Following Christ Through Deprivations
"A certain man said unto Him, Lord, I will follow Thee whithersoever Thou goest. And Jesus said unto him, Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man hath not where to lay His head" (Luk_9:57-58).
It is quite certain that this "certain young man" had an idea that Christ Jesus was soon to take the Davidic throne, and he wanted to have a place with Him in His glory.
The Lord disabused his mind. He did not deny the fact that He would some day reign on David’s throne, but He emphasized the fact that He was without any present prospect of such a glory. He promised the young man no flowery bed of ease, no earthly glory in following Him.
Those who today would follow Christ fully, may assure their hearts that it will mean suffering. "All that will live Godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution". "Unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on Him, but also to suffer for His sake".
Who then is ready to go outside the camp with Christ and bear His reproach? Who is willing to bear the Cross? Can we sing that precious verse:
"Jesus, I my cross have taken,
All to leave and follow Thee,
Naked, poor, despised, forsaken;
Thou, from hence, my all shall be:
Let the world despise and leave me,
They have left my Saviour, too,
Earthly looks and friends deceive me,
Thou art not like them untrue."
There are many who seek to follow Christ solely for the loaves and fishes; they want to join the big church, the popular church, the worldly church. With them it is not a question of "What wilt Thou have me to do"? but of "What advantage wilt Thou be unto me?"
It sounds wonderfully well to say, "I will follow Thee whithersoever Thou goest"; but, to say it, is not enough. We must be ready to pay the price, and go all the way with God. We must be ready to say:
"I’ll go where You want me to go, dear Lord,
Over mountain or plain or sea,
I’ll say what You want me to say, dear Lord,
I’ll be what You want me to be."
Autor: R.E. NEIGHBOUR