A Real Follower Of Jesus

"Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness." - Matthew 7:21-23

As I live my life, I try to see the spiritual context or application of the natural. Those things that happen day to day. With regard to being a Jesus Follower, I was thinking about a guy I met at the junior college I attended after I returned from Vietnam and mustered out of the Army - the first time.  I remember walking down one of the interior hallways when I saw a guy wearing a fatigue jacket. Those were the days of the draft and there were a lot of veterans using the G.I. Bill to pay for college.

So, I walked up to him and as I did, I noticed the patch on the right shoulder of his jacket. You wear the patch of the unit you last served with in a combat zone. It was a MACV patch - Military Assistance Command - Vietnam. The same unit I served with. I was with Advisory Team 68 in the Vinh Long Province in the Mekong Delta (read giant rice paddy!) I asked him what Advisory team he was with, to which he replied "What?" with a confused look on his face. I asked again, "I saw the MACV patch, I served with MACV also, what team were you with?" He replied, "Hey man, I wasn't in the Army, I bought this jacket at the Salvation Army!" And I walked on - a bit dismayed.

He was wearing an Army Jacket but was never in the Army.  It is like people who go to Church but are not and were never serving in the Lord's Army. They are certainly not following Jesus. To follow Jesus, you must enlist - in the words of Jesus to Nicodemus - "You must be born again!"

I have opted to use the VA medical center in lieu of going to a civilian doctor. Whenever I go and see the plight of so many men my age - all veterans, I invariably tell the doctor when they ask the standard question, "How are you doing?" To which I reply in the context of seeing how bad my life could be, "I am doing great!" Virtually all of those guys wear ball caps that give some indication of the branch of service they were in.  Some have all sorts of accoutrements attached. (rank, emblems, unit patches, etc)

There was one guy who was wearing a Vietnam Veterans hat. I asked him when he was there and then what branch he served in. Early '70s and the Navy. There was a naval detachment that worked with our team. They had PBRs - River Patrol Boats. They had 50 caliber machine guns mounted on them. They face hostile fire many times -like sitting ducks on the rivers. I figured that is what he did. So, I asked what he did in Vietnam. He said, I was on a ship on the ocean. He never set foot in Vietnam proper, and never saw any hostile action. But he had the hat and people could think whatever they wanted to about the guy wearing the hat. Just because you are a Christian, wearing the hat, does not mean that you are following Jesus. 

Am I being critical - no. My point is being a Jesus follower is more than going to church (wearing a jacket). It is more than being born again (wearing a hat) - although that is a pre-requisite. It means that you must get your boots muddy.  That you must face hostile fire. That you must follower your leader into battle.

Don't expect the world to give you a victory parade for following Jesus. When I returned from Vietnam, we were told not to wear our uniforms in the airports. One day at the same junior college I was asked how many babies I had killed while I was in Vietnam. Welcome home baby killer!

“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you." - John 15:18

So if you can't tell a follower by their coat or their hat, how can you tell them apart from everyone else?

"By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." - John 13:35

There is a lot more to say about that!

Think about it – Pray about it – Believe it – Walk in it. Let your light shine and give God the glory.

By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone