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“And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God, my God” (Ruth 1:16).
When I was young, it was common for people to keep small birds, especially canaries or budgies, in cages in their homes. They were pretty little birds, and the canaries would often sing, which entertained the people who kept them. But of course, if you opened the cage, the bird would fly away.
If you could bring a bird to love you better than it loved the open sky, you would not need a cage. Christians in communion with Jesus do not need a cage to keep them from flying away into the world. They are happily separate from the world, and they are the willing, joyful servants of the Lord Jesus Christ.
As we saw yesterday, the desire to serve the Lord Jesus, devotedness in service, and above all, perseverance in service, all spring from the same source—love to Christ. His love constrains every one of us; do we feel that constraint?
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