CHOOSE TO ALSO GO UP THE MOUNTAIN

Reference text: Luke 6:12-19

Whenever we read about Jesus going up the mountain, the imagery is painted as though he went up alone. But a closer look at the story of the disciples would reveal to us that their formative years were so compact that for men to testify as we read in the book of Acts that ‘indeed, these men have been with Jesus, they would have had to stay close to Jesus, much like his shadow.

The wording on today’s Gospel gives a bit of a picture:” And He came down with them and stood on a level place,” (Luke 6:17a). The only reason He could ‘come down with them’ is because they were already up there with him. He would have pulled them along as part of their training, even if they went there to sleep like in Gethsemene, they had to be there.

There is something about being physically present in a space that speaks volumes. ‘I saw you’ or ‘I was there’ may not mean much to some, but they carry weight with men. In some cases, no excuses truly ever makes up for an absence. So where we can, let us go along with others. For parents, children’s events and major milestones, as believers, opportunities for fellowship, as family members, occasions that facilitate connection and bonding.

Don’t choose to stay on level ground because the disciples picked to be Apostles were picked from the mountain top, way before they reached level ground. They were up there with Jesus. That should tell you something.

#sly