Walking with Jesus Daily
by: Joe Mack Cherry
I. Introduction
A. What does it take to Walk with Jesus?
1. First, we must come to Him and accept Him as our Lord and Savior.
2. Hear, believe, repent, confess, and be baptized.
3. Salvation is God’s gift to everyone who follows His plan of salvation AND continues walking in the light which affords us forgiveness. I Jo 1:7
B. Walking with Christ requires a deep commitment to Him and the lost.
1. Commitment is not a concept to be taken lightly.
2. Commitment is a promise to God/Christ.
a. Eccl. 5:4-6 Read
b. How many times have we said to God, “Father, if you’ll do this, I’ll do…”
c. When we borrow money, we vow to pay back plus interest with money. Money fulfills the vow.
d. In God’s economy, “action” is the currency proves commitment.
i. To simply believe is not enough.
ii. Jas. 2:19 – even the demons believe.
3. We cannot sit on the sidelines and fulfill our commitment to Christ.
4. Commitment requires faith in the promises of God and works. Scripture tells us faith without works is ??? Dead
Please 5. Let me ask you a question.
C. Why do you think commitment has lost its appeal?
1. Loyalty is out the door.
a. Use to be that if an employer looked at a resume and saw many places of employment, he questioned the loyalty of the candidate. It is moot point in today’s business world.
b. Commitment has been reduced to a “bandwagon” affiliation. Once the new wears off and the fad phases out, no one’s left to champion the cause.
c. Many lean toward what entertains them rather than that which keeps them in a committed relationship with God/Christ.
2. We are a culture that thrives on instant gratification.
a. Got a question, goggle it.
b. Our young ones are not really trained to work for anything.
c. The training we give our children, translates, not only in our physical world but also in our spiritual world. Commitment stops when the money does.
Mk. 8:36 – “What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his soul?”
d. I believe we work strictly for instant reward and not lasting achievement.
3. We do not always, directly feel the pain that lack of commitment brings.
a. We must not forget what Peter said II Pet. 3:9 – “He is not slack concerning His promises, as some men count slackness; but He is longsuffering, not willing that any should perish.
b. Call it what you want: karma, reaping what you sow. Our sins will find us out.
II. Lesson – Walking with Jesus
A. Let’s Count the Cost - Luke 14:28-30
1. Walking with Him is not always a walk in the park.
a. Mat. 8:19 – One of the religious leaders tells Jesus, he’ll follow Him wherever He goes. Vs. 20 – Jesus says, “Foxes have dens and birds have nest but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head.”
b. Every Apostle, save John, who was exiled to the Isle of Patmos, was executed for their beliefs.
c. “Fox Book of Martyrs” contains a plethora of other stories that ended in death.
2. Jo. 6:53-58 – Jesus tells His followers that unless they eat of His body and drink of His blood, they cannot attain eternal life.
a. This was a hard saying for them.
b. Rather than continuing to follow and gain understanding, they turned back.
i. Psa 119: 1 ff. - blest are those who stay on the course which God lays out.
ii. II Tim. 4:7-8 – Paul said he’d finished the race and there was a crown laid up in heaven for him.
iii. The Saul to Paul transformation was a miracle and it was followed up by a lifetime of commitment to a cause Paul vehemently opposed as a young man.
iv. The Book of Acts and Paul’s Epistles record the torturous journey right up to his execution (believed to be beheaded) in AD 68.
B. Walking with Jesus requires a conscientious effort.
1. Living the Christian life is no walk in the park; but remember the alternative is worse.
2. As we are walking with Christ, it is not if trials come, it is when they come.
3. We acknowledge the truth of this statement, but sometimes we run rather than persevere.
4. We must remember that Satan
a. Walks around like a roaring lion. I Pet. 5:8
b. Appears as an “angel of light”. II Cor. 11:14-15
5. Jesus made a commitment to do the will of His Father.
a. Jo 3:16 – For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son…
b. Phil. 2:6 – Jesus’ commitment to come to this world and die and be raised so that we might receive salvation is a measuring stick for us as we walk with Him today. Conscience effort=commitment!
c. It’s easy to convince ourselves that we are doing enough!
d. Jesus committed His life to us and it behooves us to look at our own lives and determine what we are truly committing to Him.
C. Sadly, today people commit but it is totally to the wrong things.
1. Protest, violence, and slander are hurled by people with both malice and aforethought at those who hold a different political ideology.
2. Most of these protesters will drive all night to get to a protest but won’t drive two city blocks to go to church.
3. Even sadder are the ones who call themselves Christians, claim they are committed, but find reasons to distance themselves from the body of Christ.
D. Part of commitment involves community.
1. Community allows us to help others along the journey.
2. It allows others to help us along the journey.
3. Eccl. 4:12 – NLT, “A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple braided cord is not easily broken.”
III. Closing
A. What are the Positives to walking with Jesus
1. Joy and Happiness – Beatitudes Mt. 5:2-12
a. Blessed – Happy is he….
b. All nine of these are characteristics of our Lord and Savior.
c. The passage also tells us that those who display these characteristics have a reward on high.
2. If we follow closely to Him, we will tend to be more like Him.
3. If evil companionship corrupts good morals, then good companionship with Christ will lead us to do good things.
B. Fruits of the Spirit – Gal. 5:22ff
1. We are more patient and loving as we develop the fruits of the Spirit.
2. When there is peace, we react differently to circumstances.
3. As we fill our lives with the things that Jesus has commanded, we are able to see the good we can do for others as we walk with Christ.
C. It’s easier to fight when we realize the battle has already been won.
1. We have a reason to fight on!
2. Focusing on Jesus helps us stay committed until the end.
