“Footprints of Jesus”

1. Read: 1 Peter 2:21 – “For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps.”

2. About the Text:

1) Christ left us an example to follow.

2) The metaphor “walking in his steps” means that we are to do as He did.

3. The song “Footprints of Jesus.”

1) The lyrics were written by Mary B. Slade in 1871 and the music by Asa B. Everett.

2) The song reflects on what it means to follow Jesus.

4. Ref. to S, T, P, O, and A.

1. “Sweetly, Lord, have we heard Thee calling, / Come, follow Me! / And we see where Thy footprints falling / Lead us to Thee.”

2. We must hear with a view toward obedience.

1) Matthew 7:24-27 – parable of the two builders.

2) “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock” (Matthew 7:24).

3) “But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand” (Matthew 7:26).

3. There are no excuses accepted.

1) Status is no excuse – “Then a certain scribe came and said to Him, ‘Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.’”

2) Family is no excuse – “Then another of His disciples said to Him, ‘Lord, let me first go and bury my father.’ But Jesus said to him, ‘Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead.’”

3) One’s job is no excuse – “As Jesus passed on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, ‘Follow Me.’ So he arose and followed Him” (Matthew 9:9).

1. In efforts of evangelism and benevolence.

1) “Though they lead o’er the cold, dark mountains, / Seeking His sheep; / Or along by Siloam’s fountains, / Helping the weak.”

2) Seeking His sheep – Luke 15:4-7.

3) Helping the weak – John 9:1-7.

4) The pool of Siloam was where the blind man was healed.

2. In efforts of encouragement or service.

1) “If they lead through the temple holy, / Preaching the Word; / Or in homes of the poor and lowly, / Serving the Lord.”

2) Encouragement – “And daily in the temple, and in every house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ” (Acts 5:42).

3) Service – “Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need” (Acts 2:44-45).

1. “Though, dear Lord, in Thy pathway keeping, / We follow Thee; / Through the gloom of that place of weeping, / Gethsemane!”

1) Gethsemane was a garden on the mount of olives.

2) It was where Jesus sweat great drops of blood (Luke 22:44).

3) It was where Jesus prayed, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done” (Luke 22:42).

2. “If Thy way and its sorrows bearing, / We go again, / Up the slope of the hillside, bearing / Our cross of pain.”

1) The hill of Golgotha/Calvary was where Jesus was crucified.

2) “knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin” (Romans 6:6).

3) “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me” (Galatians 2:20).

1. “By and by, through the shining portals, / Turning our feet, / We shall walk, with the glad immortals, / Heav’n’s golden street.”

1) Heaven is the goal for all Christians.

2) “For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.”

3) “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you” (1 Peter 1:3-4).

2. “Then, at last, when on high He sees us, / Our journey done, / We will rest where the steps of Jesus / End at His throne.”

1) “And they sang a new song, saying: ‘You are worthy to take the scroll, And to open its seals; For You were slain, And have redeemed us to God by Your blood Out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, And have made us kings and priests to our God; And we shall reign on the earth.’”

2) “And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, ‘Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away’” (Revelation 21:3-4).

1. The footsteps of Jesus lead us to . . .

1) Hearing Jesus

2) Helping Jesus

3) The Hills of Jesus

4) Heaven with Jesus

2. Invitation