Follow Me as I Follow Jesus

Thursday - October 21st

Scripture to Read Today: 1 Corinthians 10:31-11:1

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You should imitate me, just as I imitate Christ.

1 Corinthians 11:1

The heartbeat of our lives as followers of Jesus Christ is to bring glory to God in everything we do. The Apostle Paul said that even when we eat and drink, we should glorify or magnify the Lord (1 Corinthians 10:31). We often think that we should glorify God in the big acts of Christian service or worship moments of our lives. But Paul said that the everyday things of life are just as important as anything when it comes to making sure we magnify the Lord!

The Apostle then invites his readers to a lifelong journey of glorifying God by pursuing Christlikeness. In 1 Corinthians 11:1, Paul calls us all to follow Him as He follows Jesus. As we do, our lives become a living reflection of Christ. Like Paul, we should be able to say to others, "Follow me as I follow Christ."

None of us should be calling others to follow us. But all of us who know Jesus should be inviting others to follow us as we follow Christ. Our growth should be an example to others of how they can grow. Our willingness to serve should encourage others to serve.

Each day we should seek to be more like Jesus than we were the day before. Then, others will see our example and do the same. The more we obey God's Word, the more others will want to obey God's Word. When we say to others, "follow me as I follow Christ," we must understand our responsibility.

If we have invited others to watch and follow our example, we have to be intentional about our own pursuit of Christ. We can't distract others by floundering or living with inconsistency. When we do blow it, we have to confess it, receive forgiveness, and move forward. Even in that process of humbling ourselves and allowing God to correct us, others can see our passion for following Christ.

The key is authenticity, growth, and transformation. People don't need to see another hypocritical example. They need to see someone genuinely growing as they follow Jesus. They need to see a clear example of growth in the Lord. Our growth will inspire them to pursue that same kind of growth. Our transformation into Christ's likeness and the change of others as they follow our example will glorify our God!

Can you say with integrity and clarity, "follow me as I follow Jesus?"