From Fan to Follower
Key Thought | Jesus isn’t looking for fans who like Him, but disciples who will stay when His words get hard.
Key Scripture | “Simon Peter replied, ‘Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life. We believe, and we know you are the Holy One of God.’” —John 6:68–69 NLT
As we prepare for Opendoor Conference in January, we’re centering our hearts around a question that doesn’t come from a moment of ease, but from a moment of tension: Will we stay when Jesus’ words get hard?
Read | John 6
In John 6, many walked away when they didn’t understand what Jesus was saying. But Peter stayed, declaring, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life.” That kind of conviction is what leads to the burning hearts we see later on the road to Emmaus, and it’s the kind of encounter we’re praying for as we gather together.
John 6 ends with a sobering moment. After Jesus talks about eating His flesh and drinking His blood, many of His followers say, “This is very hard to understand. How can anyone accept it?” And then, Scripture says, “At this point many of his disciples turned away and deserted him.”
Jesus had fans, He had believers, and He had disciples.
Fans liked the miracles.
Believers agreed with His words.
Disciples stayed when His words became hard.
When Jesus turned to the Twelve and asked, “Are you also going to leave?” Peter answered for them all: “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life.”
Disciples don’t follow Jesus because everything He says is easy. They follow because they’ve become convinced there is nowhere else to go. His words might challenge them, confront them, or confuse them; but they know He alone has the words of life.
Read | Luke 24: 13-32
Later, in Luke 24, two discouraged disciples walked the road to Emmaus after the crucifixion. Their hopes were shattered, their expectations crushed. But as the risen Jesus walked with them and opened the Scriptures, something began to happen inside: “Didn’t our hearts burn within us as he talked with us on the road and explained the Scriptures to us?”
To have a burning heart, we must have a revelation of Jesus, not a revelation of man. That revelation of Jesus is found on the other side of accepting the hard things Jesus said, not the easy.
Maybe Jesus has been saying something hard to you: forgive that person, surrender that habit, trust Him in a painful place, obey in a costly way. You can walk away like the crowd or lean in like the Twelve and the Emmaus disciples.On the other side of the hard saying is a deeper revelation of who He is and a heart that burns again.
Prayer | Jesus, I don’t want to be just a fan who enjoys what You do but walks away when Your words get hard. I want to be a true disciple. Give me the courage to stay, to listen, and to obey even when I don’t fully understand. Reveal Yourself to me in the middle of the hard things You’re asking of me, and let my heart burn again with love and passion for You. Amen.
Reflection
Key Scripture | “Simon Peter replied, ‘Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life. We believe, and we know you are the Holy One of God.’” —John 6:68–69 NLT
As we prepare for Opendoor Conference in January, we’re centering our hearts around a question that doesn’t come from a moment of ease, but from a moment of tension: Will we stay when Jesus’ words get hard?
Read | John 6
In John 6, many walked away when they didn’t understand what Jesus was saying. But Peter stayed, declaring, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life.” That kind of conviction is what leads to the burning hearts we see later on the road to Emmaus, and it’s the kind of encounter we’re praying for as we gather together.
John 6 ends with a sobering moment. After Jesus talks about eating His flesh and drinking His blood, many of His followers say, “This is very hard to understand. How can anyone accept it?” And then, Scripture says, “At this point many of his disciples turned away and deserted him.”
Jesus had fans, He had believers, and He had disciples.
Fans liked the miracles.
Believers agreed with His words.
Disciples stayed when His words became hard.
When Jesus turned to the Twelve and asked, “Are you also going to leave?” Peter answered for them all: “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life.”
Disciples don’t follow Jesus because everything He says is easy. They follow because they’ve become convinced there is nowhere else to go. His words might challenge them, confront them, or confuse them; but they know He alone has the words of life.
Read | Luke 24: 13-32
Later, in Luke 24, two discouraged disciples walked the road to Emmaus after the crucifixion. Their hopes were shattered, their expectations crushed. But as the risen Jesus walked with them and opened the Scriptures, something began to happen inside: “Didn’t our hearts burn within us as he talked with us on the road and explained the Scriptures to us?”
To have a burning heart, we must have a revelation of Jesus, not a revelation of man. That revelation of Jesus is found on the other side of accepting the hard things Jesus said, not the easy.
Maybe Jesus has been saying something hard to you: forgive that person, surrender that habit, trust Him in a painful place, obey in a costly way. You can walk away like the crowd or lean in like the Twelve and the Emmaus disciples.On the other side of the hard saying is a deeper revelation of who He is and a heart that burns again.
Prayer | Jesus, I don’t want to be just a fan who enjoys what You do but walks away when Your words get hard. I want to be a true disciple. Give me the courage to stay, to listen, and to obey even when I don’t fully understand. Reveal Yourself to me in the middle of the hard things You’re asking of me, and let my heart burn again with love and passion for You. Amen.
Reflection
- Where has Jesus been speaking something “hard” to you lately—and how have you responded?
- Are you following Him for what He does for you, or because you’ve become convinced that He alone has the words of eternal life?
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