Even If i Walk Alone

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

I John

God Hates Sin

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It’s been a long time since I’ve heard a popular pastor preach about the dangers and horrors of sin. I’ve heard a lot about time management, goal setting, self-improvement, favor, blessing, and healing. The past couple of years have seen a shift to a lot of messages around social justice, tolerance, and welcoming people into the church who are living in proud defiance of the Word of God.

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What I don’t hear is preaching on the depravity and destruction of sin. We hear God is love and forgiveness without the context of why we need His love and forgiveness. Let us be clear in our understanding: God hates sin and so must we. If sin doesn’t repulse us and drive us to our knees in repentance, the odds are better than good you don’t know Jesus as Lord and Savior.

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I Follow Jesus

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I follow Jesus because I’d be lost without Him. When I look around at this world and see the evil pervading it, I know I need someone to guide me through. As I encounter difficulties in life, I’ve often asked, “How do people without Christ get through the tough times? Where do they find their comfort, peace, and strength? The answer is typically in temporary medications like alcohol, drugs, sex, entertainment, or other vices.

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The problem is the letdown on the other side is even worse because the problems don’t go away. Numbing the pain is not the same thing as having someone carry it for you. Jesus is my rock, and my refuge, my shelter from the storm (Psalm 18:1-2). He’s my deliverer, comforter, and Savior (Psalm 23:1-4; 2 Corinthians 1:3; Isaiah 12:2). I am nothing without Him.

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The Practice of Sin

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You can’t be a disciple of Jesus and willfully continue to live in sin. Sin will repulse a regenerated heart. The apostle John had much to say about this in his first epistle. He defined sin as practicing lawlessness (1 John 3:4). Another way to say this might be that we sin whenever we rebel against God’s laws. Continuing on a few verses later, John makes it clear if we are born again (born of God), we will not make a practice of sinning (1 John 3:9).

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We can’t do that because God abides in us and sin is abhorrent to Him. As human beings, we will sin. We’re not perfect. But as followers of Jesus, we won’t make a habit of sinning. When we sin, we will immediately be horrified by our failure and repent of it.

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How Then Should We Live?

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What is the purpose in life for those who declare Jesus Christ as their Lord? How, then, should we live? If we spend our lives pursuing the same things as those who reject Christ, what then is the point of our commitment to Him? There has to be something different about the way we live. The world around us is caught up in a selfish pursuit to find pleasure, safety, and comfort.

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Is that all there is? Is that the reason Christ died for us? There has to be more. Somewhere along the line, we lost track of what it means to live a life wholly devoted to Christ and began living a life devoted to our comfort and happiness. If we don’t return to living for Jesus, the consequences will be grave and eternal.

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Citizens of Heaven

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As believers in Christ, we are citizens of Heaven (Philippians 3:19-20). This world is no longer our home. As Larry Norman reminded us fifty years ago, we’re only visiting this planet. It sounds bizarre when you say it out loud, but the truth is often that way. Our time here is temporary. Eternity with Christ awaits us. While I don’t believe we should squander our time on earth, just biding our time until we see Jesus,

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I also believe it’s important to keep the proper perspective while we are here. Think of it as an extended business trip with an occasional vacation. We know we’re going to be leaving, so there’s no point in getting attached to anything. We have a job to do and very little time to do it.

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