Following Christ:

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Following Christ
Part 1

• LIVING AS CHRISTS FOLLOWERS

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Matthew 418-20

• 18) As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of
  Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter
  and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net
  into the lake, for they were fishermen.
• 19) "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will
  make you fishers of men."
• 20) At once they left their nets and followed him.

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Matthew 421-22

• 21) Going on from there, he saw two other
  brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother
  John. They were in a boat with their father
  Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them,
  
• 22) and immediately they left the boat and their
  father and followed him.

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Who are you following?
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Christianity

• -means living as Christs disciples or Christs
  followers.
• Christian
• -a true follower of Jesus Christ.

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I. THE CALL IN FOLLOWING CHRIST
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Matthew 419

• 19) "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will
  make you fishers of men."

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I. THE CALL IN FOLLOWING CHRIST

• Relationship
• -The follower will have a growing and
  deepening relationship to the one they were
  following.

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I. THE CALL IN FOLLOWING CHRIST

• Relationship
• -The follower will have a growing and
  deepening relationship to the one they were
  following.

C. Blendinger, comments on the word
following The word describes the relationship
of a pupil to a teacher of the Torah (Law). The
pupil who chooses to subordinate himself to a
Rabbi follows him everywhere he goes, learning
from him and above all serving him. The pupils
obligation to serve is an essential part of
learning the Law. The goal of all his learning
and training is a complete knowledge of the
Torah, and the ability to practice it in every
situation.
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I. THE CALL IN FOLLOWING CHRIST

• Relationship
• -The follower will have a growing and
  deepening relationship to the one they were
  following.
• - Christ is the Rabbi of our souls

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Psalm 421-2

• 1) As the deer pants for streams of water, so my
  soul pants for you, O God.
• 2) My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
  When can I go and meet with God?

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I. THE CALL IN FOLLOWING CHRIST

• Relationship
• Reformation
• -The true follower is in the process of a
  radical transformation because of the influence
  of the leader on his life.

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Luke 640

• 40) A student is not above his teacher, but
  everyone who is fully trained will be like his
  teacher.

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Mahatma Gandhi
Question If you admire Christ so much, why dont
you become a Christian?

• When I meet a Christian who is a follower of
  Christ, I may consider it.

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II. THE COST IN FOLLOWING CHRIST

• They left their profession
• -Willingness to follow without hesitation

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Matthew 421-22

• 21) Going on from there, he saw two other
  brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother
  John. They were in a boat with their father
  Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them,
  
• 22) and immediately they left the boat and their
  father and followed him.

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Matthew 418-20

• 18) As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of
  Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter
  and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net
  into the lake, for they were fishermen.
• 19) "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will
  make you fishers of men."
• 20) At once they left their nets and followed him.

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II. THE COST IN FOLLOWING CHRIST

• They left their profession
• They left their possessions
• -putting more value in experiencing life
  with Jesus rather than their own possessions

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Luke 1822

• 22) When Jesus heard this, he said to him, "You
  still lack one thing. Sell everything you have
  and give to the poor, and you will have treasure
  in heaven. Then come, follow me."

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II. THE COST IN FOLLOWING CHRIST

• They left their profession
• They left their possessions
• They left their parents
• -they were not willing to allow their
  earthly relationship to keep them from following
  Jesus.

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Luke 1426

• 26) "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his
  father and mother, his wife and children, his
  brothers and sisters--yes, even his own life--he
  cannot be my disciple.

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Luke 1426
Bible Knowledge Commentary explains To
emphasize that discipleship is difficult, Jesus
said that one must hate his own family and even
his own life in order to be His disciple.
Literally hating ones family would have been a
violation of the Law. Since Jesus on several
occasions admonished others to fulfill the Law,
He must not have meant here that one should
literally hate his family. The stress here is on
the priority of love (cf. Matt. 1037). Ones
loyalty to Jesus must come before his loyalty to
his family or even to life itself. Indeed, those
who did follow Jesus against their families
desires were probably thought of as hating their
families.

• 26) "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his
  father and mother, his wife and children, his
  brothers and sisters--yes, even his own life--he
  cannot be my disciple.

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Great men of God understood the need to make the
sacrifice

• Adoniram Judson
• "There is no success without sacrifice.
  If you succeed without sacrifice it is because
  someone has suffered before you. If you sacrifice
  without success it is because someone will
  succeed after.
• Billy Graham
• Salvation is free, but discipleship
  costs everything we have.

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III. THE CROWN IN FOLLOWING CHRIST

• -Following Him will lead to a higher
  direction and purpose in life from being
  fishers of fishes, they will become fishers of
  men.

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1 Corinthians 126-29

• 26) Brothers, think of what you were when you
  were called. Not many of you were wise by human
  standards not many were influential not many
  were of noble birth.
• 27) But God chose the foolish things of the world
  to shame the wise God chose the weak things of
  the world to shame the strong.

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1 Corinthians 126-29

• 28) He chose the lowly things of this world and
  the despised things--and the things that are
  not--to nullify the things that are,
• 29) so that no one may boast before him.

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Matthew 1927-29

• 27) Peter answered him, "We have left everything
  to follow you! What then will there be for us?"
• 28) Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, at
  the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man
  sits on his glorious throne, you who have
  followed me will also sit on twelve thrones,
  judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

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Matthew 1927-29

• 29) And everyone who has left houses or brothers
  or sisters or father or mother or children or
  fields for my sake will receive a hundred times
  as much and will inherit eternal life.

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Do you consider yourself a follower of Jesus?

• If you have a relationship with Him, you
  must consider following Him wholeheartedly.