Following Christ – Joseph M. Stowell Part 3

Accepting the Challenge

It is not that we have not heard that intriguing call , “Follow Me.” It is not even that we do not believe in and admire the One who calls. Our struggle is that it is just plain difficult to be a follower. In a world consumed by leadership, independence, and self-led living, it is so tough to find volunteers who will even admit that they want to be followers. We get and give the impression that followers are limp, vulnerable, weak, controlled by others, and lacking in initiative.

Growing up hasn’t changed our perception of the difference between leading and following – only now it’s not a game, and the stakes are high. All of life and its outcomes rise and fall on whether or not we will choose to be the leader of our own destiny or a follower of someone wiser and better fit to lead. Unfortunately, when it comes to the life choices that matter most, we resist yielding control. We don’t want to give the impression that we are unable to figure out life for ourselves. Like men who refuse to stop and ask directions when they are lost, we fear that others will think we aren’t wise and strong.

Or perhaps it’s just our “want-tos” that lead us astray.

In the face of our resistance to being vulnerable, Christ calls us to come after Him. He calls us to count ourselves singularly, wholly, and without compromise fully devoted followers of Him – not as a part-time expression of, or add-on to, our Christianity, but as the all-consuming center point of our existence. Yet this tension between the call of Christ and our resistance to following puts the experience and expression of authentic Christianity in jeopardy.

Christianity is Christ

The struggles that put followership in jeopardy are not uncommon. Yet at the core of it all, it is not a struggle with rules and regulations. The issue is something far more significant, more compelling. Following Christ is a relationship that drives and defines all we are and do. In fact, that’s what I (author) love about followership. It’s not a project. It’s a Person. It’s a relationship to a Person who perfectly loves and cares for us and who is wise beyond comparison – a Person who has done so much for His followers that they look for ways to please and obey Him.

Followership would be drudgery and dull if it were nothing but an obligation to fulfill or a list of rules to keep. We don’t find joy and fulfillment in a good marriage because of the institution of marriage, the laws that govern it, or the tax breaks for filing jointly.

If Christianity is dull and boring, if it is a burden and not a blessing, then most likely we are involved in a project, not a Person – a system, not a Saviour, rules rather than relationship.

Followership is not a religious thing, a list of rules, a host of rituals, a philosophy of life, or the best choice among other possible lifestyle. Authentic followers do not live for liturgy or liberation. Following is not a celebration. It is not contemporary or traditional. It is not jubilant dance or compelling drama. It is not preaching. It is not praising. It is not obeying or conforming.

It is Christ, and Christ alone.

All the rest is because of Christ and for Christ.

We are prone to embrace the forms and functions as though they were the essence. But they are only the expression; He is the essence.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote,

Discipleship means adherence to Christ….An abstract Christology, a doctrinal system, a general religious knowledge on the subject of grace or on the forgiveness of sins, render discipleship superfluous…. Christianity without the living Christ is inevitably Christianity without discipleship, and Christianity without discipleship is always Christianity without Christ.

~to be continued~

Following Christ by Joseph M. Stowell – Part 2

Mirrors in Motion

Fully devoted followers are like mirrors in motion. By the very definition of following, we are called into a deepening intimacy with Christ. This increasingly close proximity to Christ transforms us and results in a clear reflection of His character. As followers we replicate the grace, mercy, love, justice, compassion, truth, and righteousness of Christ our leader. Followers refuse to be satisfied just to be saved and on their way to heaven. For followers, Christianity is a relationship, an adventure, a passionate pursuit of Christ. Followers escape the boredom and drudgery of a system or rituals and regulations and revel in the discovery of this intriguing Person.

As followers we a re liberated from religious traditions and conventions that do not reflect the perspective, character, and conduct of Christ. Although we may hear a multiplicity of voices from both within and outside the church, we listen to only one. It is the voice of Christ, who simply said, “Follow Me.” No conditions. No negotiations. No particulars. No contractual expectations. Just follow. It was the first and last thing Jesus said to Peter (Mark 1:17; John 21:19,22). It is the beginning and the end of what it means to be a Christian. Everything in between is measured by it.

