The Art of Following

The message God gave me is the art of following. There is so much emphasis on leadership nowadays that this emphasis sometimes tends to minimize in our minds and hearts the importance of following a leader.

I grew up in a generation called the “baby boomers,” after World War II, those born between ’46 and ’64. How many here have heard the term “baby boomers”? Basically, they are those who were born between World War II and Vietnam. A sociologist and writer analyzed that generation and gave it the name the “me” generation. Another writer also commented on the ethic or mentality of narcissism in that generation.

It was recognized that in that generation there was an obsession with self-actualization, fulfilling the “self,” “actualizing the self” (developing oneself), feeling that the “self” was fulfilled, and everything revolved around the “self.” And now they call this generation something very similar: the “I” generation. You only have to look at the names of the technology: iPhone, iPad, iTouch—“I,” “I,” “I.”

Sociologists have observed other generations after the “baby boomers”—Generation X, Generation Y. They analyze each decade and the attributes of the generation from those decades, but what we want to observe is that it has been a process in which each successive generation has become more and more self-absorbed, more wrapped up in itself, and increasingly focused on the “self.”

The generation that fought in World War II has been called the greatest generation. It is called that because that generation was willing to sacrifice their lives for the freedom of their country and of others. We would not want to be deceived: every generation has its sins and its problems, right? But what I do want to emphasize is that, in my lifetime and in our lives, we live in a time when the emphasis is on the “self,” on being self-absorbed.

That can be difficult because, when you live within a culture, it is difficult to step away from society and the culture in order to observe its attributes, right? But the effects of that “me, me, me” attitude and mentality are evident and can be observed.

I believe that the Church of Jesus Christ was established and placed here to be the most powerful thing in the world. That is our DNA; that is the nature God has planted in us. But if our identity contains that spiritual greatness, that spiritual power, why does the Church of Jesus Christ have less effect on the culture and society in this country?

What I would like to propose is that the American Church has been influenced by society and its emphasis on the “self,” and in this way it has lost its power; it has been “watered down” in a certain sense so that it does not have the impact it is supposed to have. I believe that, in part, God has brought Christian immigrants from other countries around the world here to the United States, bringing with them their spiritual vitality, their commitment, and their ethic of sacrifice and surrender, to exert an influence that the Anglo-Saxon or North American Church cannot exert—an influence of revitalization.

I would like to discreetly share a conversation I had with a pastor recently. This was far from here, and he was planting a church, so I asked him, “Well, how do you do it? How are you planting the church? What is your method?” And he said, “We have a group of women whose specialty is wine tasting. That church is growing fast” (laughs). They get together and taste the different wines, right? And he thinks, “What better way to reach people? Free wine.”

I believe God can work in ways that are different, and if God calls it good, I am not going to judge. But he already had me interested, right? “What other things do you do to reach the people in your community?” And he says, “We throw the best parties.” You know? In my opinion, I believe the American Church has so completely lost touch with the roots of how churches should grow that it is willing to come up with some rather crazy things that do not even make sense. I have other stories if you want to hear them another time. But what I would like to say is that God wants us to follow Him in His way and according to His order.

This passage from Philippians 2 speaks about the mindset of Jesus as an example to imitate: “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant and being made in the likeness of men; and being found in the condition of a man, He humbled Himself, becoming obedient unto death, even death on a cross. Therefore God also highly exalted Him and gave Him a name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow—of those in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth—and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

It uses the word “morphe” when speaking about the divinity of Jesus, meaning that the essence of Jesus is “God,” and it uses the same word, “morphe,” when it says that Jesus became a servant. His essence was divine, and His essence was human; His essence was God the King, and His essence was man the servant—both things. It says that He assumed the design of man, designed to appear as a man, but His essence was God the servant. That is what God wants our essence to be: born of God.

The world will say that if someone is like a god, or if he or she has something of God in them, that person will be exalted and domineering toward others. But the true God, the God of the universe, is the great God and also a servant at the same time. This is the kingdom of paradox, of things being “turned upside down.” That is how we must live in order to manifest this.

Let us go to the Gospel of John, chapter 5. It is the story of the sick man who wanted to get into the Pool of Bethesda. He could not reach the waters, and Jesus heals him by telling him, “Pick up your little bed and walk.” As he walked on the Sabbath, the Pharisees condemned him because he was not keeping the law, and Jesus said, “Truly I tell you that the Son of Man can do nothing by Himself, but He must observe what the Father does.” Jesus came to show us who God is, and what He taught us is how to live. We are called to be as Jesus was in His earthly life.

The whole world is waiting, is waiting to see the manifestation of the children of God—men and women who do not live under the influence of the world, men and women who are awaiting the Father’s instructions in their hearts.

In the Book of Acts, Christians are referred to as people who have changed and turned everything upside down: “These people who have arrived here.” I would like to ask a rather complicated question, so get ready. It is a rather strange question, right? A provocative one. Who is changing the world today? I do not like what I see in the news; it does not please me. But I see that ISIS movement changing the world by killing and wreaking havoc, changing the world and turning it upside down. That is not the model I want to follow. But God is looking for a Church that can truly change the world for good—not through violence, but through lives lived to follow Jesus and His ways.

What I would like to do right now is ask God to reveal something to us, and I am not speaking only to you, but also to myself. I believe we are so contaminated by the world’s system, by the subtlety of the world’s values, which are touching and permeating every life. I am going to ask the Holy Spirit to perform a miracle in us: that through His Holy Spirit He would reveal to us where, when, and how we are aligning ourselves with these values of the world. I am certain of this: we cannot see this unless the Holy Spirit reveals the truth to us.

I wrote a song a few years ago that goes something like this: a fish that cannot see the water, like birds that do not know that air exists around them. We live in and inhabit a sinful culture that is so present all around us that we do not even realize it exists. Only God can reveal to us what we cannot see through our own strength, but if we allow the Spirit to do His work in us, we will begin to hear His Voice again.

It is not merely about hearing His Voice so that we can draw near to His Presence and feel blessed in His Presence. I want that; I want to feel the comfort of His Presence. What I would like is for God to speak to me in such a way that He transforms me, so that when I leave here I will be different and will live in a way that can change the world around me, so that I will be different from the way I was before.

Father, we ask Your Spirit to move through this place; walk among us here. We invite You, Holy Spirit. We are before You; we want to follow You, Lord. We are called to be Your followers, Father. Just as a newborn baby has to breathe in order to live, Lord, we know that we can only be true believers if we follow You.

Lord, thank You for the leaders You have placed in this house—Pastor Roberto, Pastor Greg, and all the other pastors. Thank You for the healthy leadership here in this place. But Father, You want to lead; You want to lead every man, woman, and child into Your Presence. We bless You, Holy Spirit. We are willing to be guided by Your Holy Spirit, to be guided into Your Truth, Lord.

Lord, I believe this world is about to change, and we want You to be there at the helm, guiding the process for us. This world cannot bear any more of the devil’s influence over us. This world cannot continue to live under the influence of this age, under Satan’s lies that have influenced the philosophies of our daily lives. Something is rising in the hearts of Your people, Lord. There is a posture of leadership to proclaim Your good works, Lord, to explain the faith, Lord, to call a nation to repentance, and to bring transformation to the city.

Lord, we do not want tricks or deception for the people. We want the genuine outpouring of Your Holy Spirit. We want men and women to be filled with Your Holy Spirit, filled with Your glory, filled with Your anointing, Lord. Father, break the chains; break the chains, Lord. May men and women rise up to follow You, Lord, and see that You are seated at the right hand of God the Father, upon the throne of our lives.

Every word You speak, Lord, we want to say yes to You. To every word You speak, we want to say yes and amen, Lord. Forgive us; we have stopped following You in so many ways. We have lived half for the world and half for You. We seek You when there is a need. We ask, Lord, on our own behalf: make this community an army filled with power, Lord—men and women ready to stand firm, called to be Your servants, under the authority You have set in order, Lord.

Father, this business of “me,” “me, me, me” has to go—no more. I repent for trying to do things my way. I tell You, Lord: You are the only One with authority in my life. You are the only King of my life. I ask that the “self,” the “ego,” step down from the throne of my life and that You take Your place. This we ask of You.

Father, reveal these things to us; speak into the depths of our hearts, Holy Spirit. Only You can communicate with us; only You can show us how to do it, Lord. Father, You must show us our carnality, the things done in secret that are unworthy, Lord. We know that You are not a God who only condemns us, and that we can live righteously only by Your Grace and by Your Power, Lord. Father, there is no condemnation, but we speak to our bondages, Lord. We do not want any more bondage. We want Your Kingdom; we want Your Reign.

Oh, Holy Spirit, some are bound, entangled, deceived by the philosophies of the world. We ask that we may return to the faith of a child, the innocent faith of a child, to innocence and simplicity. Lord, You are watching, looking for children, for sons and daughters. No matter what our chronological age may be, we ask that our faith toward You, Lord, may be like that of a child, simple before You, Lord.

Holy Spirit, move; walk among us here, Lord. Place Your finger upon certain patterns, certain things that hinder us, upon whatever blocks us, Lord, so that You may be lifted up, Lord. Oh, Father.

I invite everyone who sincerely wants to be a follower of Christ Jesus to stand. Those who are standing, I invite you to confess: “I am going to follow You, Jesus. I will follow You wherever You lead me. I am going to do whatever You tell me. I am not going to hold back; I will not remain silent about my faith in You, Lord. I know there will be people who will mock me because of my testimony, but I am going to testify and tell others what You have done. You have done so much, Lord, in this community of people. You have lifted us out of the miry clay, and You are worthy to be praised. You deserve the glory; You deserve the honor—and not only here in this temple. You deserve it every day, in every conversation, in every business and matter. You deserve the glory. We are going to glorify You, Lord. We are going to testify about You, Lord. This world needs the message of Your saving Grace proclaimed without shame, proclaimed with wisdom, love, and tenderness, but without watering down the message.”

Lord, we ask You now to give us boldness, Lord, boldness like the apostles who turned the world upside down thousands of years ago. Lord, we do not want to live our lives merely talking about revival, talking about a move of Your Holy Spirit that happened years ago. We are Your army, an army of followers, an army willing to say yes, Lord; You command us, and we follow. We ask You to work through the structures of authority and show us how to align ourselves with the authorities You have put in place.

Father, we should not have to be told every day every detail of what we have to do in this house; Your Word has already told us. We ask You, Lord, to give us that sense of authority. It is time for those around us to be saved; it is time for our neighbors to come to You. They are disorderly, they are chaotic, we do not like their behavior, but we were like that too; that is how we were not long ago, Lord. So, Father, we beg You to give us patience and the ability to speak clearly about our faith, and we ask You to release within us a sincere searching of our hearts. And from now on, Lord, we are different, we are different. It can happen in a moment.

I understand that there are patterns, I understand that there are cycles, but I also understand and comprehend the miraculous power of God and, as was said last week about Joshua, I and my house, servants of Jehovah, we will serve Jehovah. Thank You, Lord, thank You, Lord, thank You, Lord.