The Hero’s Journey

June 7, 2026

Do you know what eternal life is? Is it heaven? Life after death? There’s a verse in the Bible, John 17:3, which sounds different than how we usually think of eternal life. It says, “Now this is eternal life, that they know you, the only God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.” That verse doesn’t say anything about heaven, or angels. It talks about this moment, right now, knowing God while you live! Eternal life is knowing God and Jesus Christ today! It means if you are in a relationship with God and Jesus Christ, you are experiencing eternal life NOW! Heaven is not a destination you reach one day. Eternal life happens now, when you live life with God.

What if Jesus’ resurrection was just the beginning? In John 14:12, Jesus says “Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father.” The good news isn’t just that Jesus offers us salvation. Eternal life is experienced now when, in relationship with God, you step out in courage to do even greater things than Jesus!

Joseph Campbell wrote a book called, “The Hero’s Journey”. We find a familiar story of a hero in movies like Star Wars or Spiderman. You grow up and you’re living your everyday life. Then somehow you experience a call to go out in the world on an adventure, which is difficult and dangerous and requires sacrifice. You’re on a mission, and you reach a point where you lose hope. Then out of nowhere, hope comes, someone helps, Somehow, you discover God is good because he catches you! You find there is good in the world, and God’s strength in you. And you come back, ready to help others on life’s adventure, to learn and trust, and be willing to sacrifice.  

Jesus was a hero who went on the hero’s journey to save us. He is our savior and God. We’re not God. But Jesus called his followers to take the hero’s journey. He said you’ve got to take up your cross, you have to sacrifice, to follow me. Jesus calls us to be his disciples.

There was no loophole. Jesus said, take up your cross and follow me.  Go make disciples, teaching them to obey all I have commanded you. And I am with you to the end of the age.

What does it look like to be a disciple? There’s a book by Dann Spader, called Four Chair Discipling, that talks about four stages of following Jesus. The first chair is “Come and see,” the Seeker. Jesus invited two disciples “come and spend a day with me, come and see.” This stage is checking Jesus out. Seekers come, bringing doubts and questions. “I’m going through a rough time, I don’t know if God can help me?” “If God loves me, why does He let bad things happen in my life?” The first chair is where you check God out. The first chair is the Seeker.

The second chair is “Follow Me,” the Believer. In John 1:43, Jesus finds Philip and says to him, “Follow me.” In this stage a person moves from questions to commitment. “I believe Jesus is for me.” A Believer might have a commitment, but not a deep one. They might say, “I gave my life to Jesus, so I go to church, and that’s good enough for me.” They can be critical and say, “I like this kind of music at church, not other types.” The second chair Believer disciple might say, “I have made a commitment to God, but He had better meet my demands!”

The third chair is “Becoming a Fisher of Men,” the Worker. In Luke 5:1-11, Jesus asks Simon Peter, “Can I sit in your boat while I teach the people on shore?” “Ok.” Peter’s working, but he hears Jesus teach. When Jesus is finished, he tells Simon Peter to cast his nets again. Simon Peter hasn’t caught anything all day, but he does what Jesus says, and he brings in a huge catch! Jesus tells Peter and the three men with him, “Do not be afraid. From now on you will catch people.” They drop everything to follow! In this stage, a person takes action! They are ready to get to work. Workers are increasingly focused on the needs of others: they think, “Maybe I can start a ministry to help people in recovery.” They say things like, “I love my church and others need a church like this too.” They are Workers, taking action and fishing for people!

The fourth chair of discipleship is “Go and Bear Fruit,” the Disciple Makers. In this stage, disciples aren’t just taking action. They are thinking, “How can I lead others to take action as followers of Christ?” They might say, “I started this small group and I’ve been leading it. Now I think God wants me to start another small group. Would you pray about leading it?” The Disciples Makers are actively engaged in building others up as disciples. They get involved in helping Christians grow, asking themselves, “how can I encourage the first chair Seekers? How can I help a second chair Believer disciple become all God intends?”

Sometimes at church we’ll come up with an idea, and say, “that’s a great idea! Someone should start that.” But it doesn’t happen. The “Go and Bear Fruit” Disciple Maker will take this across the finish line, telling someone, “This ministry would be great! You should do it! Or we should do it together!”

On Friday my cousin Betty passed away. I think of her as a Disciple Maker person. When my Dad was in the hospital near the end of his life, Me and my daughter Aria were sitting with him. And in walks Betty with her brother Nick and his wife Edie. Betty says, “We’re all going to hold hands and pray for Uncle Ed.” So, we did! That’s when Aria prayed. I thought she prayed that there would be a Wendy’s in heaven. My Dad liked Wendy’s. She actually prayed for a Wimpy’s in heaven, a restaurant from a long time ago that was my dad’s favorite! Dad was happy for our prayers, and I was so glad Betty came and got us praying.

These four stages of discipleship are not about ranking people. But they can be helpful, so we think about what chair we sit in. Is it time for me to take the hero’s journey? Is it time for me to take the next step in discipleship?

That’s my challenge for you this week. In the bulletin, where it says, “Today’s Message: Talk it Over” Think about what chair you’re in, and if you feel God nudging you to get in the next chair.  Are you a Seeker? Is it time to take a step of faith and put your trust in Jesus?

Are you a Believer? Is it time to take a bold step and take action to serve? Are you a Worker? Is it time to consider how you can encourage others in their walk with God?

Jesus said, “the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father.” He calls us to greatness, and he also calls us to sacrifice and to take up our cross. It’s a tough and wonderful challenge to follow Jesus and carry on the work of our Savior and hero. When we accept the challenge, he leads and guides us to change lives for good! Amen.