5.17.2026 | The Story of Jesus - Follow Me

Devotional

Day 1: Nets Left in the Surf

Jesus stood on Galilee’s shore watching fishermen mend their nets. He called, “Follow me,” and Simon and Andrew abandoned their livelihood without hesitation. Their nets sank into wet sand as they stepped toward the unknown. Jesus didn’t offer a program or a pamphlet—He offered Himself. Immediate obedience meant leaving security for surrender. [01:17:50]

True discipleship begins when we release what we cling to. The disciples traded predictable wages for daily dependence. Jesus still calls through the noise of our routines, inviting us to walk where human logic falters.

What nets are you gripping—comfort, control, or convenience? Name one practical step this week to loosen your hold. How might Jesus be asking you to trust Him with what feels risky?

“Immediately they left their nets and followed him.”
(Matthew 4:20, ESV)

Prayer: Ask Jesus to highlight what He wants you to release today. Name it aloud.
Challenge: Write down one “net” you’ve been clutching. Leave it on your desk as a surrender reminder.

Day 2: Crowds and the Narrowing Call

Masses pressed toward Jesus for healing and spectacle. They followed miracles but missed the Messiah. When He turned to the crowd in Luke 9, Jesus shifted the invitation: “If anyone would come after me…” The call narrowed from the curious to the committed. Spectators became targets for surrender. [01:12:41]

Jesus still separates crowd-following from cross-carrying. Miracles draw crowds, but transformation happens in the crucible of obedience. God seeks not admirers but allies in His redemptive work.

Where have you settled for observing God’s work instead of joining it? This week, replace one passive spiritual habit (like scrolling devotionals) with active engagement (praying for a neighbor). What makes that shift feel costly?

“Then He said to them all, ‘If anyone wants to follow after Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Me.’”
(Luke 9:23, ESV)

Prayer: Confess areas where you’ve preferred comfort over Christ’s commission.
Challenge: Text one person you saw at church: “How can I pray for you this week?”

Day 3: Locusts and the Promise of Restoration

God promised to restore what locusts had devoured—years of loss reversed in a single declaration. The sermon echoed this: broken relationships, health crises, and fractured dreams aren’t endpoints. Jesus specializes in resurrecting dead things. [56:16]

Restoration begins when we stop clinging to debris. Like the fishermen leaving nets, we must release our ruins to the Redeemer. God rebuilds not what we salvage but what we surrender.

What “locust-eaten” area have you deemed beyond repair? Write it below today’s date as a faith declaration. How might God be inviting you to partner in His restoration process?

“I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten…”
(Joel 2:25, ESV)

Prayer: Thank God aloud for His power to restore what feels irrevocably lost.
Challenge: List three specific areas needing restoration. Keep this list visible to pray over daily.

Day 4: Crosses Carried, Not Clicked

Social media “followers” cost nothing—a tap, not a transaction. Jesus rebuked this mentality: “Take up your cross.” First-century crosses meant public shame and irreversible commitment. Daily cross-bearing means choosing God’s will when algorithms and applause pull elsewhere. [01:29:36]

The disciples’ immediate obedience modeled cross-bearing. They didn’t negotiate terms or delay for convenience. Every “yes” to Jesus requires a “no” to lesser loyalties.

What habitual “click” (mindless scrolling, gossip, procrastination) competes with wholehearted followership? Identify one to fast from this week. What makes this discipline feel like death—and how might it lead to life?

“And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.”
(Matthew 10:38, ESV)

Prayer: Ask for courage to embrace today’s cross—not as punishment but pathway.
Challenge: Set a 2:38 PM alarm (from Matthew 10:38) to pause and recommit to Jesus’ lordship.

Day 5: Christ in the Catacombs

Paul’s declaration “Christ lives in me” shocked religious crowds. This wasn’t metaphor—the resurrected Savior inhabited ordinary fishermen and tentmakers. The same power that vacated tombs now dwells in human hearts, turning bystanders into history-makers. [01:27:58]

Internal Christ-following transforms external actions. When Jesus indwells us, our hands become His healing tools, our words His truth-bearers. The disciples’ radical obedience flowed from this indwelling reality.

Where have you relied on self-effort instead of His indwelling Spirit? How might today look different if you operated from “Christ in me” rather than “I must try harder”?

