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  HOW CAN BELIEVERS FINISH WELL IN THEIR WALKS WITH THE LORD？
  by Pat Emerick
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Summary: This sermon emphasizes the importance of not walking the
Christian journey alone but being part of a community of believers for
support, accountability, and growth. It highlights the need to be
connected to a church, have mentors or accountability partners, and
engage in true discipleship to finish well in the faith journey.

Topics: "Community in Christ", "Discipleship and Accountability"
Scripture References: Ecclesiastes 4:9, Hebrews 10:24, Proverbs 27:17, Titus 2:3, Matthew 18:20

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DESCRIPTION
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This sermon emphasizes the importance of not walking the Christian
journey alone but being part of a community of believers for support,
accountability, and growth. It highlights the need to be connected to a
church, have mentors or accountability partners, and engage in true
discipleship to finish well in the faith journey.

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CONTENT
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How a believer can finish well has a lot to do with who they're walking
with. It's impossible to be a Christian alone. You cannot be an
individual Christian.

Because Christ said, love your enemies. Well, if there's nobody around,
you don't have an enemy. He said, forgive those who sin against you.

Well, there's nobody around, you can't do that. Further, we need each
other as we know the proverbs of iron sharpening iron. If nobody's
around, you can't be a Christian.

You have to have a community around you. So it matters how you start,
into which community, or if you're into a community. I always tell
people, find a church.

I don't tell people, read your Bible and pray. Find a church. Get
connected to the body of Christ.

And then from there, finding someone, or two someones, female or male,
as long as it's the same gender, that you can confess your sins to. A
lot of parishes have a priest where they would do that. But in our
independent background, that's not so much the case.

But be accountable to an older brother or sister who can say, stop doing
that. And we'll help you stop doing that. Or, you should be doing this.

And we'll help you do this. We need to be discipled by those who've gone
before us. Now, I'm 58 years old.

I wish I had somebody when I was born again, when I was 17, who said,
give me your arm, I'm not letting go of you. Let's grow together. I'll
help you.

It didn't happen. I have a deep burden for true discipleship, real
disciple making, not, you know, foofy programs and things like that. The
programs are fine.

But the results must be someone has a deep, longing, living, loving
relationship with Jesus Christ, the Father and our Holy Spirit, or His
Holy Spirit. Have to be. We can't walk alone.

And if I can't practice forgiving you when you ask me for forgiveness
for sinning against me, and vice versa, I can't even do what the Lord
has instructed us to do in the prayer that He gave us. I can't obey God,
if I'm trying to walk all by myself. So, I think that's how we ought to
begin, how we can do the journey, and how we'll finish.

I heard some statistics somewhere, like 90%, maybe it's 85%, huge
percentage of people who begin in full-time ministry don't finish. They
give up, or they turn away, or they fall away from the faith. Starting
is easy.

Completing is important, and you've got to have somebody with you.
You've got to have somebody to be a help with you. In more traditional
churches, you talk about having a spiritual father, or sister, or
mother, you know, somebody to walk with you.

And I think that's how you can finish well.

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Video: https://sermonindex2.b-cdn.net/SBsOl9AiS4g.mp4
Source: https://sermonindex.net/speakers/pat-emerick/how-can-believers-finish-well-in-their-walks-with-the-lord/
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