Jesus Unfiltered - Follow - What's it Mean to Follow Jesus?, Part 1

You've probably heard a lot of people say, I'm a follower of Jesus, or I'm a Christian. What does that really mean, and how do you know for sure you're really following Jesus? You want an answer to that? Stay with me.

That's today. Welcome to this Edition of Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. The mission of these daily programs is to intentionally disciple Christians through the Bible teaching of Chip Ingram. I'm Dave Druey, and if you were to go out and ask 10 people, what does it mean to follow Jesus, you're likely to get 10 different answers. In this program, Chip goes right to the source in John chapter 9 and unpacks what Jesus said it takes to follow him.

And if you're looking for more practical guidance on this topic, stick around after his message for some additional thoughts from Chip. Well, if you have your Bible handy, let's dive right in. John chapter 9 opens with the story of a blind man. And very instructively, he's blind from birth, and we know it's not his fault or his parents' fault, but it's a very special miracle because God will be glorified. As you read later in that story, you'll find that some people can't even believe it's the same man. They even bring his parents in and they testify.

They cross-examine him twice because they think maybe he's lying. And at the heart of it is Jesus opens his eyes and does a messianic miracle. Now you'll never understand the real meaning of that man who was blind until you go back to chapter 8 and find out that it came after the most intense and unique conflict up to date that we find in Jesus' life. That I mean, there was a point in time where they were ready to kill him.

They were ready to stone him. He's going to say something about himself. They're going to have this dialogue, this debate, where the issues of his calling and his claims against the religious establishment will be so intense that they will be blind. And what you just listen to is Jesus helping them understand. There's some people in the world that are physically blind, and he can make them see. And there's some people he can see, and they think they're not blind, but they are.

I'm going to ask you to open up your notes because we're going to talk about what it means, what it really means to follow Jesus. And I'm going to suggest as we kind of get our arms around that, that everybody in life, everybody follows something or someone. I mean, some people are very, I mean, intentional about it, very conscious.

Other people are very unconscious, but they just don't know that they're following someone. There's probably a hundred different ways people follow things, but I put a six down here that just see if these don't ring a bell with you. Some people follow in the footsteps of their family. I know a family that if you're born in this family, son, grandson, I mean if you're born in this family, kind of the personal light is you go into this family business, you go to this college, you will live geographically near mom, dad, grandfather, great grand.

I mean, the whole world revolves around Christmases are always at this house Thanksgiving or I mean, everything in the world revolves around the family. That's kind of their, their light. That's what gives them perspective.

That's what really matters more than anything else. A second is some people follow a philosophy of life. I have a friend who is a excellent businessman and I'm always talking to him about, you know, have you been reading the Bible much?

I haven't been reading it. Not as much as I know you want me to. And well, you know, intimacy with God, I'll talk with him about that. He goes, look, Chip, here's my philosophy, the golden rule. Just, I just do to other people the way I want them to do to me. And he does. He's, he's got more integrity than like anyone I've ever met. He's kind, he's generous, but his is sort of like, you know what?

You just follow that rule and I have another friend from my days in Santa Cruz and his entire philosophy of life. I would, we talked deeply on a lot of occasions was one word said, so what do you, I mean, what do you want to do? What's whatever. I'm dead serious. Just whatever.

What do you want? Whatever. He says, I mean, whatever.

Just kind of go with the flow and whatever happens. And you know, I'm just going to kind of, third is I find some people follow a religious leader or a spiritual path. You know, I, you know, it's the Dalai Lama or this new age teacher or someone with some enlightened way. And if they follow that path, what light always promises is direction, perspective, and it's going to deliver the life that you really want. Fourth is some people follow. I just, their own intuition.

They're, they're sort of eclectic. They sort of just pull from the salad bar of philosophy and life and parents and family and say, but basically I got it. You know, I just going to figure out, I think I know best what's best for me. And you ask him, well, what do you base that on? Well, me, I just, my intuition in my gut, that's good for you.

Whatever that is, whatever it is with anyone, this is what I think is best. A fifth, some people just follow what's popular. I mean, if everyone's kids are doing this, there are kids doing this. If they start the kids at this age or this age, that's what they do. If the internet and everyone says, you know, this is what you need to eat.

They all eat that. I mean, whatever the fads, wherever the, you know, they just follow the crowd and whatever is kind of popular, they're just sort of have a world that is like, like, like retweet, you know? And, and finally there's some who follow what I just call a formula for success. This was, this is how I grew up and it goes something like this. Education is paramount.

