Following Jesus

There were two men. 

Starting out in life, they each needed to build a house.  One took the fastest way possible, and did not take the time to build a solid foundation.  The other, being wiser, took the time to dig down and establish a firm foundation.  

The first strong Kansas thunderstorm that came along blew away the house without a good foundation, and the man who had built quickly lost everything.

You recognize the story that Jesus told of the two men who built houses.  (Matthew 7:24-27)  This story teaches several truths.  One is that it is important to build a firm foundation.  Second, times of testing come into all of our lives.

Testing can take many forms.  Loss of health, loss of a loved one and financial hardship are storms that we all face.

At the outset of Jesus’s ministry, there were political storms raging.  In this atmosphere, Jesus gathered His first disciples and challenged them to follow Him.  Mark chapter 1 verses 12 through 20 tell the story in which we can discover his call for ourselves.  If we heed this call, we will establish a foundation that will keep us from being shaken when storms come.

Before Jesus gathered followers, before He began His public ministry, His foundation was tested.

Mark 1:12 and 13 say, “¹²The Spirit then compelled Jesus to go into the wilderness, ¹³where he was tempted by Satan for forty days.”[i]  (NLT) 

Satan tested Jesus for forty days.  Satan is the one who tested Job.  He is also the one who tested Peter.  In Job and Peter’s cases, Satan got permission to test them.  In Jesus’s case, the Spirit compelled Jesus to go into the wilderness.

In Job and Peter’s cases, foundation problems were exposed and corrected.  Both men were stronger and better able to help others because of their testing. In the case of Jesus, there were no weaknesses exposed.  This gives us the confidence that He is able to teach us and worthy to lead us in the building of our own foundations. 

The testing Jesus endured in the wilderness also assures us that: “This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin.”  (Hebrews 4:15, NLT)

Soon after John baptized Jesus, Herod arrested John and put him in jail. Mark 1:14 marks this as the beginning of Jesus’s public ministry.  Matthew 14 gives us more details about John’s arrest.

 ³For Herod had arrested and imprisoned John as a favor to his wife Herodias (the former wife of Herod’s brother Philip).  ⁴John had been telling Herod, “It is against God’s law for you to marry her.”  ⁵Herod wanted to kill John, but he was afraid of a riot, because all the people believed John was a prophet.

⁶But at a birthday party for Herod, Herodias’s daughter performed a dance that greatly pleased him, ⁷so he promised with a vow to give her anything she wanted.  ⁸At her mother’s urging, the girl said, “I want the head of John the Baptist on a tray!”  ⁹Then the king regretted what he had said; but because of the vow he had made in front of his guests, he issued the necessary orders.  ¹⁰So John was beheaded in the prison, ¹¹and his head was brought on a tray and given to the girl, who took it to her mother.  (NLT)

At the point in time that Mark is recounting in chapter 1, John was in prison, but still alive.  It was not a safe time to draw public attention.  Matthew recounted the story of John’s beheading in order to make it clear the kind of negative attention Jesus’s public ministry was getting from those in power.

In Mark’s account of the beginnings of Jesus’s public ministry, this political environment is important to understand because it makes it clear that for those Jesus called there was a great risk or hazard involved.

When Jesus calls us, He asks us to risk everything.  In some countries, this means a person can lose his or her life for choosing to follow Jesus. In all countries, it is a call to follow no matter what the cost.

What is building on the right foundation worth?

If we build on the wrong foundation, will we not lose everything in the end anyway?

Jesus is seeking followers.  However, it is not for His own sake that He seeks followers.

People seek followers for many reasons, and it is usually for their own profit.  Paul warned the believers in Galatia (Galatians 4:17) and Philippi (Philippians 2:21) about those that preach the gospel out of their own self-interest.  This is something that is a danger for any in leadership, whether it is in business, church or home. The parents are there for the benefit of the children and not the reverse.  The CEO is there for the benefit of the company, not the reverse.  The teacher is there for the benefit of the disciple, not the reverse.  The pastor, elder, deacon, etc., is there for the benefit of the church, not the reverse.

