Author: kezha1

In this account from Luke 18:35-43 we see a blind beggar receiving his sight from Jesus…and within it we see both “Go home and tell” and “Follow Me”. Jesus is on the road where the blind man is begging. The man hears the approaching commotion and is told by the crowd that Jesus of Nazareth is passing by. Now right off the bat we see the crowd not giving Jesus honor due but rather using a title that Nathaniel once used, “How can anything good come out of Nazareth?” (John 1:46) But the blind man yells out something entirely different and unexpected. ”Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” The blind man gave Jesus a Messianic title used by Gabriel to Mary and grounded in God’s promise to King David…and in doing so fully expected the Messiah to exceed his ancestor King David’s power & authority and heal him. (Isaiah 42:6-7) And it’s because of this blind man’s faith the gift of sight was given…or it could also be translated, “Your faith has saved you.” This poor beggar now has his sight and new purpose in life…as he joyfully follows his Savior, while the townspeople are awestruck at the beggar they passed everyday who is now able to see…and they all end up praising God.

The disciples weren’t the only people Jesus said, “Follow Me” to. In Luke 9:57-62 we see the account of three unnamed men that when confronted with the radical commitment Jesus demanded of them had second thoughts. The first impulsively blurted out to Jesus, “I will follow You wherever You go.” But Jesus then reminded him that he would be as I Peter 2:11 describes, an ”alien & a stranger in the world” with no real home. The second man Jesus called to “Follow Me.” but he made excuses of why he couldn’t…putting his priorities first… not realizing that the demands of the Kingdom of God override all earthly loyalties. Finally the third man said, “I will follow You, Lord; but first let me go back and say good-bye to my family.” Again this man was putting stipulations & conditions on him following Jesus. But when Jesus says to you, “Follow Me.” He doesn’t mean when you feel like it or when it’s convenient …He rather demands from you there be no delaying, waffling, excuse making, or bargaining.

In this very familiar story of Jesus and the woman at the well, we see another instance that “Go home and tell” had a tremendous impact on the people who knew her. After His intimate conversation with her, the disciples returned with food, and while they were talking with Jesus the woman slipped off unable to contain her new found joy any longer. Once in town she said to the people, “Come, see a man who told me all that I ever did. Can this be the Christ?” Now this statement probably piqued the curiosity of many…but what drew the most townspeople to Jesus was the drastic change in this woman’s countenance…her facial expression now radiating joy & peace unlike anything they had ever previously seen. Before them was a truly changed woman, no longer slinking in the shadows…full of anger, bitterness, & hostility. A harsh woman that nobody wanted to deal with in the marketplace…always walking around with a chip on her shoulder & an “everybody’s done me wrong” attitude. No, instead here was a gentle kindly woman with love in her eyes beckoning them to, Come and see for yourselves that you too might receive the Messiah.

The rich young man was one of the few that Jesus beckoned to “Follow Me” rather than “Go home and tell.” When Jesus demanded the young man to liquidate all his business dealings and wealth, He already knew what the man’s decision would be. But what if this rich young man had realized that his love of money was mightier than his love of God? And what if he walked into his workplace a changed person to witness personally about Jesus? Do you know that where you’re working right now is exactly where God wants you, and thus you have the responsibility to demonstrate the love of God? But also realize that all the cute Christian plaques & doodads in your cubicle make no difference or will ever withstand your coworker’s scrutiny if you are continually complaining, whining, and arguing. At work you can set an example everyday for others…but it’s up to you whether it’s a good example or a bad one.

Just as yesterday when Jesus told the demon possessed man that he needed to go home rather than follow Him, today we’ll look at a few more examples. In Mark 2 we see Jesus teaching, when men lower a paralytic through the roof. Jesus heals the man and then says to him, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” (Mark 2:11) Now we don’t know how long this man had been disabled…but long enough for his loyal friends to make the desperate & last ditch attempt to insure his healing. But why did Jesus specifically tell him to go home, and oh by the way, take your mat with you? That mat not only represented the man’s testimony, but it was a undeniable reminder of who he was before Jesus spoke healing into him. And no family, friend, or neighbor could refute it. Later in Acts 9: 34-35 we see the Apostle Peter in a similar situation. In his travels Peter came upon Aeneas, a paralytic bedridden for eight years and said to him, “Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and take care of your mat. Immediately Aeneas got up. All those who lived in Lydda and Sharon saw him and turned to the Lord.” Again this healed man went home dragging his testimony behind him…and all the people in the area were amazed at this dramatic transformation of someone they had known for years…and placed their trust in Jesus.

Jesus could of allowed this man to follow Him, but Jesus also knew the greatest impact of his healing & testimony would be among the people who knew him the best. That’s because this man had been exiled due to his violent & self-destructive behaviors…left to live among the tombs as a mentally ill outcast. So you can only imagine how shocked & amazed the townspeople were when they saw him in his right mind and listened to his testimony of what this man called Jesus had done for him. There was no denying that this was the very creepy man living in the cemetery…and now here he stood, publicly proclaiming he had been totally healed by Jesus. Many of us often dream of a national or international ministry…when God instead is telling us to “Go home and tell.”  Sure, that man might of won a few souls if he had accompanied Jesus…but just think of the impression & influence he made on his friends, family, and neighbors who knew him before he met Jesus that day.

On this first day of 2024… I pray that December had closed for you with gladness and thanksgiving in Jesus your Lord and Savior, and that January had opened with joy & hope in His unfailing love, mercy, and grace for the new year. As the Scripture above tells us, God’s loving kindness to His people is a unbreakable covenant promise…year in and year out. So no matter if it’s a brand new year…one thing is true and will never change…God is the same today, tomorrow, and always.

An overwhelmed Job in the midst of his physical suffering & spiritual desolation lamented in Job 3:25-26, ” What I feared has come upon me; what I dreaded has happened to me. I have no peace, no quietness; I have no rest but only turmoil.” Job had realized that trouble was a very real part of life & living in a very broken world amongst very broken people. Jesus even assured His disciples that trouble would follow them when He said, “In this world you will have trouble…” (John 16:33) So as we move into the new year, one thing that can be guaranteed is that we will have trouble, suffering, pain, and tribulation in some fashion….there’s no way around it. But also know that the Lord is there to protect, comfort, and save us from those troubles. Psalm 34 is full of reminders that when we cry out, God will deliver us out of all our troubles…and that is what we can take into the new year.

Elsewhere in Psalms we read, “For with You is the fountain of life; in Your light we see light.” (Psalm 36:9) Our source of life & truth is in God and God alone. And just like physical thirst, we have Spiritual thirst…but the choice is ours where we go looking for water & refreshment to quench this thirst. The water of the world will leave us dry & thirsty…always searching for more, but the spring of water of life is lifegiving. (Revelations 21:6) And it’s with joy we can draw water from this well of Salvation. (Isaiah 12:3) John called Jesus, “the true light coming into the world”, and it’s with this light of truth we then need to discern just where we’ve been drawing water from.

As this year comes to an end, my question to you today is – Are you looking ahead to 2024 with hope? Now as a Believer, hope is the assurance of something not yet fully experienced and quite different from the uncertain and wishful thinking of the world. This confident hope in Jesus will never disappoint, but as it says here, it’s guaranteed by the love of God that the Holy Spirit pours into our hearts. Thus, we can go into 2024 equipped with faith, trust, and courage to face any obstacle that comes our way.