Start Following Jesus

Introduction

You don't have to know or believe everything about the Gospel to start following Christ. You can start where you are, and you can simply align your life in the direction of knowing Him more and following His commands as far as you can understand and obey it. In time, you will know the truth about Him and the truth will set you free. You may encounter obstacles and failures along the way, but keep pointing your life in the direction of Jesus together with others. Like a child, trust God who will guide you toward a more mature faith. Christianity is not about being in or out of a group. It's a journey of faith that you can embark on together with others. Jesus is the author and finisher of this journey (Hebrews 12:1-3). Focus on Him and you will be alright no matter what happens.

Why this is true

Let me explain this by giving you a short retelling of the Gospel of Mark. According to Mark, when Jesus started His ministry of preaching and teaching about the kingdom of God (Mark 1:14-15), people began listening to Him because they were amazed at His teaching (Mark 1:21-22). They brought their sick to Him so that He can heal them (Mark 1:32-34). Everyone was attracted to Him (Mark 1:36-37, 45). People loved His teaching (Mark 2:1-2). They followed Him even though they did not yet fully understand who He was (Mark 2:15). It could be that these people were the ones identified as His early disciples (since the Twelve were not yet chosen, see Mark 3:13-19). But when the Twelve were finally chosen as His future successors and teachers of the Gospel, they were eventually distinguished from the "crowd" (Mark 3:20). Nevertheless, the "crowd" were still identified as those who listened to His teachings (Mark 4:1). Because the Twelve were being prepared by Jesus, they received special training or explanations later on (Mark 4:13-20, 33-34). But for the rest, His teachings came at first in the form of parables (Mark 4:10-12), which required careful listening with faith before it can be fully understood, even by the Twelve (Mark 4:3-8, 24-25). His desire is for everyone to understand the good news about the kingdom of God.

Many of those who listened to Jesus were confused about His identity (Mark 6:1-3). They did not have faith to see the kingdom of God at work in His person (Mark 6:5-6). Nevertheless, He sent out the Twelve to preach the same message and to do what He was doing (Mark 6:7-13). Later, as those who were sent out by Him, they were identified as His apostles (Mark 6:30). They continued to receive special training from Jesus and they experienced the power of the kingdom of God (Mark 6:31-44, 45-50), even though they were also confused about His true identity (Mark 6:51-52). Nevertheless, He continued to train them by giving them plenty of personal experiences regarding the kingdom of God (Mark 6:53-56).

Even though the Twelve were not yet sure about Jesus' identity, they encountered persecution with Him (Mark 7:5). They saw how He handled it. Jesus continued to do the ministry in spite of them (Mark 7:24-37). These experiences became their on-the-job training for their later ministry, once Jesus leaves them. But, for the mean time, He continued to perform miracles for those who may be called the "crowd" (Mark 8:1). These experiences, although beneficial for the "crowd", were difficult object lessons even for the Twelve (Mark 8:21). Apparently, they still did not understand who He was. Later, it would seem, they will begin to understand (Mark 8:27-30) but still not fully (Mark 8:31-33). Together with the crowd, they did not fully grasp who He was and what He came to do as their Messiah (Mark 8:34-38, 10:32-34). God will have to open their eyes for them to see (Mark 9:1-13). But, at that point, not everyone can see or understand the reality of God's kingdom in the person of Jesus (Mark 9:19, 29, 30-32). They needed to humble themselves first like little children for them to see the truth about who Jesus is (Mark 9:36-37). This was hard for them to learn (Mark 10:35-45). Like Bartimaeus, they were blind and they needed healing from the Lord (Mark 10:46-52). Thankfully, this was not impossible for the Lord (Mark 10:27).

When Jesus entered Jerusalem to fulfill His destiny and to establish His authority, He was met with a lot of hostility from the religious leaders. But He taught the disciples not to be afraid of those people. They just needed to trust God and they can overcome any obstacles to their mission (Mark 11:12-26). He taught them also that God would handle this issue at the right time in the future (Mark 12:1-12). One day He will bring judgment on them (Mark 12:35-37, 38-40). There will be reversal of roles and values in the kingdom of God (Mark 13:1-37), and it was already happening as He speaks (Mark 12:41-44).

Before His death on the cross, Jesus ate with His disciples during the Passover meal to prepare them for what was about to happen (Mark 14:12-26). But they did not fully understand its true significance and they were not fully prepared for it (Mark 14:27-31, 32-42, 66-72). Eventually, Jesus died on the cross and was buried (Mark 15:1-47). On the third day, He rose again, bewildering His disciples, starting with the women (Mark 16:1-8). It was hard for them to believe. But, later, through several appearances, they became convinced that Jesus was truly the Messiah. Jesus gave them the Great Commission to make disciples of all nations. And they did so by the power of the Holy Spirit (Mark 16:9-20).

Start where you are

Just like the crowd and the first disciples, you can start where you are and begin your journey of following Jesus. You don't have to know everything or believe everything. Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, will guide you. He will be before you, behind you, and beside you, as you take each step of this journey by faith. Join with others, especially those who may be further ahead in the journey than you. This group of people is called the church. They can assist you because they've been where you are right now. Don't worry if you have feelings of doubt or you are not sure if you can make it. Don't even worry if you fail now and then. The early disciples did not have it all together also. They also failed several times. They just followed Jesus by faith and the Lord took care of everything else. In time, they came to understand the truth, and the truth eventually set them free. They experienced life, real life, in the kingdom of God, together with others. You, too, will experience the same thing, if you just start following Jesus right where you are.