Do you know any “groupies”? We don’t hear the term as much these days, but there have always been folks who were more than avid fans of singers, bands or other types of entertainers. With an almost fanatical obsession, they go out of their way to attend the concerts and performances of their “idols” as often as they can. Perhaps at one time or another you’ve been one of them?
Being in the midst of the Lenten season, with Palm Sunday coming up, followed by Good Friday and Easter, it seems appropriate to give some special consideration to the One who’s the focus of this special season, Jesus Christ. Can you believe He also had His groupies?
Almost from the start of His public ministry, Jesus became one of those individuals who attracted devoted fans, some who were genuinely touched by His teachings and others who were simply curious, or wanted to witness firsthand one of the miracles they had heard He was performing. Everywhere people were talking about Him. Whenever they heard reports that Jesus was coming their region, crowds flocked to be near Him. Like lost sheep, they wanted to know who He was, what He had to say, and what He would do. Jesus, we might say, was the hottest ticket in town.
But fans can be very fickle, whether they’re following a celebrated entertainer, a sports team, or even politicians. All gung-ho one day, but angry and disenchanted the next. Perhaps you’ve experienced that yourself. The ardor exhibited by many of Jesus’ followers proved short-lived as well. If He failed to meet their expectations or didn’t tell them what they wanted to hear, they turned on Him.
This is why Luke 4:28 tells us, “[they] drove Him out of the town…so that they could throw Him down the cliff.” They tried, but that didn’t happen. The passage goes on, “But He walked right through the crowd and went on His way.” Jesus had avoided what the old TV comedy show “Laugh-In” called, “the flying fickle finger of fate.” He simply moved on to another town.
In another of the gospels we read that after Jesus had made some difficult pronouncements, “From this time many of His disciples turned back and no longer followed Him” (John 6:66). In their eyes, Jesus went from hero to zero. Folks can be quite fickle if their ears you do not tickle.
“Well, I would never do that!” some might argue defensively. That’s easy to say when things are going well, but what about when things aren’t so good, when we’re confronted with unexpected challenges or adversity in any of its many unpleasant forms. And our prayers seem to go unanswered, as if Jesus doesn’t care. What do we do with Him then?
We know from the Scriptures that Jesus proved to be many things: preacher and teacher, prophet, liberator, healer, and restorer. He’s all of that – and much more. He willingly went to the cross, died for our sins, was buried, and then came back to life so He could prove to be our Savior, Redeemer and Lord. In His own words, Jesus demonstrated He is indeed, “the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in Me will live, even though they die” (John 11:25).
Sounds like good news, right! But we find a word of caution early in John’s gospel: “Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12). Salvation – forgiveness of our sins, redemption and an eternal relationship with God – can’t be earned. It’s a gift, totally unmerited and undeserved. But there’s one “condition” – this gift must be received. Have we truly done that – received Jesus Christ and believed in His name, not just intellectually but trusting Him with our whole heart?
It’s easy to become satisfied with religion – doing good things and saying the right words – without really letting Jesus to have all of us. But He doesn’t want just part of us. He doesn’t want our “religion.” He wants to have an unending, life-changing relationship with us.
So, the question that confronted the hot-and-cold multitudes of Jesus’ day remains the same question we must answer today: What will we do with Jesus? Are we just fans, or are we true followers?
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