Running on Ahead!

Friday, March 13, 2009

Dear Fellow Travelers,
As you know, when we think about our being disciples of Jesus, we think more about our following Him, than we think about His following us. This probably stems from His words to Peter, Andrew, James, and John, when He said to them, “Follow Me and I will make you fishers of men” (Matthew 4:19 NASB). Ever since, most of us have been “following hard” after Him, or so we say.
This morning, however, I noticed something a bit different, something that really caught my eye (I already told you that I sit up close to the front, when He is teaching!) and it is this: “ . . . behold there came a synagogue official, and bowed down before Him, saying, ‘My daughter has just died; but come and lay Your hand on her, and she will live.’ And Jesus rose and began to follow him, and so did His disciples” (Matthew 9:18-19 NASB; emphasis added). Truthfully, this is difficult for me to picture; yes, I know that Jairus was in a hurry to get Jesus to his house, and was in all probably keeping up quite a gait, but this notion of Jesus bringing up the rear is, well it is strange. Yes, I know all about the first being last and the last being first, but that doesn’t make this any easier.
Now that I have had a few minutes to think about it, I am wondering just how often we do the very same thing that Jairus did. I am wondering just how often we find ourselves running on ahead in our intense desire to get Jesus to follow us to some destination, so He can do something that He has already done. I can see most of us now, as we run out in front, looking back at Jesus, urging Him to hurry. There it is again, the “Looking Back Syndrome!” Don’t you remember that song: “I was looking back to see, if you were looking back to see, if I was looking back to see, if you were looking back at me, and your were cute as you could be, standing, looking back to see, if I was looking back to see, if you were looking back at me.”
There must have been “method” in this “madness,” as I am certain that Jesus chose to follow Jairus, rather than to lead the way, or merely walk beside him, for good reason. In my opinion, Jesus does this far more frequently than we realize. He simply allows us to run on ahead, to get way out in front of Him.
You think about this, and as you do—REMEMBER LOT’S WIFE, LOUISE!