Even If i Walk Alone

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

Isaiah

Downplaying the Devil

by

Christians spend too much time downplaying the Devil. I’m sure you are familiar with the old adage, “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.” The typical response to hearing that is a smile and a knowing nod. Did you ever consider how ridiculous that statement is? Hell has no fury like a fallen human? Are we serious? It’s one more example of how flippant we can be when discussing things we should take with the utmost seriousness.

commitment,fear,focus,discipline,salvation,downplaying the devil

We’ve reduced the power of Satan to that of a byline or a joke. This is where it is typical for a writer to give the caveat of something like, “We have to be careful not to take this to extremes, or fall into legalism.” But you know what? I hate caveats. Truth is truth, and the fact it makes some uncomfortable is no reason to soften it. We need to treat the power of Satan and the power of God with the respect and trepidation both deserve.

[Read more…] about Downplaying the Devil

Glorify God and Enjoy Him Forever

by

Do you ever think that we’re getting this whole thing wrong? We know our chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever (Isaiah 43:6-7), but that isn’t the driving force for most of our lives. We don’t wake up thinking about God and how we can glorify Him. And if we do, the busyness and distractions of this world soon overwhelm and overrule our intentions.

commitment,discipleship,Wesminster catechism,priorities,purpose,glorify God and enjoy Him forever

The Apostle Paul said whatever we do, we should do for the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31). That requires a constant focus on Jesus, but our preoccupation is instead with ourselves. We know in our hearts this life isn’t about us, but we’ve bought into the ways of the world to the point we’ve forgotten the point of it all.

[Read more…] about Glorify God and Enjoy Him Forever

A High Bar

by

One recent afternoon, I was conversing with a close friend of mine who is not a follower of Christ. I would peg him as agnostic, but he is a thoughtful and intelligent man, so while he disagrees with my faith, we can have civil and rational discussions about it. In the conversation, he surprised me with a comment that was both blunt and telling. He said his problem with Christianity was the forgiveness issue.

high bar,salvation,commitment,discipleship,eternal life,lordship,works

He said he could never sacrifice his own son, and his feeling is that instead of forgiving mankind, God should raise the bar and demand more from us. I thought he was going to say he struggled with forgiveness so couldn’t conceive of God forgiving us, but he went another direction. He considers a high bar a better solution than a merciful gift.

[Read more…] about A High Bar

God Is Our Portion

by

In a world that obsesses over always having more, we must always remember that God is our portion (Lamentations 3:24). We don’t need the trinkets and baubles of this life. We don’t need fame, success, or notoriety. All we need is Jesus (John 6:35). Jeremiah knew his very existence was because of God’s faithful love (Lamentations 3:22).

God is our portion,commitment,discipleship,provision,surrender

No matter how desperate the situation or circumstances, the prophet rested in the goodness of God. Many centuries later, the Apostle Paul would echo those same sentiments when he wrote that God would supply all our needs (Philippians 4:19). Faithful men of God throughout history have understood what we have forgotten: we need nothing else in life but God Himself (Psalm 73:25).

[Read more…] about God Is Our Portion

Who Do You Fear

by

Who do you fear more, God or man? Would God believe your answer? Every day, we all have opportunities to proclaim the name of Jesus, but how often do we seize the moment and do so? Why are we so hesitant to stand up for what we believe? I heard Paul Washer say, “If you have enough fear of God, you’ll have no fear of man.” The problem is we don’t fear God enough.

who do you fear,commitment,fear,priorities

That’s not a popular statement. We want God to be all love and forgiveness. We’re comfortable with that God. While He is the essence of perfect love and divine forgiveness (1 John 4:8), God is also terrifying in His level of wrath and righteous jealousy (Hebrews 10:31, Exodus 34:14, Nahum 1:2,6). If we had the slightest idea of the power of God, we would be terrified to seek His presence.

[Read more…] about Who Do You Fear