Text- Philippians 3:12 – “Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus”
It will not be far-fetched to say that how great you will become is dependent on how well you follow after. In fact, when we check what/who you are following after, we can tell what kind of future awaits you.
And I mean this literally… the people you follow on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook; the friends you follow in real life; the drama series you follow; the mentors that you follow; those who influence your fashion sense, etc.
There was this story of a Pastor’s son who decided he was going to plait his hair. His parents tried their best to talk him out of it, but he wouldn’t listen, so he went ahead and did what he wanted to do.
Not so long after he had plaited his hair, a friend of his father who is also a Pastor came visiting and was surprised to see the boy’s new hairstyle. So he decided to take him out on a walk and have a heart-to-heart discussion with him.
The discussion was short, but highly impactful. The Pastor simply asked the boy to list the names of 10 great men whose hair are plaited (I’m not sure the boy was able to list that much). He then asked him to pick which of them whose life he’ll want his future to look like.
What that Pastor showed the boy was the principle of followership. Who/what you are following after today will determine what your life will look like tomorrow.
That’s why the writer of Hebrews admonishes us to be “Followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises” (Hebrews 6:12).
Apart from your Spiritual Father, whom you have the privilege of observing and following closely, there are many other great men who have made their marks in their walk with God, and even in diverse fields of life. Bible says we should follow after their examples.
Such men may never sit you down to teach you anything; in fact, you may never have the privilege of meeting them one on one; some of them may even have died long before you were born… But you can read about them, hear their stories, or read their books, and follow after them!
There are, and indeed have been, many heroes of faith, men of high resilience; men of integrity and character; men who ran through troops; men who leaped over walls; men who distinguished themselves; men who made a difference… Let us find out about them, and follow after their zeal, passion, commitment, perseverance, and disciplines.
Beloved, I enjoin you today, to be followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises. If you do, you will also inherit the promises. Shalom!
PRAYER
Father, I make a commitment to be a follower of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises. I also will inherit the promises and ultimately apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ in Jesus Name.
Image Credit: blogs.bible.org