Hello, Fire of God family!
For the last couple of weeks, God has been giving me a word, “Follow.” The impression was that this word would be one of the keywords for us in 2025.
Follow Me in Hebrew is “Lech Acharai.” It means “Imitate Me” or “Do as I Myself would do,”
“Lech Acharai” also means to completely dedicate yourself to following a Rabbi’s teachings and guidance, often implying a level of commitment where you would leave behind other pursuits to fully immerse yourself in their path. (info found from Google)
Culturally, back then, “Lech Aharai” was what the Jewish student or “Talmid” (disciple) would do. Literally packed up his belongings, left everything behind, and followed the Rabbi wherever he went. (info found from Google)
The same Hebrew word was used when Apostle Paul made this statement,
1Corinthians 11:1
“So imitate me, watch my ways, follow my example, just as I, too, always seek to imitate the Anointed One.”
This same Hebrew word was used when God commanded Abraham to leave everything/homeland and begin his journey with God.
Genesis 12:1
One day, the Eternal One called out to Abram. Eternal One: Abram, get up and go! Leave your country. Leave your relatives and your father’s home and travel to the land I will show you. Don’t worry I will guide you there.
**Side note: When God said, “Get up and Go!” it also meant, “Follow Me.” The word Lech Acharai was used to both “Get up and Go” and “follow Me.”
The same Hebrew word was used in the Book of Matthew,
Matthew 4:18-22
One day, Jesus was walking along the Sea of Galilee when He saw Simon (also called Peter) and Andrew throwing their nets into the water. They were, of course, fishermen. Jesus: Come, follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men. Immediately, Peter and Andrew left their fishnets and followed Jesus. Going on from there, Jesus saw two more brothers, James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John. They, too, were fishermen. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, getting their nets ready to fish. Jesus summoned them, just as He had called to Peter and Andrew, and immediately they left their boat and their father to follow Jesus.
The same Hebrew word was used in the book of John, too.
John 13:36-37
Jesus replied, “Where I am going, you won’t be able to follow, but one day you will follow me there.” Peter said, “What do you mean I’m not able to follow you now? I would sacrifice my life to die for you!”
1 Corinthians indicates and tells us that we must become more like Jesus, which will require a lot of effort to kill our flesh.
Genesis and Matthew indicate and tell us that we must get rid of all our idols. The top two most cherished idols are hinted at here: money, possessions/wealth, and family.
When Abraham was first commanded to leave his country, relatives, and father’s home, he was already wealthy, settled, and stable. There are no reasons for him to leave. But God had a greater plan; beyond money, wealth, or our family time. Abraham still obeyed even though he didn’t know what would happen if he left.
God will not tell us everything that He planned in our life. Whether you are rich or poor, you need to move when God tells you to “Go,” knowing the outcome will be fruitful.
The book of Matthew as well.
John 13 talks about the importance of being born again. Because you won’t be able to Lech Acharai (follow Jesus) all the way/completely with absolute obedience without being born again. In a critical (the most challenging moment), you will betray Him if you are not born again.
But If you at least put the utmost effort into keeping the basic requirements without swindling, cheating, lying, or deceiving yourselves, God will help you become born again.
Please think about what the following would be for you. What does it mean to you? Think about what you should do to follow Him properly. What is your objective when you fast for three days?
Tonight, let us rededicate in complete determination. We want everyone to move forward with full surrender to God in 2025!
Senior Pastor Yoojin Kim