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What Is A Follower Of Jesus

Posted Jun 17 2010 by Jonathan Brink in , , , , with 21 Comments

It seems like I’ve had some of the best conversations lately. It started with this post, which asks if Christianity is a system of belief or a way of life.  And then it extended to this post, which asks if denying God is wrestling with God.  And within these conversations seems to be common thread.  What is a follower of Jesus? What is the true essence, the stripped down version of being a follower? In other words, did Jesus come to establish complexity or simplicity?

I ask this because of a recent conversation I had with a friend who said that he has a bunch of friends who are willing to practice love, which is arguably the basis of what it means to follow Jesus, but who are completely unwilling to set foot into the church.  In other words, they dig what Jesus is saying but they are unwilling to add on all of the religious jargon associated with Christianity.  And for them its not just about social justice, but about engaging a deeper form of what it means to be human.

And it seems like so many people I meet and talk to are wrestling with this strange notion of what it means to strip away the religious connotations, in order to get to following.  We all want the real thing.  And this desire is not limited to Christians.  It’s deeper than that.  Its extends to human beings (who are created in the image of God anyway).  Jesus even said, “You will know them by their fruit.”  And can’t we make the assumption that love is the greatest fruit, and the essence of Jesus’ intention for spiritual formation?

So I would ask if you think one can be a follower of Jesus, and not set foot in the church or participate in traditional forms of worship?  Can one be a follower of Jesus simply by practicing love. And this doesn’t mean not participating in community because so many of my friends already have tribes that are asking these deeper questions, and they aren’t taking place in churches.

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About the Author

Jonathan BrinkI am an business development and communications consultant. I am also the senior editor and publisher for Civitas Press. I recently published, Discovering The God Imagination: Reconstructing A Whole, New Christianity. (Civitas, 2011)View all posts by Jonathan Brink →

  • Chadholtz

    I would simply say: We don't HAVE to belong to a church, we GET to.

    I think there is a real tension here. I wouldn't want to say a person can NOT follow Jesus outside of going to church but, on a case by case basis (which can only be done in community and presupposes relationship) I would wonder why they refuse to do so. Is it because there isn't a church within a 100 mile radius or because the only one that is there shouldn't even call itself a church? Or is it because it is far more “comfortable” and easier to meet with friends and family, people whom we like, rather than meet with people we disagree with, struggle with, don't like, have to forgive, etc.?

    And then there are many spaces between those two that could describe a person's reasons.

  • Chadholtz

    I would simply say: We don't HAVE to belong to a church, we GET to.

    I think there is a real tension here. I wouldn't want to say a person can NOT follow Jesus outside of going to church but, on a case by case basis (which can only be done in community and presupposes relationship) I would wonder why they refuse to do so. Is it because there isn't a church within a 100 mile radius or because the only one that is there shouldn't even call itself a church? Or is it because it is far more “comfortable” and easier to meet with friends and family, people whom we like, rather than meet with people we disagree with, struggle with, don't like, have to forgive, etc.?

    And then there are many spaces between those two that could describe a person's reasons.

  • http://jonathanbrink.com Jonathan Brink

    But Chad, these specific friends I'm talking about are in community. It's just not a traditional church, and they're practicing love, which is the Great Command.

  • http://jonathanbrink.com Jonathan Brink

    But Chad, these specific friends I'm talking about are in community. It's just not a traditional church, and they're practicing love, which is the Great Command.

  • http://openmindedconversations.blogspot.com/ jshmueller

    What constitutes a church? I always thought of it as a community of people who have acknowledged and internalized that Jesus is Lord and who are trying to help each other to love Him more and to follow Him more faithfully because of that special awareness and relationship.

    If you strip that down to a certain way of human beings interacting with each other in love, grace and forgiveness, you may have followers of the WAY of Jesus but not necessarily of Jesus himself.

    Let me put it this way: why would I love someone supremely, to the point that I accept him not only as my role model but as ultimate authority in all things, but at the same time do my utmost to avoid mentioning his name and being publicly recognized as a member of a large group who has the same goal and desire?

    Yes, I know all the baggage that comes along with the latter but all these attempts to get rid of the baggage of religious history, superficiality and hypocrisy, remind me strangely of other attempts that have been made to create the “pure church”. It is bound to fail because it totally underestimates the depth of our personal inadequacies and brokenness, and points fingers where a good honest look in the mirror is needed instead.

  • http://openmindedconversations.blogspot.com/ jshmueller

    What constitutes a church? I always thought of it as a community of people who have acknowledged and internalized that Jesus is Lord and who are trying to help each other to love Him more and to follow Him more faithfully because of that special awareness and relationship.

    If you strip that down to a certain way of human beings interacting with each other in love, grace and forgiveness, you may have followers of the WAY of Jesus but not necessarily of Jesus himself.

    Let me put it this way: why would I love someone supremely, to the point that I accept him not only as my role model but as ultimate authority in all things, but at the same time do my utmost to avoid mentioning his name and being publicly recognized as a member of a large group who has the same goal and desire?

    Yes, I know all the baggage that comes along with the latter but all these attempts to get rid of the baggage of religious history, superficiality and hypocrisy, remind me strangely of other attempts that have been made to create the “pure church”. It is bound to fail because it totally underestimates the depth of our personal inadequacies and brokenness, and points fingers where a good honest look in the mirror is needed instead.

  • http://www.facebook.com/jeff.c.straka Jeff Straka

    To be a follower of Jesus, one must follow not only his teachings, but his path. I see his path as one constantly flowing between community and solitude (contemplation/meditation). In contemplative prayer, one can rediscover their real Self. This is where we go through the process of emptying and letting go of all the titles and attachments that our tribal communities have put upon us, and we are tempted to start to believe in ourselves. Richard Rohr intentionally calls his retreat the Center for Contemplation and Action, reflecting this alternating “both/and” path of Jesus. If we stay ONLY in tribal community, our real Self is clouded and eventually lost. If we stay ONLY is solitude, we loose are interconnectedness, our oneness with the world.

