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We're beginning a brand new series today called "Back to Basics." As a parent, I notice that every fall brings a natural rhythm of renewal—we think about schedules, budgets, bedtimes, and getting back to what matters most in our households. We wanted to bring that same intentionality to Angelus Temple.
Our culture can get caught up in making serving Jesus more complicated than it needs to be. We want to return to the simplicity of the Gospel story. Over the next few weeks, we'll talk about walking with Jesus, prayer, and reading Scripture. Today, though, I want us to understand what Jesus actually invites us into when he says, "Come, follow me."
When you hear the word "Christian," what comes to mind? In our culture, it can mean so many different things. For some, it means church or religion. For others, it means a set of moral rules. Some think of politics. Some simply mean believing in God.
But here's what Jesus actually did: When he walked the shore of Galilee, he didn't ask people, "Would you like to become a Christian?" He said something much more personal: "Come, follow me." Jesus was not offering them a label. He was inviting them into a life, a journey, a relationship.
We can carry the name "Christian" without remembering what that name was meant to describe. Today, I want us to become overwhelmed with understanding who Jesus is and what he's inviting us into.
Let's look at Matthew 4:18-20:
"While by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who was called Peter, and Andrew, his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. And he said to them, 'Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.' Immediately they left their nets and followed him."
I've been to the Sea of Galilee, and it's beautiful to stand where Jesus walked and see ordinary fishermen casting their nets on an ordinary day. Jesus didn't call religious professionals. He called fishermen. Peter and Andrew hadn't arrived spiritually. They didn't understand everything. But Jesus saw them and extended an invitation.
Notice something important: Jesus entered the middle of their ordinary lives. This is remarkable. He didn't ask them to clean themselves up first, to become more religious, or to prove themselves. He simply said, "Follow me."
What is Jesus inviting us into when he says "follow me"? This is the question I want us to sit with this morning. Jesus is not merely saying "believe that I exist," "attend church once a week," "become more religious," or "try harder." He is inviting us into something deeper.
The invitation begins with Jesus himself. "Come, follow me." Notice the order: Jesus does not begin by saying "work for me, produce for me, prove yourself to me, or fix yourself." He says, "Come be with me."
That is where discipleship begins. It's not with an activity but with a relationship. Not with performance but with presence.
In Mark 3:14, Jesus appointed the twelve "that they might be with him." Notice the order: First, be with him. Then, be sent out to preach. Before they preached, they were with Jesus. Before miracles, they were with Jesus. Before leadership, they were with Jesus. Before mission, they were with Jesus. Their first calling was not to do something for Jesus. Their first calling was to be with Jesus.
Before Jesus calls us to do anything for him, he calls us to be with him. Jesus invites us into a life with him before he invites us into a life for him. We must get this right.
I've done ministry my entire adult life. Most people I see walking in a beautiful, loving, understanding relationship with Jesus are those who get this order right. When someone we've been praying for—a child, parent, relative, or friend—finally says yes to Jesus, we get excited. We immediately want to see action and fruit. We want to see behavior change.
But here's the problem: If we don't help them understand that they are now invited to be with Jesus and to know how deeply loved they are, if they don't become engulfed in understanding the great love of the Father that says "Come be with me," they'll begin to serve Jesus for the wrong reasons.
We often reverse the order. We think Christianity begins with "do, serve, give, lead, perform, change." But Jesus begins with "be with me."
Christianity is not merely knowing the right things about Jesus. It's learning to walk with Jesus.
Here's what happens when you walk closely with someone: they begin to shape you. You begin to know how they think. You begin to notice what matters to them.
I remember when Brad and I were dating in those early years. I just wanted to be around him. I wanted to know everything about him. "What do you like? Oh, I like that too." He loved Alabama football. I knew nothing about college football. But because I loved him and spent time with him, I learned about it. And now, 22 or 23 years later, I talk about Alabama football as if I know what I'm doing. You're shaped by the people you're around.
When you're in a relationship to be with Jesus, when you understand how deeply loved you are, something beautiful happens. You begin to know how he thinks. You begin to notice what matters to him. You begin to see what he sees. Do you see how beautiful this is? Do you see how it takes the pressure off? When you understand what Jesus is really inviting you into, it will shift everything. You will breathe differently. Your relationships will change. You'll understand what Jesus is wanting from us.
Jesus invites us to be with him, and he's inviting us into relationship. You are so deeply loved. The man who lived a life we could not live, who paid the ultimate price for your worst day—Jesus loves you no less on your worst day than he does on your best day. And Jesus says, "Come be with me," knowing that we are sinners.
But Jesus doesn't simply invite us to walk beside him. He intends to transform us as we walk. The goal is not simply to know more about Jesus. It is to become more like Jesus. This is why discipleship is a journey. Peter doesn't begin as the Peter we see later in Acts. Neither does John. Neither do we.
When you begin a true, real relationship with Jesus—where it's just about being with him—you will become more like him. You will start desiring the things he wants. When you find yourself thinking, "I've got to grow in this area. What is my problem?" I would encourage you to go back and really order your heart. Are you trying to be like him, or are you with him? Because it will begin to take place. It's what he's inviting you into.
Matthew 4:19 continues: "Follow me and I will make you." Notice those words: "I will make you." Jesus is not saying, "Make yourself. Improve yourself. Fix yourself. Get your act together." He says, "Follow me and I will make you." It's called transformation.