Jesus called disciples in Mark chapter 1 for their benefit and ultimately for our benefit.  He came not to be served but to serve.  He came to save the world, and in order to save us, He calls us out of the world to be His followers.

Let us look at the call he makes to His first disciples.  In this call, we will find what is to be the foundation of our discipleship and our lives.

First, there is a call to repentance.

We find this in Mark 1:15.  “The time promised by God has come at last!” he announced.  “The Kingdom of God is near!  Repent of your sins and believe the Good News!”  (NLT)

This call to repentance is an announcement of good news.  The time promised by God is the time when God restores a right relationship with him for all people.  Throughout history, people have been disappointed, angry or separated from God.  In Isaiah 1:18 God says, “Come now, let’s settle this,” says the LORD.  “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow.  Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool.”  (NLT)  God is saying He wants to settle the differences that keep us from Him.  In Romans 5 we find this has happened when it says, “Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us.”  (Verse 1, NLT)  In addition, “So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God.” (Verse 11, NLT)

This is the Good News that Jesus announced.  This is the message He proclaimed.  This was the core of His ministry and it was the foundation that the disciples were called to build upon. 

Repentance is changing our minds.  Repentance means being willing to let the Spirit of God convict you where your thoughts, motivations, attitudes and beliefs have been wrong.

Conviction is painful.  Letting the words of Jesus in, is the first step.

Having established the focus of His ministry, Jesus invited certain ones to follow Him.  First, Mark tells us about Simon and Andrew.  Mark says, “One day as Jesus was walking along the shore of the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew throwing a net into the water, for they fished for a living.  Jesus called out to them, “Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!”  (Mark 1:16-17, NLT)

In this invitation to Simon and Andrew, we see that the call of Jesus was a call to learn from Him and a call to give up themselves.

These two go together.  Learning from Jesus means learning to give up one’s self.  The Apostle Paul puts it this way, “Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves.  Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.  You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.”  (Philippians 2:3-5, NLT)

We see this attitude in Mark when Jesus invites these fishermen to learn to fish for people.  Proverbs 11:30 tells us that he who wins souls is wise, and there is some personal benefit for the one who wins souls.  However, the purpose of Jesus’s ministry and the purpose of winning souls is for the benefit of the soul won.

The call to follow Jesus is always a call to give up our own selfish ambitions and to learn from Him.  We are not better than our Teacher.  He gave His life so that others could live.

This is the only firm foundation on which we can build.  All other foundations will fail in the end.

We have seen that the call of Jesus is a call to repentance, a call to learning from Him and a call to give up ourselves.  We have also been talking about following Jesus.  This talk about being His follower is important. 

Mark also mentions the calling of James and John.  Jesus’s words are not recorded in this case.  It just says he called them and they followed, leaving their father behind in the boat with the hired men.

The invitation to Simon and Andrew was to follow Jesus, and the note about James and John says they followed Jesus.  With all this talk about repentance, learning from Him and giving up ourselves, it hardly seems necessary to say it, but the whole point is to be followers of Jesus.  The repentance, the learning and the giving up are all about following.

When the storms and testing come, and they will, each one stands or falls based on whether or not he or she is following Jesus.

I do not know where you are at in your life today.  I do not know what tests you are facing.  However, Jesus does.  Let me leave you with His words.

“Anyone who does not remain in me is thrown away like a useless branch and withers.  Such branches are gathered into a pile to be burned. But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted!”  (John 15:6-7, NLT)

Choose to follow Him today.

---

[i] Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible: New Living Translation. Copyright 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.  All rights reserved.

What Do You Want?

