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Remember those who led you, who spoke the word of God to you;
and considering the result of their conduct, imitate their faith.
(NASB) Hebrews 13:7 |
This
passage is about discipleship. Here the Holy Spirit calls us to remember
our leaders, but not just any leaders. He asks us to remember those
leaders who taught us the Word of Truth and who were exceptional Christians.
God calls us to follow someone who has a proven Christian life.
This is not just any leader. It is a leader who has taught you the
Word. It is a leader whose life has been carefully evaluated over
time. That is the meaning of the Greek word for “considering”
- evaluation!
Once
we find this person, God calls us to follow him. The Greek word for
“follow” is MIMEOMAI which means to “imitate”
or “mimic.” One day I was listening to a man teaching Philippians
3:17. He warned his listeners to not follow several people in his
congregation. He explained that the apostle Paul did not mean that
they should follow him but Jesus. At that point the teacher went on
to say that we should not follow anyone but Jesus. Now that sounds
spiritual but, my friend, that is not biblical. The Holy Spirit is
saying that we are to follow someone.
A Christian disciple becomes more and more like Jesus with time. Here
are some character traits one should see in their life if he or she
is a good disciple - if he or she is following good earthly examples
of Jesus.
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But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control . . . (NASB)
Galatians 5:22-23 |
Conclusion.
In
the British Museum, there is a Greek writing tablet on display. Its
date of origin is earlier than the Christian era and it is the equivalent
of a child’s writing tablet. A headline has been written on it
at the top by a master. The student was then asked to write the second
line by attempting to trace the master’s line. Each following
line was reproduced by copying the previous one. Each new line was
worse and worse. Each new line differed more and more from the master’s
line.
That
is happening in the church. Often the person we are following is not
someone we should follow. Hebrews 13:1-7 gives us a pattern for selecting
someone to follow. The question is not are you following someone;
the question is who are you following? God answers the question. The
person must be a leader who knows and has taught the Bible. Now that
eliminates many people. The person must be someone whom you have studied
and carefully evaluated. Does this person model love for strangers,
prisoners, and the brethren? Has the person been faithful to their
spouse and does the person depend on God to meet their needs? Does
the person know their Bible, or only know about the Bible? Does the
person have great faith? Great faith is obedient and is willing to
suffer for Jesus. Come and imitate a man or woman of great faith and
become a Christian whose faith is focused on Jesus!
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