Read: Mark 3:7-19

Jesus went up on a mountainside and called to him those he wanted, and they came to him. (v. 13 NIV)

I’m not a very good golfer, but I really want to be. OK, that’s not totally true. If I really wanted to get better, I would actually do something about it—stop whining and getting angry, and do something. I would take lessons and then I would practice. You can’t get better at anything complicated, whether it’s golf or playing the piano or learning a language without practice, practice, practice.

I mention this because the same thing is true about knowing Christ better. Many people are like the crowds surrounding Jesus. They were fans of Jesus, enthusiastic about his teaching and miracles. But they weren’t genuine followers, because they didn’t really know who he was. However, in that crowd of fans were also some followers, sincere believers who followed him everywhere. They were actually committed to him and did what he said.

Then there were the few mentioned in verse 13, the fanatics, the twelve whom Jesus chose to be especially close to him. They grew in the grace and knowledge of Jesus, because of practice, practice, practice.

If you want to move from an enthusiastic fan to a fanatic who experiences all the possibilities of life with Christ, you have to practice. Practice what? A careful look at the way Jesus interacted with his apostles in Mark will show us several spiritual practices that will help us know Christ more.

Prayer:

Holy Spirit, give me the discipline to practice. Amen.

https://woh.org/