Followers are free – free to be what they were intended to be, free to experience life the way it was meant to be.

Unfortunately, we don’t readily perceive ourselves as followers. When we identify ourselves, it is most often with terms such as “Christian,” “believer,” “brother” or “sister”. To say, “I am a Christian,” focuses our attention on our privileges and entitlements. Or, perhaps it is simply a way to differentiate ourselves from other kinds of people. For some it means little more than not being a Muslim, Hindu, or Buddhist. The title itself does little to forge a sense of calling, action of definition of what being a Christian is all about.

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As good and important these identities may be, at some point we have to get beyond these labels to a self-perception that will demand the right stuff of our lifestyle. Identifying ourselves as followers captures the essence of what it means to be a believing Christian. Think of the difference it would make if we answered the questions about who we are by saying, “I am a follower of Christ.” Calling one another “follower” would draw out both encouragement and accountability. Thinking of ourselves as followers keeps our focus on Christ and holds us accountable for how we live.

Yet, in a strange, twisted sort of way, many of us live out our faith in Christ as though He exists to follow us. We come to believe that Christ exists to satisfy our demands. Distorted perceptions of Christianity pose the power of faith and prayer as instruments designed to get Christ to serve our impulses for peace and prosperity. This disguised form of self-serving religion sets Christ up as just one more commodity in life that will enhance and empower our dreams and destinations.

~to be continued~

Following Christ – Joseph M. Stowell Part 1

I’m currently reading this book called ‘Following Christ’ by Joseph M. Stowell. It was a book given to me during my 21st birthday last year, and it took me this long to actually open the book and read it, and let me tell you this: The 1st 6 pages of the book is all – OUCH.

Ouch because the things the author wrote in the book is all so relevant about what a Christian life really should be. The following paragraphs below are taken from his book:

“Gandhi was asked by a closed friend, ‘If you admire Christ so much, why don’t you become a Christian?’ He reportedly replied, ‘When I meet a Christian who is a follower of Christ, I may consider it.’

Mao Tse-tung came to America as a university student, intrigued by Christianity and Western culture. But after encountering several Christians and our brand of Christianity, he became disillusioned and turned his heart towards Marxism. We all know the rest of the story.

It seems to me that this is not what Christ had in mind when He said, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.”

Something significant has happened since Christ issued that call nearly two thousand years ago. We have become quite happy to call ourselves Christians with little or no thought of following. As a result, we are paying dearly through a lost of fulfillment, personal satisfaction, and our impact on our world.

It is not that we have denied Christ or even that we have done horrible things. In fact, most of us have mastered the codes of conduct and rituals of our religion. The problem is, we have masqueraded Christ with our own ways. When non-Christians see us, they see more of our distorted portrayal of Christianity than they do a clear reflection of the character and quality of Christ.

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Too often we have graffitied the face of Christ. His image becomes clouded by our prejudices and preferences. Apart from our activities on Sunday and our conformity to external codes of dos and don’ts, the world doesn’t notice much difference between us and people who don’t claim to be Christians. All they see in Christianity is the loss of a day of leisure on the weekend and the denial of common pleasure. Nor does it go unnoticed that many professing Christians manifest as much greed, self-centeredness, materialism, anger, aggressiveness, and sensualism as the average pagan on the street.

Our record on issues that relate to racial prejudice and cross-cultural sensitivity is especially poor. While we rightly lift a prophetic voice against moral ills such as abortion and homosexual behaviour, we are strangely silent on issues that touched the heart of Christ – the poor, oppression and injustice.”

PS: This 'series' will be updated weekly by me, Eugene Goh. However, all credit goes to the author, Joseph M. Stowell for writing this inspiring book. Nothing comes from me.

~to be continued~