commitment

We Know What’s Right

March 15, 2011 by Tim Sherfy

Too often we choose to do things that are contrary to what we know Christ would have us to do. A wayward glance, an unkind word, a condescending sneer; every day we engage in behavior that is opposed to the Word of God. Yet I believe we fail to weigh the gravity of our actions. Everybody sins, nobody’s perfect, so what else should we expect? We fail to recognize the power of Christ within us; we do have the power to overcome our failures and live as a true follower of Jesus. Ours is not a destiny resigned to defeat. Victory is a prayer away if we would only choose to invoke God’s power in our lives.

Another reason I believe I falter is that I do not consider the pain I cause my Lord. If we truly recognized and understood how much God hates sin, we would be hard pressed to willingly engage in it. Our sin caused God to turn away from His own Son while He hung on a cross for us. God despises sin and demands obedience. We deserve death and punishment, but by the grace of the shed blood of Jesus we receive love and pardon. I don’t want to cause pain for my Savior; I don’t want to fall short of the mark He has set for me.

If only we would keep these thoughts before us, I think we would be much less likely to sin. We need to develop the habit of quickly taking a mental step back at every decision. By pausing a moment to think through the situation and the choices presented, we allow ourselves to affirm who we are in Christ. When we focus on the person we want to be, it becomes far easier to make the right decision. Instead of blurting out a rash word, we can instead temper our speech with patience and love. When faced with temptation we will be able to turn the other way and remove ourselves from the situation. When we choose Christ over our own selfish desires, we learn to walk in the way that He did. Our steps may be small, but they are steps nonetheless.

It’s so simple, yet we make it so difficult. We love Jesus and wish to do things that would please Him. That choice is always up to us. Outside of very rare and extraordinary circumstances, no one is ever forced to sin. You and I both choose to sin; we are not coerced but are rather acting with selfish motives. Somehow we have become convinced that a moment of satisfaction on earth is worth more than choosing to remain faithful to the One who gave His life for us.

The question really comes down to “Do we really love Him?” No one intentionally hurts the one they love. If we find ourselves consistently choosing to sin, then the validity of our love for Jesus must be called into question. We cannot love Him and work against Him at the same time. Each of us must personally ask where our loyalty lies. Will we side with our Creator and Savior, or will we indulge our selfish desires? Our answer will have eternal consequences. Jesus told us plainly that we cannot serve two masters; we will hate the one and love the other (Matthew 6:24). I would much rather be accused of hating life on this earth than despising Jesus Christ. He is our hope and without Him we are lost.

When you are tempted to sin, remember that you know the right thing to do; you know the choice you should make. Whether or not you choose correctly is a reflection on who and what you value. We will either live for Christ or live for ourselves. Live life with your eyes wide open; walk slowly and speak even slower. It is imperative that we give ourselves the opportunity to turn away from temptation and to respond to every situation in a manner that will bring a smile to the face of Jesus. We know the right thing to do and the choice is up to us. Don’t live your life for things that at best bring temporal pleasure. Live for the One who can free your soul and give you eternal peace. Choose the right way, the way that leads to life. Love Jesus and serve others; choose to walk His way.

Following God No Matter What

March 8, 2011 by Tim Sherfy

A couple of years ago, Francis Chan stepped away from the church he had led in California for fifteen years because God was calling him to something else. He didn’t know what that something else was, he just knew he needed to trust and move on. Recently the Senior Pastor of the fellowship I attend made a similar announcement. He would be transitioning out of his role to pursue an undefined path. Like Abraham, he doesn’t know where he’s going; he simply knows he is being told to go. I admire their courage to abandon everything to follow God to places unknown.

Are you willing to follow God no matter what? Could you really walk away from everything you own and everyone you know for the sake of Jesus Christ? It is a question I have been battling for some time and confess I have not yet made a similar leap. I trust God explicitly with my heart, but my mind continues to get in the way. The realities of life invade my passionate desire to follow Jesus without any backdrop of security. We have been taught that we must balance wisdom with faith. Most of us don’t go stepping off the roof of a skyscraper trusting Jesus will bring us safely to the ground. That shows a legitimate lack of wisdom. We are finite beings that are confined to live by the laws of a physical world (we are not immune from gravity, for example).

Walking away from a job trusting that Jesus will care for your needs is a weighty proposition. It works out for some, but for others, not so much. The Bible never promises success in every endeavor; it does, however, promise that if we will trust our lives to Christ and work to glorify Him, then we will spend eternity in His presence. No matter how bad things get on earth, this is a promise that provides ultimate comfort and security. Life is more than comfort, investments and personal pleasure; it’s more than the car you drive, the house in which you dwell or the size of your paycheck. Life is simply about Jesus; knowing Him and serving Him. Too often our decisions boil down to choosing between God and personal comfort.

