“‘Come, follow me,’ Jesus said, ‘and I will make you fishers of men’. At once they left their nets and followed Him.” (Matthew 4:19-20)
Following Jesus is not something to be assumed. It involves action. It means “keep close to me, do nothing without me, don’t separate yourself from me”. This means “following in His direction and walking in His steps”. It means living in accordance with the word of God. It means being led by the Holy Spirit always in all situations.
Growth in life and in the knowledge of God comes as we obey Him. We saw men like Simon Peter, Andrew, James and John acting at once to obey him. The practical implication of this is that they left behind their nets, boats and even the lake to follow Him. Partial obedience is no obedience. Obedience to the Lord and His word gives us practical experience and spiritual maturity.
As we walk in obedience to God’s word, the Lord is drawn towards us. A deep and a progressive learning from and submission to the word of God is therefore necessary in knowing God and obtaining the things of the kingdom.
God’s purpose for instructing us to follow Jesus is to make us conformed to the image of the Lord Jesus Christ, something which cannot happen otherwise or overnight. It is therefore important that we follow Jesus not for one or two years, but continuously throughout our lifetime knowing that He is the author and perfecter of our faith.
The Lord wants to prosper us in his purpose and will. He wants us to preach the good news of the kingdom, and heal every disease and sickness among the people (Matthew 4:23). It is as we follow him that the Holy Spirit will work in us to achieve His purpose here on earth.
Kofo Bolarin
