Even If i Walk Alone

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

surrender

Focus

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As we go through life accumulating stuff and accolades, we would do well to heed the words of the Apostle Paul. He said everything he had gained in this world was garbage. Whatever things he had acquired or prestige he received, none of it counted for anything (Philippians 3:7-8). I dare say we’ve not accomplished anything close to what Paul accomplished in his life.

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But while we cling to our possessions and honors, Paul dismissed his. He did so because he knew nothing compared to the eternal love and beauty of Jesus. Paul understood what it meant to devote one’s life to Christ. Jesus was not an interesting diversion for Paul. Jesus was his life. Can we claim such singleness of purpose and focus in our lives?

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Devoted to Christ

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There is a word in the Bible that causes much controversy these days because of its modern English connotation. The word is “slave” and depending on what translation you read may also be translated as servant or bondservant. Given the tensions of our day, the term servant is more palatable than the word slave, but we must recognize when the Bible uses the word, it often does not mean the same thing as it does to us today. For example, in Philippians 1:1, Paul refers to himself and Timothy as slaves of Christ.

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This is not to be construed as anything negative, but as something to which we should all aspire. The Greek word for slaves here is δοῦλος (douloi), which means “pertaining to a state of being completely controlled by someone or something”1Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. (1996). Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament: based on semantic domains (electronic ed. of the 2nd edition., Vol. 1, p. 471). New York: United Bible Societies.).. Given that definition, I definitely want to be a slave to Jesus. I want my life to be devoted to Christ.

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  • 1
    Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. (1996). Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament: based on semantic domains (electronic ed. of the 2nd edition., Vol. 1, p. 471). New York: United Bible Societies.).

Reading the Bible

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Perhaps nothing is more vital to your Christian walk than reading the Bible. The entire book is about Jesus, so if you want to know more about Him, read His Word! I do not discount the importance of prayer, sacrifice, and obedience, but we learn about all these by reading the Bible. Many Christians never read their Bibles. I have to wonder why they came to Christ in the first place.

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When you fall in love with someone, you want to know everything about them. It’s no different with Christ. If you love Him, you will want to consume your life with His. Don’t let the size of the book intimidate you. I promise the more you read it, the more you will fall in love with Christ.

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Seek God

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One day, this life is going to end. When it does, everything we’ve accomplished will cease to matter. Just like that. Society teaches us to spend our lives pursuing our goals, becoming successful, and accumulating as much stuff as possible. And none of it will matter a bit. Only what we do for Jesus will remain.

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So why do we spend so much time, money, and effort learning how to manage our time, build our companies, and elevate our profile? None of this has any place in the life of a believer. It’s all idolatry and much of it is sinful. We’d never call it that, but the fact remains. We can ignore and run from the facts now, but when we die, the truth will be laid bare in a way none of us wants to face.

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Hate the World

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I hate the world today. It’s about time, I suppose. As long as we are enjoying the things of this world, it’s difficult, if not impossible, to devote ourselves to the Lord. Most people I’ve talked to think the era they grew up in was the best, and it’s all been downhill from there. My father grew up in the ’50s and swears it was the best time in history to grow up.

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I grew up in the ’80s, and I’d strongly propose those were the best of times. I can’t imagine anyone growing up in our current environment looking back and saying it was the best time to be alive. That’s very sad, but also very hopeful for the Church and Kingdom of Jesus Christ.

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