“Then he said to them all: ‘Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.’” — Luke 9:23

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Salvador Perez is a longtime Kansas City Royal. Perhaps he intended to finish his career as a catcher since he enjoyed calling pitches and working directly with all of the pitchers, but recently, the coaching staff moved him to first base and will also occasionally use him as a designated hitter. The constant wear and tear on the knees of catchers often causes their hitting power to diminish and batting averages to decrease, so this new role could allow Perez to have more agility in the batter’s box and on the base paths. Furthermore, his willingness to change positions as needed will ultimately help his team win games.

We should all be willing to adjust our roles to help something bigger than ourselves.

In ancient times, the oldest son of the king automatically took the throne if his father died or was disabled. So everyone expected Jonathan to eventually replace his father, Saul, as Israel’s king. But God appointed David to be the nation’s next king. Jonathan knew this and could’ve grown angry at David receiving what was thought to be his, but Jonathan always saw David as a friend. Saul was the one who grew jealous of David, and Jonathan ran interference so that David could escape the threats and attacks of Saul.

Jonathan was a loyal friend and pleaded with his father to stop his wicked plan to kill David (1 Samuel 20). In so doing, Jonathan saved David’s life and was therefore instrumental in the psalms David later wrote, the battles David won and David becoming king. Saul insulted Jonathan for standing with David rather than him, and reminded him that David would be king instead of him, but Jonathan was unselfish and surrendered to God’s will about who would be king.

We don’t need to worry about what role we want or who gets the most attention as long as God’s work is done. Jonathan’s willingness to share — and even pass on — the spotlight with David pleased God, blessed Israel, and continues to teach us about working alongside prominent leaders according to God’s command.

As we live in a time of extreme selfishness, we need to study Jonathan’s life as a great example and follow the Lord first and foremost. We should always give priority to our relationship with God and follow the Lord’s guidance. If we want to please the Lord, we need to put aside our personal plans and follow Christ wherever he leads (Luke 9:23, above).

— Bill Kent, Pastor of Memorial Baptist Church, Sylvania, Georgia

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