“Those who had arrested Jesus took him to Caiaphas the high priest … But Peter followed him at a distance, right up to the courtyard of the high priest. He entered and sat down with the guards to see the outcome” (Matthew 26:57-59).

The description of Peter – who had only recently insisted that he would follow Jesus to the death if necessary (John 13:37) – as following at a safe distance after Jesus’ arrest is one of the most unflattering stories in the New Testament.  When the “chips were down,” Peter did not stick with the One he acknowledged as the Christ; though later, after his empowerment by the Spirit of God, he did, of course, follow Jesus to the end.

There are two aspects of what Matthew says about this event that we can apply to ourselves – two ways that we too can fail in following. First, we see that Peter “followed him at a distance.”  Do we do this in our lives?  If we are only partially involved in our religious beliefs, if we think of our religion  as only what we do in church, and not in our everyday lives, we are certainly following Him at a distance.

But there is also another type of distance following. We can fail to follow closely in time as well as in space. Notice that when Peter followed Jesus to the high priest’s courtyard he then “sat down ..to see the outcome.”  Do we wait to see the outcome of things before committing ourselves to following more closely?  That is the attitude of millions of people through history who have attempted to strike a bargain with God: “If you will do this – rescue me, heal me, help me or whatever – I will do better, follow you more closely.”  Although God may sometimes intervene to answer sincere prayers of this type, we must beware of putting off obedience until God has “done His side of the deal.” We can do this, for example,  by waiting till we feel our finances are in order before helping others, or in countless other ways.  Although we may feel we are sincere in these things, it’s really just following at a safe distance. We need to be following in the here and now.

It helps to remember that “Follow me” was Jesus’ first command to his disciples (Mark 1:17), and it is also his last recorded command in the Gospel of John (John 21:19). Significantly, it was to Peter that Jesus addressed that command, and repeated it, after His resurrection (John 21:21), though it clearly applies to every disciple.  Peter had to learn, and be reminded, that following Jesus  and saying we are following Jesus are not the same – and that following at a distance is not really following at all.

It’s a lesson we all need to remember at times, because God wants real followers rather than those of the “distant” or “eventual” type.   We see this in the Old Testament where God says:  “Because they have not followed me wholeheartedly, not one of those who were twenty years old or more when they came up out of Egypt will see the land I promised …” (Numbers 32:11).  We see it throughout the New Testament where numerous people failed to follow because they wanted to follow later, or at a distance: “[Jesus] said to another man, ‘Follow me.’ But he replied, ‘Lord, first let me go and bury my father’ …. Still another said, ‘I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family’ ” (Luke 9:59-61).

The whole point of following is really to follow as closely as possible. Jesus was explicit about this, saying: “Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be” (John 12:26).  That clearly implies following by walking with Him rather than following at a safe distance.

Many believers do not realize that the term “Christian” is actually one which arose relatively late in the development of “Christianity.”   Acts 11:26 tells us that as the new church developed, the disciples were first called Christians in the Syrian city of Antioch.  This was a cosmopolitan city with a diverse population, and the believers were perhaps called Christians (from the Greek word Christos – the “Anointed One” or “Messiah”) to distinguish them from Jews in the area. 

So if the believers were not called by the name of Christ at first, what were they called and how did they refer to their beliefs?   The believers were certainly known as “disciples” and referred to themselves as “brothers,” “members of the household of God” and even “saints,” but the earliest known term describing what these early believers believed, the religion they followed, was simply “the Way.” Acts 9:2 tells us that Saul sought to apprehend believers: “… so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem.” (See also Acts 18:25-26, Acts 19:9 and other instances.)

Now why was early Christianity referred to as “the Way”?   Interestingly, Judaism had long thought of the Torah as a “way” in that it dictated a way of life which was synonymous with walking rightly before God, a way of righteousness described in the Book of Isaiah:  “…This is the way; walk in it” (Isaiah 30:21b).  The ancient Jewish Dead Sea Scroll community at Qumran also followed a “way” which, for them, was more a way of ritual and observance of the law.

