This month, our meditation has been excerpted from the book entitled, Bound to Be Free compiled by Jan Pit. In the following short quotation from the heart of Mehdi Dibaj (from Iran, imprisoned, released and murdered for his faith in Jesus Christ), there is fodder for reflection and perhaps application:
Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you. (Hebrews 13:5)
Jesus said: 'For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it' (Matthew 16:25).
Every Christian should be willing to be such a sacrifice for God that he gets cleansed by the fire of hardships and sufferings. 'To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps' (1 Peter 2:21).
My heart rejoices as I walk with Jesus;
The world behind me, the cross before me;
I will follow Him forever…everyday.
He will never leave us. He will never forsake us. It is the wish of every father and child to walk together. God too wishes that we walk with Him – that is to obey Him.
'I am God Almighty; walk before me and be blameless.' Two people can only walk together if they agree together.
In the triumphal procession of Christ we will go forward by the power of God.
A moment of introspection: Let's see--I walk ahead of God (blameless [Genesis 17:1]), He walks with and behind me (Isaiah 30:21). I follow God, He walks with me and ahead of me. I find myself again drawn to an old hymn: “Where He Leads Me”* I walk with God, His love and His presence surrounds me. Ain't it so? "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." Perhaps we could say, we live within Him: Acts 17:24-28 tells us of God and His provision. But consider verse 28: "...for 'In him we live and move and have our being.'" We walk amid Him.
But what exactly does walking with God mean? Obeying Him. Why should we follow Him? Peter wrote us, saying "To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example that you should follow in his steps." Mehdi makes a strong statement about what it means to follow Christ's example: "Every Christian should be willing to be such a sacrifice for God that he gets cleansed by the fire of hardships and sufferings." I am reminded of the old hymn, "I Have Decided to Follow Jesus", in which the hymn-writer calls upon us to count the cost of our following:
I Have Decided to Follow Jesus (Lyrics)
1. I have decided to follow Jesus; 3. My cross I'll carry, till I see Jesus;
I have decided to follow Jesus; My cross I'll carry, till I see Jesus,
I have decided to follow Jesus; My cross I'll carry, till I see Jesus;
No turning back, no turning back. No turning back, No turning back.
2. Tho' none go with me, still I will follow, 4. The world behind me, the Cross before me,
Tho' none go with me, still I will follow, The world behind me, the Cross before me;
Tho' none go with me, still I will follow; The world behind me, the Cross before me;
No turning back, no turning back. No turning back, no turning back.
Notice the final line in each verse: "No turning back, no turning back." Martyred Pastor Dibaj describes this as "I will follow Him forever." No turning back. No turning tail. No turning aside. No turning "chicken". God's Word says He will never abandon us. Our response? We follow; we obey. According to Mehdi Dibaj, "Two people can only walk together if they agree together." But even if none go with us in our obedience to the call of Christ, we will still follow Him. Jesus is our call and our example in this life. And so, we pray--and admit to God that we are losing it (Matthew 16:25). We trust, we follow Christ amid God's presence, and we count the cost to enter Christ's triumphal procession going forward by God's power.
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*Where He Leads Me (Lyrics)
VERSE #1 VERSE #3
I can hear my Savior calling, I'll go with Him thro' the judgement
I can hear my Savior calling, I'll go with Him thro' the judgement
I can hear my Savior calling, I'll go with Him thro' the judgement
"Take thy cross and follow, follow Me." I'll go with Him, with Him all the way.
Where He leads me I will follow, Where He leads me I will follow,
Where He leads me I will follow, Where He leads me I will follow,
Where He leads me I will follow, Where He leads me I will follow,
I'll go with Him, with Him all the way. I'll go with Him, with Him all the way.
VERSE #2 VERSE #4
I'll go with Him thro' the garden, He will give me grace and glory,
I'll go with Him thro' the garden, He will give me grace and glory,
I'll go with Him thro' the garden, He will give me grace and glory,
I'll go with Him, with Him all the way. And go with me, with me all the way.
Where He leads me I will follow, Where He leads me I will follow,
Where He leads me I will follow, Where He leads me I will follow,
Where He leads me I will follow, Where He leads me I will follow,
I'll go with Him, with Him all the way. I'll go with Him, with Him all the way.