brief conversation that Jesus had with Levi in Luke 5:27-28. The word of the Lord said:

27 And after these things he went forth, and saw a publican, named Levi, sitting at the receipt of custom: and he said unto him, Follow me.

28 And he left all, rose up, and followed him.

What do you notice about this conversation apart from the fact that it was brief? Jesus made one request that involved two words. He didn’t provide an explanation as to why this request was given. He didn’t provide any information on where He was going to take Levi and what Levi was expected to do. Jesus simply said “follow me”.

To get a good understanding of what Jesus was really saying to Levi, let us look at what the Larry Pierce’s Outline of Biblical Usage has to say about the Greek word “mmm” that is used for “follow” in this passage of scripture. The word “follow” can be used to mean:

1.     to follow one who precedes, join him as his attendant, accompany him
2.     to join one as a disciple, become or be his disciple – i.e. side with his party

Jesus was asking Levi to join him and become one of his disciples. Notice that Levi was a tax collector - someone that the Jews didn’t like. Yet Jesus asked this unliked man to become one of His disciples. In verse 28, the Bible records Levi’s response… Levi dropped everything that he was doing and decided to become a disciple. He didn’t say to Jesus, let me go home and consult with my family first. He didn’t say, let me think about it and get back to you. He didn’t say, tell me some more about the role of the disciple. He didn’t say, I am not sure that this is my spiritual gift. He dropped everything and decided to accept the call to become a disciple of Jesus.

As you take some time to reflect on this passage of scripture ask yourself this question, “Have I LEFT ALL to become a disciple of Jesus? Is there anything that I am holding unto that is causing me to NOT give my all to Jesus so that I can become a COMPLETE DISCIPLE for Him? It is my prayer that you take some time to reflect on how you have answered the call from Jesus - “Follow Me.”

He Wants It All - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUMRqJCV9Q4

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