Hundreds of years have passed in Narnia since the days of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, and much has changed in the land since then. Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy have been summoned back to help restore Narnia to its rightful state. They don’t exactly know what their journey entails, and they get stuck in a forest trying to find out. As they look for a way out of the woods, Lucy sees Aslan between the mountains in the distance and knows that He wants them to follow. The only problem is the others don’t see Him. While Lucy wants to follow Aslan into the mountains, the others want to go in the opposite direction, down the gorge. Only Edmund votes to go with Lucy, while Susan and Peter vote to go down the gorge. It is not necessarily that they don’t believe or trust Lucy, but this way just seems easier and the most logical. Lucy and Edmund are outvoted, and as Peter is the High King, they ultimately go down the gorge, instead of up to the mountains where Lucy saw Aslan.
The Followers. There are leaders that we are drawn to very naturally. Maybe they have attractive personalities or appealing character, good looks, a good sense of humor, or maybe they’re just older and wiser. For many reasons, we want to follow some people or make certain decisions and not others. Peter and Susan made the decision that made the most sense. Lucy was younger than them and had less credibility than them. But she knows what she saw, and she saw clearly what the others couldn’t. Isn’t it the case that more often than not, we follow those with the best logic or reasoning? I wonder how far we fall behind when we measure those things, when there’s only one thing we really need to worry about. We must follow those who can see Christ.
Read John 9:13-25. In the same way, this man had no credibility, but ironically, he was the only one who really got it. His vision of who Jesus is was clear. The Pharisees, in all their learnedness and reason, were the ones who lost were lost on the journey. They lost sight of Christ.
In another scene, Lucy sees Aslan face-to-face for the first time since she’s been back in Narnia. She apologizes for not following Him up the mountain earlier, and tries to explain that although she saw Him, the others wouldn’t follow. Before she can say anything else about the others, Aslan interrupts her with “the faintest suggestion of a growl,” as if to say, “Don’t try to make it their fault.” Now Lucy is concerned that Aslan is saying it was her fault that they went the wrong way.
“ ‘Oh, Aslan,’ said Lucy. ‘You don’t mean it was? How could I—I couldn’t have left the others and come up to you alone, how could I? Don’t look at me like that…oh well, I suppose I could. Yes, and it wouldn’t have been alone, I know, not if I was with you. But what would have been the good?’
Aslan said nothing.”
He then tells her to go back, wake the others, and tell them to come follow Him. Lucy is again reluctant because she is afraid they will not come. He again urges her to go, gives her His “lion-strength” to do so, and says to her that if the others will not follow “then you at least must follow me alone.”
The Leaders. In our journey to follow and lead others to Christ, fear, insecurity, and discouragement will attack us. Lucy tries to remove herself from the unsuccessfulness of the journey and put the blame on them. It’s a lot easier to do this than to look at our own faults. They’re the ones who wouldn’t believe. They’re the ones who won’t come. We’re so quick to say, “God, what about them?” But the truth is, we have no right to say anything about the faith and actions of anyone but ourselves. Aslan did not tell Lucy how the others would respond because it was not her concern. He directed her to go and wake them and tell them to come. In our world today, we’re surrounded by sleeping souls. Regardless of how they’ll respond, we must join the journey in awakening them. When we all stand before our Lord, His question to us will never be “What about them?” His question will always be “What about you?”
Peter (the disciple) struggled with this very thing. Jesus tells Peter to follow Him, but Peter soon looks back at the other disciples. He asks Jesus, “Lord, what about him?”
Jesus answered, “…what is that to you? You must follow Me” (John 21:22). What God plans for someone else is not your concern. Concern yourself with discipline and obedience to following Christ alone, no matter who follows you.
My favorite line in the book is when Lucy first sees Aslan again. She runs to Him and embraces Him, and she notices that He looks bigger. Naturally, we’d expect the opposite to happen; as we grow older and bigger, things seem smaller than we remember them to be. But Aslan says, “I am not [bigger]. But every year you grow, you will find me bigger.” That’s the wonderful thing about our God. The more we grow in Him, the bigger we will find Him to be. The more I get to know Christ, the more I feel I hardly know Him at all, and that I’m just getting to know Him. We will never have Him all figured out. We grow little by little, day by day, deeper and deeper into the richness of who He is. There is no end to the knowledge of Him.
You are not of this world, but He has called you with a purpose in this world, just as the Pevensies were called into Narnia. We are all to be followers of Christ and leaders for Him. This journey may be difficult at times, but remember that you’re not going alone. You’re going with Him. He not only calls you, but also gives you His “lion-strength” and equips you for what’s ahead. Wherever you are in your walk, may your journey be marked by a clear view of Christ; may you have the obedience to chase it; may you all become leaders and followers of power, on the authority of Christ.
Points to Ponder
1. As followers, what most influences the decisions of your walk with God? Is it the sermon you heard from that preacher, or the really good analogy you learned from that Bible Study teacher? Do those you follow truly see Christ? In everything others have taught you in your Christian walk, has Jesus revealed Himself to you?
2. As leaders, can you detach yourself from the desire to please others and the expectations for them to follow? Even if no one goes with you, will you still stand before God and follow Him?
3. Has your faith stopped growing? Do you feel like you’re at a point where everything is just stays the same? Has God stopped growing, or have you?
4. God has a purpose for you in this world. Do you know what it is? If you do, what are you doing every day to live it out? If you don’t, can you still trust Him enough to follow wherever He calls you to go?