Following Jesus

I recently read a book by NT Wright (a fantastic author and theologian) called Following Jesus: Biblical Reflections on Discipleship. I am constantly challenged by the concept of discipleship. For some reason I can easily understand my faith in terms of a teacher/student relationship. If there is anyone who I relate with in the Bible it would be the disciples. Though they were slow and didn’t get it most of the time, Jesus still poured His heart and soul into them with confidence that they could be like Him. And they turned out alright. They completely changed and revolutionized the world. There is still hope for you and me after all. :-)

Wright writes this book to help bring a clearer picture of the real biblical Jesus. He admits that many people inside and outside of the church have made up a ‘Jesus’ for themselves, inventing Him to be whatever they wish. Jesus to many Christians makes them feel warm and happy inside, but doesn’t challenge them or suggest them to do something about the plight of the world. However, the real Jesus cared more about the world than our comfortable little feelings. The call of discipleship for us is to do the same.

Something that was incredibly insightful was a chapter about who Jesus is according to the book of Hebrews:

- He is the true Son of God that is higher than the angels (Hebrews 1)
- He was 100% human that ‘lived our life and died our death’ (Hebrews 2)
- He is the true Joshua who leads His people to the promise land (Hebrews 3-4)
- He is the true high priest (mediator between us and God) forever (Hebrews 5-7)
- He is the final sacrifice and the new covenant (Hebrews 8-10)

This leads to the great heroes of the faith in chapter 11. Then chapters 12 and 13 sum everything up. Wright says,

“...it is the Jesus who will guide us through life, the Jesus who meets us today as we feast at His table, the Jesus who summons us gently but clearly to follow Him. And at the heart of this picture we find the cross: the cross which Jesus endured on our behalf, which was the climax of his life of suffering and rejection, which was, as we shall see, the final sacrifice.”


What an amazing and refreshing picture of Jesus!

Wright also wrote about the kingdom of heaven and what that meant to Jesus. He, like many others today, insists that God wants to bring heaven to earth. He points out how so many Christians are sitting around waiting to die and go to heaven. But Jesus wants heaven to be here in this world, NOW! And we, His disciples, are the ones charged to bring it here. This is a scary thought. That is what the disciples must have felt when Jesus gave them the great commission, putting the responsibility of His kingdom in the hands of His students.

If this seems like too daunting of a task, the writer of Hebrews encourages with this:

Hebrews 12:1-3
"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart."