When we hear the call to follow Christ, it is more than just a physical or mental decision to follow Him. In Henri Nouwen’s In the Name of Jesus: Reflections on Christian Leadership, we see that to be a Christian leader we must surrender all we are to the leadership of Christ.

The problem has been that the purity of simply following Christ gets replaced with ideas of grandeur and success.  In Matthew 4:19, we see that when Jesus called His disciples, it was a request to come and follow a rabbi and teacher. In the Jewish culture, young men would study the law and the prophets. Then periodically have interviews with rabbis to see if they had what it took to be disciples.  There were several stages that a young man would go through to see if he had the right stuff. If he passed the test, he would follow the rabbi and take on his yoke or teaching. If he did not pass the test, he would be encouraged to take on the trade of his father.

The fisherman whom Jesus called on that shore in Galilee had failed the test. They were working in the trade of their fathers. So when the rabbi came by and said, “Follow Me,” they left all to follow. They realized that He saw the right stuff within them. This was a physical following. Peter later would be called to an inward following.

Nowen challenges leaders to get back to heart of their calling, but he goes on to show us that we cannot do it in the flesh. In John 20:22, we see the resurrected Jesus talking with His disciples and giving them a blessed gift. He breathes on them and says, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” This was a down payment of what was going to happen at Pentecost. They were sealed and filled with the Holy Spirit at that moment, just as we are the moment we commit our lives to Christ.

When the Holy Spirit was given to them, it was an invasion of the soul. It invaded the very core of their being. An invasion is a military offensive consisting of all, or large parts of the armed forces of one geopolitical entity aggressively entering territory controlled by another such entity, generally with the objective of either conquering, liberating or reestablishing control or authority over a territory, forcing the partition of a country, altering the established government or gaining concessions from said government, or a combination thereof. An invasion can be the cause of a war, be used as a part of a larger strategy to end a war, or it can constitute an entire war in itself. Due to the large scale of the operations associated with invasions, they are usually strategic in planning and execution. This invasion ended the war between God and man. God strategically planned this invasion before the foundations of the world were created. We have been liberated from the power and bondage of sin. Our relationship has been restored.

Understanding what we have been liberated from should drive us to follow Christ. In order to truly follow, we must be surrendered to the power of the Holy Spirit through prayer and not chase after relevance. Relevance is defining an issue, then proposing a plausible solution to that problem. We can be relevant only when we understand that only God can provide the answers the world is looking for. The main way to tap in to that power and guidance is through prayer and not the latest program on the street.

Later Jesus restored Peter by asking him a series of questions to check Peter’s motives. Earlier in the Book of John, Peter vowed to give his life to follow Christ, but later denied Him. Peter was quick to commit the flesh to something that it was not capable of doing.

After Peter and been broken and come to the end of himself, he realized that apart from Christ he could do nothing. After the Holy Spirit was given and Peter was restored, Jesus gave a command that He also gives to us today. In John 21:19, Jesus commanded Peter saying, “Follow Me.” Apart from the Holy Spirit, we cannot truly follow Christ. We must be broken inwardly and surrender daily to the Spirit in order to fully follow Christ and be able to lead others to do the same. We must allow ourselves to be invaded by the Holy Spirit. Then and only then will we be leaders operating in the name of Jesus.

By Henri J.M. Nouwen © 1989, New York, The Crossroads Publishing Company.  ISBN 978-0-8245-1259-0