Work hard, practice, get discipline, be an overachiever, over prepare, get in the best schools, get a good paying job and wealth and success will make you very happy. And so in each one of these, here's all I want to say is that all of us, I call this people's personal light. This is their perspective that even if they don't know it, this is their perspective that light promises fulfillment. Light promises living this way, provides values, a process, a filter, an interpretation.

And so they're on a path following one of these or maybe 10 or 15 or 30 others. And so I thought it'd be kind of fun since we all follow something or someone to just probe a little bit together and find out what you follow and what I follow. And so I have three questions for you.

You ready? If you have a pen, pull it out. Question number one is who or what do you think you follow? I mean, if I really kind of pushed you and just first thing that comes your mind, who or what do you think you really follow? That is kind of the, the direction for my life decisions, what really matters, why I say yes, why I say no.

Okay. The second question and I'm messing with you here just a little bit, but it's cause I care who or what does your time, money and energy reveal you follow? Cause see, I have this weird thing that happens is mentally and I'm thinking, I'm being honest, this is what I think I follow is really important. But when I look at my time or my energy or my money or for some, if we just looked at, you know, sort of your whole, who, who, who, who are the people that you follow on Twitter? If we could go through all the, where all the buttons that you push like or whatever you retweeted, who do you follow or which of the Ted talks are like your top five, right? I mean, I mean, doesn't it say on our little devices everywhere, follow, you can follow us by this, this, this, this.

I mean, that tells a lot about what we're interested in, where our passions are. So my time and my money really reveal who I really follow instead of who I think I follow. And the last question is why would anyone follow Jesus Christ? Why would anyone? Cause he's called, what'd he say? If any man will follow me, deny yourself, take up your cross, follow me. Why should we?

Why should they? And in John chapter eight, beginning at verse 12, he answers that question, but he answers it for them and he really answers it for us. So what you see is a context in which he says some very radical things. Then you have some content, which is a fierce debate.

And then it comes to a climax. Here's the context. In other words, here's what's happening. This is sort of the, you are there so you can get what's happening. Remember there's the feast of tabernacles. People have been camping out.

They've made these little lean to's and they're all over the place on top of houses. And you know, kids think it's camping out. There's all this food, there's all these parties, there's all this dancing. There's remembering all those 40 years in the wilderness.

It's just great. And then there's the feast of tabernacles. It's also called the feast of lights.

And so there's this whole section called the women's court where the treasury is. And then next to it is the temple area. It's called the holy place where the actual sacrifices and things are brought in. And then there's the holy of holies. And so Jesus after the feast of lights. And if you remember that in this area, this courtyard is quite large.

There were like four candelabras that were like 75 to 100 and some feet that were just huge with this light. And it would remind them of, remember when the children of Israel, the light, the fire above and it would move and they would move in the cloud by day. And so Jesus has said, you know, the water out of the rock, that's me. And now he says, literally grammatically he says, I am in the emphatic position, the light of the world, not a light. I am the light of the world.

If any man, if anyone follows me, you'll never walk in darkness, but you will have or possess the light of life. I mean, it's radical. So they've been thinking about all of God's history. It's in the very place where all these big candelabras were with the lights. It's all over. And he comes out at dawn.

We've already seen the scene with the woman caught in adultery. And then he makes this outrageous statement. It's a promise.

It's a declaration. I am, you want to follow someone? I am the light of the world. Because if you follow me, and by the words in the present participle, if you continue to follow me, you will never walk in darkness, but instead you have the light of life. Now in about six months, he's going to go to the cross. A lot of times he's done lots of ministry in rural areas. And a lot of times he heals someone or does a miracle and says, please don't tell anybody.

I mean, would you just please just like go to the priest and get this taken care of? Because every time you tell someone, thousands of people make my life impossible to continue my ministry. But he's done with sort of the secret Messiah ship. He is now in Jerusalem at the place of the tabernacle.

He's going public and he's declared I'm the light of the world. Now the Pharisees are like going nuts. And the religious leaders now are gonna say, wait a second. The Jewish law says that the testimony of one person is invalid. We need the testimony of two. So now they're going to go into this big debate about why, in fact, what he's saying can't be true. You'll notice on your notes after his declaration, the Pharisees challenged Jesus' credibility in verses 13 through 20.

