The Question

It’s Day One.

And Jesus’ ministry is off and running.

John the Baptist has just pointed to the Lord and introduced Him as the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world.

That was enough to cause two of John’s disciples to begin following Christ.

As the Lord sensed their presence tagging along behind Him, He turned and asked them a simple question; which, of course, coming from the Son of God, was not a simple question at all!

And keep this in mind: His question is the first recorded utterance from the Savior here in John’s Gospel, which highlights its importance.

This is a question He asks all would-be followers—a question that penetrates down into our innermost being.

God knows something we tend to forget—the trajectory of our lives is determined by the desires of our hearts.

So Jesus asks these two wannabe disciples: What is it you’re wanting by following Me?

There are, after all, a host of different motivations for following Christ.

People in the world talk about finding their voice and being true to themselves; so their hopes and dreams, their energy and resources are all focused on self.

But Jesus cautions His listeners about finding themselves at the expense of honoring God’s intentions for their lives.

“Whoever finds their life will lose it,” Jesus said, “and whoever loses their life for My sake will find it” (Matthew 10:39).

So Jesus’ question helps the follower evaluate their motivations and make sure they’re in line with what biblical discipleship is all about.

I mean, how awful for someone to come to Christ and simply transfer over their former worldly, self-centered desires into a new Christian framework. 

That’s a recipe for spiritual disaster.

So He asks, What is it you are seeking by following Me?

Is it (as prosperity preachers like to say) “living your best life now”?

Because if you go into this thinking that you’re the center of the universe and that God exists to make you happy, healthy and wealthy, there’s going to be some big (and disappointing) surprises. 

That said, it’s not wrong to expect (and want) improvement in the quality of our lives, but is that really a biblical reason for following Christ?

Do we want God to help us have the life we want, or do we see ourselves as His servants, seeking nothing more than to please Him in all our ways—whatever that looks like?

Certainly some have shipwrecked their faith because the reality of their Christian experience turned out to be different than what they were seeking.

So. It’s good to ask ourselves:  What are we seeking from Him?

The short answer is: Whatever God wants of us, and has for us—that’s what we want, too. 

We want Him as our Lord and His will for our lives. 

Most of us have lived long enough to see how a disappointing turn of events (that crushed what we wanted) opened a door to something much better.

And who knew?

Well, God knew, didn’t He?

And that’s why mature Believers keep a loose grip on the reins, and pray from our hearts after everything we want: “Nevertheless, Your will be done.”

That’s what we seek: we seek His will for our lives.

Because His will is better—and God is good, even when life is not.