Read John 1:35-51

³⁵The following day John was again standing with two of his disciples.  ³⁶As Jesus walked by, John looked at him and declared, “Look!  There is the Lamb of God!”  ³⁷When John’s two disciples heard this, they followed Jesus.³⁸Jesus looked around and saw them following.  “What do you want?” he asked them.  They replied, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?”  ³⁹“Come and see,” he said.  It was about four o’clock in the afternoon when they went with him to the place where he was staying, and they remained with him the rest of the day.⁴⁰Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of these men who heard what John said and then followed Jesus.  ⁴¹Andrew went to find his brother, Simon, and told him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means “Christ”).⁴²Then Andrew brought Simon to meet Jesus.  Looking intently at Simon, Jesus said, “Your name is Simon, son of John—but you will be called Cephas” (which means “Peter”).⁴³The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee.  He found Philip and said to him, “Come, follow me.”  ⁴⁴Philip was from Bethsaida, Andrew and Peter’s hometown.⁴⁵Philip went to look for Nathanael and told him, “We have found the very person Moses and the prophets wrote about!  His name is Jesus, the son of Joseph from Nazareth.”  ⁴⁶“Nazareth!” exclaimed Nathanael.  “Can anything good come from Nazareth?”  Come and see for yourself,” Philip replied.⁴⁷As they approached, Jesus said, “Now here is a genuine son of Israel—a man of complete integrity.”  48“How do you know about me?”  Nathanael asked.  Jesus replied, “I could see you under the fig tree before Philip found you.”  ⁴⁹Then Nathanael exclaimed, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God—the King of Israel!”  ⁵⁰Jesus asked him, “Do you believe this just because I told you I had seen you under the fig tree?  You will see greater things than this.”  ⁵¹Then he said, “I tell you the truth, you will all see heaven open and the angels of God going up and down on the Son of Man, the one who is the stairway between heaven and earth.”  (NLT)[i]

 John saw Jesus walking by and told his disciples, “Look, there is the Lamb of God!”

Two of John’s disciples followed Jesus. 

Jesus noticed these two following and turning asked, “What do you want?”

Would Jesus ask us this today?  Would Jesus ask you this today?

The men who were asked this question were following Jesus.  They were not committed disciples at this point.  They were curious. 

John told these men that Jesus was the Lamb of God.  This was enough to stir up their curiosity.

In church, we talk about disciples.  A disciple is simply a student, a learner.  We say of ourselves, “We exist to make disciples.”  This means our job is to produce students or learners.  In order to become a student or learner, at some point our curiosity has to be stirred up.

These two disciples of John took action.  These two were curious.  These two sought to know more and were rewarded with the question, “What do you want?”  Jesus was asking them what they desired, what they were seeking.

There were many people in Judea during Jesus' time.  Great crowds followed him out of curiosity during the three years of His ministry, but only a small number actually became His disciples, His students.  The invitation to come was always on Jesus' lips.  On more than one occasion, He invited all who would to come.

In John 1:35-51, John tells the story of the gathering of Jesus’ first disciples, His first devoted followers.  We see in this story that what these first disciples were seeking was vital to them becoming devoted students of Jesus.  From this, I draw the conclusion that what we want is vital to our becoming devoted students of Jesus.

In this story we see that these first disciples came seeking different things.  I will look at three of these today.

First, John the Baptist’s two disciples were seeking evidence. 

They heard the testimony of John, but that was not enough.  When Jesus noticed them and said, “What do you want?” they did not say, “John told us you are the Lamb of God, so we want to be your disciples.”  They did not answer the question.  They deflected the question.  They said, “Where are you staying?”

Jesus has an advantage on us here.  He knows what we are thinking.  I am a very poor mind reader; in fact, whenever I try it I am wrong.  I have a 100% failure rate at reading minds.  Yet, how many of us say what we really want?

The Greek statesman, Demosthenes said, “Nothing is easier than self-deceit.  For what each man wishes, that he also believes to be true.”  Even before Demosthenes, Jeremiah the prophet said, “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure.  Who can understand it?”  (Jeremiah 17:9, NIV)[ii]  We deceive even ourselves about what we really want.

This is a vital consideration.  In chapter 6 of his book, John tells of a time when Jesus fed thousands of people with five loaves and two fish.  The people wanted to make Jesus king and were ready to attach themselves to Him.  However, His response was; “I tell you the truth, you want to be with me because I fed you, not because you understood the miraculous signs.”  (John 6:26, NLT)  Here were people following Jesus who never became disciples because what they wanted was not to be a learner or student, but they wanted free food.

