Walking the Pathway of Heavens Minority

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” So spoke the Word of the Lord to Jeremiah. What fear, trepidation and uncertainty must have gripped Jeremiah as he received those words outlining to him all that he had been called to be. An awesome sense of detachment, of isolation and of aloneness must surely have been felt as the reality of such a calling took root. The sentiments of so many of us, I am sure, when being the recipient of a direct word from the Lord that takes us out of our comfort zone.  “Be not afraid of their faces for I have made you a fortified city, an iron pillar and a bronze wall to stand against the whole land, for I am with you to deliver you” (Jeremiah 1:18).

Small and insignificant he may have felt, but Jeremiah with all his human frailties, his fear and sense of inadequacy, was soon to feel the full force of divine enabling, as many of us have discovered in the past, and was to learn something of Heaven’s order of measurement by being enlisted to serve in the ranks of the chosen minority. The feeling of aloneness and isolation on the pilgrim way when we find ourselves daily outnumbered by a secular society of godless and pleasure seeking people is something that the true seeker after God will inevitably have to come to terms with; for this perception of being and feeling detached is no ordinary sense but a divine stamp on those who have been chosen and called apart. The true serious minded Christian is a stranger and a pilgrim in a walk of faith that singles him out – he dwells apart because he is apart. The very nature of the faith that you and I live will not be satisfied with anything less than the fulfilment of that which we are holding onto. A true work of faith will single us out and lead us to walk the pathway of the minority, for  “Straight is the gate and narrow is the way which leads to life and few there be that find it” (Matthew 7:14).

God Has always performed his greatest work with the help of minorities; His way has been to take that which is not and make it into something that is; to select the weakest and make it the strongest; promoting the smallest and choosing the foolish in order to further His purposes. The more incomplete, inadequate and unworthy the vessel, the more the Lord delights to exhibit His special Grace and Favour. The greatest saints down the ages have been men and woman of distinction and integrity, whose lives have radiated and demonstrated the knowledge of the truth, yet they were branded as misfits because they were different from the majority. In Psalm 69:8 David wrote: “I have become a stranger unto my brethren, and an alien unto my mother.” To Heaven’s minority on earth we truly belong; a people apart, yes! But abandoned and forsaken, no!

Blessings on each one of you

From Jack

Author info

Jack has been a faithful member of the Free Methodist Church for 34 years, spending many of those years in leadership. He lives in Lancashire, UK, and has recently celebrated 60 years as being a Christian! Find our more about Jack and the story behind Jack’s corner: Treasures of the Word here.

Jack Kerridge