Being With Jesus, Learning From Jesus
2 min read
Ministry for Jesus flows from intimacy with Jesus.
Be With Jesus
There are many benefits that come from Jesus, but nothing compares to simply being with Jesus and knowing him as lord and savior. That’s why Jesus called his first disciples “so that they might be with him and he might send them out” (Mark 3:14). The order is clear. Ministry for Jesus flows from intimacy with Jesus. Our first calling is to Christ himself; to know him, love him, and be with him. And yet, to be with Jesus is never a static activity.
Jesus is on the move. He’s not bound by history, he’s making history—with a story that's more powerful than any ink to ever dry on a page. Jesus is on a mission to seek and save the lost, to bring mercy and justice to the world, and to display the glory of God in such a way that makes the sun look like a Fourth of July sparkler. And as he goes, he says, “Follow me.”
To follow Jesus means to give him the lead. He sets the agenda. He’s in control. He gets the final say. As Scripture consistently emphasizes, Christ is King. To accept the kingship of Christ, however, requires a simultaneous dethroning of self. To say “Jesus is Lord” is also to say “I am not.” To say “his way” means “not mine.” That’s why Jesus says, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23).
Learn From Jesus
The term “disciple” comes from the Greek word matheiteis. It literally means “student” and is also where we get the word “mathematics.” Math is something that has to be learned. Long division doesn’t come naturally. Nobody figures out a square root just by growing up. We need to learn it. We have to be students. It’s the same with being a disciple of Jesus. He calls us to be learners.
Learning from Jesus, however, is not primarily about learning information. It’s about learning to love. Surprisingly, genuine love doesn’t always come naturally; it has to be learned. We have to learn how to love God. We have to learn how to love one another. We have to learn how to love our city.
Being a Disciple of Jesus
Who better to learn from than Jesus himself? Jesus said, “Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me” (Matthew 11:29). That's something any rabbi would've said to a group of disciples in the first century, but Jesus wasn’t just any rabbi. He also said things like, “You have heard that it was said…but I say to you…” (Matthew 5:43-44), setting himself apart from other rabbis and even from the greatest teachers and sages of the Old Testament. Solomon was considered the wisest man the world had ever seen, yet Jesus said “something greater than Solomon is here” (Matthew 12:42).
To be a disciple is to constantly learn from Jesus. We learn from Christ through the Scriptures about who God is, how to grow in character, how to apply our faith to work, and how to seek justice in a wold of injustice. Jesus is our teacher, and he teaches us through his Word by the power of the Spirit in the context of the community of disciples that he calls us to be part of—the church.
This excerpt was taken from Follow Me, an accessibly written book which explains what discipleship is all about in a way that anyone can understand.
There are many benefits that come from Jesus, but nothing compares to simply being with Jesus and knowing him as lord and savior.
To follow Jesus means to give him the lead. He sets the agenda. He’s in control. He gets the final say.
Follow Me
by Jeremy Treat
This short, clear and visual book unpacks what it means to be a disciple of Christ and guides Christians down the path of following their king.
About the Author
Jeremy Treat (PhD, Wheaton College) is Pastor for Preaching and Vision at Reality LA in Los Angeles, California, and Adjunct Professor of Theology at Biola University. He is also the author of The Crucified King: Atonement and Kingdom in Biblical and Systematic Theology.