LOYALTY

Mike Johnson

Several years ago, I saw a bumper sticker on an automobile, which said: “110% Bama— I’ll Never Change.” The sticker expressed the extreme loyalty the owner of the car had for his favorite football team, the University of Alabama Crimson Tide. I take it that his resolve would not be affected by how good or bad his team might be in a given year or by how popular or unpopular they might be at a particular time. As a loyal fan, he would probably try to go to every game he could. He would also speak up for his team because of his loyalty and would not like it much if someone put them down. The person planned to be a fan of this team for as long as he lived, and his loyalty would be unshaken!

There is nothing wrong with loyalty toward a favorite team. However, after I read the bumper sticker, I thought of another extreme, lifelong (and more critical) dedication that everyone ought to have.  This loyalty is devotion to the Lord.  Christians are to be loyal followers of God.

A dictionary definition of loyalty is “faithful to those persons, ideals, etc. that one is under obligation to defend or support.” It involves the idea of being true or constant. We do not find the word “loyalty” in the Bible, but certainly, the concept is.

Consider some passages which emphasize our need to be loyal to God. Paul said in I Corinthians 15:58, “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.” In Revelation 2:10, Christ told the church at Smyrna, “. . . Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.” This church is sometimes called the “suffering church.” Christ told this church that they would suffer more in the future, so their loyalty would face a severe test.

In the Bible, we can read of many who were loyal to God.  Job, for example, would undoubtedly be an excellent example of loyalty. He lost his health, his wealth, and his children but remained faithful to God. He did not curse God (as his wife suggested) but instead blessed Him. In Job 2:10, he said, “. . . Shall we indeed accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips.” He also said (13:15), “Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him. Even so, I will defend my own ways before Him.” During the time of the early church,

Stephen was also a loyalist. He was willing to preach God’s Word even when his life was in danger. Acts seven points out how hostile men killed him because they did not like his message.

Another person who was loyal to God was Antipas. We know very little about him, but we read of him in Revelation 2:13, which says, “I know your works, and where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is. And you hold fast to My name, and did not deny My faith even in the days in which Antipas was My faithful martyr, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells.” His loyalty cost him his life! There are others as well who we find in God’s Word as loyalists, and we can learn from them.

Yet others in the Bible were not loyal. At an earlier point, for example, in the ministry of Jesus, certain disciples proved disloyal. They did not like what Jesus taught, and according to John 6:66, “From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.“Judas even betrayed Christ for thirty pieces of silver (Mt. 26:14-16, 47-48). When the soldiers arrested Jesus, his disciples forsook Him (Mt. 26:56), and later, Peter denied Jesus three times (Mt. 26:69-74). (Later, the disciples returned to Jesus.) Further, after the establishment of the church, Paul said that Demas had forsaken him, “having loved this present world . . . .” (II Tim. 4:10)

Are you loyal to God? Can God count on you? We need to remain steadfast when we face persecution and temptation (I Cor. 10:13). We need to be faithful when the cause of Christ is popular (Acts 2:47) and when it is not (Acts 8:1-4), when false doctrine confronts us (I Tim. 6:3-6), and even when opposed by family (Mt. 10:37). We should be devoted to Christ at all times.

Loyalty to things of the earth may not be wrong. We can be loyal to our football team, a car company, a particular brand of toothpaste, or a grocery store. However, earthly loyalties are of little importance when compared to the spiritual. People need to be determined to be loyal to God. A much more critical resolve than what the bumper sticker said is “110% LOYAL TO CHRIST — I’LL NEVER CHANGE!”