    I firmly believe that Jesus did NOT come to start a new church (I love John Carroll's book, “The Existential Jesus” for connecting some of these dots for me!), but rather a path that allows us to remain in tune with the Real Self, while sharing that path and our lives with others.

  • http://www.facebook.com/jeff.c.straka Jeff Straka

    To be a follower of Jesus, one must follow not only his teachings, but his path. I see his path as one constantly flowing between community and solitude (contemplation/meditation). In contemplative prayer, one can rediscover their real Self. This is where we go through the process of emptying and letting go of all the titles and attachments that our tribal communities have put upon us, and we are tempted to start to believe in ourselves. Richard Rohr intentionally calls his retreat the Center for Contemplation and Action, reflecting this alternating “both/and” path of Jesus. If we stay ONLY in tribal community, our real Self is clouded and eventually lost. If we stay ONLY is solitude, we loose are interconnectedness, our oneness with the world.

    I firmly believe that Jesus did NOT come to start a new church (I love John Carroll's book, “The Existential Jesus” for connecting some of these dots for me!), but rather a path that allows us to remain in tune with the Real Self, while sharing that path and our lives with others.

  • Rooney Sarah

    Just to interact with the basic question “What is a follower of Jesus?” Here's my awkward attempt at an answer:

    Someone who hears and embraces His message, and responds accordingly. Every day.

  • Rooney Sarah

    Just to interact with the basic question “What is a follower of Jesus?” Here's my awkward attempt at an answer:

    Someone who hears and embraces His message, and responds accordingly. Every day.

  • Rooney Sarah

    Not just His message, but His nature, His personhood. As He both speaks to us, and reveals Himself to them, followers embrace that and choose to obey and live within His empowerment and transforming ability, and they begin to reflect His nature and personhood more and more. Following is more than assent to a message, and obedience to directions (although it includes those things)… it's also transformation into a likeness.

  • Rooney Sarah

    Not just His message, but His nature, His personhood. As He both speaks to us, and reveals Himself to them, followers embrace that and choose to obey and live within His empowerment and transforming ability, and they begin to reflect His nature and personhood more and more. Following is more than assent to a message, and obedience to directions (although it includes those things)… it's also transformation into a likeness.

  • http://twitter.com/dbgladson David Gladson

    I wonder…
    Can a person follow Jesus without consciously realizing that they are? (without naming the name)…
    Can a person follow Jesus by him or herself? Origen said that no one could be saved apart from the church. While I would not agree with that in its institutional form, I would say that we cannot follow Jesus without doing so in “community with”.

  • http://twitter.com/dbgladson David Gladson

    I wonder…
    Can a person follow Jesus without consciously realizing that they are? (without naming the name)…
    Can a person follow Jesus by him or herself? Origen said that no one could be saved apart from the church. While I would not agree with that in its institutional form, I would say that we cannot follow Jesus without doing so in “community with”.

  • http://homebrewedchristianity.com tripp

    in my opinion following jesus will include being part of a worshiping community, an internal journey of discovering the love of God, and an external movement of loving one's neighbor. that doesn't mean it has to be a traditional church but the 'followers of jesus' did it together in community. the original followers were NOT there because he taught cool stuff they liked ethically (in fact the Gospels emphasize that they misunderstood him) but because of who they understood him to be (Peter's confession is the center piece of the synoptic narratives) AND the new reality he made present (KOG).

    that said, i think everyone should listen to Jesus as their ethical teacher, but as a Christian i think he was much more.

  • http://homebrewedchristianity.com tripp

    in my opinion following jesus will include being part of a worshiping community, an internal journey of discovering the love of God, and an external movement of loving one's neighbor. that doesn't mean it has to be a traditional church but the 'followers of jesus' did it together in community. the original followers were NOT there because he taught cool stuff they liked ethically (in fact the Gospels emphasize that they misunderstood him) but because of who they understood him to be (Peter's confession is the center piece of the synoptic narratives) AND the new reality he made present (KOG).

    that said, i think everyone should listen to Jesus as their ethical teacher, but as a Christian i think he was much more.

  • Chadholtz

    Well said, Claremont.

  • Chadholtz

    Well said, Claremont.

  • Mark Griffin

    If you are in group of people of any size that is sincerely attempting to find God's will together by following the example of Jesus as revealed in scripture… You are part of a church. Jesus never specified any preference for “organized” religion over “disorganized” religion
    Anyone can practice “Christlike” behaviour, even a non-Christian. the non-Christian practices “good behavior” because they believe it to either be better than “bad behavior,” or a way to spiritually ascend.
    The Christian practices “good behavior” because in- faith, he/she deems God's will perfect, and the Way to increased joy an peace.

    In my opinion.

  • Mark Griffin

    If you are in group of people of any size that is sincerely attempting to find God’s will together by following the example of Jesus as revealed in scripture… You are part of a church. Jesus never specified any preference for “organized” religion over “disorganized” religion nAnyone can practice “Christlike” behaviour, even a non-Christian. the non-Christian practices “good behavior” because they believe it to either be better than “bad behavior,” or a way to spiritually ascend.nThe Christian practices “good behavior” because in- faith, he/she deems God’s will perfect, and the Way to increased joy an peace.nnIn my opinion.

  • Marian

    Yes with as you said Community! I would add the word intentional to community….’Where two or three are gathered in My Name’…….. I’m all for changing the institution in so many ways but am coming to the conclusion that if that is truly gonna happen it will happen from the “community” outside rather than inside. I choose to stay connected both places for now.

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