1 Kings 1:7
“Then he conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah and with Abiathar the priest, and they followed and helped Adonijah.”

Everyone wants endorsement, and those seeking power are especially eager for people to endorse them. To get this endorsement, they use all manner of trickery and enticements so that many will follow their leadership.

Because men are easily deceived, many endorse falsehood, cruelty, and vanity. People tell them nice stories and promise them all manner of things, and by so doing, woo them into their camp. It’s incredible how easily men follow emptiness.

The world is full of empty leaders who have no substance and yet have a large followership. But as pilgrims, we are from a different stock. Our primary camp is the camp of Christ, and that’s where our primary loyalty lies…with Christ.

We, too, are followers, but we follow righteousness. We, too, are followers, but we follow whoever Christ points us to. We, too, are followers, but we despise corruption and hypocrisy. We, too, are followers, but we follow with discernment.

We cannot be bought off. We cannot be enticed. We cannot be swayed by flattery. We follow out of duty to God and conviction from the Holy Spirit. We never follow for rebellion’s sake, and we follow with intelligence and clear-mindedness.

Adonijah was a usurper of authority. Adonijah was a criminal because he sought to replace his father without due process. Adonijah was a vain and ambitious man. And yet, two of David’s most trusted leaders followed him. It’s unthinkable.

What did Adonijah offer Joab that he would leave David to follow Adonijah? What did Adonijah tell Abiathar, the faithful priest of God, that he sold off his loyalty? Deception is the name of the game. Deception is deception because of its power to convince.

But thank God for Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and their company of loyalists. These refused to follow Adonijah because they could see things clearly. They did not succumb to Adonijah’s spell. They stood with truth and righteousness.

In these last days, we need to guard our hearts and our loyalties. Many spirits are roaming the earth, looking for followers. Many voices are sounding like the voice of our Shepherd and King, but they are not. They want to replace Him in our hearts.

We know who we follow. We know who we belong to. It doesn’t matter if people are changing loyalty. We are committed to following our Lord Jesus, even to death. He is our King for all eternity. This is how to be impactful. We are loyal to the end.

@ChineduOranye
RestlessPilgrim.org