Even If i Walk Alone

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

Matthew

Can You Be a Christian Without Being a Disciple?

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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.

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Jesus is Not an Institution

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A pastor shared a cartoon drawing of Mary and baby Jesus. In the cartoon, Mary is comforting Jesus and asks if he had a nightmare. Jesus replies, “Yes, I dreamed I became an institution!” I don’t know what your reaction is to this, whether it’s laughter, disgust, or ambivalence. For me, it cut me to the core. What would Jesus think if He came back today to assess the state of the Church?

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What are we doing with and to the plan He has for our redemption? He spent His life showing how we should love and care for others. That is the essence of why the Church exists. God intends for us to represent Him here on earth. Instead, we’ve become just another business organization complete with heavy debts and ever-increasing administrative budgets.

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Everyday Miracles

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We all ask for miracles in our lives but fail to recognize them when they occur. It’s easier to find a logical explanation than believe God showed up in an amazing way. Fascinating. We pray for a miracle, get one, but can’t bring ourselves to believe it’s true. We’ll credit modern medicine, a lucky break, a friend, or the kindness of a stranger; but God? That seems kind of far-fetched.

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My question is if we don’t believe in miracles, why do we ask for them in the first place? We fail to recognize the everyday miracles occurring all around us. Because we aren’t looking for God’s glory and mystery, we don’t see it. So, we have miracles we ask for and God grants, and we have the everyday miracles surrounding us. But we are blind to them all.

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Your Best Life

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What are the spiritual disciplines you want to have in your life but have not yet implemented? It seems we always think there will be a tomorrow to get started in building a life that looks more like Jesus. As I write this, a new year is approaching. There is something about the end of one year and the beginning of the next that always seems like a great time to make changes in our lives. The tradition of new year’s resolutions dates all the way back to the Babylonians and continues to this day.

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Before we get caught up in this again, we need to remember Jesus taught we should not be building treasures in this life, but storing up riches in Heaven (Matthew 6:19-20). The point of following Jesus is not to build your best life now, but to build your best life after you’ve passed on from this earth.

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Go and Tell

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This blog is focused on discipleship. It’s my hope the words written here will instruct and encourage you to live your life wholly devoted to Christ and to become the person He created you to be. Much of my own life is spent learning more about Jesus and what it looks like to walk in His footsteps. My passion is to see others embrace and love Him for the holy and magnificent God He is. But I’d be remiss if I didn’t write from time to time on something even more important than devoting your life to Christ.

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There are still billions of people on this planet who have never experienced the love of Jesus. They don’t know Him like you and I do. Sadder still is the fact there are hundreds of millions who have never heard the gospel even once. Worst of all, these are all people who are destined for an eternity separated from God’s love, mercy, and presence.

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