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'Follow Me’ then, ‘Follow Me’ today
'Follow Me’ then, ‘Follow Me’ today.
| Matthew 9 Howdy. Did you hear ‘Follow me’ from Jesus? And then … what did you do with his personal invitation? Did you open your mind and emotions to the possibilities of the adventurous life? Matthew said yes, when Jesus beckoned … ‘Follow me’. He said yes to walking the dusty roads of Palestine, of watching, listening, learning, becoming part of a band of 12 brothers who would ultimately change the world. I can only imagine impacting the world for Jesus like the Band of Brothers … Later, the band would recall that Jesus had told them that he was leaving them-- John 14 (highly worth your time to read): https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John+14&version=NI...; They somehow did not see it coming like it happened though; how could they know they would leave an intimate Passover meal with Jesus, and then posthaste he would be arrested, falsely tried, tortured, and crucified at the hands of ruthless men within 24 hours?! The band (sans Judas) hunkered down, mostly hiding, worrying about what would now happen to them. That is … until Jesus emerged from the tomb, and appeared first to Mary Magdalene, who had come to the tomb, but found it empty. Indeed Jesus walked around for 40 days, met with his disciples and friends, appeared to a gathering of 500 people, and revealed his wounds on his hands and his side to his disciple Thomas. Jesus’ miraculous resurrection is what convinced even Jesus’ siblings that he was indeed their Messiah and their Lord. In powerful chapter one of Acts, we read Jesus’ last words, his edict to pray and wait. Luke writes, “After his suffering, he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”1 In 10 days, the promised Holy Spirit came with wind and fire, and the followers of Jesus were filled with power from on high.2 The coming of the Holy Spirit changed everything! Let’s go back to brother Matthew—when Jesus said ‘Follow Me’ to him and to each of the disciples, he invited them into the physical presence of the Rabbi Yeshua, Jesus. But when Jesus was in another room, perhaps in another village, he was out of their presence, absent from them physically. However, Matthew and the disciples once again knew the presence of God when they were filled with the power of the Holy Spirit on that day in the Upper Room, recorded in Acts 2. Now when Jesus says to you and me, ‘Follow Me’, and we say ‘yes’ to him, we follow a risen Savior. Then the Holy Spirit makes his home in our hearts and souls. It is the reason God can say, “Never will I leave you, Never will I forsake you”!3 With the Holy Spirit abiding in us, we are never alone, no matter what! [That is cause for a standing ovation!] But be very clear—the Spirit comes to those who make a choice to surrender their hearts and minds to Jesus Christ. He comes to those who desire him; he is not a boor who will thrust himself upon anyone. But upon our realization and recognition that Jesus is who he said he was, that he did what he said he was going to do—die and rise again, and that he is the way to forgiveness of our pride and wrongs, the way for us to be made right with God, and spend eternity with him—then we are filled with the Holy Spirit. So you see, when God calls our name today, it does not matter where we are—what room, what town, what continent … when we answer, he comes to us—forever. We say ‘yes, I will follow you,’ he says, ‘yes, I will be with you forever, and you, Child, will be with me.’ That is why the Gospel is called Good News. Ah, yes. Christine Todd DiGiacomo 1 – Luke 1.4-5 2 – Acts 1.2-4 3 – Hebrews 13.5 Christine DiGiacomo espressocd@cox.net www.pastorwoman.com |
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