Following Is Not A Bad Thing

“Neither let Hezekiah make you trust in the LORD, saying, The LORD will surely deliver us: this city shall not be delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria.” (Isa 36:15 AV)

There is a vast difference between ‘cause’ and ‘make’.  ‘Make’ suggests a lack of sufficient will to withstand.  The king of Assyria, who is laying siege to the city of Jerusalem, is appealing to the pride of the masses.  He believes that if he suggests their leader does not have their best interests at heart and convinces them to withstand his advances, they are brainwashed.  The king appeals to their independent intelligence and their natural, yet carnal, desire to be self-determined.  If they follow someone’s leadership, they must not be thinking for themselves.  This is as old as the garden of Eden.  This is exactly the argument Satan made with Eve.  If she blindly followed the instruction of God, then she was not truly free.  She should question everything and agree to nothing.  This is the argument the devil makes to the children of God.  We are ridiculed for following a God who cannot be seen.  We are accused of groupthink.  We are never given the benefit of the doubt that we have reasoned out our faith and have come to the conclusion that God is to be believed and followed.  We are accused of being blind followers of Jesus, who to them, was nothing more than a historical figure.  Whether we follow or not is totally dependent on humility and love for Christ.

We live in a generation where leading is near to impossible.  Leadership is questioned and rejected.  We feel that following is beneath our abilities and to be independent of thought and action is the highest pursuit.  Of the many years of my time in the woods, I have learned that nature can often teach you things that you don’t have to learn on your own.  It would behoove the woodsman to pay heed to the signs all around him to make his trek into and out of the woods an event-free experience.  Game trails can tell you a lot.  Knowing how game moves and for what reason can help you find water, shelter, and a way out of the woods.  Paying attention to bird activity can alert you to the presence of a predator.  Plant and tree growth can often reveal direction.  Watching ground animals can alert you to the weather.  There are indications of animal activity they left behind on trees, grass, at water sources, or in plain sight.  All this information will assist the woodsman as he journeys through the wilderness.  However, he must submit to what others are showing him.  He as to learn from others what is safe and what to watch for.  He submits to a source of wisdom that, on the whole, may not be as intelligent as he is but, in their element, they are.  Learning to follow is a show of humility.  It is an exercise in honesty.

The Devil wants to convince us that when we follow, we are not our own person.  Like the recruits I saw regularly, even in private settings, they still walk in step with one another.  Someone has trained them to follow orders and procedures as second nature.  We believe that following Christ is the same thing.  The Devil tries to convince us that the following is the absence of intelligence.  If we follow, we somehow have lost the ability to think for ourselves and we will become dependent on those who will eventually use us for their own ends.  Paul remarks to the Corinthians several times they are to follow him as he follows Christ.  Note here he does not tell this church to blindly follow.  What he tells them is as long as he is following the LORD Jesus Christ, then they need to follow him.  This is biblical and necessary.  Following, often maligned by the world, is necessary for the saints of God.  We are referred to as sheep.  Sheep are natural followers.  Even to a fault.  We should be followers.  And one more thing to consider.  A wise teacher of mine often said, “God will never ask you to lead until you first learn to follow.”  Absolutely true.