Even If i Walk Alone

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

I Peter

Proof of Love

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Jesus nailed our sins to His cross when He allowed Himself to be crucified. It wasn’t just His human flesh that died that day; it was an end to sin’s power to control you ever again. Sin is part of the “old things” that have passed away and no part of the new things you have in Christ. (2 Corinthians 5:17)

Because of this, habitual sin cannot be a pattern in the life of a true follower of Jesus. The only way we can sin is to decide to be in willful disobedience to God’s commands, and those who love Christ obey His commands. (John 14:15) This leaves us with only two options: either God’s Word is not true or we don’t love Jesus like we say we do. If we continue to sin, where’s our proof of love?

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Hold Your Tongue

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When someone insults you, what is your initial response? Most of us want to strike back and get even. This, of course, reveals our pride. How dare someone say anything negative about us! We don’t like to be put down, and we hate it even more when someone says something untrue about us. Our impulse is to justify ourselves and set the record straight.

When we act from a place of pride, we are not in the will of God, nor are we showing Christ to a dark and dying world. (James 4:6; Philippians 2:3-5) Jesus did not insult back when His adversaries would insult and defame Him. He held His tongue. Peter instructs us to follow the Lord’s example and to do the same. (1 Peter 2:21-23)

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Don’t Waver

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The Christian life is hard. In the best-case scenario, people will ridicule and ostracize you from social groups. (Matthew 5:10-12; 1 Peter 4:4) You will always be an outsider. (John 15:18-19; 1 Peter 2:11) Worst-case scenarios involve torture and death in gruesome manners. (Matthew 24:9; Hebrews 11:35-38) Following Jesus is not for the squeamish or fainthearted. Being a Christian isn’t for everyone. It is only for those who see Jesus as being worth any sacrifice and worthy of every kind of mockery and torture. (Luke 14:26-33; Philippians 3:7-8)

We are the few and the called, but that’s not something to be proud of. We did nothing to earn this privilege. (Ephesians 2:8-9; 2 Timothy 1:9) It is only by God’s grace that we are called to this life of service and sacrifice and ultimately to immense joy and life everlasting. (1 Peter 5:10; Titus 3:6-7) If you want to live for Jesus, take up your cross and don’t waver. (Luke 9:23-24; 1 Corinthians 15:58)

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Busy Until He Comes

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What are we doing with our lives? What are we pursuing during the short time we live in these bodies? Perhaps even more telling, does what you are doing look any different from what your unsaved friends and neighbors are doing? It’s easy, and even expected, to get caught up within the cultures in which we live. After all, we don’t want to be those “weird people” down the street, do we?

But shouldn’t we be those very peculiar people? Peter tells us we are called to be different; called to stand out. (1 Peter 2:9; 1 Peter 1:14-16) We can’t do that if we waste all our time fitting in with everyone else and pretending we aren’t living on borrowed time. If we want to live the life Jesus commands us to, we need to be busy until He comes, making preparations for that day.

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Called to This

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There is an uncomfortable truth that is not discussed enough from our pulpits or in our conversations. Being a follower of Christ means we are going to suffer. We know it’s true because we are called to this. (1 Peter 2:21; Philippians 1:29-30) Depending on what country you live in, and for some, even in what part of your country, you will face different degrees of persecution.

But all Christians will suffer for the sake of Christ because the gospel is offensive to those who refuse to bow to the Lordship of Jesus. (1 Corinthians 1:18; 1 Peter 2:7-8) He promised us this would happen, and if it’s not happening to you yet, then it will in the days to come. (John 15:18-20; 2 Timothy 3:12) We need to be ready. (1 Peter 4:12-13; 1 Peter 3:14-15)

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