There’s a difference between knowing and following Jesus. To know Jesus is to know that He is the physical son of Joseph and Mary (Matthew 13:55). To know Jesus is to believe that He is God (John 10:30). To know Jesus is to recognize that He is “The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” – John 1:29. To know Jesus is to believe that He died and rose again (1 Corinthians 15:3-4) taking away the sins of those who repent and are baptized (Acts 2:38).
Knowing who Jesus is, is very important. Close to the end of His earthly ministry, Jesus tells Philip that he should know Him in John 14:9, “Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip?” Still, knowing Jesus is different than following Jesus.
James tells us that knowledge of Jesus isn’t enough to please God in James 2:19. The Apostle Paul also understood that knowing Jesus meant more than knowledge of Jesus. In Philippians 3:8 he writes, “Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ.” For Paul and other followers of Jesus, following Jesus means exactly what Jesus said in Luke 9. In Luke 9:23, Jesus told His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.” Paul shows us he was a follower of Christ when he wrote in Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” Clearly Paul wasn’t literally crucified with Jesus in this text, but he did put an end to his old way of life (following his own way) and live completely for Christ (following the Way of Christ). Remember, he said that he counted “all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord.” This is the difference between knowing and following Jesus.
To follow Jesus means to actually respond to what you know about Him and to actually do what He commands. The Apostle John needed to remind his readers that knowledge of Jesus was shown by doing what He told them to do. John writes in 1 John 2:3-6, “3 Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. 4 He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. 6 He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.” We follow Jesus when we act positively upon the knowledge we have of Him. This starts when we choose to believe and are baptized. We continue following Him until He returns, or we go to be with Him.
Following Jesus is more than knowing about Jesus. Following Jesus is more than singing songs about Jesus. Following Jesus is more than church attendance. Following Jesus involves a radical shift from the life you once lived to a life that models the life of Christ. It means embracing the Gospel completely and living and serving to please Christ.
Truly knowing Jesus means that life can never be the same. Following Jesus means that you actually live your life with the values and goals of Christ. Following Jesus is a lifelong pursuit that means applying and living the knowledge you have of Christ and His ways.
