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Even If i Walk Alone

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

Ezekiel

Perseverance

January 31, 2022 by Tim Sherfy

Perhaps nothing is more necessary to living the Christian life than perseverance. If you want to live like Jesus, life will test you (John 16:33). For those who dare to call Jesus Lord, know your path will not be the easy way. You will need to develop firm resolve and require buckets full of perseverance to get through this life. We are not on our own here. God’s Word has much to say about perseverance, the need for it, and how to develop more.

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If you’ve read and studied the Bible over the years, you are no doubt familiar with Job’s story. He had everything you could ever want in this world, and he walked humbly before God. In a flash, he lost everything. Wracked in pain and sorrow, Job persevered through the pain and refused to give up His faith in our holy God. He is an incredible model of what perseverance looks like in the life of a believer.

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Filed Under: Daily Life Tagged With: commitment, compassion, Discipleship, Ezekiel, Faith, focus, hope, humility, James, John, Love, Matthew, mercy

A Wartime Mindset

April 29, 2021 by Tim Sherfy

Followers of Jesus should live with a wartime mindset, but most of us are strolling through life as if we are in the greatest peace-time in history. We take spiritual things lightly and give significant weight to the physical world. It’s the most short-sighted strategy we could adopt, and the devil continues to deceive us into believing we are being smart. One thing I know for certain is no matter what comes out of the mouth of Satan, it will be a lie (John 8:44). So whatever he puts in our mind, we should do the opposite. Immediately.

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We are not at peace. We are at war. Your soul, the soul of your family, and the souls of your friends are under attack. Satan wants to distract you from the truth, so he distorts it. The longer we believe we’re not living in a war zone, the harder it becomes to break out of the stupor and see the battle raging around us.

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Filed Under: Daily Life Tagged With: commitment, Discipleship, Ezekiel, Isaiah, John, Luke, mission, priorities

New Covenant People

December 17, 2018 by Tim Sherfy

Ezekiel 36:26 says, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.” While there are certainly many implications of this prophecy, one I think is often overlooked is Ezekiel prophesying of the transition from the old covenant to the new. The old covenant (or testament) was a series of laws given by God to the nation of Israel. Most of these laws were engraved on stone tablets, so the people’s hearts were committed to following what was engraved in stone.

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image © alexlmx via Fotolia

The new covenant was ushered in by Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. He fulfilled all the old covenant. This new covenant was for all people, not only for the people of Israel. Instead of adhering to a series of laws, we are now commanded to simply love one another so we might reflect the love of our Creator.

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Filed Under: Daily Life Tagged With: Ezekiel, John, Love, Matthew, mission

Are You Doing Enough?

October 24, 2010 by Tim Sherfy

Am I doing enough? It’s a question I ask myself over and over again – and often! I talk about being completely sold out to Jesus, but do I myself measure up? When I close my eyes each night, can I honestly say that I have lived my life that day in the best way I possibly could to reflect the glory of God to the world around me? If I cannot answer yes, then I am haunted by the realization that my actions – or lack thereof – may have prevented someone from seeing their need for Jesus Christ. Everywhere I go, I am an ambassador for Christ and I am responsible for each soul I encounter. I don’t have the option to look the other way or pretend not to notice. I am a follower of Jesus so I am obligated to serve those in need. The fact of the matter is that we all squander opportunities and waste precious time that we should be using to touch the life of someone else. We cannot live lives of perfection, but we should never stop striving to do so.

Every day of our lives must be spent in service to God. That is what it means to be a follower of Jesus. We are to be devoted to His causes and His mission; nothing else matters. Our dreams and ambitions must be pursued only insofar as they can be used to bring others to Christ. He has given us skills and talents in a combination that is unique to each person. These gifts are to be used for the sole purpose of reflecting His love and directing people to Jesus. We are not to pursue piling up money unless it is for the sole purpose of giving it to others in need. We are not to engage in a life of travel unless it for the sole purpose of spreading the love of Jesus around the world. It is your life and your passion, but they are to be used for His purpose. When you give your life to Jesus, you give up your claim to everything. From that point forward, everything you do, every word you say, is pledged to be for His glory. It goes without saying that we will stumble and miss the mark at times; it also goes without saying that we must quickly get up and set about our pursuit anew. His mission must be our passion. If it is not, we need to do some very serious soul searching to determine if we are truly His follower or not.

Being a Christian, a true disciple, is not a matter of saying a certain prayer and then just coasting for the rest of our days on earth. Where you spend eternity depends on whether you truly love and reflect Jesus to the world. By truly loving and being devoted to Christ, we are covered by His grace. It is our faith in His grace that will cause us to follow wherever He leads and to do the things He told us to do. Scripture tells us that faith without works is dead, and works without faith is futile (James 2:14-26; Hebrews 11:6). Without both faith and works, we will not see the gates of Heaven. Again, this isn’t about a one-time prayer, it is about a life-long commitment. If we have been blessed with money and don’t care for the poor, I believe Scripture is clear that we will not see Heaven (Ezekiel 16:49; Matthew 25:31-46). We don’t have brilliant careers because we are blessed by God; we have brilliant careers so we can bless others. We must never forget our purpose in life. Our purpose is God’s mission.

How about you? Do you, like me, get a sick feeling in the pit of your stomach when reflecting on the way you have lived out your devotion to Christ? Do you feel like I do, that you could be doing more, that you aren’t living a life that fully reflects His glory? We have work to do and time is running out; there is not a moment to lose. Reflect and reevaluate the way you are living your life. Are you doing all you can?

Filed Under: Daily Life Tagged With: Ezekiel, Hebrews, James, Matthew, mission, poverty, purpose

A Heart of Love

March 5, 2009 by Tim Sherfy

I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. I will place My Spirit within you and cause you to follow My statutes and carefully observe My ordinances. – Ezekiel 6:26, 27 (HCSB)

If we are truly followers of Christ, there will be evidence of a change in the way we live. God tells us that He will give us hearts that love. No longer will we be able to coldly look at the poor and homeless around us; we will have a heart that breaks for the injustice around us. We have a new heart, one full of compassion and mercy.

In the same way, God has given a new Spirit to guide us. Above all we will desire to follow all that Christ has told us to do. Again, what He has told us to do is to feed the hungry, care for those in need and free those who are oppressed in any way. Our implementation of these desires is often lacking but the point is that, above all, these are our desires.

God instills this new heart in all of His people. Having this new heart does not instantly transform us into perfectly loving people; as God has made us creatures of free will, it is still up to us to utilize the gift He has given us. For those of us who find it difficult at times to show love to others, we should be greatly encouraged to realize that love is our new nature. God has embedded His love into our core. If we truly love Him, if we truly seek to serve and live for Him, we will relentlessly strive to unleash that love onto the world around us.

Filed Under: Daily Life Tagged With: Ezekiel, Revolting Beauty

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