The two disciples of John were seeking answers and perhaps they did not even know what they were seeking, but Jesus provided what they needed.  They asked, “Where are you staying?”

Jesus responded, “Come and see.”

John stirred up their curiosity by saying, “Look, The Lamb of God!”  Jesus invited them in so they could see the evidence for themselves.  The text tells us that they spent the rest of the day with him.  The evidence they observed that day moved them to faith.

The Lord invites the seeker in to see the evidence.  He let these men into His private life so they could see for themselves that He was indeed the Lamb of God.

Later in the story, Jesus invited doubting Thomas to put his hand in Jesus’ side and his fingers in the nail holes.  God is not stingy with evidence for the seeking heart.

Not everyone is in search of evidence.  John tells us that one of the men who followed Jesus and was invited to spend the day with Him was Andrew.  Andrew had a brother named Simon.  When Andrew introduces Simon to Jesus, we see that Simon was seeking recognition or someone who would see him.

I know I am reading a lot into this passage.  I am also pulling from knowledge of Peter’s personality and position among the disciples and early church. 

The interaction between Jesus and Simon is brief if John is recounting the whole story.  Andrew tells Simon that they found the Messiah, the One foretold by Moses.  Andrew then takes Simon to Jesus.

Two parts of the interaction caught my attention.  First is the way Jesus looked at Simon; and second, is the way Jesus spoke to Simon.

First, it says, “Looking intently at Simon. . .”  There is special emphasis placed on the way Jesus looked at Simon.  The word the translators rendered “Looking intently” has a dictionary meaning of: to stare (look) at with a "locked-in gaze"; look at in a sustained, concentrated way, i.e. with special "interest, love or concern.  Jesus stopped and considered Simon.[iii]

In consideration of what He saw, Jesus said, “Your name is Simon, son of John--but you will be called Cephas" (which means "Peter").

Jesus shows a deep comprehension of Peter’s personality and what he is all about and renames him on the spot.  Peter was a devoted follower from that point on.  I believe it was because Jesus saw him, really saw him.  For some, being recognized and accepted is what they need in order to commit to being a disciple.

Jesus put Peter in a position that recognized his particular gifts and personality.  The name that Jesus gave him reflects this.

John’s disciples needed evidence, Peter needed recognition and Nathanael needed integrity.

This could be called consistency or justice, and I will attempt to show you how I came up with this from the text. 

45Philip went to look for Nathanael and told him, “We have found the very person Moses and the prophets wrote about!  His name is Jesus, the son of Joseph from Nazareth.”

46“Nazareth!” exclaimed Nathanael.  “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” 

What are we to assume Nathanael meant by this question? 

The Jewish people living in Judea despised those living in the region of Galilee.  Nathanael came from a neighboring town.  Therefore, he was from the same area.  Some commentators believe that Nazareth had a bad reputation, but this seems to come only from Nathanael’s comment.  Most extra Biblical histories do not mention Nazareth and those that do represent it as being a pleasant small town. 

Matthew 2:23 says that the prophets said that Jesus would be called a “Nazarene.”  There is much speculation as to the meaning of this statement and what prophecies it is referring to.  The most popular one is Isaiah 11:1 which says, “Out of the stump of David's family will grow a shoot--yes, a new Branch bearing fruit from the old root.”  The connection in this prophecy to Nazareth is the similarity of the word “branch” in the original language to the name “Nazareth.”

Nathanael’s exclamation seems to me to be shock and surprise.  I think he was looking for hope and help for his people, but he expected it to come from Jerusalem, or some place farther removed from home.  His question was a sincere puzzlement over how hope, help and salvation could come from a small, seemingly insignificant town.

In response to Nathanael’s question, Philip said, “Come and see.” 

When Nathanael arrived Jesus said, “Now here is a genuine son of Israel—a man of complete integrity.”

