Follow

"Follow me," Jesus said to him, and Levi got up, left everything and followed him.  (Luke 5:27b-28)

Social networking just astounds me now.  You can literally follow someone from your computer or your phone and thanks to twitter, facebook, and foursquare you can track, no you can pinpoint every move they make.  Have a favorite athlete follow him on twitter, favorite movie star yep them too, want to know that POTUS is doing, you got it @whitehouse, how about favorite author, more than likely.  We live in an information overload age.

Through technology I can now post on one site and it automatically updates my twitter, facebook, and myspace.  Unbelievable.  "Follow me", if someone wanted to "follow me" on twitter all they have to do is click one button and bam, they know my thoughts, they have link to my blog, they can know when i exercise, how much i exercise, when I'm at work, where I eat, get tidbits of silly things my kids say, find out final scores on games, get encouraging little sayings i find periodically on Internet, I may post a verse of scripture, and may even post pictures sometimes.  Wow, you can get all this and more by just going to a website (twitter) finding @revclreese and click "follow me".  You don't really have to know me but you can follow me.

I think this is what we think about when Jesus says, "Follow me".....

It's not true.  Jesus doesn't want you and I to follow at a distance, Jesus doesn't want you and I to just casually know Him.  He wants you and I to personally know Him, and "Follow HIM".  Levi (Matthew) understood this greatness of who Jesus was.  So much so that when Jesus walked up to him and simply said "Follow Me", Matthew left everything and followed Him.  Everything.  Think about that, everything.  He left everything.....EVERYTHING.

So what is it that you need to leave to "follow Him"?  What is your "everything"?  What is it in your life that is hindering you from "following Him"?

After Matthew dropped everything and followed Him, life wasn't easy.  Following Jesus is hard, because Jesus will challenge your thoughts on love, ethics, and character.  Matthew was challenged, but he also saw some unbelievable things in His life.  He saw the blind get sight, the crippled get up and walk, the sick get better, and He saw a dead guy get up and walk.  However, he also was made fun of, lived a financially poor life, wandered around like a nomad for years, watched His teacher (Jesus) be brutally beaten and crucified, and then like many of his fellow disciples was more than likely martyred for his faith.  If you asked Levi (Matthew) today if responding to Jesus' "Follow Me" was the best decision he ever made, Levi would tell you without hesitation, yes it was. 

How do i know that?  On November 30, 1997 Jesus said to me "Follow Me", I did and it is the best decision I ever made.

"Follow me" Said Jesus.

Have a great day, Chris