Thursday, May 10, 2007

Follow Me

I have been reading Bonhoeffer's "The cost of discipleship". Great book by the way! He makes a point that the first and last things Jesus says to Peter is, "Follow Me". In seminary we learn that there is emphasis placed on Primacy (what happens or is said first), recency (what happens or is said last), and repetition. It is amazing that Christ's first and last words are the same. They are a call to follow. This is clearly important. Indeed, that is what Peter did. He followed in Christ's footsteps. As I have been meditating on this, I realize that Jesus' calling to Peter is the same calling for us today. He's not calling us to a dogma or set of religious beliefs. He's not calling us to a religion. Jesus is calling you and me to follow Him. To care for the things that Jesus cares about. To fight for what Jesus would fight for. To serve in the way that Jesus served. To love whole heartedly and to ultimately sacrifice all for His sake. Maybe that's what Jesus meant when He said that He was the "Way". The Way, meaning a path or route. How can we know the way that brings life unless we follow the only person who can get us there?

Peter answered the call. He dropped everything he had to follow Jesus. Peter follow Him to the grave (church history says he was crucified upside down).

Will you answer the call of Jesus in your life? Will you follow Jesus? Will you follow the way, the truth and the life?