John

From Flesh to Spirit

March 9, 2020 by Tim Sherfy

In our fallen world, we have all succumbed to living our lives for our fleshly, carnal desires instead of for our spiritual calling. God calls us to move from flesh to spirit, but most of us spend our time moving in the opposite direction. The world looks so enticing. Surely just sampling what it offers wouldn’t hurt anything, right?

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That strategy did not work out well for Adam and Eve, and by extension has caused us problems from the day we were born. We want the tangible delights we can taste, touch, and see. Oh, and we want them now. Our flesh is always pulling us towards the things of this world and away from our true spiritual nature.

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The Highest Calling

February 20, 2020 by Tim Sherfy

Serving God is the highest calling of life. It is a privilege, an honor, and a responsibility above all others. Serving God is rarely something one aspires to from their youth. Rather, it is an endeavor into which one grows. God is always calling out to His creation, beckoning them to fellowship with Him. When we respond, it becomes the highest calling we could ever receive. Nothing else in life could be more intense or deliver in a more profound way.

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Our response is often an arbitrary reflex of our free will, but the call itself is an intentional movement of God towards one whom He created. Why the God of the universe would choose to fellowship with one such as myself will be a mystery until the day I can ask Him. For now, I only know it is humbling. It is the highest calling.

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Can You Be a Christian Without Being a Disciple?

February 13, 2020 by Tim Sherfy

I heard a caller on a radio show ask, “Can you be a Christian without being a disciple?” I have been wrestling with this same thought of late. Before diving in, we should define the terms, so we are all on the same page. The term “Christian” now means many things in our world, but for this discussion, I mean someone who has trusted Jesus is who He says He was and has surrendered their lives to His Lordship.

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A disciple, again for our discussion, is someone who is constantly and consistently pursuing Jesus, desperate to live their lives as He lived His. My inclination is to say you cannot be a Christian if you are not a disciple. I could be wrong but let me give you some reasons for my belief, and then I’ll say a few words about why I might be wrong.

Do Good People Go to Heaven?

February 6, 2020 by Tim Sherfy

Aaron Rodgers, the star quarterback of the Green Bay Packers made waves when he proclaimed, “I don’t know how you can believe in a God who wants to condemn most of the planet to a fiery hell. What type of loving, sensitive, omnipresent, omnipotent being wants to condemn his beautiful creation to a fiery hell at the end of all this?” Mr. Rodgers is misinformed about the God in whom he does not believe.

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Jesus was clear saying He did not come to condemn the world, but to deliver it from the forces of evil (John 3:17-18). We are saved from the condemnation Mr. Rodgers talks about by bowing down to Jesus as Lord and surrendering our lives to Him. Those who reject Jesus condemn themselves, it is not the will of God (John 3:18; 2 Peter 3:9).

A New Creation

December 26, 2019 by Tim Sherfy

When you give your life to Jesus, everything changes. It’s not only your eternal destiny that changes, but your life right now is transformed. God gives you a new identity. Everything you’ve thought about yourself is no longer true. You are no longer what anyone else has labeled you. You are no longer limited by your own beliefs or those of others. When you make Jesus Lord of your life, you become a child of the King.

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From that moment on you are not a failure, you are more than a conqueror (Romans 8:37). You are not an aimless wanderer, you are a person of purpose, created with unique gifts and talents to accomplish things for the Kingdom of God only you can do (Ephesians 2:10). Your old limitations and fears no longer apply. You are a new creation in every way (2 Corinthians 5:17).

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