MEDITATIONS
FROM HEBREWS
May 21 , 2008
Reading: Hebrews 12:1-4
“Looking unto Jesus” Hebrews 12:2
If an alien or even a person of another faith were to examine Christianity with its various beliefs, doctrines, denominations, feuds, followers, etc. they would surely ask, “Which Jesus do you follow?” That is a reasonable question for we are certainly not disciples of the same person.
“Plenty
of people in the church and outside it have made up a ‘Jesus’ for themselves,
and have found that this invented character makes few real demands on them. He
makes them feel happy from time to time but doesn’t challenge them, doesn’t
suggest they get up and do something about the plight of the world. Which is,
of course, what the real Jesus had an uncomfortable habit of doing” Bishop N.T.
Wright, Following Jesus, 1994.
Do you take offense at these words or do they, as they have done to me,
challenge you to examine your walk with Jesus and the demands He makes of you?
If we follow the Jesus of the Bible we will have the commitment to obey His
commands and the willingness to go wherever He tells us to go and do whatever
He commands us to do. A true disciple follows Him without question. A committed
follower does not ask why or make excuses.
“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.’ 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’” Matthew
Does this sound harsh? Maybe, but not to a true disciple. A committed follower is ready to willingly and immediately do what His Leader demands. Perhaps Jesus did not tell His disciple to return home because He knew the man’s friends would ridicule him for wanting to follow this Jesus or present him with logical reasons as to why he should stay home. Jesus did not explain Himself to the disciple and neither should He; He asks nothing short of immediate, unquestioning obedience.
“A certain man gave a great supper and invited many, and sent his
servant at supper time to say to those who were invited, 'Come, for all things
are now ready.' But they all with one accord began to make excuses. The first
said to him, 'I have bought a piece of ground, and I must go and see it. I ask
you to have me excused.' And another said, 'I have bought five yoke of oxen,
and I am going to test them. I ask you to have me excused.' Still another said,
'I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come' Luke
These were all legitimate but not worthy excuses. They were not worthy because of the One to whom they were made. I submit that the excuses we give to our Master are equal to the level of commitment we give Him; in other words, they depend on which Jesus we purport to follow. One who is content to attend church Sunday mornings and considers it to be all his Jesus requires of him, does not follow the Jesus of the Bible. One who hears the Holy Spirit leading him but who offers nothing but reasons and excuses as to why he does not follow, is not committed to the Jesus of the Bible..
To those who follow Jesus without excuse or question be comforted and encouraged with these words,
"Be
strong and of good courage, and do it; do not fear nor be dismayed, for the
LORD God -- my God -- will be with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you,
until you have finished all the work for the service of the house of the LORD”
1 Chronicles 28:20.
We can be sure that
whatever God requires of us He will enable us to do it. He will never ask us to
do something then leave us alone to do it. It is a privilege to be required of
the Lord to serve Him no matter the capacity.