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Matthew 4:19 - What It Means To Follow Jesus. [addendum]

Matthew 4:19 - What It Means To Follow Jesus.  [addendum]

Matthew 4:19 (NLT)  Jesus called out to them, "Come, follow me, 
and I will show you how to fish for people!"  

Matthew 4:19 (TLB)  Jesus called out, "Come along with me and I 
will show you how to fish for the souls of men!"  

  One aspect of following Jesus means spending time with him. 
That seems obvious. But think about it. When Jesus was here on earth, 
people who believed in Jesus' teachings literally followed him. They 
walked with him. They traveled together, ate together, prayed together, 
saw awesome things together, and suffered together. 
  So how do we follow Jesus today? How do we spend time with 
him? One way to spend time with Jesus is through prayer and reading 
the Bible. We need to take quiet times to sense his presence and to 
welcome him into our lives. We need to read and study God's Word so we 
can do what he wants us to do. Though we cannot see or touch Jesus 
today (he is risen and in heaven!), he has given every new believer 
his Holy Spirit. Through the Spirit, we can live in the awareness of 
God's presence as we go through our daily lives. We are never out of 
his sight. We are never separated from his love. [The One Year Bible 
for New Believers re John 12:26] 

  Every believer is called not only to believe in Jesus but to 
follow him as a disciple. A disciple is someone who lives in complete 
devotion to him and his teachings. That level of dedication is within 
every believer's reach, but it isn't necessarily easy. It requires a 
certain amount of discipline and sacrifice.  
  In Matthew 5:11-12, Jesus tells his disciples to be happy when 
others mistreat them because they are his disciples. Why? Because there 
awaits a great reward in heaven. God does not forget about the 
hardships we sometimes face in this world because of loving and following 
him.  
  The sacrifices you make as a follower of Jesus may be as small 
as spending more of your time in God's Word or devoting a greater 
amount of your income to supporting a ministry. In some places in the 
world, people give their very lives in order to be Jesus' disciples. 
Ask God to show you ways in which you can serve him. What God asks 
of you may look very different from what he asks of others. In 
whatever way he calls you, remember that you are the salt of the earth 
and the light of the world. What an awesome privilege! [The One Year 
Bible for New Believers re Mat. 5:11, 12] 

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