“What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind?” (Matthew 11:7)
The appeal of John the Baptist was his conviction, not his conformity. Jesus understood this. Jesus spoke of the greatness of John, and He began by praising him as a man who stood in the gap and didn’t move with the times like grass in the breeze.
It is a difficult thing to have principles. The world around us is constantly nudging us toward compliance. Watch reeds in the wind and you will see that all the reeds look the same; they bend in a way that allows them to not buckle under the pressure of the climate around them. It is an ingenious design – bend, conform, adapt, and survive.
This is the temptation for all mankind. The wide path is the one that is paved, and it is where the traffic is flowing. The narrow path is uphill and against traffic. To be a person of conviction is like trying to re-enter the stadium after the game lets out… lots of dirty looks, plenty of pressure, and much effort for minimal progress.
John chose to be a man of principle, unyielding to the pressures of his day, and he received praise from Jesus for it. Go and do likewise.
Matthew 4:4 #Biblebites