commitment

Stealing Time

July 22, 2019 by Tim Sherfy

Time is rarely stolen from us. Except perhaps in the cases of kidnapping, wrongful imprisonment, or being detained without cause, time is never stolen from anyone. Instead, I propose our time is, for the most part, either given away or sold. We all have the same number of seconds available to us each day. We choose how much of our time will be given away, and how much will be sold.

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Every day we are charged to steward the time allotted to us in a way that honors God and furthers His mission and His Kingdom. If we are not vigilant, we will squander the time entrusted to us or sell it in exchange for our comfort, entertainment, and security.

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The Myth of the Sinner’s Prayer

July 18, 2019 by Tim Sherfy

I grew up in churches where an invitation was given at the end of every service. As part of the invitation, people were invited to receive Christ and were led through “the sinner’s prayer”. This prayer was holy and awesome. It was the key to the Kingdom of God, after all. While as kids you might have messed around throughout the service, you didn’t dare misbehave at this point.

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Variations of the same prayer have been around for a couple of hundred years and it persists to this day, although it’s use and invitations, in general, are far less common in churches today, especially those of the mega variety. There’s nothing wrong with saying this prayer. It’s one way to confess your need for Jesus. The problem is it’s not Biblical and it’s not enough.

Where is Your Treasure?

July 11, 2019 by Tim Sherfy

Jesus said, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Luke12:34). As I have written previously, a good test of where you are placing your treasure is to look at your bank and credit card statements. Where you are spending your money is where you are placing your treasure. While this is true, it recently occurred to me there is a much deeper meaning to Jesus’s words.

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It’s not just the specifics of where we are spending our money which reveals where we are placing our treasure, it’s much bigger than that. We will spend our money on things of this world or for God’s Kingdom. Our treasure is being amassed in earthen containers (banks, possessions, and brokerages) or in Heavenly realms. We are either building up things we cannot keep or investing in what we cannot lose (Luke 9:24).

Nominal Christians

July 8, 2019 by Tim Sherfy

I despise blasé Christianity. Nominal Christians have done great damage to the Kingdom of God from the inside out. Nothing agitates me more than a nominal Christian. I know, because too often I am one myself. When we practice Christianity in name only we do a great disservice to our Lord. The term Christian is supposed to mean we look like Jesus. Christians, by definition, live for Christ.

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These days, it has come to mean many things and rarely does it mean someone who has completely devoted their lives to serving Jesus and building His Kingdom. In fact, I’m pretty sure those of us who choose to stand firm in the pursuit of Jesus are going to be branded as being politically incorrect and out of step with modern society. Good. I’m okay with that. They said the same things about Jesus.

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Sin is Still Sin

July 4, 2019 by Tim Sherfy

As I look at the world around me today, my heart breaks. The disregard for human life is sickening. People are tortured and maimed because of their spiritual beliefs. They are beaten and killed because of their skin color, their clothing, or their ethnicity. Jealousy abounds. Bullying is prevalent. All forms of sin are celebrated by a vocal minority and a celebrity culture. And the church? We stand by remarkably quiet.

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We don’t want to offend or appear intolerant. But sin is still sin. It is yet repulsive in the eyes of our Heavenly Father. We must not allow ourselves to be numbed to the point of disregard. We cannot allow ourselves to be overwhelmed by the evil surrounding us every day.

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