Your New Life -
Call
Who are you following in life? Do you know the first of the Ten
Commandments? God says, "You shall have no gods other than me."
Our tendency is to follow someone or something who brings meaning and purpose
to life. God does love us and care about us and wants to have a
relationship with us that is personal and intimate and life transforming.
Confession is healing in that we acknowledge to God and to ourselves that we
have tried to make our own way to God instead of accepting his way—Jesus'
life, death, and resurrection for our sin.
But we also must answer God's call to follow him. When we stop
following ourselves and our own way, we then need to entrust our lives to
following God and his way—to follow the life and teachings of Jesus.
Submission is a dirty word today. To submit to someone is to put
ourselves under their authority and leadership. Perhaps we rebel so
strongly against submission because we've been hurt by others who have
"lorded it over" us in selfish and non-benevolent ways.
However, when we place ourselves under the authority of Jesus, we can do so
based on his incredible love for us. We can do so with the full knowledge
that he loves us and wants the very best for us—that he reaches out to us in
loving relationship to draw us close to God.
The Bible says that
"He [Jesus] called the crowd
with his disciples and said to them, 'If any want to become my followers, let
them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who
want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake,
and for the sake of the gospel, will find it'" (Mark 8:34-35).
Jesus is the one who has defeated sin and evil on our behalf. He is our
guide, the pioneer who offers to show us the way in how to live. He is the
one who makes our relationship with God complete. The Holy Spirit, who
gave Jesus the power to do the will of God, has also been given to us.
When we confess that Jesus is the leader (Lord) of our life, God's Spirit lives
in us, giving us the power to become fully devoted followers of Jesus
Christ. The Spirit "seals the deal," cementing our relationship
with our loving God.
It is then, and only then, that God can really begin to transform our lives,
helping us to become more and more like Jesus Christ.
God calls us to give up serving other gods and to give our full allegiance to
Jesus as our leader and Lord.
What about you? Will you answer God's call to put your full
allegiance—your full faith and confidence—in Jesus as the leader and Lord of
your life?
Following Jesus as Lord is not an individual
activity . . .
All Bible passages taken from the New Revised Standard
Version. This presentation written by Ronald W. Waters and freely adapted
from "A Concise Reference for the Ministry
of Evangelism" developed by the Commission on Home Ministries of the
General Conference Mennonite Church and Mennonite Board of Congregational
Ministries of the Mennonite Church.