But for the Christians there was a Messianic aspect to the term.  Isaiah 40:3 (a verse quoted several times in the New Testament) says: “…prepare the way of the Lord…” and for the early disciples, Jesus, as the Messiah promised throughout the Hebrew scriptures, was the living embodiment of that way – and, of course, he himself had said: “I am the way.” But let’s look at that affirmation a little more closely – Jesus said: “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).   In saying this Jesus made it clear that he was not only an embodiment of the right way of life, but he was also the “way” in the sense of being a road, a path, a way to the Father.  This verse tells us, in fact, that Jesus is the only way to the Father.   God is certainly a respecter of those everywhere who do good (Acts 10:34-35), but Christians accept the words of Christ that ultimately it is only through Him that we find the way to eternal life. 

So this earliest of terms for Christianity carries a lesson within itself.  It is very easy to think of Christianity as “a faith” – a distinct set of beliefs and doctrines to which we subscribe; but the words of Christ and the understanding of the earliest believers show that Christianity is not just “a set of beliefs,” but a way of life, and a way upon which we travel toward the person and nature of God.  This “Way” involves the desire and effort to live as Christ did through Christ living in us and we in Him.  “The Way” is not only about beliefs, though these are, of course, important – it is about how and where we walk.

And the way in which we walk may be the “narrow way” (Matthew 7:14), but it is not a single-lane pilgrim’s track – it is a way in which we share the walk with others: “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another…” (1 John 1:7 and see also 1 John 2:9-11).  This is something we see throughout the Book of Acts – the earliest Christians knew there was only one “Way,” and that our calling is to help others along that way as well as to walk in it ourselves.

Is all pride wrong?  Obviously, the kind of pride that involves an attempt to  elevate ourselves above others or even God  is  diametric- ally opposed to God’s way of humility and service (Philippians 2:3), but what about other kinds of “pride”? 

What about when people praise something we have done – is accepting such praise giving place to pride?  In his book The Four Loves, C.S. Lewis pointed out that this kind of “pride” is really just the state of being happy that we have pleased someone.  As such it is not really pride at all, even though we may call it that. In a  similar manner, Lewis showed, being “proud” of our family, school, military unit or social club’s achievements is not usually elevating pride, but happiness with and respect for these groups in a kind of “team spirit.”

But what about the things we make or do personally – should we be “proud” of our own accomplishments?  Does “Let someone else praise you, not your own mouth” (Proverbs 27:2) mean we should not enjoy our achievements in life and be willing to talk about them under appropriate circumstances?  The answer would seem to be, once again, that there is nothing wrong with such “pride” if it is not comparative or self-elevating (2 Corinthians 10:12, KJV and Holman).  We can be justly pleased with what we have made or done when that is a reflection of the fact that we have worked hard to accomplish something worthwhile. This is not wrongful “pride” but legitimate satisfaction.

The apostle Paul tells us, in fact: “Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else” (Galatians 6:4).  These words show us there is right pride that is not self-elevating. We should not forget the biblical example of creation – where God reports that He saw what He had made and that it was good.  Obviously wrong pride doesn’t apply to God, but the principle seems clear that God takes pleasure and satisfaction in what He makes.  It would seem that He has made us in His likeness in this, also. 

 At some point you have probably purchased something that had a small sticker or insert saying “Built with pride by [name] company.”  This is a statement that the company has done something they feel is worthy of the people for whom it was made, and in that sense it is a mark of the producer’s respect for the customer as much as it is “pride” in their work.  I’m sure the carpenter we know as Jesus of Nazareth did not build shoddy products and that he felt what he built was indeed “good.”  If there had been stickers back then, I can imagine one saying “Built by Joseph and Son, Quality Carpentry.” 

So we can be proud of our work done well.  It’s something to rightly aim for. If we have done our best and the work is good, it is to the glory of God, not just ourselves, and striving for that is not “pride” but an integral part of the love of God (Colossians 3:23).  It is no different from the pleasure that God doubtless takes in building something good in us.  We should remember, too, that we are God’s workmanship (Ephesians 2:10), where “workmanship” signifies something carefully made by a craftsman.  The same God who said “This is my beloved Son in whom I  am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17) wants to say the same of us.  God builds with pride – and we should, too.

