Are you a fan or a follower?

“Jesus is NOT looking for fans… He’s looking for followers. Followers who understand that…

There is no forgiveness without repentance.

There is no salvation without surrender.

There is no life without death.

There is no believing without following.”

I happened to stumble across notafan.com. Have you seen it? It’s a ‘6 week mini-movie series / discipleship study with perspective and depth to help shape today’s believer into a first century Christ-follower. It follows the journey of Eric Nelson, a man leading a compartmentalized triple life as a pleasure-seeking rebel, a cutthroat corporate executive, and a nominal Christian.’ It shows real life challenges and decisions he and all of us face every day. ‘But when confronted with a near death experience, Eric embarks on a spiritual journey that transforms his commitment to Jesus Christ and tests the faith of his friends and family.’ I’ve just listened to one of these series (click the above link) and here’s some of what I heard:

FANS

A fan = an enthusiastic admirer. Fans hold back. They follow on the outside, but not on the inside. Fans are caught up in their outward appearance, instead of an inner heart for God. They are worried whether or not they look good. A little bit of Jesus and a whole lot of tradition. We teach people to pay attention to the outside, but what about the inside? It’s one of the most deadly things that can happen to your faith. Are our churches just stadiums full of fans? We make sure everyone is following the rules but what about a relationship with Jesus? And so we have a lot of fans, but not too many followers. Don’t mistake lifeless ritual and dead religion for the abundant life God wants you to have in Jesus Christ.

FOLLOWERS

Followers go all in and surrender everything and end up finding what they were looking for all along. It’s more than a sacrifice. It becomes more of a privilege. A passionate, romantic pursuit. Jesus Christ issued a compelling and challenging invitation: “Follow Me.” Jesus is not interested in fans. He doesn’t want enthusiastic admirers. He wants: Completely. Committed. Followers.

TESTING REVEALS OUR ALLEGIANCES

Sooner or later, we will be tested and our true allegiances will be exposed. [What an awesome statement! Think about that for a bit.] Where are yours? Where are mine? Jesus will not share us with anyone or anything.