Whose Drumbeat Do You Follow?

Posted by Buck Jacobs on May 15th, 2010 | no comments home title

“If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer.

Let him step to the music that he hears, however measured or far away.“ Henry David Thoreau

So, whose drum are you listening to? We all are hearing one you know. Listening, following. Is your drummer the incessant beat of the materialistic, hedonistic, “stuff” is the answer of our current culture? Are you caught up in the swirl of busyness and breathless aquisition that is the norm of our day? Many if not most Christians are. In fact in every measurable or discernable way the mass of what the world sees as contemporary Christianity looks no different from what they see in the mirror. We value what they value. We chase the same things they chase. The beat goes on.

The drummer whose beat we follow is the one who will lead us to the Judgement seat of Christ where the final evaluation of all that we have done with the lives that Jesus died to give us will be done. (II Corinthians 5:10, Romans 14:11,12, I Corinthians 3:11-15) It’s commonly called the “Bema” and each Christian will pass through it alone on the way into eternity.

There are basically only two drummers playing and we have to choose which to follow. One is much louder and far more popular than the other. His beat is sensual, seductive and filled with promises of physical and emotional pleasures. Oh and it is so loud! It’s populsr,pervasive and accepted by most people. The only problem is that the promises are empty lies. “There is a way which seems right to men but the ends are the way of death.” (Proverbs 16:25) Listening to this drummer is like drinking salt water, it can’t satisfy, only makes one want more, and ultimately kills you.

The other drummer beats a different tune and He has a problem. He doesn’t attempt to compete with the volume or tempting promises of the competitor. His sound is quiet and confident but requires an effort to hear. His promises are long-term and require faith and delayed gratification. They are focused on our inner being and have little to do with the shiny, sensual, temporary pleasures of this world. He promises all we need to follow Him but nothing more, but He actually leads to life abundant and fulfillment beyond our ability to imagine. The second drummer speaks in a still, small voice and we have to tune out the first drummer to hear Him.

By now you know who they are, the two drummers. One leads to death and loss, the other to life abundant. The question is; which are you listening to?

Sometimes following the second drummer feels lonely, especially when we feel it in church where we expect others to be lisening for Him but find that they are not. The second drummer undertsands lonely. He spoke Truth to thousands, healed and delivered hundreds, but when He was paying their bill He saw them turn away, listening to another drummer, and only a few continued to listen to Him play.

As I sit here in the quiet of my living room I can hear Him playing; Come to me all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. I hear Him, can you?