“I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.”
(Galatians 2:20, ESV)

Prayer: Confess self-reliance. Verbally welcome Christ’s active presence within you.
Challenge: Share one God-story today—with a coworker, cashier, or child.

Sermon Summary

Jesus moves toward hurting people as Emmanuel, not a far-off idea. His presence meets real needs, restores what “the locusts” have eaten, and calls the church to trust an unseen work that is already underway. That surrender sounds like a simple song on the lips, but it lands as a concrete step: step forward, open hands, lay down the heavy load, and let Jesus do the heavy lifting. The moment is not a box to check but a family gathering where brothers and sisters hold up arms in the hard place and pray.

Matthew 4 shows the draw of Jesus. The Kingdom comes as good news, not bad advice. Jesus heals every kind of disease and drives out darkness, so news spreads and crowds swell. Scripture keeps repeating it: crowds flock to power, provision, and compassion. The text, though, presses something deeper. Jesus turns from the crowd and looks specific people in the eye: Simon, Andrew, James, John. “Follow me.” Not, “Watch from a safe distance.” Not, “Click the button.” They leave nets, boats, even family expectations. The call is not to be impressed by what Jesus can do, but to be formed by who Jesus is.

So how does a disciple follow Jesus now? Jesus says it is better that He goes, because He will not only walk with His people; He will live in them. Christ in you, the hope of glory. The vine holding the branch. The indwelling that makes a heart His home. Christianity is not Jesus improving a life around the edges; it is Jesus living His life through a surrendered person.

Luke 9 gives the pathway out of the crowd. “If anyone wants to be my follower… you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me.” Give up your own way means trading self-direction for Jesus’ direction. Take up your cross daily means concrete obedience, real repentance, and the quiet death of pride where image-control and always-being-right keep trying to rule. Follow me means staying close enough to match His pace and His turns, like keeping a bumper right in view or fitting each foot into His fresh prints in the sand. The invitation is personal, costly, and good: leave the crowd, trust Jesus with the future, and walk tight behind Him.

Key Takeaways

1. Jesus meets real needs here The presence of Jesus is not theoretical; it is tangible care for specific burdens. Emmanuel means God steps into the middle of complicated stories and begins restoration where loss once ruled. Faith grows as surrender makes room for His nearness to do the heavy lifting. [55:34]
2. Crowds amaze; disciples answer "Follow me" Crowds gather around outcomes; disciples answer a voice. The call pulls a person from admiration into apprenticeship, where nets drop and priorities reorder. Formation requires proximity, not just a front-row view of miracles. [77:17]
3. Christ lives in believers now Union with Christ is the engine of change, not self-improvement with a Christian label. The Spirit turns Jesus-from-beside into Jesus-within, empowering obedience that used to feel impossible. Hope rises because the Leader is not just ahead; He is alive inside. [87:23]
4. Deny self, shoulder the daily cross “Give up your own way” is not self-loathing; it is trusting a better Lord than the self. The daily cross looks like practiced repentance, concrete yeses, and pride losing its grip on control. Over time, those small deaths become living proof of resurrection life. [91:52]
5. Stay close enough to change Following requires closeness that can make the next turn when Jesus does. Distance breeds delay, and delay keeps a person stuck where grace was trying to move them on. Stay in His steps, and direction will be clear even when the road isn’t. [94:55]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[38:36] - Vulnerability and prayer invitation
[50:46] - Why the church gathers
[55:34] - Not religion, real relationship
[56:16] - Restoration after the locusts
[57:29] - Surrender and release
[66:13] - The Story of Jesus series
[70:36] - Good news of the Kingdom
[72:41] - Crowds form around miracles
[77:17] - Follow me, leave the nets
[78:56] - Clicks versus true following
[87:23] - Christ in you by the Spirit
[89:55] - Give up your own way
[91:52] - Take up your cross daily
[94:55] - Keep in Jesus’ footsteps

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading
Matthew 4:23-25 (ESV)
And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people. So his fame spread throughout all Syria, and they brought him all the sick, those afflicted with various diseases and pains, those oppressed by demons, epileptics, and paralytics, and he healed them. And great crowds followed him from Galilee and the Decapolis, and from Jerusalem and Judea, and from beyond the Jordan.

Luke 9:23 (ESV)
And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.”