Follow along. Here you are appearing, verse 13, the Pharisees challenged him, witnessing a testimony is not valid, the witness of one. Jesus answered, even if I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is valid for I know where I came from and where I'm going.

But you have no idea where I came from or where I'm going. You judge by human standards. I pass judgment on no one.

But if I do judge, my judgments are right because I'm not alone. I stand with the Father who sent me. In your own law, it is written that the testimony of two men is valid.

I am one who testifies for myself. My other witness is the one who sent me, the Father. He's speaking of God, the Father. Then they ask him, where's your father? And by the way, this is probably a dig. There was many rumors about Jesus.

By now they're trying to cut him down every way possible. And the rumors are he's the bastard son of Mary who got pregnant by someone else before she married Joseph. Where is your father? I mean your real father. And Jesus responds, you do not know my father.

If you knew me, you would know my father also. He spoke these words while teaching in the temple area in the place where the offerings were put, where we just described. Yet no one sees him because his time had not yet come. Now, verse 21, there's a shift.

In verse 21, he said, look, I have credibility. I have two witnesses. There's me. There's the Father.

You guys, we've been through a lot. You don't have a clue of who I really am. And that's why you have no spiritual perception. And now he's going to take it to the next level. And notice in your notes, the next section, he warns of the consequences of unbelief. I mean, he's going to be very direct and say to them, the consequences of your continued unbelief, you won't even look at the facts. He said earlier, he said, if you don't believe my words, at least believe the works of the miracles that I've done. He's going to say in this section that because of their unbelief, they'll die in their sin. He's going to say that the only time they'll ever realize who he really was is after the cross and the resurrection. And then you're going to notice in the very last verse, there's one group of people who actually believe because there's about 15 of these steps that lead up and the Levites, they would come and they would say Psalm on each step. And it was, you know, a lot of pageantry and those feasts.

Well, now it was done. And so you got a crowd of people listening to him and then you had this group who's really wanting to kill him and get rid of him. And so you've got this mixed group and now he's talking to the religious leaders. But a lot of people are listening in going, whoa, I mean, this would be heated. Don't, don't think like a presidential debate with the Senator from Illinois.

You have a 2.4 minutes. Would you like to make a statement? And I thank you very much. But you know, and now, I mean, and now the next question goes to, this is vein popping. If you've ever been to Israel or downtown New York, right? And you watch culturally Jewish people talk to one another when they're kind of ticked off and pretty animated. I mean, when they're not ticked off and not animated, Hey, can I get that cab? Sure, man.

It's all yours, you know, right? And this is what's going on. I mean, this is, this is intensity with a capital I. So here's what happens. Notice verse 21. Once more, Jesus said to them, I'm going away and you will look for me and you will die in your sin.

I mean, that's pretty radical. Where I go, you cannot come. This made the Jews ask, will he kill himself? Is that why he says where he goes, we can't come. But he continued.

Now he's trying to help them see. You are from below. I am from above. You are of this world.

I'm not of this world. I told you. He's just reminding him. He's being direct.

He's being clear. I told you that you would die in your sins if you will not believe that I am the one I claim to be. You will indeed die in your sins. Who are you? They ask. Just what I've been claiming to be all along. Jesus replied, I have much to say in judgment of you, but he who sent me is reliable. And what I've heard from him, I tell the world.

They didn't understand that he was telling them about his father. So Jesus said, when you lift it up, John always uses this phrase for the cross and the resurrection later, when you've lifted up the son of man, then you will know who I am. And I do nothing on my own, but speak just what the father has taught me. The one who sent me is with me.

He has not left me alone for I always do what pleases him. And then this little sidebar, even as he spoke, many people put their faith in him. Now it's interesting because if you can imagine this crowd, it seems now he takes his attention and speaks to those people who believed in him. And we're not sure whether they have partial belief or they have full belief or whether he's the Messiah, but he's going to now say, look, let me give you the acid test of discipleship. If you really want to be a follower, this isn't just an intellectual belief.

And so there's this mixed group of, you know, there's a hostility and debate going over here. There's people that have believed over here. And so verse 31, almost through the end of the chapter, I want to tell you in advance what he's going to say, because as I read it, I want you to catch it. First thing he's going to say is that if you obey my word, it will result in freedom. He's going to talk about the acid test of discipleship is you have to obey my word.

