Come, Follow Me

If the rabbi did not think the student was worthy to be his disciple he would send him back

Mark 10:13-31

Reference: Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” (Mark 10:21 NIV)

Explore: A friend was recently telling me about how someone would become a disciple in Jesus’ time.

If a young man who had studied the scripture (our current Old Testament) and had become one of the best in his class, he would then look for a rabbi to follow. The rabbi would consider the student and decide whether he was worthy to be his disciple.

If he was, the rabbi would say, “Come, follow me.” And the student would then leave everything and everyone in his life and follow the rabbi.

However, if the rabbi did not think the student was worthy to be his disciple he would send him back to his home where the student would probably pick up his family’s trade.

In Mark 10 we have the well known story of the rich young ruler. He has followed the scriptures with discipline and dedication and Jesus sees the great potential in this man, so He invites him to become one of His disciples, “Come, follow me.” Unfortunately, for this young man, he is not willing to let go of what he has to accept the belief that Jesus had in him.

Application: Jesus has every right to send us away. He can look into our lives and see all our negatives and failures. However, instead of seeing the bad, He sees the potential.

Jesus could easily send us back to our lives of sin, but instead He says to us, “Come, follow me.” None of us are worthy, but Jesus accepts us anyway.

Prayer: Lord, thank You for seeing my potential. I know I am not worthy to tie Your laces, and yet, You invite me in to be Your disciple. May I not waste any opportunity to learn from You. Amen.

How are you following Jesus today?

belief, disciple, follow, Mark, rich, student