"As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." At once they left their nets and followed Him." Matthew 4:18-20 (NIV)
The Apostle Matthew recorded that at the beginning of His earthly ministry, Jesus called the disciples which He chose to be His followers, and they answered the call and followed Him.
All of us follow someone. The person that we follow is the one who has influence over our behavior. Often we make a conscious decision to follow someone, but sometimes a person's influence on us is subtle and we are unaware of the effect on us until later on. The devil is very subtle in his ways of influence. (Genesis 3:1) We are influenced by what we hear (Luke 11:28), read (2 Timothy 2:15), and see or watch (Psalms 101:3). That is why we are encouraged to read and study the Bible, to fellowship with other believers, and to be very careful about what we allow to come before our eyes. Those of us who choose to follow Christ must deny and resist the worldly influences on our lives, and submit to The Lord. (James 4:7) God wants all of us to be saved. (1 Timothy 2:3-4) However, many are called but few are chosen. (Matthew 22:14) The choice is up to us. We cannot follow and serve two masters. (Matthew 6:24 and Luke 16:13) With respect to the salvation of our soul, we must choose who we will follow. (Joshua 24:15 and John 14:6)
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