The subject of numerous stories of varying levels of believability and skill, the disappearing person motif is one that has been employed by many mystery writers.  Even well-known authors such as Isaac Asimov have used the theme, and it’s one which does hold a good degree of human interest.

The motif of the disappearing person  is even one we find in the Bible.  Elijah is said to have disappeared from view, not to be seen again (2 Kings 2); and historically, a number of the prophets seem to have come onto the scene only to deliver their messages and then to vanish into obscurity – at least not to be heard from again.  In the case of John the Baptist we have a little documentation regarding what happened.  John was certainly highly visible throughout the early part of his ministry, while he predicted the coming of the Messiah, but when the Messiah came in the form of Jesus of Nazareth, John began to fade from view. 

John continued his work for a while, announcing the One whose shoes he said he was unworthy to carry (Matthew 3:11), and repeatedly pointing his own disciples to Him (John 1:35-37), but John himself knew that his disappearance was imminent.  We see this in John’s own words as he spoke of Jesus:  “He must become greater, I must become less” (John 3:30).  That’s exactly what  happened, of course.  Soon the work of the Messiah rendered John all but invisible, despite his earlier fame, and John was eventually martyred and vanished from view.

So, great biblical characters such as Elijah and John disappeared in varying ways, but the Bible shows that disappearing  is something God has in mind for all of His servants, for everyone who commits to Him.  Obviously, this applies in general to us all, as James says: “What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes” (James 4:14).  But I’m not talking about the transience of our lives – rather the disappearance of our old selves within the life we have now. 

Paul states this clearly in saying: “… if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away” (2 Corinthians 5:17), and  “… put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires” (Ephesians 4:22).  If we are truly being renewed in our lives, the old person will gradually disappear as our old nature is replaced by a better one. We will never be perfect in this life, of course, but we do need to occasionally take stock of our lives and see if our old selves are truly disappearing or not.  Disappearing  is imperative if we are to fulfill the calling we have been given.  Although it may be in a different sense,  we need to be continually reminding ourselves of John’s words:  “He must become greater, I must become less.”

Empty can be such a negative word: the empty glass, empty promises, an empty bank account, and perhaps worst of all is when we are driving late at night and far from a gas station and our fuel gauge shows that we are running dangerously low on fuel.  We are “running on empty.” 

But in God’s scheme of things even something empty can represent something very great.  This time of year carries a wonderful reminder of that in the message of the empty tomb of Christ.  As Christians we celebrate the empty tomb with awe at what occurred and thankfulness for what it means, but do we stop there, or does the story inspire us to something else?  The gospels can provide us with a reminder of what needs to follow the fact of the empty tomb in the form of a detail of the resurrection story. Notice what Matthew says regarding the experience of the women who came to the empty tomb and who were confronted by a messenger of God:

“The angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified.  He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.  Then go quickly and tell his disciples: He has risen from the dead…’ So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples”  (Matthew 28:5-8).

Here the women who were followers of Christ ran to tell the story of the empty tomb of Jesus and of his resurrection. It was the emptiness of the tomb that gave them a message that went first to those who were already disciples, and then outward to the whole world.  And notice that they did not walk to deliver the message of the empty tomb, they ran. They were running based on the importance of the empty tomb – metaphorically they were running on empty. 

Some two thousand years later the followers of Jesus can still run on empty.  But  do we? Is it enough to celebrate the empty tomb, then to go back to life as usual, or should we be running  with the news?  If we are truly inspired by the story of the empty tomb and what it means – not only for us personally, but for all humanity – with the help of God we, too, can be excited to joyfully run with that message in whatever opportunity we have been given to deliver it. 

“Imitation is not just the sincerest form of flattery – it’s the sincerest form of learning.”

― George Bernard Shaw




The word “imitation” often has a negative connotation – whether we think of imitation designer clothes that don’t look as good as the real items,  imitation coffee or milk that doesn’t taste as good as the real thing, or many other examples.  Usually, the imitation is just not as good as the thing imitated, but there is one type of imitation that is perfectly acceptable  – in fact desirable:  when God Himself is involved in the process of imitation.

Check out this week’s article “Are you an Imitation?” on the Tactical Living page to see how God is making imitations and how you can get in on the plan!