“For the idols speak delusion; The diviners envision lies, And tell false dreams; They comfort in vain. Therefore the people wend their way like sheep; They are in trouble because there is no shepherd.” Zechariah 10:2 (NKJV)
Celebrities and Politicians! The things that some of them say to us makes me shake my head. I’m not too sure if they’re trying to connect with some of us or disconnect from the rest of us. When it comes to politicians, I do kinda feel that a lot of them are trying to direct us in a way that doesn’t honor any other thing except self and that they want you to bow down to them for pointing that out. Guess Satan said it best when he said to Eve, “God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.” (Genesis 3:5) We’ve been buying that line for centuries and I don’t think we’re any closer to being like God now than we were then. C’est la vie!
As far as celebrities go, in 1975, a guy who once said, “We’re more popular than Jesus now” teamed up with a guy who once framed himself as “The Thin White Duke” wrote a song titled “Fame”. John Lennon and David Bowie had become quite dissatisfied “with the troubles of fame and stardom, including money-grabbing managers, mindless adulation, unwanted entourages and the hallow vacuity of the limousine lifestyle.” So, they wrote this classic tune to let their fan base know their feelings about the matter. “Is it any wonder, I reject you first. Fame, fame, fame, fame. Is it any wonder, you’re far too cool to fool? Fame.” It does beg the question, why would anyone wanna be famous then?
“And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd. So He began to teach them many things.” (Mark 6:34)
There is no doubt the Jesus had quite the level of notoriety as He walked on this earth. In Mark’s Gospel account we’ll see in the start of the sixth chapter He was rejected by the people of His own hometown of Nazareth. Which in itself is ironic, considering it was once remarked that nothing good could come from Nazareth. I pretty sure that this rejection made it easier for Jesus to say to His disciples, “Wherever you go,” He said, “stay in the same house until you leave town. But if any place refuses to welcome you or listen to you, shake its dust from your feet as you leave to show that you have abandoned those people to their fate” (Mark 6:10-11), before sending them out to spread the Good News.
But as the chapter continues, we see that there’s moment of compassion that Jesus extends to people who weren’t part of His normal band of followers. It’s starts with Jesus saying, “Let’s go off by ourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile.” I guess even famous people need to eat and sleep but there’s this massive crowd that won’t go away, and when Jesus sees this, He knew that these people were “like sheep without a shepherd.” So, He does what only Jesus can do then it’ll end with a miracle of a provided lunch for all. As Matthew Henry points here, these people had, “none to lead and guide them in the right way, none to feed them with good doctrine.”
Ya know, there were celebrities and politicians back in those days too. However, they were either interested in making compromises with the Roman Empire and not encouraging people with any Biblical hope for God’s deliverance or they were too busy adding stuff to the Word of God and burdening people with unhealthy, man-made traditions that made it impossible for folks to ever feel right with God. The take away here is that in both time periods, and for the centuries in between, the care that people seek is found first and foremost in the guidance of truth by the teachings of Jesus.
I can remember those days in my childhood where I thought it would so cool to be famous at one thing or another. But, as I would find out many years and heartbreaks later, that between trying to be a poet and then a Heavy Metal musician, the vacuum in my heart grew stronger and stronger for all the wrong things. It wouldn’t be until my “Damascus Road” experience that I would understand that I was wandering around like a dumb sheep and needed Jesus Christ to make things right.
“Thou shalt have no other gods before Me” (Exodus 20:3) shouldn’t be seen as a threat by a Mighty God but as His warning us of the failure that the things of the world will bring. Without Him, fame fails. Amen?
Written by Chris Hughes: Chris is a husband, a father, has an education in Biblical doctrine, and is a graduate of The Colony of Mercy. He has been a Freedom Fighter contributor since 2008. You can email him at cphughes515@verizon.net
