Even If i Walk Alone

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

Titus

Without Exception

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In a recent sermon, my pastor stated, “If you have any exceptions in your obedience, you are not a Christian.” It’s a bold statement that might cause you to form an immediate objection. After all, who are we to say who is or isn’t a true Christian? Once you get past the initial shock of the bluntness of the statement, you will see that it is in line with God’s Word.

Man pondering what it means to obey Christ without exception, and to order his priorities to reflect his commitment and desire to live in discipleship to Christ.

The problem is we skim over the parts of the Bible that are too convicting or too hard to follow. My pastor’s words are not a new teaching or even controversial when held up to the light of scripture. What we are reacting to is the fact that obeying God’s Word without exception is not something most are willing to do.

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Every Careless Word

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Jesus said each of us will have to account for every careless word we speak (Matthew 12:36-37). No small, careless, or flippant word is small, careless or flippant to God. He hears and judges everything that comes out of our mouths. The Lord is holy, consistent, and always intentional (1 Peter 1:15–16).

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He demands the same from us (Matthew 5:48). Jesus didn’t waste words, but used every syllable to point people to the truth about who He was and to the majesty of His Father (John 12:49–50). The beautiful and cutting words of Jesus are life to all who will believe (John 6:63), but the foolish and wicked things we say and do result in our destruction (John 5:28–29).

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A High Bar

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One recent afternoon, I was conversing with a close friend of mine who is not a follower of Christ. I would peg him as agnostic, but he is a thoughtful and intelligent man, so while he disagrees with my faith, we can have civil and rational discussions about it. In the conversation, he surprised me with a comment that was both blunt and telling. He said his problem with Christianity was the forgiveness issue.

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He said he could never sacrifice his own son, and his feeling is that instead of forgiving mankind, God should raise the bar and demand more from us. I thought he was going to say he struggled with forgiveness so couldn’t conceive of God forgiving us, but he went another direction. He considers a high bar a better solution than a merciful gift.

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Show Mercy

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Jesus said, “The merciful are blessed, because they will be shown mercy” (Matthew 5:7). While not a direct command, the implication is clear: we should all show mercy. Our response to wrongs against us must not be like that of the world. Revenge should be a motivation foreign to every follower of Jesus. Each of us will suffer their fair share of injustice in this world.

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As my mother told me from an early age, “Life is not fair”. Thank God for that! Imagine if it were. As my friend Aaron Pelsue sings in his song, “Mercy,” “I deserve all the worst, yet you offer mercy.” Jesus does not exact the punishment we deserve from us, so we should not seek to right the far more trivial wrongs committed against us (Romans 12:19).

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Who is Your Master?

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No matter how independent we might like to think we are, each of us serves one master or another in this life. The only question is, who is your master? Peter teaches we are all slaves to whatever defeats us (2 Peter 2:19). We all have our vices and are subject to them at different points in our lives. Perhaps it would be better to ask, “What is your master?”

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But we can always trace the “what” back to a “who”. We know that all good things come from Christ (James 1:17) and that every lie finds its source in Satan (John 8:44). If we are slaves to certain lusts, desires, and passions, then our master is the devil (1 John 3:8). But if we keep ourselves pure and hold true to the gospel of Jesus, then He is indeed our Lord and Master (John 14:21; Romans 6:22).

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