Remembering our purpose on earth can bring clarity to an otherwise murky decision process. Are we making our choices based on Kingdom directives or earthly economics? It can prove difficult in our Western society to dismiss the pull and norms of our culture. All our lives we have been taught to be financially wealthy, to become as successful as possible and to care first for our own needs. The Kingdom of God demands that we give all that we have in service to Jesus, submitting to those around us in order to serve their needs first, and to consider ourselves willing slaves of God. When we see life through the eyes of Christ, our perspective will be dramatically altered. Our decision process will gain new parameters. No longer will we choose a direction based on what seems most comfortable or financially prudent. When our hearts begin to break over the very things that break the heart of God, we will be compelled to choose that which results in bringing eternal glory to our King.

Having said all this, learning to make decisions from a Kingdom perspective is not an easy matter. We have years of teaching and fears to overcome. Family and friends will not understand and will probably vigorously oppose the decision. While this is generally driven by their own fear and lack of faith, it can nevertheless create great uncertainty for us. It is then we must remember whom we serve; if we serve Jesus first and only, the opinions of others will not matter. While we should certainly seek wise and Godly counsel, ultimately we must choose to do that which God is calling us to do. There is far greater uncertainty in running from God than running toward Him; just ask Jonah (Jonah 1-3).

While decisions are not easy or to be taken lightly, there truly is a simple reason why some people turn away from all they know to follow Jesus and others don’t. Those who do are not super spiritual beings; they have no secret gene that allows them to take greater risks. They simply desire to follow Christ more than anything this life can offer them. They choose to forsake the illusion of earthly security for the certainty of eternal salvation. They have died to themselves and have chosen to serve Christ no matter what the cost in this life. With an eternal perspective, any sense of success as defined by this world pales and fades away. I have my own issues to deal with in this area, how about you? What is it that you have been putting off for God in favor of maintaining your own comfort and sense of security? In the end, anything we have accumulated in this life will disappear; there is nothing eternal in the physical realm. Are you willing to follow Jesus no matter the cost? Only the spiritual will endure; only what we do for Christ will last. Only He can provide the comfort and security you seek; only He can fill the deepest yearnings of your heart. True life and lasting security is found in Christ alone.

Choosing Jesus Over Heaven

March 3, 2011 by Tim Sherfy

Why do you follow Jesus? Is it because of what you will gain in the process or because of what you can give? Jesus led a life that had one purpose: to sacrifice His life for others. If we would walk in the way that He walked, this is what we must do as well. If we don’t love Him enough to give up everything for the sake of His mission, then we cannot perfectly follow in His footsteps. We must be willing to love Christ regardless of any reward; we simply follow Him out of our love for Him and our gratitude for what He gave up for us.

Many of us came to Christianity because of the offer of eternal life. It’s a great benefit, to be certain, but would we have been so drawn if the promise of our relationship with God did not include the promise of Heaven? Would the sheer knowledge that the Creator of the universe desired to interact with us be enough if there were no other reward? It’s important to remember that Heaven is the eventuality, not the goal. The goal is to love God with all our hearts and to love and serve those around us. (Matthew 22:35-40). The mission of Jesus was to redeem His people, and our mission is to carry that message to the world.

While He was here on earth, Jesus did not live in luxury. He was constantly on the road in an effort to touch as many people as He possibly could before His time was up. Are we doing the same? My adult life has been spent climbing the ladder of business success, providing a nice home for my family and securing my retirement in the future. None of that looks like Jesus. I suspect you are in a similar situation. This is what has to change. We have been sold a bill of goods in the past few hundred years about what it looks like to be a follower of Christ. We have gotten very good at practicing a Western flavor of Christianity that has very little to do with the life Christ told us to live. We gather in large buildings to worship and devote a tiny sliver of that budget to actually carry out the mission of Jesus as it is defined in the Bible.

I have a challenge for you: obtain a copy of your church’s annual budget and compare it to Matthew 25:31-46, James 1:27 and Isaiah 58:6-10. My guess is you will be mortified. We spend money on heating and cooling costs, lawn and building maintenance, office supplies and holiday decorations. Add up the items that specifically relate to the Scriptures above and see what percentage is being spent on the mission of Jesus. Before you feel too judgmental however, let’s also turn the same mirror on ourselves. Let’s take a look at our own household budget. What percentage of our own money are we dedicating to doing the work we have been commanded to do? Regardless of what our lips may say, the evidence seems to point to the fact that we are more interested in the reward of Heaven than in the beauty of a relationship with Jesus Christ.

Our priorities have to change. If being a Christian is not about following Jesus simply because of who He is, then there is little point. If our faith in Him is not proven by the way we live our lives, then there is a strong question of whether or not that faith will actually save us and bring about the eternal life we are so desperate to achieve (James 2:14-17). Until we are ready to follow Jesus simply because we love Him and desire to be in relationship with Him, we will simply be practicing an empty religion that looks nothing like what God designed for us. We don’t marry for the sake of what we might acquire when the marriage is over; we marry for what the relationship will be throughout the journey. It is the same in our relationship with Jesus Christ; it’s not about what happens when we die, it’s about what happens while we live.

