Someone Worth Following

Leadership is often about setting the correct course. I want to be someone worth following.

Time and again the choice centers on selecting the appropriate rallying cause for the group. Expect too little, and no one is challenged. Demand too much, and the chilling fog of discouragement dampens the followers.

David’s administration was gelling into a cohesive whole, and many citizens were stepping up to join him. He opted to bring the Ark of God to Jerusalem, a mandate the people cheered, a moment the people treasured.

Thus all Israel brought up the ark of the covenant of the LORD with shouting, and with sound of the horn, with trumpets, with loud-sounding cymbals, with harps and lyres.
I Chronicles 15:28 (NASB)

Is there a better uniting point than worship?

David led by example, but he was also a follower. Rather than point to himself as the cause for thanksgiving and celebration, he pointed his people to God. He composed a psalm of thanksgiving extolling reasons why God is someone worth following. Get the whole story in I Chronicles 16:8-36. Here’s what I took away.

Who Is God?

• God is real. He is not a man-made configuration of wood or precious metal.
• God is the Lord our God. No higher authority exists, yet I can claim Him as my own.

What is God like?

• God is holy. He will never be entangled in a scandal.
• God is strong. Don’t we all want to follow the one who stands above the rest?
• God’s Word is His bond. Integrity, honesty, truthfulness, dependability, consistency—are these qualities we expect from our leaders?

What does God do?

David used different words to answer the question.

• Deeds – God doings. Too often we take for granted the daily blessings God showers on us. My heart is beating. I enjoyed a tasty breakfast. My wife prayed for me this morning.
• Wonders – These acts are singular and extraordinary. The word David used is first found in Genesis 18:14, “Is anything too difficult for the LORD?” Have you tried to create a world lately? Or part a sea? Or feed a multitude with a child’s lunch?

Want to join Him and become His follower?

What does it take to become one of the chosen people mentioned in verse 13? Can anyone sign up? David shares the answer in verse 23, instructing the people to:

“Proclaim good tidings of His salvation from day to day.”

Hundreds of years later, John, the disciple of Jesus, explained the process this way:

But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name,
John 1:12 (NASB)

Who are you following? Not making a choice is a choice.