They immediately followed him, leaving the boat and their father behind. Matthew 4:22
During the weekend message, we were reminded that "God is looking for people who are desperate for Him." He is indeed seeking people who follow and worship Him over anything else. Yes, following Him requires sacrifice on our behalf. It requires leaving behind the things of this world and everything that holds us back from fully following Him. When we choose to follow wholeheartedly and are desperate for Him, He will walk with us every step of the way.
Jesus' first disciples provide us with an example to follow when it comes to being desperate for Christ and sacrificing everything to follow Him. In Matthew 4, Jesus saw two brothers, Simon and Andrew, fishing at the Sea of Galilee. In the midst of their fishing, Jesus said to them, "Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!" (verse 19). Now, I would have asked Jesus a lot of questions before deciding to follow Him, but that was not the case with Simon and Andrew. Scripture tells us that "they left their nets at once and followed Him" (verse 22). Then, Jesus saw James and John, who were also brothers. They were "sitting in a boat with their father" when he called them to be His disciples (verse 21). Once again, these brothers "immediately followed Him, leaving the boat and their father behind" (verse 22). These two sets of brothers left their lifestyles, their livelihood, and their families behind to follow Jesus. They were so desperate to follow Jesus that they were willing to sacrifice and leave everything behind in order to follow Him. Because of their devotion and desire to follow Jesus, they got to join Christ's mission, which changed the course of the entire world.
When it comes to your own life, are you following with the same fervor and devotion as these first disciples? If not, what is holding you back? Yes, following Jesus requires sacrifices, great and small. They, however, pale in comparison to the joy, the adventure, and the life that comes from fully following Jesus. Will you commit to fully following Him today?
Take a few moments to answer the question, “What is holding you back from fully following Christ?” If you need help discerning what that might be, pray and ask God to reveal to you anything holding you back from following Him. When you understand the things holding you back from fully following Him, confess those areas to God. Ask Him to help you let go of those things and commit to taking one step this week to let go of whatever is keeping you from fully following Him.
Matthew 4:18-25
18 One day as Jesus was walking along the shore of the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers—Simon, also called Peter, and Andrew—throwing a net into the water, for they fished for a living. 19 Jesus called out to them, “Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!” 20 And they left their nets at once and followed him.
21 A little farther up the shore he saw two other brothers, James and John, sitting in a boat with their father, Zebedee, repairing their nets. And he called them to come, too. 22 They immediately followed him, leaving the boat and their father behind.
23 Jesus traveled throughout the region of Galilee, teaching in the synagogues and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom. And he healed every kind of disease and illness. 24 News about him spread as far as Syria, and people soon began bringing to him all who were sick. And whatever their sickness or disease, or if they were demon possessed or epileptic or paralyzed—he healed them all. 25 Large crowds followed him wherever he went—people from Galilee, the Ten Towns, Jerusalem, from all over Judea, and from east of the Jordan River.
©2025 Sagebrush Church
