Why sometimes you need to retreat in order to follow Jesus

Did you know George Washington’s army actually LOST more battles than they won? Yet they prevailed in winning the revolutionary war. One author said the patriots won the war, "not so much because of their decisive victories but because of their superior retreats.” One time in particular, Washington’s army was pinned down on Long Island, New York. With the British waiting on the outskirts he, along with about 9,000 of his men, sat stuck. So he waited until one night, under the cover of a torrential downpour they secured every flat-bottomed boat they could find, wrapped rags around their oars so as to silence the sound, and ferried soldiers little by little across the river to safety in Manhattan. When morning came, a heavy fog settled over the island and shielded the last few hours of their escape. By the time the sun came up and the weather cleared the British army was SHOCKED to see an empty field. Washington had even managed to escape with all of the equipment and artillery as well. It appears that the U.S. military won the Revolutionary War not just because they were good fighters, but also because they were strategic retreaters.

THE WORD

39"Again they tried to seize Him, but He escaped their grasp. 40Then Jesus went back across the Jordan to the place where John had been baptizing in the early days. There He stayed, 41and many people came to Him. They said, “Though John never performed a sign, all that John said about this man was true.” 42And in that place many believed in Jesus." John 10:39-42

Here's a quick snapshot of what leads up to John chapter 10.

In John chapter 1, we see Jesus baptized by John in the Jordan river, marking the beginning of His public ministry. John chapters 2 - 6 is one steady swelling of Jesus' influence. Each chapter the crowds grow as miracles are performed and testimonies spread. It all culminates in a gathering of more than 5,000 people eager to encounter the miracle-worker in John chapter 6. But the following day the shaking begins. After hearing hard-to-swallow truth, those masses begin to question Jesus' validity and He watches as thousands of His own disciples turn their backs and follow Him no longer. In John chapter 7 they attempt to stone Him. In John chapter 8 they attempt to stone Him again. In John chapter 9 He heals a blind man on the sabbath which angers the religious and leads us to John chapter 10 where, if you're counting, for the THIRD TIME a crowd attempts to stone Him. Keep in mind His crucifixion doesn't happen for 9 more chapters.

After all of that, what does Jesus do?

He retreats.

John 10:40 -"Then Jesus WENT BACK across the Jordan to the place where John had been baptizing in the early days."

Jesus goes back to where it all began. Back to where the Heavens opened over Him. Back to where He heard the Father’s voice declare, "This is my son, in whom I am well-pleased." Back to where the Spirit descended on Him like a dove. Not only did He go back there but it says He stayed there.

Now I know we may not like the idea of Jesus retreating, especially as men. After all, we don’t have "men’s retreats," we have men’s ADVANCES! After sharing this word one time I had a guy who served our country in the special forces jokingly tell me, "We don't call them retreats, we call them 'tactical pauses.'"

The word retreat almost feels synonymous with defeat or failure. But if there's anything we learned from Washington, it's that retreating is an approach to victory, not an admission of loss.

As Jesus stayed at the Jordan, it tells us MANY gathered to Him and began to believe in Him there. So even as Jesus is RETREATING, the Kingdom is ADVANCING. Jesus did not retreat to take a break or to put the kingdom on pause. He retreated for the purpose of remembering. Here He sat in the place where His public ministry began, remembering not just HOW it began, but WHY it began.

I had the honor of leading our church in communion last week, the night before Thanksgiving. As I reflected on taking communion I thought about how Jesus really gave us this sacred practice for the purpose of REMEMBERING. And because of that, every time I take communion, in many ways, it feels very similar to a momentary retreat .

In Luke 22 Jesus instructed His disciples to eat the bread and drink the wine with the intention of remembering His sacrifice. He intentionally created a moment that He wanted to be remembered. I think it's significant that He did this as a part of the Passover Feast. Therefore, understanding the full scope of the Passover is key to understanding the full scope of communion.

The passover refers to when the Israelites were enslaved in Egypt and God sent ten plagues to deliver them, the last of which was the death of the firstborn in every household.

"Every firstborn son in Egypt will die, from the firstborn son of Pharaoh, who sits on the throne, to the firstborn son of the female slave, who is at her hand mill, and all the firstborn of the cattle as well." Exodus 11:5

God makes it clear to Moses that this final plague will affect everyone. From Pharaoh's house, to the slave's house, to the cattle in the field, no one is exempt. It may seem pretty dark, but it drives home a key point to the Gospel. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Rom. 3:23) and the wages of sin is death (Rom. 6:23). Death is the default. No one gets away for free.

But then God gives these instructions to Moses that I think help us fully appreciate the sacredness of partaking in communion

THREE PASSOVER INSTRUCTIONS THAT PUT COMMUNION IN PERSPECTIVE

1. Sacrifice the lamb. (Ex. 12:7)

They were to find a lamb without blemish or defect and apply its blood to the doorpost of their home. The angel of death would then come, see the blood on the door, and pass over because the death that was owed had been paid for by an innocent lamb. This was obviously a foreshadowing of Jesus' death for our sins.

2. Eat the lamb. (Ex. 12:8)

We don't talk about this much but I think it's absolutely powerful. Why was it so important to eat the lamb who spilled its blood? Because what SAVES you also SUSTAINS you. Jesus did not die just to take our sins away and to get us out of Hell. He also died to give us NEW LIFE. He doesn’t just want death to pass over you, He wants life to FLOW OUT of you.

3. Remember the lamb (Ex. 12:14)

The final command God gives Moses for the Passover is to commemorate this event. For generations to come, this was to be an annual retreat. You know what it means to be DISMEMBERED? It means to be separated or taken apart. Therefore, to RE-MEMBER means to come back together. God basically tells Moses, "every year I want you to come back around a table, around a lamb or a meal, and I want you to come back to the memory of the night you were spared from death.

And now, centuries later, Jesus sat with His disciples on the evening of the Passover REMEMBERING the lamb so that they would also remember His sacrifice on the cross.

BOTTOM LINE

There are a lot of factors that influence our memory. Age, sleep cycles, health. But the biggest influence on memory is VALUE. Your memory is most attached to what you VALUE.

You will REMEMBER FULLY what you REGARD HIGHLY.

I used to laugh when my students would try to convince me that they weren't capable of memorizing scriptures for their tests when I taught Bible at a private school. These same teens could rattle off all the stat lines of their fantasy football teams or get on the theater stage and recite pages of a script. Despite teaching them many memorization tactics and strategies I found the most effective motivation to get them to memorize scripture was simply to let them fail one test. If they didn't care to remember for the sake of their soul they certainly cared enough to remember for the sake of their grade. Somehow, they always found a way to commit it to memory when it became valuable to them.

The most valuable things in life are worth revisiting and remembering intentionally.

As we head into a super busy and chaotic holiday season, I want to encourage you to REMEMBER to REMEMBER. If you find yourself caught in the waves of life, feeling beaten and bruised, think of John 10 when Jesus retreated in order to remember. Retreat does not mean defeat. As a matter of fact, sometimes the only way to move forward is to go back. Sometimes following Jesus means retreating.