Devotionals

Jesus said, follow me: What happens next? It’s a Lonely Life! By Henry Ja

by Henry Jaegers
07/17/20
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Jesus said, follow me: What happens next?

It’s a Lonely Life!

By Henry Jaegers

Jesus said: enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leads us to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which may death unto life, and few there be that find it. (Matthew 7:15, 16)

There is a word that caught my attention as I was contemplating the meaning. In that word "because". It links together these two verses. It says because the way is narrow and straight, therefore, few find it; many choose the wide road that leads to destruction. In other words, men choose Broadway but because that is where everyone else is.

 If you are by nature, a social person, you will understand why the Broad and way is more attractive to you.

Jesus says that following him is a choice between the broad and the narrow way. If you are a person who loves the crowds and the attraction of the noise and whatever goes along with it, then being alone is something that you do not want to be.

if you have been a follower of Jesus, it won't be long before you find out that it is a “lonely life.”

Elijah knew all about this and so did John the Baptist. And as I study the life of Elisha, I noticed that he did not go out seeking the crowds; when they needed a man of God, they sought for him.

It was the same with Jesus. You are probably thinking, “what are you talking about? Look at all the crowds that followed him. But he did not go looking for the crowds; they came looking for him because he had what they needed.

I recall, several times in Scripture, where it says that he arose a great while before daybreak that Jesus was alone in the darkness with his father. He needed that time alone with God before he faced crowds. But for ‘cardboard Christians”? that time alone with God is not important. Why should I spend my time listening to God speak to me when I can circumvent the effort by reading other people's books? Surely, they were men of God; why can't I just preach their sermons? And so, we have, not only cardboard Christians, but they are cardboard because their teachers are cardboard as well. Everything is external and pretty and what they have to give us is the same thing.

now let's focus on that “narrow way”. it says “few there be that find it. Why? Because they're not looking for it. They are looking for something that will make them happy and they think they can find this without God.

I have gone on long enough with the subject, but let me close with this: If you do not love that time alone with God, where he speaks to your heart and gives you a message to share with others, then you are missing a great blessing. I never had the privilege of being what you call "a full-time pastor". And I'm not sure that's is something that God calls us to be. He does call us to be "full-time Christians". Now that's what the ministry is. I have always had to work full-time in the job while pastoring churches, I would not have it any other way, because that's where the ministry is. The ministry is not where the gatherings of the people are, the ministry is where the Christian is. Are you following me? If we are going to have something to feed a hungry world, we must spend the necessary time of nurturing our souls on the word of God and having a message from him that the world needs to hear. Now that's something to think about!