Even If i Walk Alone

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

Isaiah

How Much Are You Willing to Sacrifice?

by

How much are you willing to sacrifice in doing the Lord’s work? Are you more concerned with success and a comfortable life or willing to forsake everything for the sake of Christ? (Luke 14:25-33; Philippians 3:7-8) We often think of “forsaking everything” in terms of physical possessions. That’s true, but everything might also include our health, safety, comfort, dreams, and goals.

“Everything” is all-encompassing; it touches every area of our lives. Are you willing to do that? Is Christ worth surrendering everything you’ve ever wanted and everything you might have dreamed to achieve? Is He worth your comfort, safety, and even your life? (Luke 9:23-24; Revelation 12:11)

[Read more…] about How Much Are You Willing to Sacrifice?

Living in Sin

by

Too many of us are living in sin. I’m not talking about sin happening in our lives, but sin being the pattern of our lives. We cannot love God and continue to live a life delighting in sin. (1 John 3:6-10; Romans 6:1-2) Sin is repulsive to God, and it should be repulsive to us. (Proverbs 6:16-19; Romans 12:9) It’s obvious that people indulge in sin because it is enjoyable, but how can we enjoy sin when we see what it did to Jesus?

His life was one of perfection. (Hebrews 4:15; 1 Peter 2:22) He knew no sin until He bore our sins on the cross. (2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 Peter 2:24) By accepting our sin, Jesus allowed sin to do what it always does, and it killed Him. It wasn’t someone else’s sin that killed Jesus; it was ours. (Isaiah 53:4-6; Romans 4:25)

[Read more…] about Living in Sin

Hold Your Tongue

by

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)

[Read more…] about Hold Your Tongue

What God Is

by

When discussing the plight of a hospitalized friend, the wife of Oswald Chambers wondered aloud, “I wonder what God is going to do.” Oswald’s reply was, “I don’t care what God does. It’s what God is that I care about.1David McCasland, Oswald Chambers: Abandoned to God: The Life Story of the Author of My Utmost for His Highest (Discovery House Publishers, 1993), 13.” Oh, that we could adopt such wisdom in our lives! How often do we advise God as to the best course of action in our prayers?

First, it’s foolish to think we have the slightest clue about how best to resolve any situation when we have such limited information of the grand scheme of everything. Second, God is going to do what God is going to do, and we should rejoice in that. (Isaiah 46:9-10; Psalm 115:3) After all, He possesses all wisdom, all knowledge, and all power and executes them all with an insatiable and inscrutable love for His children.

[Read more…] about What God Is

  • 1
    David McCasland, Oswald Chambers: Abandoned to God: The Life Story of the Author of My Utmost for His Highest (Discovery House Publishers, 1993), 13. ↩︎

Turn Our Eyes

by

There are many beautiful things we can look at in this life. There are countless ventures we can endeavor to do. But not everything is profitable for us. (1 Corinthians 6:12; 1 Corinthians 10:23) Nothing on earth is worth longing for, because everything on earth will pass away. (1 John 2:17; 2 Peter 3:10-12) No amount of temporal happiness or pleasure is worth sacrificing the riches of eternity. (Mark 8:36-37; 2 Corinthians 4:17-18)

Like the Psalmist, we need to plead with God to turn our eyes from looking at what is worthless. (Psalm 119:37) Our gaze should ever and only be on things above, and not here on earth. (Colossians 3:1-2) Jesus is the priceless prize worth more than everything in this world combined. (Philippians 3:7-8; Matthew 13:44-46) He alone is worth desiring, and He alone is worth your life. (Psalm 73:25-26; Philippians 1:21)

[Read more…] about Turn Our Eyes