Follow me~Christs second command

Matthew 4:19 and He said unto them, Follow me and I will make you fishers of Men.
The second command is to follow Christ, however if you remember it is only 2 verses after the call to repent. You can't follow Jesus when You are seeking your own way.
Isaiah 57:18-19 18I have seen his ways, and will heal him: I will lead him also, and restore comforts unto him and to his mourners. 19I create the fruit of the lips; Peace, peace to him that is far off, and to him that is near, saith the LORD; and I will heal him.
God gives peace to those who follow him. When we follow God with all of our heart we have what we desire most in our souls, therefore we have peace.
Psalms 56:3, 113What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee. 11In God have I put my trust: I will not be afraid what man can do unto me.
Once again I have perfect peace in God because I am looking only to Him! God is good when you seek Him with your whole heart.
Psalms 58:1 1Do ye indeed speak righteousness, O congregation? do ye judge uprightly, O ye sons of men?
As Christians how do we act? What do we speak? What do we do? Are we more of the world or are we of God?
Matthew 7:20-23 20Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. 21Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. 22Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? 23And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
This is so clear! Let us follow Him so not only will others know what we are but so that there is no doubt that we will be one of those who say we did help you? God indeed is calling us to serve Him with a whole heart.
Matthew 8:10-13, 17 10When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. 11And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven. 12But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 13And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour. 17That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.
Our faith is indeed in how we follow Him. Will we be little of faith or much in faith? Let us move mountains!
Matthew 28 is about how Jesus arose. Just as the lack of Jesus' body was in the tomb, so as we follow Jesus through all that is going to come, the lack of worldly passions and desires will show that we are living anew!

Isaiah 59:16-17And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him. 17For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloak.
This passage is so convicting. God looks and sees this huge gap in between sinful man and Himself and how really sinful we are. He asks, who is interceding? My question was.. am I interceding? Am I the man in the gap who is bold to pray for the lost? Or am I even like Jonah where I give up and wait for the bonfire to begin?
Psalms 61:2 2From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
As I follow Him.. He will renew me! He is indeed merciful and when my heart is overfilled and stressed out God is there. It's always best to look beyond myself.
Psalms 63:1, 8 1O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is; 8My soul followeth hard after thee: thy right hand upholdeth me.
It's so important to seek God! Do I really desire Him that much? Is He the first thing I seek?
Matthew 10:8, 14-15, 17-19, 32,8Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.14And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet. 15Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city.17But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues; 18And ye shall be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them and the Gentiles. 19But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak.32Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.
I think this is an indicator of what we should be doing and what should happen to us. Are we living a Spirit fillled life? or are we doing our own thing? God only uses those who are available to be used.
Matthew 11: 28-30 28Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 30For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
often my excuse is I am afraid how hard it will be yet it's much easier than my own way. let us seek rest in His arms!
Proverbs 14:12 12There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.
What is the downside of following? Death, it's true, death of friendships, death of ourselves little by little. Let us take God's way for in Psalms 66, it's clear that it may look like death but He will lead us! God is so good, for He has shepherded my soul through my trials and although I haven't always seen Him, He is always there. But lf I do put anything in my heart and keep anything from my God, He won't hear me.
Psalms 66:10-12, 18 10For thou, O God, hast proved us: thou hast tried us, as silver is tried. 11Thou broughtest us into the net; thou laidst affliction upon our loins. 12Thou hast caused men to ride over our heads; we went through fire and through water: but thou broughtest us out into a wealthy place.18If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:

Psalms 69:7-13 7Because for thy sake I have borne reproach; shame hath covered my face. 8I am become a stranger unto my brethren, and an alien unto my mother's children. 9For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up; and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me. 10When I wept, and chastened my soul with fasting, that was to my reproach. 11I made sackcloth also my garment; and I became a proverb to them. 12They that sit in the gate speak against me; and I was the song of the drunkards. 13But as for me, my prayer is unto thee, O LORD, in an acceptable time: O God, in the multitude of thy mercy hear me, in the truth of thy salvation.
Part of following means that many who I'd like to praise me will persecute me or reject me. yet will I look to Jesus
Psalms 70:4 4Let all those that seek thee rejoice and be glad in thee: and let such as love thy salvation say continually, Let God be magnified.
Not only do I look to God when I'm troubled but do I praise Him? When I'm in trouble I'll call upon Him like Peter did.. but do I keep my eyes on Him when I'm not in trouble?May I walk with Jesus all the time and not just when I'm drowning in fear.
Matthew 14:28-30 28And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water. 29And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus. 30But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.
Psalms 71:1-5 1In thee, O LORD, do I put my trust: let me never be put to confusion. 2Deliver me in thy righteousness, and cause me to escape: incline thine ear unto me, and save me. 3Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort: thou hast given commandment to save me; for thou art my rock and my fortress. 4Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man. 5For thou art my hope, O Lord GOD: thou art my trust from my youth.
I see my sin and my humanness more and more each day. If I dwell on myself I will go nowhere, I have to flee to God for he is my refuge and strength. In Him shall I trust let me not be shaken
Isaiah 61:1 1The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;
I think this is the duty of each Christian, to totally seek God and as we follow Him we will be bold to witness, to help and to hold those who weep, to free those trapped in sin and let His word be known.
Matthew 16:24-26 24Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. 25For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it. 26For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
Am I willing to lose everything? If I was facing death I would be bold, I have nothing to fear, but what about losing something less dramatic, what about my scholarship, my friends, my reputation? Am I willing to give that up? I don't want to, I'm a people person, yet do I love God more than I love my friends? Is my love of others an extension of His love for me?
So many questions... just two answers.
Matthew 20:23, 25-28 23And he saith unto them, Ye shall drink indeed of my cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with: but to sit on my right hand, and on my left, is not mine to give, but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of my Father. 25But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them. 26But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister; 27And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant: 28Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.
Am I willing to follow Him? I'm in a stronghold of Satan right now and even though it's not affecting me physically it's a temptation to run back home where it's safe and secure from such spiritual attacks. I am called to serve! Wherever God calls me I am called to do the little things, I'd love to do big things but right now I'm pretty content not to have that much responsibility. Please pray for the Torres... it's not easy here.
Psalms 84:10 10For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.
I see this so much! While the flesh is alluring it's so much more satisfactory to be in the Presence of God! May you all be in his presence!
Psalms 86:11 11Teach me thy way, O LORD; I will walk in thy truth: unite my heart to fear thy name.
Oh let me seek God, I am here willing to serve yet feeling the draw of the world. Form my heart into one purpose. to serve you with nothing held back.
Matthew 23:4For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.
God is not this way, I saw it today at church.. you had to pay 9 bucks to go in! and get a candle or something.It's so awesome that the very God who made us we don't have to pay anything, observe any special rules.. to worship Him, all we need is a pure love of Him. May I never grow cold.
Isaiah 64:88But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand