Speaking the Truth in Love
Who Do You Follow?
We are members of the Oak Ridge church of Christ. We call ourselves Christians (Acts 11:26) and we hold to the Bible as our one and only Truth. Church of Christ is a biblical description of Christians who work together for the cause of Christ (Romans 16:16). We are independent assemblies with no organization beyond our own number as described in Philippians 1:1. There are Christians across the world working with local congregations of God’s people such as described in Revelation 2-3. Christians are members of Christ’s body, which is also known as His Church (Acts 2:47, Ephesians 5:23). Our mission is to stand for God’s truth (the gospel) and teach it to all people (Matthew 28:18-20, Romans 1:16, 1 Timothy 3:15). We are accountable to our one and only Head Jesus Christ (Ephesians 1:22-23, Colossians 1:18).
Tonight we want to simply ask the question, Who Do You Follow?
Good Examples
Joshua (Joshua 24:14-24)
Job (Job 42:7-8)
Apostles (John 6:60-69, Acts 4:18-31, 5:28-32)
Poor Examples – Do not be like these
Rich Young Ruler (Mark 10:17-22)
Pharisees (Luke 7:29-30)
Herod Agrippa (Acts 26:27-29)
Some Basic Bible Teaching on Following
Proverbs 21:21
Luke 5:11, 27-28, 9:23
Mark 10:17-22, 28-31
John 6:60-69
Acts 13:43-44
1Timothy 4:6
Hebrews 13:7
1 Peter 2:21-25
Like a tree planted by the water (Psalm 1:3, Jeremiah 17:7-8). It is not an accident that a tree wants to be close to the water and nourishment it needs.
- It is a choice to commit your life to God
- It is a choice to trust in Him when times get rough in this life
- It is a choice to follow Jesus. He has the water to sustain us through the droughts of life and to provide the spiritual nourishment we need for our souls (John 4:10-14, 7:37-38, Revelation 7:16-17).
CLOSE
Who do I follow each day?
The goal of a Christian is to try to follow Jesus each and every day!
For those who are in our audience tonight: It would not be surprising if each and every one of you is going through some sort of trial or sadness right now. Some of those trials may be severe. Through those trials, who will you follow? Man, yourself, or the ones who are only a prayer away? God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit will help His children through any trial that come their way. There is no one else who can do that! Joshua, Job, and the Apostles knew that and set a great example for all to follow (Proverbs 3:5-6).
If you are not a Christian, who do you follow? Whoever it is, the one you are following is not Jesus. Why not put on Jesus in baptism immediately (Galatians 3:26-29)? Do you want to be an heir of salvation and an heir of eternal life? Then choose to follow Jesus!
Please check the scriptures we have covered tonight. We want to help you in any way we can. Contact us for Bible studies, by telephone, e-mail, or simply come to one of our assemblies. Our next live program is planned for October 16, 2017 when we hope to study “The Transformation of Me!” We hope to see you next time on "Speaking The Truth In Love".
