What I Got Wrong About Following Jesus

I’ve always been a rule follower, so when I chose to follow Jesus, I wanted to learn all the rules—what not to do and what to do.

I worked hard to memorize Scripture, to serve God, and to study the Bible. I worked hard at being kind and loving to others. I always gave everyone the bigger piece of chocolate cake.

But no matter how hard I tried, part of me sensed that I wasn’t obeying the greatest commandment:

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37 NIV).

I knew that the Psalms spoke of our souls thirsting for God and that Jesus had made this promise:

“Whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never thirst again” (John 4:14).

But was I that thirsty? Was I loving God with my whole heart, soul, and mind?

Wasn’t it enough to believe in Jesus and follow His rules?

A New Understanding

It wasn’t until I met my husband, Charlie, that I finally understood what I was missing. Jesus was everything to Charlie—his entire life. He thirsted after Him and loved Him with all of his heart, soul, and mind.

In contrast, Jesus seemed to be more of an add-on to my life—an add-on that I worked hard at maintaining.

I had memorized these words of Jesus, but I obviously wasn’t living them:

I am the Vine, you are the branches.
When you’re joined with Me and I with you,
the relation intimate and organic,
the harvest is sure to be abundant.
John 15:5 MSG

I had gotten things so backward.

I thought that if I obeyed Jesus, I would have life in Him.

Therefore, I worked hard at obeying. I tried to do what I thought would please Him. But I had completely missed what Jesus meant when He said He is the Vine.

What Must Come First

I’d overlooked the part about Jesus being the source of life and strength. The Vine provides nourishment, support, and growth for the branches. We thrive and bear His fruit only when we’re truly connected to Him, just as a branch depends entirely on the vine for life.

When I put my faith in Jesus, I received His life. What He asked of me was to live and abide in Him in an intimate relationship. Then He would empower me to follow Him, to love as He loves, to love others as He loves me.

It’s only through Jesus that we have the same love and power that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit share with each other, poured into us. Just like an ocean current moves everything in the water, we can move in alignment with God because we live in Him, and He lives in us.

No striving.
No working.
Just being with Jesus.

That’s what I had neglected.

I had been all about the business and busyness of following, which kept me from truly experiencing God’s love.

Once I began to rest and abide with Jesus instead of strive and work for Him, His love filled my mind, heart, and soul. Out of that love has come the beautiful thirst for Jesus’ Living Water.

Of course, it wasn’t a snap-your-fingers kind of transformation. I had to renew my thinking about who I was, who Jesus is, and how that looks in my life.

Stay tuned for next week, Part III—I’ll share the practical changes I made to truly live from a place of abiding in Jesus. (Read Part 1.)