The 144,000
They Follow
the Lamb
Key Nine
If any man will come after Me, let him deny
himself,
and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.
Luke 9:23
That does it take to develop righteous
leadership? For the true Christian, it is a process of spiritual growth that
begins at conversion, and continues over a lifetime of following the leadership
of Jesus Christ.
Leonard Ravenhill tells a story that illustrates this truth.
Tourists from a church group were visiting a tiny, picturesque village in
Europe. As they passed by an old man sitting on his porch, someone in the tour
asked in a patronizing way, “Were any great spiritual leaders born in this
village?” Without hesitation, the old man replied, “No sir! Only babies.”
The old man’s answer was profound. There are no instant
leaders, whether in this world or in the world to come! We all start as babes
and learn by following Christ.
Most recognized leaders will acknowledge this to be true. A
prerequisite to great leadership is to first humbly learn by following other
respected authorities. Even Jesus Christ, who was the greatest leader to ever
walk the earth, learned obedience by following the Father’s direction (Hebrews
5:8).
Jesus is preparing His saints for positions of enormous
leadership. They will one day assist Him in the restoration of God’s government
and lead the people of the various nations to obey God’s holy law. Their
preparation for this great responsibility consists of the daily practice of
following the example and commands of Jesus Christ. The Apostle John explains:
These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever He goeth (Revelation 14:4).
This verse makes the identity of the 144,000 absolutely
clear. The Lamb is Christ, and the 144,000 are His followers. They are the
children of God, who keep His commandments and sincerely strive to learn
godliness by emulating Christ’s example during their lifetime.
Professing Without Following
Not everyone who professes to know Christ follows Him.
According to one United States national poll, ninety-six percent of Americans
profess a belief in God, but how many of those really seek to obey Him?
The vast majority of professing Christians say that they want
God in their life, but what do they really mean by this? Far too many simply
want His favor. It’s as if they see God as a sort of spiritual insurance policy
against hard times. They want His protection and blessing, but they don’t really
want to make the sacrifices necessary to conform their lives to His Word. The
reality is that most do not want to follow the great moral authority of God.
As a result, while we may call ourselves a Christian nation,
we have abandoned God’s Ten Commandments. We have cast God out of the class room
and courthouse. Instead of teaching the need for repentance for our
disobedience, many religious leaders proclaim that Jesus did away with God’s
law.
Whether we realize it or not, we all follow someone or
something. The tragedy is that the vast majority of people today do not follow
their Creator. The truth is that most people do not really want God in their
lives. He is conspicuously absent from their business dealings, their
lifestyles, and their entertainment. Rather than pursuing Christ, they follow
their emotions, celebrities, rock stars, sports stars or politicians. Titus
describes our age today by saying:
They profess that they know God; but in works they deny Him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate (Titus 1:16).
As a result of merely professing a belief in God without
doing what He commands, our nation has lost its moral compass. We have wandered
off the path. We are lost, and are suffering the consequences of disobeying God.
We now find ourselves threatened by pollution, nuclear or biological war,
terrorism, disease, drugs and moral decay.
Follow Me
Stanley Jones tells the story of a missionary who was hiking
in the dense African jungle. The trail suddenly vanished, leaving the missionary
with no familiar landmarks to guide him. Eventually, stumbling upon a small hut,
with a sigh of relief, he asked the native living there if he could lead him out
of the wild. The native nodded, yes. Upon rising, he walked directly into the
bush.
The missionary followed close on his heels as they hacked
their way through a dense wall of vines and grasses. The missionary began to
worry, and asked, “Are you sure this is the way?” Receiving no answer, he became
even more concerned and said, “I don't see any path.” The African leader
chuckled, and said over his shoulder, “Bwana, in this place there is no path. I
am the path!”
In life’s labyrinth, with its maze of complexity, Jesus is
the path. Christ says:
I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me (John 14:6).
Jesus is the way, the path, and the example to follow. Even
when we do not see where He is leading us—even if we do not want to go where He
directs us—we are to follow Him in faith.
