Matthew

The Persecuted

May 27, 2021 by Tim Sherfy

For many in the West, it is uncomfortable to talk about the persecuted Church around the world. While we may face ridicule and discrimination to one degree or another, we have no reference point for the brutality inflicted against our brothers and sisters in far-off countries. Much like the television commercials depicting starving children or animal shelters, the images are hard to look at so we close our eyes, mute the sound, or change the channel.

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We know these things exist but we would rather not think about them. But our discomfort does not change the reality of what is happening to our brothers and sisters. Imagine if it was your flesh and blood sibling who was enduring such things. Would you not keep them in the front of your mind and do everything in your power to help and encourage them? Then why are we so reluctant to discuss and bring attention to the plight of our brothers and sisters in Christ?

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Opposition

May 24, 2021 by Tim Sherfy

Opposition means nothing to a person determined to follow God. If you set your mind on loving, living, and looking like Jesus, you will desire to do His will. Nothing else will matter, only Jesus. When you surrender to Christ, your desires will change. Your life will no longer be about yourself. It will be about God and others. But a life like this is only if you want it, and make no mistake, it will cost you.

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The devil sees your surrender to Christ as an open invitation to attack. You will find opposition at every turn. it’s probably time to check the level of your commitment to Christ if you aren’t facing opposition in your life. Jesus promised us we would have trouble in this world (John 16:33). If you aren’t experiencing it now, know that it is coming.

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A Disciple of Jesus

May 17, 2021 by Tim Sherfy

In these crazy and unpredictable days, it’s hard for me not to feel like I’m sounding like a broken record. The Gospel is a simple message, and there are only so many ways to tell the story. The same is true for discipleship, which is the natural follow-up to salvation. To be a disciple of Jesus means we do what Jesus commands us to do. Discipleship demands we live lives where we love like Jesus.

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At the core, disciples are those who love God with their entire heart, soul, strength, and mind (Mark 12:28-30). And we love our neighbor as ourselves (Mark 12:31). Yet we will fill our minds with everything happening around us if we aren’t careful and intentional with our thinking. We will get caught up in the flow of culture and drift from our King and our purpose instead of focusing on Jesus’s beauty and His mission.

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Reorient Your Life

May 10, 2021 by Tim Sherfy

If you want to look like Jesus, love like Jesus, and live like Jesus, you must reorient your life. There’s no way we can continue living as we always have and be a disciple of Jesus. I think this is what so many of us get wrong when we come to Jesus. We see Him as an addition to our lives instead of a complete replacement. There is no negotiation process for our surrender.

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We give up our lives and Jesus takes over. From that moment forward, being a disciple demands you reorient your life to pursue only Jesus and the things that will advance His Kingdom. This will seem like a very large ask unless you are so in love with Jesus that you can’t imagine a moment without Him.

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Impact or Distraction

May 6, 2021 by Tim Sherfy

Everything we think, say, and do will impact others for Jesus or distract them from His truth. Our lives will be all about Jesus or about nothing at all. If we want to impact others for Jesus, we must live like Jesus. We won’t impact them in our power, because we have no answers on our own.

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It is only the blood of Jesus that can cleanse people of their sins. It is only the love of Jesus that can redeem them from their brokenness. So, if we aren’t showing them the love of Jesus and telling them of His sacrifice on their behalf, then we are only distracting them from the truth with whatever else we say or do.