This isn't intellectually believing something about me. This is about relational and obedience. Second, he's going to say, if you love me, and by the way, don't think of love as just an ooey gooey feeling, but if you love me, have very personal alignment. If I am your light and the alignment of your life, then the result is you'll hear God's voice. You're able to hear God speaking to you. And the third thing he's going to teach him is that if you keep my word, you'll never die. If you keep my word. And so he's going to say the acid test of discipleship hasn't to do with just an intellectual belief, but it will be a belief that leads to a following where the focus of your life centers around this man who now claims to be the Messiah, the Son of God, and later, one with the Father. See if you don't see it. Pick it up in verse 31.

Imagine the picture in your mind. To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, if you hold or literally abide in my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. And so he's speaking to this group. Well, that last line kind of got the, what do you mean set us free? Who do you think you are? They answered him, we are Abraham's descendants and we have never been slaves of anyone. They have a very short memory.

Egypt, Persians, Rome, okay. But you know what they're saying basically is they're a pretty independent group and how can you say that we shall be set free? Jesus said, I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever.

So if the son sets you free, you'll be free indeed. I know you're Abraham's descendants, yet you're ready to kill me because you have no room for my word in your heart. I am telling you what, listen to this phrase, I am telling you what I've seen in the father's presence and you do what you have heard from your father.

I mean, I mean, there's no holes bar. There's not like a wonder who he really is. Abraham is our father, they answered. Well, if Abraham is your father or your children of Abraham, Jesus said, then you would do the things Abraham did.

As it is, you're determined to kill me. A man who's told you the truth that I heard from God. Abraham didn't do such things. You are doing the things your own father does.

We are not illegitimate children, they protested. The only father we have is God himself. Jesus said to them, if God were your father, you would love me for I came from God and now I'm here.

I've not come on my own, but he sent me. Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say.

You belong to your father. Now, I mean, imagine this in their face, the devil and you want to carry out your father's desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language for he is a liar and the father of lies. Yet I tell you the truth, you do not believe me.

Can any of you prove me guilty of sin? Now, I mean, this is just like. I mean, this is, you can't say these people are the stewards of God's word. These are the religious leaders. These are the people that know more of their Bible of their day than anyone. These are the people who keep all the rules.

These are the people in authority. And Jesus has said that your father is the devil. You're trying to kill me because you're a murderer and you're liars. And by the way, test case. All right. Can any of you, I've been around three years. I've done all this in public. Can any one of you have one person that has one testimony that I've sent?

I mean, it's, it's an amazing confrontation and they can't. If I'm telling the truth, why don't you believe me? He who belongs, listen to this to God. Here's what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God.

Can I just interject this? The most dangerous place to be spiritually in all the world is to be blind but think you can see. See, blind people that think they're blind are looking for light. Blind people that think they can see think they've already got the light. The reason you can't hear is because you do not belong to God.

They're religious, they're knowledgeable, they're morally, you know, pretty upright. The Jews answered him, aren't we right now and saying you're a Samaritan and demon possessed? You're accusing us of religious leaders of the day. I'm not demon possessed, Jesus said, but I honor my father and you dishonor me. I'm not seeking glory for myself, but there is one who seeks it and he is the judge. I tell you the truth. If any man keeps my word, he will never die.

I mean another, what? You've never sinned. If any man keeps my word, he'll never die. At this, the Jews exclaimed, now we know that you're demon possessed. Abraham died and so did the prophets that you say if a man keeps your word, he will never die. Are you greater than our father Abraham?

He died and so did the prophets. Who do you think you are? Jesus replied, if I glorify myself, my glory means nothing.

My father whom you claim is your God is the one who glorifies me. Though you do not know him, I know him. If I said I didn't know him, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him and I keep his word.

Notice he's modeling how he follows. I do what pleases him. I keep his word. I do his will. Your father Abraham, this is where it got really off the charts.

This is the climax. Your father Abraham rejoiced, notice past tense, at the thought of seeing my day and he saw it and was glad. You know, they're just, I mean they're baffled. You're not yet 50 years old, the Jews said, and you have seen Abraham 50 years old. If you were a Levite, a priest, a rabbi at age 50 was automatic retirement. And so they're basically saying, you're not even retired.

You're like 30 years old or so. And you're saying you've already seen Abraham? I tell you the truth, Jesus answered, before Abraham was born, I am.

