John 10:1-15
The word "follow" in the New Testament comes from the original Greek word "akolouthoe" and means "to follow one who precedes; to accompany him; to join one as a disciple, become or be his disciple." It is used 91 times in the New testament, 77 of which appear in the four gospels.
There are three stages to this process of following:
1. The Discovery Stage - In order for there to even be the opportunity to folow, there must be one to follow, a leader. Spiritually, this journey does not begin until a man or woman come to a point of personal understanding that they are in need of someone to follow, AND then freely and personally CHOOSE to follow Jesus Christ. Verse 9 affirms that He is the only gate through which a sheep can pass and be saved. No one is saved by heritage, nor is salvation automatic. It cannot be given to an individual by any religious ritual, tradition or practice. It requires each individual to make a decision of faith to choose who they will follow. The choice of who you follow determines your eternal destination.
2. The Obedience Stage - Obedience should come naturally to a true believer. There has already come that moment of complete surrender - the surrender of control - the submission of our will and the acceptance of God's divine plan in and for our life - no matter what that is.
There is a listening component to following. Verse 3 - "The sheep listen to His voice." One of the problems we face in today's modern world is that it has become increasingly difficult to hear God's voice because there is so much "noise" competing for our attention. We can be so easily distracted. And with the rapid advances in technology, we are constantly tempted to stay "plugged in" to something.
The more devices we have to listen to, the fewer real listeners there are. If you try and listen to everyone (and everything) you will end up not really "hearing" anyone.
You cannot effectively follow Christ on a daily basis without listening to His voice. It is by His voice that He leads us. And often that voice is still and small.
3. The Constant & Consistent Evaluation / Examination - Sheep have no sense of direction. They have natural instincts, but direction is not one of them. Every day of their life they are dependent on following the leadership of their shepherd, and they follow by listening to his familiar voice. When they hear an unfamiliar voice, they run away (and so should we - verse 5).
In the same way, every day of our life we are dependent on the leadership of God's own Spirit living inside of us. We must be intentional about hearing His voice. To do so requires us to set aside a daily time and place where we can unplug from the noise and distractions of life and "Be still and know that He is God" (Psalm 46:10). It is only when we do this that the Shepherd is able to lead us to green pastures and beside still waters.
Taking time every day to examine our following provides us the opportunity to make corrections in our course before we get detoured. A small jog off course may not yield great impact in the short term, but one degree of misguided direction can cause us to completely miss our destination over the course of months or years.
Following by it's very nature present a control question. We struggle against authority, or against surrendering it. That's our old human sin nature. But when you come to a place of decision and give Jesus Christ full control of your life, He will lead you and guide you with His voice. It is one of the marks of a true believer engaged in a personal relationship with the Good Shepherd.
