Called 4 Jesus

by TA York

We love to look for patterns in life. If you study the first chapter of the Gospel of John, a very clear three-part pattern emerges:

• Verses 1–18: We learn who Jesus is.
• Verses 19–42: We learn who we are (or who we can be).
• Verses 43–51: We find the most critical piece of the puzzle—following Jesus.

But before we dive into the theology of John 1, let me take you back to when I was 19 years old.

3,500 Feet and a Leap of Faith

When I was 19, I was a bit of an extremist. I also happened to be terrified of heights. So, naturally, I decided the best way to handle that fear was to jump out of a perfectly good airplane.

After a brief training period, our group headed out to a small landing strip. We piled into the plane, sitting directly on the floor. To make exits easier, the double doors of the aircraft had been completely removed. As the plane took off and circled higher and higher, it would bank left, giving us a direct, unfiltered view of the ground below.

My heart began to race, pounding violently against my chest. Are these my last moments on earth? I wondered. After all, I was about to put my absolute trust in some nylon cloth, a few strings, and air—elements I couldn’t even see.

When we reached 3,500 feet, the jumpmaster took my static line (the cord that automatically deploys the parachute) and hooked it to the U-bolt on the floor of the plane.

Then came the words: “Get ready.”

I scooted over to the open doorway and forced my legs out into the wind. They were instantly whipped backward toward the tail of the plane. My life flashed before my eyes. My heart was sprinting, and my breath came in short, panicked bursts. I was on the verge of a full-blown panic attack.

Suddenly, the jumpmaster tapped my shoulder—the go signal. I screamed and threw myself out of the aircraft (which, by the way, is exactly what you are not supposed to do).

As I counted down, I felt the chute deploy. My legs swung up, and the deployment sleeve neatly settled into place, keeping the lines from tangling. I reached up and grabbed the steering toggles.

Did I suddenly feel safe because the chute was open and I was floating? Absolutely not. My life was still hanging by a contraption I knew very little about. A voice in my head kept whispering, What if I just fall right through this thing?

Then I remembered the jumpmaster’s advice: “If you want to have some fun, let go of one toggle and pull the other down to your waist.”

I tried it. It was the strangest sensation—the entire world began spinning around me, while I felt perfectly still. In skydiving, they call that a corkscrew.

Against all my fears, I made it to the ground alive.

Part 1: Discovering Who Jesus Is

My terrifying leap reminds me of the journey laid out in John chapter 1.

In the first third of the chapter, we learn the truth about who Jesus is. When a person truly discovers Christ, repentance is usually right around the corner. Who in their right mind would deny an offer of heaven from God Himself? Only a fool.

Once we accept that truth, the faith journey begins. The door opens, and we step through it.

Part 2: Discovering Who We Are

This leads us directly into the second theme of the chapter: Who are we?

This has been the defining question of humanity since the beginning of time. When people lack a true identity, they often turn to things that manufacture a false one: drugs, alcohol, violence, sex, money, or fame.

The worldly mass media encourages a false identity. TV, games, etc. that spew out garbage of what a man and a woman should be.

In John 1, the Levites approach John the Baptist and ask him point-blank: “Who are you?”

It’s the ultimate conversation starter. The world loves to talk about itself. We measure each other by our titles—doctor, lawyer, executive. We value people based on their college major, their job description, or their level of worldly importance.

Yet, John the Baptist had discovered a profound reality. His response was essentially, “I am nothing! Jesus is ‘I AM’.”

Here is the secret: when a person finds Jesus, they find the grandest identity available in this life. They found themselves through Jesus. No misunderstanding, countless people have finally found themselves only after they surrendered to Christ.

Part 3: The Call to Follow

Finally, we reach the third theme: following Jesus.

The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, “Follow me.” (John 1:43)

Jesus went out of His way to find Philip. For Philip, this direct invitation was deeply appealing. His heart was likely already prepared for that “tap on the shoulder.”

But imagine if Jesus had given Philip a realistic preview of what that choice would cost him. Imagine if He said, “Well, Philip, you’re going to travel to a Greek city in modern-day Turkey, where you and a fellow apostle will be tortured, stoned, and crucified upside down. Doesn’t that sound wonderful? Anyway, follow me.”

In the original Greek text, the phrase “follow me” in verse 43 implies a continuous action: keep following me, and do not stop.

When you follow Jesus, you don’t get to pull over for ice cream. If Jesus turns right, you don’t get to turn left. You can’t speed past Him and say, “I know the way, Jesus, you follow me!” Following Him requires complete, radical obedience. And fortunately, He left us a travel guide: the Bible.

Shortly after his own call, Philip found Nathanael and invited him into the story with three simple words: “Come and see.”

Nathanael was skeptical. “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” he asked. But he was also sincere in his search for truth. When Jesus saw him approaching, He gave Nathanael the surprise of his life: “Here truly is an Israelite in whom there is no deceit.”

Astonished, Nathanael asked, “How do you know me?”

Jesus answered, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree…”

Worth the Risk

Do you realize that Jesus sees you, too?

He sees us in the moments we question Him. He sees us in the moments we fail. Yet, our God has promised never to leave us or forsake us.

So why do we doubt Him? Why do we routinely place more faith in the “string, cloth, and air” of this world than we do in the Creator of the universe?

Years ago, I risked my life jumping out of a perfectly good airplane, trusting a piece of fabric to save me. Today, I place my life into the hands of Jesus Christ. The stakes are much higher, but He is an identity, a purpose, and a Savior truly worth living—and dying—for.

God bless.