Revelation

Nominal Christians

July 8, 2019 by Tim Sherfy

I despise blasé Christianity. Nominal Christians have done great damage to the Kingdom of God from the inside out. Nothing agitates me more than a nominal Christian. I know, because too often I am one myself. When we practice Christianity in name only we do a great disservice to our Lord. The term Christian is supposed to mean we look like Jesus. Christians, by definition, live for Christ.

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These days, it has come to mean many things and rarely does it mean someone who has completely devoted their lives to serving Jesus and building His Kingdom. In fact, I’m pretty sure those of us who choose to stand firm in the pursuit of Jesus are going to be branded as being politically incorrect and out of step with modern society. Good. I’m okay with that. They said the same things about Jesus.

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Go All the Way

January 17, 2019 by Tim Sherfy

While apparently never finding truth himself, Buddha is credited with a wise quote I find applicable to our Christian walk. It is reported he said, “There are two mistakes one can make along the road to truth…not going all the way, and not starting”. How tragic it is for anyone who never embarks on a journey of pursuing Christ. I don’t understand it. I can’t even conceive how they get through a single day.

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I find believing in anything but Jesus requires far too much faith and suspension of disbelief. But that is all fodder for a different article. Since I’m assuming most if not all the readers of this blog believe Jesus is indeed the Son of God, I want to focus on those who begin their faith journey but quit too soon.

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Church on Auto-Pilot

September 6, 2018 by Tim Sherfy

Recently I was reading a challenge I thought was so good I had to pass it along. The challenge was to think of all the ways you attend church on auto-pilot. Most tend to park in the same spot, sit in the same seat, and talk to the same people. We don’t even think about it. So, what could you do differently next week to step out of your comfort zone and do something you have to think about rather than coast on auto-pilot?

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image © Stuart Monk via Fotolia

What if you reached out to someone you’ve never met and struck up a conversation? What if you gave up your favorite parking spot so someone else could have the shade? Most of all, what if we made the point of our worship all about Jesus?

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What Matters Most to You?

July 12, 2018 by Tim Sherfy

What matters most to you? Before you answer, you may want to review your last couple of days, weeks, months, and maybe even years. Would your actions leading up to today support your answer? I am guilty of allowing life to roll on too quickly without taking the time to make certain I’m not simply be dragged along with it.

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If you aren’t intentional about the way you are living, what difference does it make what’s most important to you? Unless you are living life on purpose you won’t be doing what matters most to you. That’s no way to live. We all want our lives to count, to mean something to someone. As followers of Christ, we all want our life to matter for the Kingdom.

The Curse of Mediocrity

June 21, 2018 by Tim Sherfy

The curse of mediocrity has infested the Western Church. Instead of blazing a trail of fire for the sake of the Kingdom, or even disappearing from the scene with cold hearts, we do just enough to let people know we’re still around, but never enough to make a difference. It’s disgusting to me in my own life and it’s intolerable for Jesus (Revelation 3:15-16). I learned the word mediocre has its origin in two Latin words which, translated literally, mean “halfway to the peak.” Half-way. Unfinished. Lazy. Uncommitted. This is the curse of mediocrity.

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A.W. Tozer noted of the origin of the word mediocre: “This makes it an apt description of the progress of many Christians. They are halfway up to the peak…. They are morally above the hardened sinner but they are spiritually beneath the shining saint…. Do we really think that this halfway Christian life is the best that Christ offers—the best that we can know? In the face of what Christ offers us, how can we settle for so little?”