FOLLOW THE LEADER

Have you ever played the game "Follow the Leader"? In this game you pick a leader, then everyone forms a line behind them. then you not only follow this leader, but you do whatever they do. You have to keep your eye on the leader in case the person in front of you isn't paying attention and not really doing what the leader is doing. You might accidently do what they're doing instead. In the game, you're OUT when you do this. Friends, this is like our walk with Jesus. He's supposed to be the leader that we follow and imitate but so many times we're looking at a person in front of us and doing what they do or we are the one doing our own thing and causing others to follow us instead of Jesus and His actions. The next thing we know we are on the sidelines again while those who are watching Jesus are still following Him.

Following Jesus means we have to recognize Him as more than a teacher. He is the Savior of the world. The day we acknowledged our sin and our need of a Savior and asked Jesus to be the Lord of our life, we claimed that we gave Hime leadership in our life. This means we no longer live to our old selfish desires but now live the life He leads us in. But first things first, we need to understand what it means to follow Him. Just as Jesus was obedient to the Father, we must also submit and be obedient. In John 6:38 Jesus said; "for I have come down from heaven not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent me." Followers of Jesus trust Him and obey Him and submit to His will by faith, even when it seems beyond understanding. In John 14:23: Jesus said, "if anyone loves Me, he will keep My Word, and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. The attitude of our heart has to be bent on submitting to the authority of Jesus and what He says is right. This means that we can't necessarily call things right even though others do, until we have verified it in God's Word, our Bible. If you have questions, I invite you to contact our office @269-459-1333. Pastors Tom and Pam will be happy to talk with you.