Not I was, I am. Chip will join us here in studio with his application in just a minute. You've been listening to the first part of his message, what's it mean to follow Jesus, which is from the second volume of his Jesus unfiltered series titled follow. When Jesus called his disciples, he used two simple words, follow me.

And that phrase has since changed the lives of countless people throughout history. So what does it look like to follow Jesus today? In the second volume of Chip's series, Jesus unfiltered, we're continuing our study of the Gospel of John. In chapters six through 10, Chip dives into topics like living without shame, understanding the miraculous, and finding true contentment, and how those subjects relate to the practice of following Jesus.

You're not going to want to miss a single program. For complete information about our resources or to check out the other volumes of our Jesus unfiltered series, visit livingontheedge.org. Tap listeners, tap special offers. Chip, I love the challenge you're asking us to wrestle with in this message, what does it mean to follow Jesus? So to bring some clarity, I know we've created a great tool that identifies common misconceptions about following Christ and then corrects them with scripture.

Would you take a minute and tell us more about this resource? What's being challenged here is what we believe. I mean, Jesus has come to explain the Father, and yet the culture, the world, my flesh, the enemy is constantly bombarding my mind and my heart with lies. And so I went back through and I take the key truth out of each chapter. And so we call these truth cards.

Let me give you an example. Here's a lie. In private moments, I sometimes have thoughts that make me question my faith. Do these doubts or thoughts mean that I don't really believe in Jesus? And then at the bottom of that card, it says stop.

In fact, there's a stop sign there. And then we flip the card over and it says everyone has doubts from time to time. We're bombarded by lies from the enemy, but the historical fact of Jesus' resurrection, not my feelings on any given day, is the basis of my faith. And then right under that I have the core passage out of John chapter 20. And so what we would love to do is put these in your hands so you can just review them. I find doing it at night before I go to bed, not trying even to memorize, just pondering and thinking and doing three or four or five cards. You do a few of those before you go to bed. It goes into your subconscious mind. It's amazing how your mind is renewed, because what do we all know? What did Jesus promise in John chapter 8? You shall know the truth and the truth will set you free. I hope you order a set of these cards for you and maybe someone you love as well.

Thanks, Chip. Well, to order these truth cards, go to livingontheedge.org or call us at 888-333-6003. There are 21 cards in this set, each with a common lie or spiritual battle we all face on one side and a scripture passage from the Gospel of John on the other. Our prayer is that you will use these cards to renew your mind with the truth of God's word.

Let me encourage you to get a set for yourself and then maybe another one or two for those in your life. Again, to order your truth cards, call 888-333-6003 or go to livingontheedge.org. That's 888-333-6003 or go to livingontheedge.org.

App listeners, tap special offers. Well, with that, Chip, let's get to that application you promised. Thanks, Dave. You know, as I started the teaching out today, I said that everyone, whether we're conscious of it or not, we follow something or someone. I mean, the wisest man in the world said, there is a way, literally there is a path that every person is on that seems right to them. You know, I think when Jesus was speaking to these Pharisees and was telling them the truth and who he was and sharing the opportunity and what they could have, I think some of them thought, wow, could all of my thinking about God be wrong?

I think others probably just said, you know, this young rabbi, what's he know? And, you know, we went to the official schools and, you know, we're the people that had the truth. And, you know, there's some people that after that encounter with Jesus, their life changed, not just for the better, but eternally. They responded to the truth. They came to the point and they said, you know, this path of how I'm living, how I'm working in my singleness, how I'm treating my wife, this path of how I'm treating my kids, this path of what I'm putting into my mind, what I'm putting into my body, this path is bringing me death. And, you know, it takes a lot of courage. It takes a lot of courage to admit the path you're on is wrong. And what I want you to know today, there's a path and the path is Jesus and you don't have to live the same way. Could I encourage you to just read the book of John with eyes open and heart open and say, Lord, reveal yourself to me in a fresh way. There's a new path and it's the path of life.

Take it. Just before we close, I want to thank each of you who's making this program possible through your generous giving. One hundred percent of your gifts are going directly to the ministry to help Christians really live like Christians. Now, if you found CIP's teaching helpful, but you're not yet on the team, would you consider doing that today? To donate, just go to livingontheedge.org, tap donate on the app, or give us a call at 888-333-6003. And let me thank you in advance for doing whatever the Lord leads you to do. Well, for CIP and the whole team here, this is Dave Drewy saying thanks for listening to this Edition of Living on the Edge.