-September 18, 2020-
Good morning, happy Friday,
-It Not About Us But About Others-
“Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each you esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.”
We live in a very selfish, self-centered world. The world tells us to “look out for number one.” The goal is to get as much as we can for ourselves, rely on ourselves, and not to let anyone get in our way. In the world, the one with the most toys wins.
Then along came Jesus who taught unselfishness, humility, and serving others. He showed people that there is greatness in serving others and self must be denied in order to achieve it. Today’s text is Christian philosophy at its highest and its best. The acronym J-O-Y is so encouraging: Jesus first, others second, yourself last. This is true joy!
When Paul got saved, the Lord taught him humility and unselfishness. He was once a proud, young Pharisee. He was so well educated, highly knowledgeable, and successful in Judaism. The Lord turned him into a humble, unselfish, servant of Christ who lived for Christ and others.
Paul uses the word “let” three times to express how we should live in this world. We have two natures: the old nature which wants its own way, the things of man, and to please self; the new nature wants God’s will and way, to serve the Lord, please Him, and to build up and serve others. There is a constant spiritual conflict between the two natures.
• Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit – There is no room for self, ego, pride, conceit, or arrogance. The world doesn’t revolve around us. Everything we have belongs to the Lord and comes from the Lord. We must give Him all the glory and use what we have to help others.
• Let each esteem others better than himself – This really runs against the grain of our old nature. We are taught by the world how good we are and to strive to be number one. To have lowliness of mind to give credit to others, their suggestions, ideas, and accomplishments. It is one thing to esteem others the same as ourselves, but quite another to esteem them better than ourselves.
• Let each of you not only look out for his own interests but also for the interests of others – We are good at looking out for our own families and their wellbeing, our own stuff, and our own interests, but not nearly as good at looking out for the interests of others. Only Christians can rejoice with those rejoice and weep with those who weep. It takes grace to be just as happy when others succeed as we are when we succeed.
May the Lord help us to live for Christ and for others. Let us be genuinely humble, unselfish, and caring toward others, seeking their best interests as well as our own. It isn’t easy to esteem others better than ourselves and to deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Christ but it the only thing to do.
Have a blessed day in unselfishness, humility, and seeking the welfare of others. Stay safe and healthy.
Dean
Dean Allen's Daily Devotional 