To be a follower of Jesus in today’s world takes a variety of different insights. Such which not only benefit the follower (you) but those around them on their very own path with Jesus. Upon reading Jesus’ Third Way five distinguishing insights are apparent in being a follower of Jesus: creative resistance, bravery, dignity, love, and modesty.
The first insight is not only resistance but creative resistance. In everyday life, we resist things such as temptations: from our peers, friends, family, and the devil himself. To be a follower of Jesus one must be able to resist these temptations with such creativity that they shall not come again. One must learn not to get even or to run in fear, but to have resistance to the subject and stand one’s ground. He states, “Jesus counsels neither hitting back nor turning tail, but rather turning the other cheek, which is an act of remarkably creative resistance. It allows the inferior in the relationship to assert her or his equal humanity with the oppressor, and it forces the oppressor to take stock of the relationship and perhaps of the social system that supports such inequality” (Thompson, p. 192). To turn one’s cheek needs self-control and bravery, which will also lead to our next insight. No one should be inclined to get even, it tends to lead them down an unjust and evil path, but one should also never run away. This shows cowardness, which is not a direct insight into being a follower of Jesus.
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Going back to the previous statement, to turn one’s cheeks needs self-control and bravery, which leads us to the second insight into being a follower of Jesus, bravery. There are times in everyone’s life when they have to decide between being a brace or being scared, now being a follower of Jesus isn’t just one or the other, but an equal distribution of both. Fear leads to growth but can also lead to a decline in self-assurance. In those times of fear, those who are true followers of Jesus would be able to face this fear with bravery. Bravery does not mean that one is not scared but shows that they are willing to face those fears despite all odds. Those that stand up for themselves and show their true selves without “fear” of rejection are those who are brave. I placed fear in quotations simply because fear is inevitable, but one can conquer it and stand on top. Thompson states, “Here, take not only my coat but my underwear as well. Then, you’ll have everything!” (Thompson, p 192). When you have nothing and nothing seems to be going right, you must be brave to continue down the path even if it means to be giving up more. In a roller coaster, you must go down to go up, and the same works in life. Be proud of who you are and what you have, and you will be a true follower of Jesus.
The third insight into what it is to be a follower of Jesus is dignity, which goes back to our last statement and perfectly corresponds with bravery. Dignity is to have honor and respect for one’s self if that means going naked to show those around you the trueness of being a pure human. Without having dignity for yourself, how is one supposed to treat others with respect? Jesus believes that all of his children are equal and should be treated as such. Thus, being a follower of Jesus means that one must respect themselves in the eyes of the lord.
The fourth insight into what it is to be a follower of Jesus is love and compassion. While this may seem like a taboo to infer that to be a follower of Jesus you must love, but that does not only mean love your fellow neighbor, but also yourself. One must first love themselves to love others. To love yourself shows that you appreciate and love what God has given you. Another aspect of love in terms of insights into being a follower is to love your enemy. Loving your enemy can be hard especially when that enemy does not reciprocate it back. In the gospel of Matthew Jesus states, “ You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor[a] and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect (Matthew 5: 43-48). This may come as a challenge, but love is something that can truly change someone’s world. They might be your enemy, but you don’t know what their own life is like. One kind word could change their entire aspect. Showing them love could possibly help bring them closer to God, which as a follower of Jesus is important.
The fifth and final insight into what it is to be a follower of Jesus is modesty. Modesty is an aspect that is hard for people to find and even harder for those to keep, it's definitely not something one is born with, but something that one acquires through time, patience, and experience. Thompson states, “Jesus lived what he taught, as the events of his life attest. He rode into Jerusalem on a donkey rather than a white horse and was crucified at the hands of the Romans at the insistence of the Jewish leaders” (Thompson, p. 193). This shows what true modesty is, instead of riding in on a white horse looking prestigious and all mighty, he took the “high” road and rode in on a common animal. This animal, a donkey, is one that commoners would use more often isn’t of white horses, for they were only owned by the nobles and kings. Being modest isn’t only how one presents themselves, but it is also being grateful for what you have and being proud that you have at least that.
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