WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO FOLLOW SOMEONE?

SCRIPTURE:
“Do not be hasty in the laying on of hands, 
and do not share in the sins of others. Keep yourself pure.”  
(1 Timothy 5:22)

MEDITATION:
Have you ever given much thought about 
what it means to be a follower of Christ?
If we follow someone, it means 
we are walking behind them on the same path they are on, doesn’t it?
In the case of following Christ, 
it means we develop the same habits and traits that He has.
What He does, we want to do; what He doesn’t do, we won’t want to do.

I am fearful that there are too many who claim to be followers of Jesus 
who are not following His path.
In conversations with others, too often I have heard comments like, 
“I don’t think Jesus sees anything wrong with (fill in the blank)”.

Someone has said, 
“You cannot help the first look, but the second one is sin.” 
Jesus indicated that you can engage in immorality with just a look. 
The Bible includes the “lust of the eye” with other sins. 
For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and 
the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world.  (1 John 2:16)

Peter spoke of having “eyes full of adultery”. 
With eyes full of adultery, they never stop sinning; they seduce the 
unstable; they are experts in greed—an accursed brood! (2 peter 2:14)

Job understood what it meant to follow God when he said, 
“I made a covenant with my eyes not to look lustfully at a young woman.” 
(Job 1:31)
Of course the same can be said for the way a woman looks at a man.
Our eyes see only what our soul allows them to see.

That’s just one example but let’s look at one more.
Some claim that drinking wine is okay because Jesus turned water into wine.
The problem with that line of thinking is, 
wine in those days was little more than grape juice.
When God’s people were filled with the Holy Spirit, 
some said they were drunk.
However, Peter stood up and said there is no way 
they could have consumed enough of the wine of their day to get drunk.

In today’s world, 
wine is much different with a high content of alcohol (approximately 11%).
Let’s be honest here, 
people drink alcoholic beverages because they like to get high 
(in varying degrees – some like a “buzz” and others like to get “wasted”).

Can we picture the One we are following (Jesus) turning around and saying, 
“Here, have a drink. Let’s have a party!”
The Bible says,
“Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. 
Instead, be filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18)

Every person who claims to be a follower of Jesus should weigh 
the things they do or not do, against the things He would do or not do.
Do we really believe Jesus was a drinker, a partier, a person full of lust, 
a liar, a person with no concern for others, a user of profanity, a person 
who takes advantage of others, a person who avoided going to a house of 
worship, etc.
True followers feel remorse for their actions and make efforts to purify 
themselves, but others continue to rationalize and justify their actions.
 
ACTION:
Are you following, really following, Jesus?
Do you have things in your life that you are doing or not doing 
which are not on the path Jesus is walking?
How are you justifying your actions that are not in accordance with His?
We all stumble at times, but the real concern is our intent and habits.
If we purposely do things, or not do things, that are contrary to our 
expectations of Jesus, then we need to change our modus operandi…now!

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, You read my heart and You know how I justify the things 
I want to do that are out of the boundaries of Your Will. Forgive me for 
being so selfish and stubborn. Forgive me for how my actions or inactions 
impact others, especially those who do not know You. Help me to be honest 
with myself and admit the things I am justifying in my life in order to 
fulfill my own will and desires, regardless of how You feel about them. 
Then teach me to change my life so that I will truly be walking behind 
Jesus on the same path He is on. Help me to start replacing impurity in 
my life with the purity You expect of me. I pray that Your righteousness 
will fill my heart and mind.”