FOLLOW  THE  LEADER

or

When you follow The Herd make sure they are not headed for a Cliff!

And when they had sung a hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives. Then saith Jesus unto them, all ye shall be offended because of me this night: for it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered abroad.  But after I am risen again, I will go before you into Galilee. Peter answered and said unto him, Though all men shall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended.  Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, That this night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.  Peter said unto  him, Though I should die with thee, yet will I not deny thee.  Likewise also said all the disciples.

                                                                                        Mt. 26:30-35

Just hours before He was arrested, Jesus, speaking to His disciples, gave them a warning that they would be offended at the event about to happen, and that they would be scattered like a flock of sheep at the approach of the wolf. (Zech. 13:7 Mark 14:27).  Here comes Peter, dynamic and courageous, the rock, no doubt speaking with very good intentions, "Though all shall be offended, yet will I never be..." The Lord, full of love and compassion replies to this man who is so sincere and yet has no idea of what he is saying.  "Peter, before dawn, you will have denied me three times." Peter desperately wants to convince the Lord that he is serious, and so says "I don't care if it costs me my very life, I'll never deny You." We know what happened and who was correct in their forecast. It is because of Peter’s consistent habit of speaking out quickly and not always with a clear thought out plan that he has come to be known in the Church as "Impetuous Peter". He must have had a voice and manner that made those other disciples listening in  think  that Peter knew what he was talking about!

I want you now to take notice of the little word I have underlined in verses 31 and 35 above. It is the adjective "all". It can only mean that they were all included in the prophecy. They all agreed with Peter that their dedication to die for their Leader was unshakable. The were all equally mistaken too! While the Gospels record the three denials of Peter, they certainly want us to know that all of the disciples were offended over the situation. How easy it is to follow a persuasive leader without thinking things through and even more so when he is passionate and decisive about everything he says. How easy it was for Peter and the rest of Jesus’ followers to fail to recognize the significance of the presence of the Messiah. How easy it is for many of our own contemporaries to stray from what the Lord clearly desires in our day. Let us be careful that we do not go headlong and headstrong in the wrong direction.

Unity is a beautiful virtue and unanimity of opinion in important matters tends to beget tranquility. Agreement is a precious commodity. But the question is Are we right?  Is our cause just? Is our foundation true? One need only turn the page of your Bible to Matthew 27:21,22 to find another group that was in total agreement, a herd if you will, stampeding as a single unit but all going over the cliff. The crowd is confronted with a decision about which prisoner to release.  They have been mobilized by the enemies of Christ, they are worked up to a fever pitch and convinced that a lynching is in order.  Should Pilate release Jesus or Barabbas?  The word has filtered down from the leaders, "Jesus must die." And so it is recorded for all eternity, The governor answered and said unto them, Whether of the twain will ye that I release unto you? They said, Barabbas.  Pilate saith unto them, What shall I do then with Jesus which is called Christ? They all say unto him, Let him be crucified."..they all  say unto him  ' LET HIM BE CRUCIFIED !  CRUCIFY HIM !"  Lord have mercy.

Following the leader was not the primary problem that these groups faced, nor is it the primary problem that we face.  Rather, it is a question of who the leader is?  And where is he taking us?  We can confirm this by looking at these same disciples when they had another opportunity to be led astray and to follow other leaders. John testifies in his Gospel:

From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him. Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away? Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life. 

                                                                                      John 6:66-68

When many of the disciples who had seen the work of the Lord and heard His Word turned back from following Him, there was without a doubt a temptation upon all who heard Him to do likewise. Had Peter been minded to leave the Lord at that time, just how much influence would he have had upon the eleven? Jesus speaks bluntly to them; "Will ye also go away?" Glory to God! Here comes our man of faith and power, not with a vehement challenge or threat born of confusion, but with a resignation and humility born of the Spirit, a helplessness that must characterize every child of God. "To whom shall we go? Thou hast the Words of Eternal Life."

We would do well to thank God that we are sheep following the Shepherd and not cattle traveling with another herd. Try to imagine yourself in the middle of a herd of longhorns, grazing among many others of like mind. Suddenly the herd begins to move and you either join in the movement or get run over. Soon it is a stampede and you ask those around you "Where are we going?" as you race to keep up.  The cow next to you replies that he does not know and besides, what difference does it make? Beloved, If you are heading for that proverbial cliff it makes all the difference in the world; this world and the next! 

Young people I speak especially to you today. That herd of cattle you sometimes want to travel with is indeed heading in the wrong direction most of the time. The least damage you can suffer by running with and feeding with the wrong herd is that you will run in vain. The worst damage is that you will go over the cliff with them. The vital question then becomes; What direction am I going and with whom?  And the answer must be that you are one of the Good Shepherd’s sheep and a part of the little flock that follows Him whithersoever He goes and that you are heading for Eternal reward in the Paradise of God. 

he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice.  And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.

                                                                                      John 10: 4, 5

May it be so with YOU! 

                                                                                                Hayden

Zechariah 13:7              Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the LORD of hosts: smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones.