Even If i Walk Alone

Instructing and encouraging you to live your life as a disciple of Jesus

Acts

Who Are We

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Who are we to demand anything of Jesus? When He was on trial, the authorities of both the Jewish and Roman empires demanded that Jesus answer their questions and accusations against him. But He kept silent. (Isaiah 53:7) He owed nothing to these men. He was their Creator, possessing knowledge so far greater than theirs that they could never imagine. (John 1:3; Colossians 2:3)

And yet they demanded answers from Him. The creatures were questioning their Creator. (Romans 9:20) Don’t we do the same? In our prayers, we demand Jesus answer them and answer in the way we want Him to. (James 4:3) Who are we to think we can demand anything of Christ? We proclaim Him to be our Lord and then act as if He is subservient to us. (Luke 6:46)

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Vertical Prayers

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While we should be praying vertical prayers, too often we are stuck praying in a horizontal manner. I’m not speaking of the posture we assume when we pray, but the direction of the content of our prayers. There’s a stark difference between the prayers of Jesus and the way we pray. So many of our prayers focus on the people and the world around us but give little attention to the One we are speaking to.

Part of the problem is that we lack the proper realization of what prayer is. It’s not a vehicle to get all the things we desire or even need. After all, God already knows what we need before we ask. (Matthew 6:7-8) We’re not bringing Him new information, but it often seems as if we think we are.

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4,000 Weeks

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I came across a book called “4,000 Weeks” and read a brief sample of the introduction. The premise of the book is that the average human has 4,000 weeks of life from birth to death. While I have not read the book, it was obvious the content would be about maximizing that time and understanding how short a time 4,000 weeks is in the grand scheme of things. It was also clear that the book was coming from an evolutionary starting point, which meant it was flawed from the outset, so it isn’t something I would recommend.

But the idea stuck with me. Given health and family history – and knowing only God knows and controls how long I will live – at 58 years old, I figure I have somewhere between 1,040 and 2,080 weeks left. That’s how much time I have remaining to serve the Lord in this body. (Psalm 139:16; James 4:14–15)

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Does It Break Your Heart?

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Does it break your heart to sin, or are you able to move on with little thought or remorse every time you stumble? Sin is no small thing, and to treat it as such is to treat the word and character of God with contempt. (Numbers 15:30–31; Romans 2:4) God is holy, and when He created us in His image, He created us as holy. (Genesis 1:27; Ecclesiastes 7:29) For a brief moment in time, humanity knew what it was to be sinless. In that state, God called us very good. (Genesis 1:31)

We were perfection in His eyes, and every day man and woman would walk in the garden with God. (Genesis 3:8) Our minds cannot even fathom such wonder, such beauty, and such glory. (1 Corinthians 2:9) Sin changed everything. (Romans 5:12) One sin was so egregious to God that He could not overlook it. (Genesis 2:17; Habakkuk 1:13) It is the same every time we indulge in our rebellion against our Creator. (Isaiah 53:6)

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Made for This

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Brothers and sisters, we were made for this: to live every moment of our lives for the glory of Christ and no one else. (1 Corinthians 10:31; Colossians 3:17) We do not live for the praise of men or for any self-satisfaction. (Galatians 1:10; John 5:44) God created us in His image (Genesis 1:27) and it is our duty to spend every ounce of life in this world learning to look like Him. (Romans 8:29; Ephesians 5:1)

You will never live the life God intends for you until you stop pursuing your desires and ambitions. (Luke 9:23) You will never understand God’s will for you until you stop making it about yourself. (Proverbs 3:5–6) God made you to love Him, serve Him, and share His gospel with everyone you meet. (Matthew 22:37–39; Matthew 28:19–20) That should be the sum of any life surrendered to Christ.

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