By Steven Norris
The Indian spiritual writer, Anthony de Mello, tells the story of a man who lived in a remote village. Something within the man yearned for exploration. He would often wander around his small village, but his eyes were set on the forests and mountains in the distance.
One day, he decided that he could take it no longer, so he set out to explore the world. He was gone for a long time and the people thought he had perished. Instead, he came back with fantastical stories about what he had seen.
He described trees so large it would take 10 men to wrap their arms around it. He tells them about waterfalls that a person could literally walk behind. He describes animals that his villagers had never seen and colors that they had never imagined.
Many of the villagers want to know more and where they might find this seemingly magical place. The explorer encourages them to go and explore for themselves, but they persist. Eventually, he draws them a map in hopes that it will inspire them to follow his example.
Instead, they frame the map and hang it on the wall. They study every detail of the map — every curve of the coastline, every mountain peak, and every road or trail. They build shrines around the map, telling stories of the adventurer and his experiences, but they remain in their nice safe village, never experiencing the world for themselves.
Jesus’ primary command/invitation to the disciples was this: “Follow me.” Note that he didn’t say learn about me, study me, or worship me. He said, follow me. Too much of the time, we make discipleship about little more than going to a Bible study, Sunday school, or attending a worship service. We want to acquire all the right information so that we can make a good grade on the test.
Jesus, however, is looking for apprentices — those who are willing to follow him. He is looking for those who are deeply committed to obedience, not just knowledge. He wants doers of the word, not just hearers only (see James 1:22).
Jesus doesn’t want people who just know how to talk about love. He wants people who will go out and love. Jesus doesn’t want treatises on forgiveness. He wants us to genuinely forgive. Jesus wants true reconciliation as we find our unity in him. He wants us to embody justice as we protect the most vulnerable in our midst. He wants us to actually use our words to build up and not tear others down. He wants us to embody hope.
In John 10, Jesus said, “I am the Good Shepherd. I know my sheep and my sheep know me. They know the sound of my voice and will follow when I call.” Knowledge isn’t enough unless it is followed by obedience. We were not given the scriptures so that we could frame them and merely memorize the teachings of Jesus. We were given the scriptures so that we might actually follow the teachings of Jesus — even when they bump up against our fears of leaving the place of safety, challenge our multiple allegiances, and make us uncomfortable. This is what it means to Walk the Way together.