“12Again Jesus spoke to them saying, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’” – John 8:12 (ESV)
That word “follow” is intriguing to me in that what does it mean.
Follow: “1to go, proceed, or come after / 2to engage in as a calling or way of life / 3ato be or act in accordance with / 3bto accept as authority / 4bto seek to attain” – Merriam-Webster Online
I know that when I think of the word follow, I think more along the physical like identified in definition one above. I will go where you go, do what you do, be what you are. But what about 4b above, “to seek to attain”? That one got me as I thought of the description just below it online that read “follow knowledge”.
Following is more that just the physical action of going. We are to learn and apply based on that learning as well. Below is the commentary from my NIV Bible that helped me with my understanding of what it means to follow Christ.
“As a soldier follows his captain, so we should follow Christ, our commander. As a slave follows his master, so we should follow Christ, our Lord. As we follow the advice of a trusted counselor, so we should follow Jesus’ commands to us in Scripture. As we follow the laws of our nation, so we should follow the laws of the kingdom of heaven.”
Follow we should as described above. Not blindly, but with purpose and resolve.
Are you aware of what following really means? Will you choose to follow? Will you follow Christ?
Trevor's Thoughts 