John

Radical Obedience

November 11, 2019 by Tim Sherfy

I’ve been mulling over the phrase “radical obedience” in my mind of late. Radical means far-reaching or thorough. That describes the type of obedience I long to have with Jesus. In fact, I would say it is the type of obedience demanded by Christ and required of all those who claim Him to be their Lord. Radical obedience is thorough. It is far-reaching. What it is not occasional or situational. Too many follow Jesus when it is convenient or expedient. When push comes to shove, their obedience wanes.

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This type of obedience, which is no obedience at all, runs rampant through our churches and results in an abundance of nominal Christians. Practicing radical obedience should be the rule, not the exception. It is sad the opposite is reality today.

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Filled With the Word of God

November 7, 2019 by Tim Sherfy

D.L. Moody once said, “When a man is filled with the Word of God you cannot keep him still. If a man has got the Word, he must speak or die.” This is the kind of man I want to be. Can you imagine being so filled with the Word of God it was impossible to keep silent? Isn’t this the type of person every Christ-follower should aspire to be?

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Until we are so obsessed with Jesus everything else ceases to matter, I do not think we have yet discovered the abundant life Christ promised to those who follow Him (John 10:10). What holds us back from such a deep desire and longing for God’s Word? I can answer from my own experience, and perhaps you will relate…

Are Your Doing What’s Important Now?

October 31, 2019 by Tim Sherfy

It’s a sad truth of life we spend our time doing things that seem important now, only to discover over time we have missed out on the things that actually are. Often parents discover in the process of working long hours to provide the best things for their families, they miss out on seeing their kids grow up. People pursue careers that bring them wealth and prestige only to recognize they have no friends at retirement.

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And Christ-followers? We spend our days pursuing the American dream, or perhaps incessantly volunteering with our church, only to discover we’ve left Jesus out of the equation. It is a tragedy being played out across our nation and throughout the world. We are spending our finite time in pursuit of things that will pass away instead of focusing on our eternal Savior.

Counter-Cultural

October 24, 2019 by Tim Sherfy

In a world that promotes self-aggrandizement and getting ahead, living life as a humble servant is truly counter-cultural. It is to invite ridicule, derision, and condescending pity from the masses. No one chooses to live this way because it is easy or socially acceptable. We choose it because Jesus told us this is the way to live. By His own example, Jesus showed although He was superior to all, He chose to be a servant to all (John 13:3-17). He told His disciples anyone who sought to get ahead would be sent to the back of the line (Matthew 19:23-30).

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In the upside-down Kingdom of God, the way to get ahead is to stop promoting yourself and begin building up others. For followers of Christ, life is not about becoming the best known or loved. It’s about serving others in such a way they might see Jesus in us and come to know Him for themselves.

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Focus and Distraction

October 14, 2019 by Tim Sherfy

Do you feel as if you spend most of your time simply keeping up with the demands of life, or are you experiencing freedom and fullness? Jesus came to set us free (Luke 4:18-21) and to give us a full and abundant life (John 10:10). Knowing this, why is it so many of us feel stressed out, chained to our jobs, and like we are drowning under the weight of everything we must get done?

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I do believe we can live in the peace of Jesus even in our social media obsessed and frenetic world. But we won’t ever experience the life God intended for us to live as long as our focus is on anything or anyone other than Him.