After the resurrection, Christ drove this point home to His
leading apostle. Jesus visited the disciples, shared breakfast with them and
spoke directly to the Apostle Peter. Perhaps to prick Peter’s conscience after
his triple denial, Jesus queried him three times, asking, “Do you love Me?”
After the third affirmation of Peter’s love, Jesus explained that the apostle
would face a future opportunity for denial. Would Peter deny Christ a fourth
time? Jesus said:
Verily, verily, I say unto thee, when thou wast young, thou girdedst thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest: but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry [thee] whither thou wouldest not. This spake He, signifying by what death He should glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He saith unto him, Follow Me (John 21:18-19).
Faced with martyrdom, would Peter disavow Christ, or would he
follow his Savior’s example? When the time finally came, Peter followed Jesus,
even to the point of death. Tradition says that when he was ordered to be
crucified by the Roman Emperor, Peter stated that he was not worthy to suffer
the same death as His Lord. At that statement, the Roman tyrant responded by
ordering God’s apostle to be crucified upside down.
The Sheep Hear His Voice
Peter was obedient to the very point of death! It is this
quality of obedience that makes the 144,000 unique among all who believe in
Christ. They follow Christ. He is their Lord and Master, their consultant, and
advisor. They treat the Bible as Christ’s personal revelation to man, and His
Word becomes the authority in their lives.
The 144,000 are also those people who sincerely strive to build a friendship
with Jesus Christ, their Shepherd. They pray each morning, seeking to know and
follow His will. Meditating on His Word throughout the day, they “check in” with
Him frequently to see if they are on course. They also pray at night, reviewing
their progress. The 144,000 examine themselves daily to make sure they are
properly following Christ (II Corinthians 13:5).
Christ is their Shepherd, and they are His sheep. Notice the
words of Jesus:
Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep FOLLOW HIM: for they know his voice. And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers (John 10:1-5).
Christ’s followers have developed a personal relationship with Him as they practice following His teachings each day. They can identify His voice from among the many strident voices heard in the religious world, and they will not follow false shepherds.
Other Sheep
Christ also explained that He has sheep from all ages and
from all parts of the world who have entrusted their lives to Him. They, too,
have become His followers, pursuing Him above all else. Jesus continues:
I am the good shepherd, and know My sheep, and am known of Mine. As the Father knoweth Me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep. And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear My voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd (John 10:14-16).
Jesus Christ is the good shepherd. He loves each one of His
sheep, caring for them with a deep dedication. He protects them, provides for
them, and even gave His life for them.
Our shepherd has worked with His sheep from the beginning of
man’s history. Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Elijah, Ezekiel and Daniel are all
examples of His sheep. There are others from the time of Christ—some from the
early church, and still more who have lived since then. Many are alive during
this last generation.
Collectively, His sheep will number 144,000. They will be
brought together as one flock at the first resurrection to be God’s governmental
assistants in both His earthly Kingdom and His eternal family forever.
Qualifying for such leadership roles can only be accomplished by following
Christ in this lifetime. Jesus states:
My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they FOLLOW Me: and I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand (John 10:27-28).
Only those who follow, and obey Christ in everything will be
chosen to be among the 144,000. They will be in the first resurrection, and
granted eternal life. However, such a high reward does not come without
sacrifice.
An Element of Self Denial
After Peter had denied Jesus three times, Christ told him
that he would suffer martyrdom. Jesus has a similar message for devoted
Christians today. No matter what losses life may impose, we must follow Christ.
Jesus warns:
If any man]will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me (Matthew 16:24).
Jesus explained that following Him means that we must be
willing to be crucified with Him. Christ’s words do not necessarily mean that we
must die a physical death on a stake like both He and the Apostle Peter did.
Instead, He is telling us that the old self must die! The way of life we led,
before we came to Christ, must be destroyed. Our “old man” must indeed go!
It is this aspect of the Christian calling that separates
those who only profess Christ from those who actually follow Him. Individuals
who only give Him lip service continue to follow their human nature. Those who
have chosen to emulate Jesus, literally view their own human nature as an enemy.
