Sermon Guide

Come Follow Me
Pastor Kent Landhuis

THEME – Following Jesus in 2026 will transform our lives.
TEXT –  Mark 1:16-20, 35-39

1. Be with Jesus. (Vision)

  • What does abiding with Jesus look like?
  • What kind of person will I become when I abide with Jesus?
  •  What is at stake if I don’t abide? (Why is this a better alternative?)

2. Become like Jesus. (Intention)

  • Have I truly decided to change? (Desire without intention is useless.)
  • Have I moved from preference to conviction?

3. Do what Jesus did. (Means.)

  • “Grace is not opposed to effort, it is opposed to earning.” (Dallas Willard)
  • Have I identified spiritual practices and a community of accountability?

NEXT STEPS

Name your quiet place and time
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Name your spiritual practices:
_________________________
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Four Chair Disciples: Healthy things grow.

The Biblical vision of discipleship points to organic (a seed or a tree), not mechanical growth (an assembly line). Growth is not an event but a slow and steady process requiring nurture, cultivation, and patience. The soil of growth is relationships developed in real-life situations, in real-time, with real people. We divide this process into four stages:

  • Chair 1: Come and See – Seekers 
  • Chair 2: Follow and Grow – Believers 
  • Chair 3: Abide and Serve – Servants
  • Chair 4: Go and Bear Fruit – Reproducers

People in Chair 1 explore Jesus and one question key to growth is to ask and answer the question “Is Jesus Lord and savior?”

People in Chair 2 discover new life in Jesus by asking “Who is Jesus and what is his mission?”

People in Chair 3 are growing in Jesus so that they learn to serve Jesus through serving others. They learn to ask, “What is the cost of following Jesus?” and “Where is God calling me to go and what is God calling me to do?”

People in Chair 4 are maturing as disciples and they are reproducing faith in others through discipleship and mentoring. They ask questions like “Who else is God calling?” and “Who is next for me to disciple?” and “How does the power of Jesus work through me?”

 

Love. Belong. Serve.