Follow Me.

This morning I read Mark chapter 10 & 11. In Mark 10: 17-27, it tells the story of the Rich Young man, who came to Jesus searching for eternal life and went away sad. I finally understand this story. He had everything and he did what was right, but he did not follow Jesus. It didn't matter how much good he did, or how he obeyed the commandments, because he did not surrender to the call to follow Jesus.

Following Jesus, doesn't make sense most of the time, following Jesus isn't easy, following Jesus brings ridicule, but it is rewarding. Even if you don't see it in this life, following Jesus has rewards greater than you can imagine. I taught this lesson of the Rich Young Man for my Teaching Children Effectively Level 1 practicum. I knew what the story was saying, but now I understand it. 

Giving up all you are/have to Jesus is one of the most difficult things that you will ever do. It is scary because more than likely you will never get some of those things back. You have to part with your old life forever and say goodbye to it; dig up the roots and move on like it never happened. You have to burn all the bridges so that you can never go back. It is like ripping your heart right out of your chest and giving it to God. The pain is excruciating, but it is worth it. 

Then after you do all that, you have to follow him. The path is straight - uphill. Soon you stop walking and have to climb behind him. The rocks become jagged and the road seems unclear, you just have to follow knowing that he will not lead you to death, but to eternal life. All the way you slip and fall, scrape your knees and bruise you hands until you are broken. It's at that moment that you realize that He has been carrying you, because you could have never made it up this far without him. He's been carrying you for a long time. 

We respond one of two ways to this discovery of being carried. 1. We relax and let him get us up the mountain, trusting him. 2. We fight to stand ourselves, until we are so broken that we realize we have to be held or risk falling down the entire mountain. Unfortunately I do the second one more than the first. There is something in me that wants so badly to be strong enough to handle all my problems. sigh. 

Jesus carries you up to the top of the mountain and you can see for miles in all directions. Suddenly the climb does not seem so bad, the heartache not so painful and the waiting bearable, because the view is breathtaking. You understand everything that he was doing on that side of the mountain. Everything is so glorious up there that you don't ever want to leave. Then you realize that this is a series of mountains, not just one. The Lord takes your hand and begins to lead you down the other side. 

This continues for the rest of your life. You follow Him, not knowing where He's taking you. The path doesn't make sense to you or anybody else, but you just keep following. 

Is it any wonder that the rich young man didn't want to follow Jesus? It isn't easy. It's not fun. It isn't glamorous. But it is deeply rewarding. I'm not talking about treasures in heaven, I am talking about having a chance to make the King of Kings happy. Not many of his children follow Him. He delights in those that follow him. It makes him so happy. 

This was John speaking but God inspired what he wrote. I don't blame the young man for turning away from Jesus, but I do hope that at some point he started to follow the Lord. That he didn't let his riches get in the way of him inheriting eternal life. My hope is the same for you, that you would, if you haven't already, give you life to God. Dig up the old roots of the past you and burn bridges to your old ways, never go back there. Jesus is here he is holding out his hand saying "Follow me."