Having Made Followers
by Jared Johnson
Some men are Baptists; others, Catholics.
My father … was an Oldsmobile man.
~Ralphie, A Christmas Story
I had the privilege to go to TCMI’s Haus Edelweiss near Vienna, Austria in 2016. While there, regrettably, neighboring Germany (Munich) suffered a terrorist’s gun attack at a mall. As I traveled home, I had a layover in Dusseldorf, Germany – and extra security was very noticeable. As I boarded my Dusseldorf-New York flight, a plain-clothes officer asked me about hobbies. When I answered, “we have 4 kids; I don’t have time for hobbies,” she waved me on.
What do hobbies have to do with follower-making? “Everything,” I would answer.
One of our e2 colleagues just discovered cold-brew coffee in the last few weeks. Our office fridge is now stocked with it.
Have you ever been exposed to a hobby and, before you knew it, were consumed by it? That’s follower-making; that’s “discipling” in a hobby.
It’s just what we do as people. We follow and we make followers; it’s built into us.
A friend of mine was a bourbon collector – was. When I first began to get to know him, he had well over 100 bottles of various in-demand brands, none of which he had any desire to drink. But there was one night when he suddenly realized it was a problem. Hours after that realization, he, myself, and a couple other close friends were all in his backyard, pouring out dozens of bottles into the burn scar that is his backyard fire pit. It had taken over him. Half-jokingly and half-annoyingly, I told him I’d help him dive head-first as deep as he wanted into another brewing world – tea (I’m a hopeless tea snob). But he did! We frequently trade tea insights.
Do you know any collectors? Our family collects LEGOs. Our youngest collects LEGO figures and builds new battle scenes with them daily. Our 2nd son’s LEGO collection more than covers an entire bed-turned-table, spilling onto an adjacent shelving unit. A few years ago, I needed back surgery. I was forbade from even sitting at my desk for one full week. For my birthday, just days before surgery and knowing I’d need to kill time, our oldest gave me a large LEGO car (about 3,000 pieces) to “help me recover.” That car has now multiplied into another 2 dozen cars of various sizes, some planes, LEGO’s bonsai tree...
A decade ago, my wife and I were privileged to be living and working in Canada; I was part of the staff/faculty of one of our brotherhood’s Bible colleges. A neighbor and friend (and former Board member) had season tickets to the local “major-junior” hockey team. He and another friend “discipled” us into hockey fandom. We got our oldest, then in jr high, a youth season ticket. About an hour before every home game, Bob and Roger picked up our son. Though I didn’t have a season ticket, I tagged along often enough (“buddy passes” on those season tickets were a big help!).
Whatever your favorite indulgence or entertainment – cold-brew coffee, tea, sourdough starters, home baking, pickleball, “CrossFit,” running, softball or bowling leagues, fantasy sports, woodworking, shooting, NFL football, college basketball, MLS soccer, NASCAR, WWE or anything else – it's pretty common that, as you begin to take in that world more and more, you often bring someone else along with you, like our colleague sharing the pleasures of cold coffee with us these last few weeks. Veterans bring us newbies along and disciple us into our new pursuit, and we often bring yet someone else along with us in our new journey – followers make more followers.
Beyond hobbies or interests like those above, we also make followers of our disposition. Sarcasm begets sarcasm. Fault-finding criticism metastasizes into deeper, sharper negativity, etc. Conversely, positive attitudes spread as well. The parallels multiply.
Follower-making is built into us. We just do it. “Students aren’t greater than their teacher. But the student who’s fully trained will become like the teacher” (Luke 6.40). “Bad company corrupts good character” (1 Cor. 15.33).
If you’ve noticed my half-awkward leaning on “follower,” yes, it’s deliberate. I can’t think of any specific time in my life that I ever heard someone say “disciple” outside of church. It’s a churchy word, thoroughly Christianese. But if you say “he’s a follower” in any random context in any random place, any random person will know exactly how to make sense of what you just said.
We make followers. We are followers.
“He’s a chip off the old block.”
“The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”
Since we already, even by default, make followers, we might’s’well make Jesus the cornerstone of those efforts. “Take every thought captive,” and all.
Looking back at influence that you have had on others, in what pursuits have you and I made followers?
Fantasy sports?
Golf?
NFL football?
NASCAR?
College basketball?
Coffee?
Avocado toast?
A specific TV show?
LEGOs?
Dixie Chopper mowers?
Electric cars?
Snark and biting speech?
Right-wing politics?
Left-wing politics?
Firearms?
A musician or band?
Pickleball?
Having made followers, because we all do it even without trying, what kinds of followers are they? Here’s my weirdo theory: if “Swifty!,” or anything else not-Jesus, is the 1st thing that comes to your friend’s mind when they hear your name, it’s a problem.
Fun as all those pursuits above can be, only one appetite needs fed – the appetite to know and be known by our perfectly Good Father. Only one kind of follower-making will bring Heaven to earth.
But, regarding that, “just make disciples” isn’t a panacea. Most of the time I have heard someone say (or seen in writing) “just make disciples” they’re being impatient, dismissive and even a bit arrogant, not giving measured advice about a nuanced problem, nor speaking from deep experience. “Make followers” wasn’t the only imperative verb spoken by King Jesus and it’s not the be-all, end-all solution for each and every church life challenge.
Still, only one kind of follower-making will make life here “as it is in Heaven.” And for that, you can sign me up.
This is the new covenant I will make with people ... on that day, God says, I will put my laws in their minds, and I’ll write them on their hearts. I’ll be their God; they’ll be my people. They won’t need to teach their neighbors, nor their relatives, saying, “You should know the King.” Everyone, from the least to greatest, will know me already.
Nothing will hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain, because as water fills the sea, so the world will be filled with people who know Yahweh.