This statement seems to have no context.  Why would Jesus greet anyone like this?  This is exactly where Nathanael goes.  “How do you know me?”

Jesus replies, “I could see you under the fig tree before Philip found you.”

I am still speculating, but I think whatever Nathanael was thinking about under the fig tree and Jesus' greeting were connected.  Jesus showed Nathanael that He knew what Nathanael was thinking.

Two things are evident.  One is that there was something significant to Nathanael about a genuine son of Israel.  Being from the region of Galilee, one of the prejudices that Nathanael experienced was that the Galileans were not true children of Israel.  The second thing that is evident is that integrity was important to Nathanael. 

We know from Philip’s invitation and Nathanael’s response that he was looking for the Messiah, the hope of Israel.  Putting all these things together, I think that Nathanael was concerned about things like justice, integrity, consistency and the related social issues that surround these issues.  What was a true son of Israel?  Where was hope and help to come from?  When would help come?

Jesus showed Nathanael that He knew His concerns and thoughts, and Nathanael immediately believed.

What Nathanael wanted was integrity, something real.  Peter wanted to be recognized, and John’s two disciples wanted evidence.

Do you know what you want today?

All of these men found what they were looking for by first responding to the “Come and see.”  

When they saw they believed and then Jesus promised even more.  He said, “I tell you the truth, you will all see heaven open and the angels of God going up and down on the Son of Man, the one who is the stairway between heaven and earth.”  (John 1:51, NLT)

To the one who believes, Jesus shows more.

The issue that makes the difference is “What do you want?”

What are you searching for?

If you will “come and see,” in other words, ask Jesus to show you himself, He will.  But be prepared, He will be honest with you.  If you just want free food, He will point that out.

In His day, Jesus turned many away, not by refusing them, but by them refusing Him.  He was not what they wanted.

What about you?  What do you want?

---

[i] Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible: New Living Translation. Copyright 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.  All rights reserved.

[ii] Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

[iii] http://biblehub.com/greek/1689.htm

Wise Men

Read Matthew 2

“We three kings of orient are…”

Were they kings?

In the first verses of chapter 2 of his account of the life of Jesus, Matthew gives us the story of Magi from the east that came to visit Jesus.

This account gives rise to much speculation.  Tradition has given names to these visitors, numbered them at three and even said they were kings.  More important than the speculation and guesses as to their identities, there are truths, revealed in the Biblical text, that are significant for you and me. These truths are given to us so that we might know the certainty of the things we have been taught.

First, we know the historical context. This gives us confidence in our knowledge that we are not following cleverly devised fables.

Matthew says, “Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod.” (Matthew 2:1, NLT)

This gives us a historical context.  This is not the “long, long ago and far, far away” of a made up story. As much as we can rely on historical records, we can verify the information we are given. 

Much is known about Herod.

There are several men with the name Herod mentioned during this period of history: Herod the Great, his son, Herod Agrippa, and grandson, Herod Antipas. According to the historical record, the Herod mentioned in Matthew 2 would have been Herod the Great.  He was a king appointed by the Roman senate and subject to the Roman Empire.

The history of the time is easily studied. Characters like Antony, Octavius and Cleopatra are also from the same period of history. There are many small arguments or debates about the timing of all this.   For example, most of the scholars that I read placed the birth of Jesus at around 4 BC because Herod died around that time at the age of about 70. The very fact that there are differences of opinion surrounding the exact dates is evidence that there is a good amount of historical evidence to sort through, and only lends credibility to the gospel account.

Herod the Great commissioned the building of the temple of Jesus’s day and accomplished many things as far as construction and securing the region for Rome.  He was also cruel and ruthless.  He executed his own wife and sons, and committed atrocities to the extent that the murder of the babies of Bethlehem is but a small side note to his violent history.

Matthew tells us:

  About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him.”

  King Herod was deeply disturbed when he heard this, as was everyone in Jerusalem. (Matthew 2:1-3, NLT)

Since we have just been talking about Herod, notice first that Herod was deeply disturbed when he heard this. Having secured his throne for over 30 years by violence and intrigue, the now aged king was paranoid and suspicious. So this question from the Magi was shocking, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews?”

