Acts 21:33-36 AMPC
Then the commandant approached and arrested Paul and ordered that he be secured with two chains. He then inquired who he was and what he had done. [34] Some in the crowd kept shouting back one thing and others something else, and since he could not ascertain the facts because of the furore, he ordered that Paul be removed to the barracks. [35] And when [Paul] came to mount the steps, he was actually being carried by the soldiers because of the violence of the mob; [36] For the mass of the people kept following them, shouting, Away with him! [Kill him!]
Ever walked down a sandy beach and tried stepping in the footprints someone has made?
That's a fun and pretty easy task to do.
But following Jesus is no easy road. The closer you get to Him, the more you have to walk in His footsteps.
Paul, the former persecutor of "the Way", had undergone a radical conversion.
Once he was bent on killing Christians, but now he was willing to meet opposition head on and hence be subject to the venom of the religious ones who were out to get him.
It eventually led to his death.
His heart's cry was "for me to live is Christ, to die is gain" Philippians 1:21
Many fellow believers in Jesus TODAY around the globe are facing cruelty and imprisonment, even death, just because they put their trust in Jesus.
They are walking where He walked.
Revelation 12:11 makes mention of the courage of such believers in Jesus:
They had power over him (satan) and won because of the blood of the Lamb (our Lord Jesus) and by telling what He had done for them. They did not love their lives but were willing to die.
At present, in this country, we are not faced with persecution for our faith in Jesus.
But, as we have seen during the global crisis and cancel culture, any goalposts can be moved at a moment's notice.
God's "goalposts" (His Ways) are eternal and we need to stand up for those standards. That may eventually lead to facing opposition and persecution.
Our government trivialises adultery (one of the 10 commandments) as a "red herring", but breaking COVID-19 restrictions is worthy of the sack!
We are very far from the footsteps of Jesus as a country. Therefore, to follow Him will mean sticking out like a sore thumb.
Many folk have lost their jobs and livelihoods because they've stood up for Biblical standards, they've walked in Jesus' footsteps.
Question
How willing am I to walk in Jesus' footsteps?
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