Follow Me

Mark 1:14–20 ESV

14 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, 15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” 16 Passing alongside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. 17 And Jesus said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” 18 And immediately they left their nets and followed him. 19 And going on a little farther, he saw James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, who were in their boat mending the nets. 20 And immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants and followed him.

The call

Call to follow

What does it mean to follow. These men would have understood this as a call to discipleship.

What is a disciple? learner, follower, apprentice. What does an apprentice do?

what does an apprentice do?

Why is Jesus worth following? Mark 1:1, 1:7; 1:11

Many people say they believe in Jesus or they believe in God. But they don’t follow. They may even attend church! Or Come to AWANA. But they don’t follow. Why do you think that is?

Is a transformative call

I will make you become. It’s a transformational action.

Like a sculpter with clay or playdough.

2 Cor 5:17 “17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”

I don’t know if you’all have run into this, but I run into it all the time. There are so many people who are turned off to Christianity because of the Christians. Why do you think that is?

We don’t always all the transforming work of the spirit shape us, do we? This doesn’t mean we will be perfect.

When we are actively following Jesus and imitating Him, our life is going to look different, won’t it?

What are things that God uses to transform us?

His Word

The Church

AWANA

Hardships

Prayer

Its a missional call

I will make you become fishers of men

What comes to your mind when you hear about fishermen?

What kind of fishing?

What about when he says fishers of men?

The men would have understood the call to discipleship, and the call to be fishers of men would have been understood as a call to help others understand the Good New of the Gospel, trust in christ, and follow after him as well

Does anyone here know the great commission?

Matt 28:18-20 “18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.””

Go make more follows of me who will obey my commands…who will actually follow.

Here’s what I love about this. Jesus care so much about people. You see his love here. He is interested in people.

He calls disciples. To promises to transform them into his messengers. and then later on he is going to send them out so that others might be reached. He cares about people. He doesn’t just care about one or two people, but he wants the message to go out to everyone.

This is a call that extends beyond the disciple. He would train them to reach out to others as well.

This can be a scary thing can’t it?

How do we overcome that fear? Not guilt. Shame. Duty.

Think about what Christ has done for you.

Silly illustration. I wear xero shoes. I had bad foot pain for a long time. Someone told me about these shoes, I did some research on them, and I bought a pair. They have literally changed my life. Wide toe box, flexible, and zero drop. I love them. I tell people about them all the time. I know what they’ve done for me, and if I can help someone else experience something similar, I’m going to tell them.

How much more should that be the case for our faith in Christ. Jesus changed my life! There are people in my life that I love and I want them to experience the same thing.

Let’s look at how the disciples responded

swift. Immediately.

They didn’t debate it amongst themselves. They said, okay. This was a faith-filled response. They trusted that Christ would do what he was calling them to do. That he could transform them

Sacrificial

They left something behind.

Does following Jesus mean everyone has to leave their career behind? or their family? Maybe for some people, but not necessarily.

Peter and his mother in law.

fishing boats

But the priorities change. I could make so much more as an electrician. But even if I were to work full time as an electrician, would there be something different about my career as a Christ follower? They should be. Priorities change. Its not just about getting by. Providing for your family is a very noble thing. But that is not an end in itself. there is a higher purpose.

The response embraces the mission.

What would you say about someone who gets hired at chick-fil-a, but then wants to make hamburgers? They haven’t embraced the mission.

Embraces the mission.

Does the assignment to fish for men involve grace or judgement?

Have you had to give anything up to follow Jesus? What might Christ be calling you to surrender?

What are common things that get in the way of you personally from following Jesus?