Luke 5: 27 “After this he went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, setting at the tax booth. As he said to him, “Follow me.” And leaving everything, he rose and followed him.”
Following Jesus requires us to leave behind our dreams, plans, glory. We leave all of that and then pick up a few things. We pick up God’s purposes and live for God’s glory. Book after book has been written about this call to leave everything and follow Jesus. But where are the books about staying put in your “lame” hometown? What if my dream for my life is to “Get out of this crummy little town” or “Escape the town where my reputation is less than honorable”? If I don’t like where I live or the people around me, then the call to leave everything sounds pretty nice. Some people need the demand and the freedom that comes from a story in Luke 8.
Long story short…. Jesus heals a man who was ravaged by demons. The miracle was so amazing that is freaked the locals out. What does the man do? What does Jesus do?
“The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, “Return to your home, and declare how much God had done for you.” Lk 8:38-39A
“But Jesus! The man wants to leave everything and follow you!” the disciples could have said. What does Jesus do? He tells the man to go home. Following Jesus for this man meant to stay in that freaked out town. Jesus would not let the man go. So how does this man respond to this call of Jesus?
“And He went away, proclaiming throughout the whole city how much Jesus had done for him.” Lk 8:39B
Wow! The man is changed. His life is not about what he wants anymore “I want to go with you Jesus.” His life is now about what Jesus wants of him. Jesus wanted his life to be about Jesus’s glory in the man’s hometown.
For some of you. The “big thing” for God you are trying to figure out looks like staying put. Declare to even hostile people how much Jesus has done for you! And that is the key “What Jesus has done for you,” not “What you do for Jesus.”
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