Observation questions

In Matthew 4:23-25, what three actions did Jesus perform that drew crowds? How did people respond to His ministry?
According to Luke 9:23, what three requirements does Jesus give for following Him?
The sermon emphasized that Jesus called specific individuals like Peter and Andrew to “follow me” rather than just admire Him from a distance ([17:17]). What did they leave behind to obey Him?
What contrast does the sermon highlight between crowds (who “amaze” at outcomes) and disciples (who answer Jesus’ call)?

Interpretation questions

Why do you think Jesus focused on calling specific individuals (like the disciples) to follow Him closely, even though crowds were drawn to His miracles?
The phrase “take up your cross daily” in Luke 9:23 is described in the sermon as “daily obedience, real repentance, and the quiet death of pride” ([31:52]). How might pride or self-reliance hinder someone from living this out?
The sermon states, “Christianity is not Jesus improving a life around the edges; it is Jesus living His life through a surrendered person” ([27:23]). How does this redefine what it means to follow Christ compared to cultural ideas of self-improvement?
How does the idea of “Christ in you” (Colossians 1:27) change the way believers approach struggles or obedience?

Application questions

What “nets” (habits, priorities, or comforts) might Jesus be asking you to leave behind to follow Him more closely? How could taking one practical step this week reflect that surrender?
The sermon describes “daily cross-taking” as small, concrete acts of repentance and obedience ([31:52]). What is one area of your life where pride or control needs to “die” daily? What would it look like to release that to Jesus today?
How can you intentionally “stay close enough to match [Jesus’] pace and turns” ([34:55]) in decision-making this week? What distractions or delays might you need to confront?
The sermon warns against treating faith like “clicking a button” ([18:56]). What habits or rhythms could help you move from passive admiration of Jesus to active apprenticeship?
When have you experienced Jesus’ presence meeting a “real need” in your life ([55:34])? How could you share that story to encourage someone else this week?
The church is called to “hold up arms in the hard place” for others ([41:05]). Who in your life needs tangible support or prayer right now? How will you intentionally step into that role?

Sermon Clips

``And I'm just telling you, this is this is the good news of the kingdom, that God is bigger. God is greater. Christian Christianity is not just following Jesus externally and clicking the button. It's it's Jesus living internally through us. Jesus didn't come to improve your life. Hear me. Jesus didn't come to improve your life. Listen. He came to live his life through you. So here's where I'm gonna land this. Following Jesus changes everything. [01:28:41] (35 seconds)

Listen. Religion talks about God. But when you have a relationship with Jesus, you experience God. You experience him as he draws you close as he draws you close. Yes, god. We just thank you. We thank you, Jesus. Thank you for the supernatural work that you're doing. Oh, god. Just the word restoration keeps coming up in my life, in my heart, and that's I believe it's for somebody here. God's restoring what what the locust the Bible talks about in the Old Testament where the locusts one of the plagues came and destroyed the crops. But listen. God's saying, I'm restoring the things that have been destroyed in your life. [00:55:33] (71 seconds)

Jesus said when he ascended into heaven after he had died and was resurrected, he he said to the disciples who were there, he said it's better that I go away. Catch this church Because Jesus went from just walking with us to being in us. He wants to be in you. Listen. Let me let me give you some examples. If you don't believe me, this is the bible. Galatians two twenty, Christ lives in me. I'm crucified with Christ that no longer I live, but Christ lives in me. Right? Colossians one twenty seven, Christ in you, the hope of glory. [01:27:11] (38 seconds)

So the invitation to follow Jesus is an invitation to trust him with your future. Do you really believe that God holds the future in in in his hands? We sing it. We praise God. We say, Jesus, come and fix it. But are we just a part of the crowd that's clicking the button, or are we are we recognizing, man, I'm gonna choose to follow right in behind Jesus? Because those those guys that had the privilege. Right? Isn't it wasn't wasn't it a privilege for those 12 disciples who were physically with Jesus? Wouldn't that be an amazing thing? [01:35:38] (42 seconds)

Ask a question about this sermon

Chatbot

What does it mean to follow Jesus?

What does taking up your cross daily require?

How does following Jesus differ from crowd behavior?

5.17.2026 | The Story of Jesus - Follow Me | Pastor Nathan Funk