Learning the Jesus Way of LifeSample

Getting in on the Ground Floor

Pray: Jesus, give me the faith to go where you go, do what you do, trust what you say, and love how you love. Today, I commit to following you. Amen.

As we come to the end of the first week of this Plan, we are going to read about the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry. Because everything up until this point has been the set-up for what’s coming next.

When the time finally arrives for Jesus to step into the public eye, He begins with the same message that His cousin John had been preaching previously:

From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” Matthew 4:17 NIV

As a quick reminder, “repent” is a word that means change the direction of your life; It’s about aiming your life toward God.

The kingdom of heaven is the realm where God rules. And Jesus says that kingdom has come near. Jesus didn’t say, “we are going there.” Lastly, Matthew tells us that this is the message that Jesus began to preach “from that time on.” This means the invitation to change your life by returning to God wasn’t something He said one time and then moved on. It was a repeated theme of His teachings. Because Jesus wants everyone everywhere to know that God loves them and He is never going to stop inviting them to come home.

A kingdom is a group of people ruled by a king. So, naturally, the next thing we read in Matthew’s Gospel is Jesus inviting people into the kingdom.

As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” Matthew 4:18-19 NIV

While there’s much that can be said about these two verses, we’re just going to focus on two big ideas: First, Jesus invites Simon and Andrew tofollow Him.

The Jesus way of life is about so much more than going to church regularly, reading your Bible consistently, praying occasionally, and volunteering when you have the time. It’s about following Jesus wherever He leads. It’s about letting His example inform everything we believe, think, say, and do—in every single area of our lives. Whether you’re shopping for groceries, studying for finals, going on a second date, or enjoying a relaxing evening at home, we are to model our lives on the life and teachings of Jesus.

It’s great to have mentors we look up to, pastors we learn from, and friends we do life with, but none of them are Jesus. At the end of the day, He gets the final say.

The second idea is this: Simon and Andrew are fishermen.

Back in their day, little kids didn’t grow up with dreams of becoming professional athletes or internet influencers. Their goal was to be chosen as a disciple of a rabbi. Their schooling was intense. By the time they turned 10, they were expected to have memorized the Torah, the first five books of the Bible. Then, at the age of 13, they were supposed to memorize the 34 other books that make up the rest of their Scriptures. Even if they did all that, only a select few of the best and brightest would actually get chosen to be a disciple of a rabbi. It was basically the equivalent of graduating from Harvard at the top of your class. Those young people who didn’t make the cut would return home and take up their family business. For Simon and Andrew, that was fishing.

When Jesus called Simon and Andrew, He broke the norms of their society in radical ways. He was deliberately going out of His way to choose people that didn’t have what it takes. Instead of scouting out ivy league graduates, Jesus was looking for high school dropouts.

So, when Jesus shows up unexpectedly and calls these two brothers to be His disciples, they don’t hesitate.

At once they left their nets and followed him. Matthew 4:20 NIV

Jesus isn’t looking for what the rest of the world is looking for. He doesn’t care about your GPA, your bank account, or your social media clout. He’s looking for people who are willing to drop everything and follow Him.

Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him. Matthew 4:21-22 NIV

What are you willing to give up to follow Jesus? If He asked you to leave your job, would you be willing to do it? If He asked you to say goodbye to your family, would you do it?

Following Jesus isn’t easy, but it’s always worth it. Because when we choose to go where He goes, do what He does, obey what He says, and love how He loves, we discover what it really means to be alive.

Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed; and he healed them. Large crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea and the region across the Jordan followed him. Matthew 4:23-25 NIV

Because Simon, Andrew, James, and John said yes to the invitation of Jesus, they got front-row seats to His teaching and preaching. They saw people being healed and demons cast out up close. They gave up everything to follow Jesus. And Jesus gave them so much more in return. He gave them Himself and a purpose that was so much bigger than they were.

He wants to do the same for you. He is inviting you to be with Him. And He is asking you to join your purpose to His.

Application: Take an honest look at your life. Are you fully committed to Jesus? Or are there parts of yourself and your life that you’re still holding back? What things do you not want Jesus to ask you to give up? What would make those things hard to leave behind? Take a few moments to confess those reservations to God. Ask Him what He wants you to do. Then, sit and listen for a prompting or a word from God. Let Him speak. And when He does, do what He asks.