Wise men from the East came into Jerusalem looking for the one who was born king. I want to point out two things in this statement that help us know the certainty of the things we have been taught.  First there is a reference to prophecy and one who was to be born king.  And Second is the announcement to all Jerusalem that the king had been born.

Matthew tells us that everyone in Jerusalem was deeply disturbed when they heard about this. In Luke’s account of the life of Jesus, we learn about the shepherds who were watching their flocks by night.  They were common workers, and it was to these common workers that the angels were sent. For the city dwellers, those in the seat of government and religious leadership, God sent Magi, or wise men.

I spent a lot of hours reading and studying about these wise men.  For as little as Matthew actually wrote about them, scholars have written volumes about these people.

The only other place Magi are mentioned in the Bible is in Jeremiah 39 where in verse 3 it says that the officials of the Babylonian court sat in the gate of Jerusalem after their army had conquered the city. In Jeremiah it is translated as advisor or high official.

There is much speculation about where these people came from and who they were.  That is not as important as noting that they were of high enough rank that they were given audience with the king.  It is also important to note that they were familiar enough with the Hebrew prophets to know that there was one who was to be born “King of the Jews.”

The world was not ignorant of the Jewish people and their belief about only one God.  We can speculate for many hours as to how these foreigners knew the prophecies about the Jewish Messiah, but that is not necessary.  What is significant is they knew. It is significant for us to realize that for the carefully observant, it was clear. God did not do these things in a corner.  They remain hidden to the one who wishes to remain ignorant, but they are clear to the one who will truly seek.

God is clear that He wishes to be found.  Isaiah 65:1 says, “The LORD says, “I was ready to respond, but no one asked for help. I was ready to be found, but no one was looking for me. I said, ‘Here I am, here I am!’ to a nation that did not call on my name.” (NLT)

The religious people of Jerusalem had the prophecies and did not perceive the time.  The pagan scholars looking at the same prophecies were able to perceive the time.

These same prophecies help make it abundantly clear to this day that this One, born in Bethlehem, was born King.

It was these prophecies that told the religious leaders in Jerusalem that the Messiah was to be born in Bethlehem. These foreigners went to Jerusalem, because Jerusalem was the heart of the nation’s religious practices. Herod asked the leading teachers and priest where the Messiah was to be born because they were the ones expected to know these things.

I cannot think of a way that God could have more clearly announced to these people that Messiah had been born. Where angels were appropriate, He used angels.  Where wise men were appropriate, He used wise men.

The historical context, the prophecies and the announcement are not a fabrication.  We can still read the prophecies.  We can still read the history. And, we can still see in our own lives the working of God to make the announcement, get our attention or tell us about the one born King.

I want you to read a summary of what it is that we can be certain of. 

In 1 Timothy 3:16 the Apostle Paul says:

Without question, this is the great mystery of our faith:

Christ was revealed in a human body

and vindicated by the Spirit.

He was seen by angels

and announced to the nations.

He was believed in throughout the world

and taken to heaven in glory. (NLT)

“Christ was revealed in a human body.” This is what we are told in John 1:14: “So the Word became human and made his home among us.” (NLT)

The prophecies are the foundation of Him being vindicated by the Spirit.  On occasion there were direct vindications such as at His baptism when a voice from heaven spoke.

The angels’ announcement to the shepherds was the first of several occasions when angels were directly involved in Jesus’s ministry.

The wise men of Matthew 2 are the first evidence of Jesus being believed in throughout the world.

The story continues to this day. The Church is His Body.  The Spirit lives in us believers and gives us life. We continue to announce Him to the nations. He is at the right hand of the Father making intercession for us.

Christianity is the most persecuted religion in the world today.  The spirit of Herod, which is the spirit of Antichrist, is still working in the world today. And yet, Christ cannot be stopped.  While being the most persecuted religion, Christianity is the largest religion in the world.

None of us can pretend to have all the answers, but we can follow Christ with certainty.