Following in Jesus' footsteps

Our Sacred Challenge - Following in Jesus' footsteps

Very truly I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father.” -John 14:12 NRSV
 
Have you ever wondered what is meant by this Biblical promise that Jesus made? What works will we be able to do that Jesus did? I am unlikely to find myself having to feed 5,000 hungry souls, or turn water into wine. Jesus must have meant something else.

​Whenever I am studying a Bible verse, I like to examine different Biblical translations, to enhance the meanings of the words. I am often drawn to the translation The Message, which uses contemporary language to make the Bible accessible to today’s world. John 14:12 is translated this way:
 
“The person who trusts me will not only do what I’m doing, but even greater things, because I, on my way to the Father, am giving you the same work to do that I’ve been doing.”
 
And what has Jesus been doing? For me Jesus has been showing me how to create the kingdom of heaven in the here and now. Choice by choice we can be the best expressions of the Christ we can be – through compassion, forgiveness, and the awareness of our oneness with the Father. Jesus has “opened the door, shown us the way, and gone forward himself” (Rev.Ed Townley). Our joyful sacred challenge is to join him on the journey.
 
This idea - that we are to follow in the footsteps of Jesus - is a huge one. What does it mean to you? Do you think you could possibly follow in these footsteps? Perhaps you serve already in a way that you would never have imagined before.
 
Tuesday 3rd September, 7.30-8.30pm BST, we will meet on Zoom to discuss this very important and powerful point - how do we follow in the footsteps of Jesus? Do join us and share in a discussion that could benefit us all.
 
Nancy Sandoval
Licensed Unity Teacher