Fast 40: Practicing the Ancient Spiritual Discipline of LentSample

Many of us look at our relationship with Jesus as transactional. We say ‘sorry,’ and He says ‘forgiven.’ We go to church and receive Communion. We read Scripture and are nourished. We tithe, and He blesses us. While those things aren’t bad (some are quite good), they can sometimes cause us to look at Jesus as a sort of spiritual ATM, existing for our convenience, consumption, and disposal.

Now, Jesus certainly does want to be used by us, especially as He gave Himself as a sacrifice for us, but He also expects us to give ourselves in the same way. Jesus wasn’t simply a sacrifice; He was also an example.

At least twenty times in the Gospels, He called out to His disciples, “Follow Me,” and that call hasn’t changed. As Peter said, we are to “follow in His footsteps.”