“Follow me,” Jesus called to Peter and
Andrew by the sea, “and I will make you fishers
of men.” “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury
their own dead,” said Jesus to the man who
wanted to come along, but first wanted to take
care of his father’s funeral. “Follow me,” he
asked of Matthew as Matthew worked in the tax
collection booth. “Follow me,” Jesus challenged
a crowd while also declaring that to do so is to
deny self and take up a cross. “Follow me,”
Jesus urged the rich young man, also exhorting
him to sell his possessions and give to the poor.
“Follow me,” Jesus said over and over again. To
anyone who hears the voice of Jesus, the cry
from him is, “Follow me.”
We spent 2022 going through the four
gospels and focusing on the call to follow Jesus.
In 2023, we will spend time with the apostle
Paul—one who heard directly the call to follow
Jesus, and who answered. We will concentrate
in particular on the practical portions of Paul’s
letters. We will look closely at what it means to
be a follower of Jesus in the real world. We will,
in Paul’s words, see what it is to “know Christ.”
We will read along together as the apostle
imparts to us his inspired wisdom about life in
Christ.
God willing, this will be a great year—a
year filled with blessing and opportunity. Along
the way, there will be challenges. There always
are. But we are equipped in Christ to live in joy
even in the midst of crisis. We are being
prepared by our great God to reflect the light of
Christ in this dark world. This is because we
claim Jesus. This is because we seek to imitate
him in every way. This is because we know
Christ.
–Ricky
