Even If i Walk Alone

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

Ephesians

Freewill and the Sovereignty of God, Part II

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Horizon

Understanding the concept of freewill (see “Freewill and the Sovereignty of God, Part I”) makes it easier to comprehend why evil occurs in our world and to interpret God’s plan for our lives. If we perceive God before the beginning of time planning out every detail of every life, we are left with no other choice but to think that God plans and thus approves every atrocity that has befallen man. It then becomes impossible to reconcile a God who loves us beyond measure with a God who would allow barbarities such as the attempted extinction of the Jews by Hitler, the genocides in Rwanda and Sudan or the everyday abductions of children around the world. The best way I know of determining truth in a given matter is to compare it to the character of God. Therefore, since the thought that God would plan and approve of evil is in direct contradiction with the God we see revealed in scripture, we can reason that the teaching that God has preordained evil and calamity is simply not true.

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Pursuing Holiness

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Two roads diverging

As you go throughout your days, are you pursuing a life of holiness? Are you consciously striving to be the person God created you to be, a person who is consumed by the love of Jesus? This isn’t a new concept, but it has been brought to my mind in fresh ways through recent teachings by Bill Hybels and David Platt. Not only has God placed a unique combination of passions and skills in each of us in order that we might do the work He created us to do, but He has also charged us to conduct ourselves in a manner that is pleasing to Him (Philippians 1:27).

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Should Christians Attend Church? (Part I)

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Church

Our modern churches look very different from the early church in the New Testament. This is particularly true in the West. In America, our landscapes are dotted with mega-churches on sprawling plots of land where thousands of people gather to worship freely each week. Contrast this with the house churches in Asia where believers gather in small spaces under cover of the night in fear of torture and imprisonment if caught.  The Asian churches much more closely resemble the early New Testament churches in virtually every way. With that in mind, does that make attending the safe, luxurious churches in America wrong for the follower of Jesus?

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What’s Next?

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Unified People

It’s easy to become discouraged in our walk with Christ. The mission ahead is daunting and the pressures against us mount every day. There are so many in the world who hunger and thirst, how can we ever reach them all? Every day wars are creating more orphans and widows, and we haven’t yet begun to be able to help the ones we had the day before. We long to live a life that looks like Jesus, but the odds against us seem increasingly overwhelming. So many die without ever knowing the peace and love that can come only from Jesus; our hearts ache and we become paralyzed at the work before us.

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What Are You Learning in Church?

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A Church Service

There are several reasons that we as followers of Christ attend church. The Bible tells us that we should get together with fellow believers so we can encourage each other (Hebrews 10:24-25). Associating with others who follow Christ also helps keep us accountable in both our actions and words. Worshipping as a group of like minded people brings a dynamic that is different from when we worship alone. All of these reasons are good, scriptural and necessarily refreshing as we seek to walk the path Christ has set before us. However, I don’t think it’s enough to simply fellowship with other believers and enjoy a time of worship. I believe we need to be learning more about God during the time we spend together. Yet today there seems to be an emphasis on shallow teaching and a focus on those gathered rather than those on the outside who desperately need the gospel of Jesus.

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