A simple Instagram post made by pop singer Justin Bieber showing a square white paper with the words "I follow Jesus" emblazoned across it has gone viral, drawing more than 1.3 million "likes" among his 86.9 million followers since the 23-year-old "I'm the One" singer posted it on Tuesday.
Bieber's post has elicited heart-warming comments from his legions of fans. As noted by The Gospel Herald, one commenter said, "Amen! You have decided to follow Jesus, and no turning back."
Another fan wrote: "Can't believe there are still artists like you who have faith in Him! and because of that, I adore you."
Bieber appears to be on a roll in proclaiming his faith. Earlier this month, also on Instagram, he shared a side-by-side photo of his colored mugshot taken in 2014 and a more matured black-and-white photo of him now. He wrote on the side of the combo photos: "I LOVE THIS because it reminds me I'M NOT EXACTLY WHERE I WANT TO BE BUT THANK GOD I'M NOT WHERE I USED TO BE! THE BEST IS YET TO COME DO YOU BELIEVE IT?"
It was in January 2014 when the Canadian pop superstar was arrested following a drag racing incident.
In July of the same year, he was placed on probation for two years after he agreed on a plea deal for vandalizing his neighbor's home by hurling eggs.
In June 2015, he was found guilty of assault and reckless driving after his vehicle collided with a minivan in Canada.
Amid his personal woes, Bieber turned to Jesus for help, and was baptized by Hillsong NYC pastor Carl Lentz in early 2014. That proved to be the turning point in Bieber's spiritual life. Since then, he has been unabashedly proclaiming his rejuvenated faith on various occasions.
Earlier this month, Bieber spoke about his Christian faith again while performing in Sydney, according to the Daily Mail. During that concert, the Christian pop superstar emerged onto the stage in a transparent box displaying the hand-written words: "Mark my words Jesus loves you!!!!"
Interviewed by Complex magazine in October 2015, Bieber declared that he "just wanna honestly live like Jesus."
He said Jesus "created a pretty awesome template of how to love people and how to be gracious and kind."
He said this "template" is now the one guiding him.
"Sometimes when I don't feel like doing something, but I know it's right, I remember, I'm pretty sure Jesus didn't feel like going to the cross and dying so that we don't have to feel what we should have to feel," he said. "What Jesus did when he came to the cross was basically say, 'You don't have to feel any of that stuff.'"
He praised Jesus for being "the greatest healer of all," saying He is the one who could "take out all of our insecurities ... all of the hurt, all the pain, all the fear, all the trauma."
