On Sabbath we continued our new sermon series on discipleship called “iFollow.” When Jesus asked two of John’s disciples who were following Him what they wanted, they asked where He was staying. (See John 1:38.) They were not interested in a brief, passing encounter, but an abiding relationship. Not passing acquaintance, but abiding friendship is how disciples follow Jesus.
When Jesus responded, “Come and see,” He was inviting them, not only to come and talk, but to come and find the things that He alone could open up to them—the very words of God. He was inviting them to abide in the Word.
The “text” meant everything to the Jewish people because:
- It was a revelation of who God was.
- It taught them how to live a life pleasing to God.
- It was living and contained the power to create.
- It endures forever (Isa. 40:8).
- It does not return to [God] void, but accomplishes what He pleases (Isa. 55:11).
- By hiding the word in your heart, it keeps you from sinning against God (Psa. 119:11).
- It keeps a young man’s way pure (Psa. 119:9).
- It brings light and gives understanding to the simple (119:130).
- It is a lamp to our feet and a light unto our path (Psa. 119:105).
Because Jesus is the Living Word, everything that can be said about the scriptures applies equally to Him. And of His own words He said, “The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63).
Now, if Jesus taught the twelve how to be His disciples, it means that Jesus was teaching a discipleship that He Himself was already living. Jesus was a follower of His Father. Therefore, discipleship is following Jesus in the same way He followed His Father. And how did Jesus follow His Father? By every word that proceeded from the mouth of God. Discipleship is living by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. (See Matt. 4:4.)
Rewind to John 8:31, 32. According to Jesus, true disciples are those who abide [continue] in Christ’s teachings. They live by His words. That means we take time in the word and prayer every day. If we’re going to be covered in the dust of our Rabbi Jesus, we must take His Yoke (teachings) and learn of Him, then we will find rest for our souls (Mt. 11:29).
You can’t be a disciple of Jesus without understanding and keeping (obeying) the words of Jesus. It’s that simple and that important. Why? Because it is by abiding in the word that we know the truth!
Receiving a word from the gods in the ancient world often required painful pilgrimages to the oracle. An oracle can be the place where the message is given, the priest who delivers the message, or the message itself. The oracle of Apollo was a woman (Pythia) who sat in a trance induced by ethylene gas fumes. She allegedly received messages from the underworld and her mutterings, that sometimes took weeks or months to produce, were delivered to the worshippers as a word from God.
But disciples of the Living Word possess all the oracles of the true God—the very words of God. We carry them to church, or have them on our night stands, or on our phones. It is a privilege to have the very words of God at our fingertips. Yet we neglect that privilege. (Rewind to John 8:33-37, and underline the phrase in verse 37, “You have no room for my word.”
Is it possible that by making no room for the Word in my busy life, I could be killing my relationship with Jesus? Ask yourself this question, “Do I have room in my busy life for God’s word?” Am I a disciple or not? The reality is that we are all following someone, but who?
In contrast to the 5 hours/day we spend with “Rabbi Media,” a 1997 Barna study showed that among Bible readers, the average amount of time spent reading the Bible during an entire week is 52 minutes. That’s about a ratio of 43:1. Is it any wonder that among Christians there is a failure to launch into discipleship?
In contrast to this, one column in Apollo’s temple took somebody 57 years to make! For what? To hear one word from a woman high on fumes. And we can’t spend 52 minutes a week to read our Bibles?
To be like Jesus is to be a man or woman of the text. If we don’t make room for the Word, then how badly do we want to be disciples? Remember, a disciple can never be satisfied with a passing word. He wants to meet Jesus, not as an acquaintance in the passing, but as a friend in his own house. Are you an acquaintance of Jesus or a friend? We can’t be disciples of someone we don’t know and we know Jesus by abiding in His Word. Will you make room for His Word in your life today?—Pastor Randy