I look forward to spending eternity with Jesus in Heaven; I am definitely eager to obtain the peace and rest He promises. But I don’t want to wish away the years of getting to know Him while I am still walking this planet. I don’t want to miss a single opportunity to serve Him and grow in my relationship with Him. I want to take hold of each moment I have been given to get to know Him better and to share His love with the world around me. This is my aspiration; more than anything else I want to be the hands and feet of Jesus. I want to obey His commands out of love, respect and trust in Him. I want Heaven, but I don’t want to miss a thing between the now and the not yet. So why do you follow Jesus? Is it for what you will gain or perhaps to protect what you might lose? Or is it simply for the sake of knowing Him? Do you struggle like me in maintaining perspective and the proper priorities in your life? I’d love to hear your thoughts and encourage you to leave a comment below. Let’s be real with each other and simply tell it like it is. We are all together on this journey. As for me, I definitely want the reward, but not at the expense of the relationship. Even if there were nothing else, I’d still choose Jesus. I have a long way to go, but this is my desire; He alone is my hope.

Why Do We Follow Jesus?

February 27, 2011 by Tim Sherfy

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Looking around the world today, it seems that each new sunrise brings word of a new political uprising. Almost without fail, these demonstrations turn violent and people are killed and wounded. Oppressive regimes grow in power and the persecution of Christians grows more frequent and violent with each day. European nations have all but abandoned the way of Jesus, and exchanged it for a life of relativism, cynicism and ultimately hopelessness. In America, a nation once considered the shining light of the world, we see a downward spiral of respect for authority and for God. The whole world has seemingly gone crazy, and perhaps we should expect nothing less from a planet that has abandoned its Creator to seek selfish pleasure and gain.

Stuck In a moment

February 15, 2011 by Tim Sherfy

A few years ago the band U2 had a popular song that featured the following lyrics:

You’ve got to get yourself together
You’ve got stuck in a moment
And now you can’t get out of it
Don’t say that later will be better
Now you’re stuck in a moment
And you can’t get out of it

I think many of us find ourselves stuck in a moment and we can’t get out of it. We accept Christ, attend church regularly and even put some money into the offering plate. But the rest of our lives are wholly unremarkable for the kingdom. We are stuck in the moment of asking Christ to be our Lord, yet we never move forward with our commitment.

Following Jesus is not a onetime event that happens to us; it’s a life-long series of activities in which we engage. When you aren’t sure how to get to your destination and a friend offers to lead you there, you don’ stop after the first turn. That’s not following and it will lead to a lot of aimless wandering. That is not the life to which we were called, and it’s not a life that I want to lead. I want to be in passionate pursuit, not wandering aimlessly. This is the difference between being a Christian and being a follower of Jesus. In the early church, all they cared about was devoting themselves to prayer and to service for others. That’s a far cry from the Western Christianity of the 21st century. We are stuck in a moment, and we can’t get out of it. We are stuck building buildings and creating more and more programs to insulate ourselves from the world around us. We are stuck associating only with each other and pursuing our individual versions of the American dream. We are stuck living a life that disregards the commands of Jesus and having the extent of our outreach equal a plastic fish on the back of our cars.

Following requires an active and focused intention. We cannot follow what we cannot see. If our eyes are not on Jesus we will not be able to move forward. Step number one in getting yourself unstuck is to clear the distractions from in front of your eyes and focus on Jesus. Our lives have become consumed with busyness and activity for the sole sake of movement. But movement without progress is futile at best; it leads to a life of despair and destruction. If we are serious about our desire to follow Jesus, then we must move with purpose and intention toward Him. We cannot spend our lives stuck in any moment, as there is far too much work to be done.

We truly do need to get ourselves together. This can only be done with the grace of God, because on our own we are simply a mess. Pretending that everything will be better tomorrow without making a change today is nothing but delusion. Life doesn’t get better by itself and you don’t grow closer to God by simply sleeping off a bad day. Too many of us seem to enjoy the place in which we are stuck; it’s comfortable and familiar. We have been lulled into inactivity and have given up struggling. We don’t want to leave the moment we are in because anything else is uncertain. Following Jesus is a call to uncertainty. We often don’t know where we’re going, but we do know where we’ll end up! Jesus is calling us to move forward toward Him. We have to get unstuck and pursue Him with all of our strength; He’ll provide whatever we lack.

Are you stuck in a moment? Have you been watching life pass you by, wanting to get involved but you’ve been too afraid or too stuck in a moment? Did you trust in Jesus years ago, only to find that your passion has waned and you are now simply a believer but not a follower? I encourage you to prayerfully resolve to become unstuck. Ask God to pull you out of the moment of which you can’t seem to get out; ask Him to help put the pieces of your life back together, and change your focus to be on Him alone. This is the stuff of life; this how it gets better. Follow God with all that you are; live in the way He instructed you to live. Refuse to be stuck in your moment any longer and instead pursue God with a passion that is both infectious and contagious. Love Him above all else; move forward and pull someone along with you. Don’t be stuck any longer, He can put you back together; you need only just ask.