Our responsibility is to follow. His work is transformation. Jesus does the forming.
John 15:4-5 says: "Remain in me as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself. It must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit."
Apart from him, we can do nothing. And here's the beautiful part: pressure off. We're not that great. It's not low self-esteem. It's saying, "I know who I am, but I know who my God is." That gives me greater confidence because it's not in me. It's confidence in Jesus.
I'm not that great. Ask my family. But you know who I have confidence in? Jesus. I know who will correct me, find me, form me, and love me on my worst days. I know who will celebrate me on my best days. And as I remain in him, I will bear fruit.
Notice the order: Remain, then fruit. Presence, then productivity. Relationship, then results. Fruit grows from connection. Our job is to follow Jesus. Jesus' job is to form us.
Following Jesus is not primarily about trying harder. The worst thing you can do is say, "She's right. I'm going to follow Jesus this year. We're doing this. We're going to set the alarm. We're going to do this." If you approach it that way, you're missing it.
I love discipline. I love order. I like a clean house. I love to exercise. I believe in having hard conversations. But with a relationship with Jesus, that's not how you win his heart. That's not how you grow. It's about staying closer. God will give you the desire as you stay closer to him to begin to respond and act in the way Jesus wants us to respond.
The closer we walk with Jesus, the more his life begins to shape ours. His compassion begins to shape ours. His patience confronts our impatience. His forgiveness softens our resentment. His courage challenges our fear.
I remember being in the car, stressed about my schedule—grad school, kids starting school, Caleb starting tackle football. I was prepping for this very message, and I was having a little pity party. And as I brought it to Jesus, the Lord said to me, "You get to invite people on Sunday into what it means to have a relationship with me."
That moment shifted me. Instead of seeing my full schedule as a burden, I saw it as an invitation to mission. As we are with Jesus, he confronts what we need confronted, and we begin to see things differently. We probably need to repent, ask for forgiveness for our own sin and brokenness. But that's the beauty of Jesus. He doesn't just form us for ourselves. What Jesus is doing in us eventually begins to flow through us.
Matthew 4:19 continues: "I will make you fishers of people." Invites us to be with him. As we're with him, he forms us. And then Jesus invites us into what he is doing on this earth. We get to be invited to be a part of mission with Jesus.
We often start by asking, "All right, Jesus, I invite you in. What's my purpose? What am I doing with my life? What does this season mean? Why am I walking through this?" But the beauty is: Purpose flows out of being with Jesus and being formed by him. You begin to connect to hear what Jesus is doing. That is participation.
Notice the progression: Come. Follow. I will make you fishers of people. Purpose. Relationship first, transformation next, mission becomes the overflow.
Ephesians 2:8-10 says: "By grace you have been saved, and created in Christ Jesus for good works." We do not serve to earn God's love. We serve because we have received God's love. Purpose flows out of grace.
Joining Jesus doesn't always mean you're getting a title. Joining Jesus in what he's doing can mean:
Your everyday life is your purpose. Mission flows through your everyday life. God has a mission for you.
Purpose is not simply finding something important for you to do. It is joining Jesus in what he is already doing. As we walk with Jesus, something happens. His heart begins to become our heart. We begin to care about what he cares about.
What Jesus is inviting us into—he says, "Follow me." And I will form you. All the things you're desiring to break free from, all the things you long to no longer think about, all the relationships you're desiring—they begin to come through abiding, being with him and being formed.
I want to encourage you here today, those that feel insignificant: Your life is so much more significant than this world ever will tell you. The contribution you make, the way Jesus put you on this earth on purpose—it matters.
This is discipleship. This is the Christian life. Not perfection. Not performance. A life with Jesus.
You know, back when Christians were first called "Christians" in Antioch, the people who had learned to walk with Jesus eventually became identified by his name. It was almost mocking at first: "You little Christ people." They were called Christians because they were like their Messiah. People knew them by that name because they were becoming like Jesus. They were living close enough to Jesus that his life became visible in theirs.
The goal is not simply to call ourselves Christians. It is to walk so closely with Christ that his life begins to show through ours. It's not about seeing us. It's about Christ being seen in us.
And here's what makes this all possible: Before Jesus ever said, "Come to me," he came to us.
Romans 5:8 says: "While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Jesus came toward us. He carried our sin. He gave us life. He rose again. And now the risen Jesus still extends this invitation: "Come, follow me."
Salvation is not the reward for people who fix themselves. Salvation is the gift of grace. And salvation is this beautiful doorway to eternal life. Walking with Jesus is the journey.
Some of you have been around churches and Christians for years. Maybe you stopped walking closely with Jesus. Maybe disappointment created distance. Maybe grief created distance. Maybe shame created distance. Maybe success created distance. Maybe busyness created distance.
You in this room still believe in Jesus. But I would ask you: Are you walking closely with Jesus this morning? There's no condemnation. He's inviting you.
Two thousand years ago, Jesus walked the shores of the Sea of Galilee and invited ordinary fishermen with two simple words: "Follow me." And today, the same Jesus is still extending that invitation. It hasn't changed.
So the question this morning is: Will we walk with him? Are you walking with Jesus?
The invitation he gave on the Sea of Galilee—it's still the same: "Come, follow me."
