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Follow
the Leader
"Follow
me!" That
was the invitation given by Marshall Applewhite,
leader of the Heaven's Gate cult. “He promised to
those who would become his disciples that he would
teach them how they could move on to a higher level of
life in a new world. Sincere but gullible men and
women heeded his call. They left families, friends,
homes, and jobs to live and work together and to obey
their leader's teachings.”1
In
March of 1997, thirty-eight disciples followed him
even when he told them to commit suicide.
The mass suicide was undertaken in the apparent
belief that their souls would be transported onto a
spaceship, which was thought to be hiding behind the
Comet Hale-Bopp. All
39 members were dressed in identical black shirts and
sweat pants along with brand new black-and-white Nike
tennis shoes and purple armbands
reading
“Heaven’s Gate Away Team.”2
It
is vitally important to follow the RIGHT Leader....
The
TRUE Leader, Jesus Christ, gives the invitation, "Follow
Me."
This is not some instruction from a delusional
psychotic; Jesus is the Son of God!
When we respond to His call to follow Him as
our Savior and Lord, He forgives all our sins
(Ephesians 1:7) and promises an abundant life of joy
and hope. Jesus
said, "The thief does not come except to steal,
and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may
have LIFE, and that they may have it more
abundantly” (John 10:10).
Jesus also promises ETERNAL LIFE to come
(Matthew 25:46; John 3:16).
“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift
of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord”
(Romans 6:23).
If
we would follow Jesus, we must: believe
and trust Him (Acts 16:30-31; Hebrews 11:6), turn from
sin in repentance
(2 Corinthians 7:9-10), confess
Him before men (Romans 10:9-10), and be baptized
(immersed) in His name for the forgiveness of sins
(Acts 2:38). Then,
we must CONTINUE to follow Him – living
obediently to His Will as revealed in the Scriptures
– for the rest of our lives (Matthew 7:21).
There
are many “voices” saying “Follow me.”
Be sure to follow the RIGHT Leader: JESUS
CHRIST.
God bless you!
David
A. Sargent, Minister
Church of Christ at Creekwood
1901 Schillinger Rd. S.
Mobile, Alabama 36695
1
Vernon
C. Grounds
2 From Wikipedia.org -- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heaven's_Gate_(cult)
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