They are continually at war with its pull on them. The Apostle Paul explains:
I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me (Galatians 2:20).
In the previous verse, Paul explained that we die with Christ
in baptism (Romans 6:3-6). Actually, we still live, however. The part of us that
we put to death is the deceitful aspect of our human nature. It is our vanity,
lust, greed, and selfishness that we must fight to put down (Jeremiah 17:9; I
John 2:16). As we put this part of ourselves to death each day, Christ can more
fully live in us.
This is part of the Christian battle, and it is no small
fight. Every fiber of our being struggles to keep our human nature alive. Within
each of us, there lies a defense mechanism that helps us survive. It is what
prompts us to pull our hand out of the fire or avoid dangerous situations.
This protective function is necessary to preserve physical
life, but it can also become the Christian’s enemy. It works to protect us from
every injury—physically, emotionally, and psychologically. However, this defense
mechanism is capable of prompting us to do almost anything to get what we feel
that we need. It can motivate us to rationalize and justify our human behavior
so that we blind our selves to the painful truth about our motives. It compels
us to put the self first—even hurting others to get our way.
It is this part of ourselves that we must defeat! John the
Baptist demonstrated that he had learned to subordinate the self when he said
that he must decrease so that Christ could increase. This is why Christ said
there was none greater than John the Baptist (John 3:30).
In this context, Paul first wrote to the Church at Corinth
explaining that he had to die daily (I Corinthians 15:31). Later, he goes into
more detail in a second letter:
But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us. We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus’ sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh (II Corinthians 4:7-11).
By dying to the self, the true Christian follows Jesus
Christ. The more we become selfless, the more Jesus is able to live in us
through the power of the Holy Spirit. The Christian can then follows Christ’s
lead in every aspect of his or her life.
The Apostle John was commanded to write that the 144,000
follow the Lamb so that we would understand this vital point. Profession of
faith is not enough. We must do more than believe. We must act on our belief. We
must follow Christ in what He says, and in what He did. We must be
followers—doers of His Word—literally imitating Christ’s example.
There are untold millions of professing Christians in the
world today. There are more than one hundred and thirty million in the United
States alone. On the other hand, the 144,000 are a relatively small number. The
unique criteria that sets them apart is that they actually follow Christ! The
144,000 do NOT simply give God lip service. Instead, they sincerely strive to
live God’s way in ever aspect of their lives.
The 144,000 follow Christ, and any who claim to be His, and
do not follow His commands, are false. The Apostle John expounds on this theme
in his first letter with some extremely direct and powerful words. He states:
And hereby we do know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He that saith, I know Him, and keepeth not His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth His word, in Him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in Him. He that saith he abideth in Him ought himself also so to walk, even as He walked (I John 2:3-6).
True Christians follow Christ! In every circumstance, they
sincerely ask, “What would Christ do?” At work they serve their employers
faithfully, giving a full day’s work, because that is what Jesus would do. They
will only participate in the kinds of activities that He would, watch only
movies that Christ would see, and listen to music that He would approve.
Those who will be among the 144,000 do not try to cheat the
government on their taxes because Jesus would not do so. They refrain from
gossip and idle words, excusing themselves from conversation unbecoming God’s
children.
Genuine Christians not only profess Christ, they follow Him,
striving always to live by His rules. Christian women are loyal, showing honor
and respect for their husbands. Men who are sincere believers show the proper
respect toward women, maintaining appropriate boundaries. Believers don’t lie to
protect themselves or others. They don’t use God’s name in vain, do not drink to
excess, and do not ignore the poor, fatherless, and widows.
In every area of life they seek to practice actually living
the way that their Creator does. In a daily process, they strive to put the old
self to death, and be led by Christ’s Spirit. This is accomplished by studying
Jesus, learning how He thinks and acts. Then, each day they work at being
attuned and sensitive to God’s Spirit in order to follow Him.
As the Scriptures state, the 144,000 follow the Lamb wherever
He goes. By following Him in this life, they will follow Him into the next. They
will be raised in the first resurrection—redeemed from the earth (I
Thessalonians 4:17).