2 Samuel 20:2 So all the men of Israel withdrew from David and followed Sheba the son of Bichri. But the men of Judah followed their kind steadfastly from Jordan to Jerusalem.
In John 6, after Jesus had given a hard teaching about his flesh being the true bread and his blood the true drink, and many of his disciples, unable to bear it, had turned back from following him, he now asked his disciples, “Do you want to go away as well?” I doubt that there could be a fitter answer than the one which Peter, clearly full of conviction, gave: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed and have come to know that you are the Holy one of God.”
In David’s case, as in the themed Scripture that starts this essay, Sheba, a worthless man, arose and turned Israel from following David. He proclaimed to them: “We have no portion in David, and we have no inheritance in the son of Jesse.” It struck me that I had heard that sort of line before. Oh yes, in the garden of Eden. The serpent: “Did God really say?… God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” When our first parents listened to him, and disobeyed God by touching and eating the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden, they set off a chain of events, the consequences of which the whole human race is still smarting from.
Nor is it so different today. The script for the most part is really still the same. Satan, people, and circumstances are often pushing us to the wall, and suggesting to us the futility of following Christ, trying to prove to us the pointlessness and mindlessness of our faith. It isn’t so necessarily as obvious as that, rather a subtle but constant lure meant to turn our eyes from Jesus to the world, to ourselves, to men. And so Jude wrote fiercely and urgently, to warn us to be on our guard and to encourage us to remain steadfast in our faith: “Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about the common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once and for all delivered to all the Saints. For certain people have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord Jesus Christ.”
We all, who claim, and know, that there’s salvation in no one else except our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ must ever be on our guard against the deception that continue to ravage the church and cause many to fall away. We must beware the whisperings of Satan and his empty promises. We like the men of Judah must follow our King steadfastly from Jordan to Jerusalem, not turning to the left or to the right, not heeding the worthless and misleading insinuations by the Shebas who walk in our midst.
True, there are moments when following Jesus, when abiding in and sticking with him, when remaining faithful to him, will seem so foolish and appear to be so bleak, and even at times, as Jesus himself promised, dangerous. The times when we will feel alone, forsaken, confused, lost, hopeless, and joyless will also be several. But even then we must not let our gaze wander. Jesus alone is the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). We too like Peter believe and have come to know that we have nowhere and no one else to go to, for only the Son of God has the words of eternal life. And so, like Paul, even though we might suffer as we do, we are not ashamed, for we know whom we have believed, and we are convinced he is able to guard until that day what has been entrusted to us (2 Timothy 1:12).
Prayer:
Dear Lord, thank you for your Son Jesus Christ, in whom is life, and in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. We ask that by the help of your grace we will not be deluded or caused to turn away by any plausible arguments. Cause us to follow you steadfastly, and gladly. In Jesus name. Amen.