I Have Decided to Follow Jesus is a catchy little children’s song with a life changing message. Following Jesus is a great idea and a choice we can all make! We must simply ask Jesus to live in our lives, accept Him as our Lord and Savior, believe His Word, and become a disciple. A disciple of Jesus is one who follows His teachings and example.
Many do not want to follow Jesus because they think it would “cramp their style.” They make assumptions about what Christ would do. Sure, they believe that loving God and loving their fellow man are great principles to live by, but they don’t want to be self-righteous, judgmental hypocrites like so many Christians they have known. In other words, if that’s what followers of Christ look like, they would just as soon follow someone else.
However, perhaps these Christians are following a preconceived idea of what they think Christ was like. Have they really taken the time to truly get to know Him? I submit that we could all use a refresher course on getting to know Christ a little better. A good place to start would be to read or reread the first four books of the New Testament (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John), which record what Jesus taught and did while He was here on earth.
A little research will show that Jesus wasn’t a pseudo sanctimonious recluse preaching platitudes. He enjoyed life. In fact, he came eating, drinking, and joining in the midst of life at that time. (Luke 7:34) He associated with everyone including tax collectors, prostitutes, scribes, and sinners, so they called him a glutton and a drunkard. (Matthew 9:10, 11; Luke 5:27-30). But Christ was not a glutton or drunkard, because those would be sins and He never sinned. (1 Peter 2:22) He just had the ability to have a good time and relate to people of all walks of life without sinning!
If Jesus walked the earth today, would He drink a beer? Maybe… After all, His first miracle was turning water into wine. Did He do that but not have a drink himself? I doubt it – but drinking an alcoholic beverage and getting drunk are two different things. (John 2:1-10, Matthew 11:19)
Would Jesus hang around with sinners? Maybe… He did in Biblical times. In fact he was called a friend to sinners. (Matthew 11:19)
Would Jesus get angry? Maybe… Anger in itself is not wrong but wrong use of that anger is. The Bible says, “Be angry and sin not.” (Ephesians 4:26) Jesus turned over the tables of the moneychangers outside the temple, which indicates he was a tad bit upset. (Matthew 21:12, Mark 11:15)
Would Jesus get frustrated? Maybe… He seemed a little irritated with three of the disciples when he took them on the mountain so he could pray and they kept falling asleep. (Matthew 26:40)
Would Jesus confuse the issue? Maybe… He certainly did when He said those who don’t eat my flesh and drink my blood have no part of me. That was very controversial for the time. Many left his side that day because they thought he was speaking literally. (John 6:53-66)
Would Jesus have modern ideas? Maybe… He was certainly progressive for His time. He treated all people, even Samaritans and women with dignity and respect. That was unheard of in those days. (John 4:7-9)
Let’s not put Jesus in a box and presumptuously tell others what He would or would not do in a given situation if we haven’t done our homework. Our Lord and Savior emptied Himself of His divinity, came to earth, lived among us, died for us, and rose again. He did not come to condemn the world. He came so the world could have salvation. (John 3:17)
Christ came preaching the good news for everyday people. The only ones who had a problem with Him were the spiritual leaders of the time (Sadducees, Pharisees, etc…) who had preconceived ideas of what a Savior should look like and what a Savior would do. When we decide to follow Jesus, let’s not make the same mistakes.
Suggestions for practicing this choice…
- Don’t rely on preconceived ideas about what Jesus would do in any given situation. Find out by reading one of the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John), preferably in the Message translation.
- Decide to follow Jesus.
- Refrain from judging Christians who talk the talk but have difficulty walking the walk. We all have a little trouble in that area from time to time.
- Try not to be self righteous. That’s easier for some of us than it is for others.
- Every now and then sing I Have Decided to Follow Jesus. Here’s a link to help you. We don’t even have to know how to carry a tune. We can learn a lot from children’s songs. They are short, to the point, and usually have a great message.
