YOUR WAY
And further, submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
Ephesians 5:21 (NLT)
Then he said to the crowd, "If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it.
Luke 9:23-24 (NLT)
Many times we hear people say, or may even think to ourselves, phrases like:
I did it my way. My way is best. I've got to do what's best for me. Don't let anyone take advantage of you.
But instead of thinking that way, what would our family, our neighborhood, our church, our nation be like if we put the needs of others before our own? What if we didn't have to win the argument or prove ourselves to be right and the other person wrong? It might seem risky to put others' needs before our own, but the Bible encourages us to do so out of reverence for Christ. What does that mean?
Since I respect, admire and trust Jesus, I want to follow His example of sacrificing my own needs for the needs of others. Since Jesus sacrificed His life for me, I can sacrifice my preferences for the preferences of others. Because Jesus requests that I love my neighbor as I love myself, I want to honor His request by prioritizing others' needs over my own.
Jesus talks often about finding life, real life. He even says that the way to experience real life is to give up our own way, our own preferences. In fact, He says the way to miss out on real life is to try to hang on to our life or to put ourselves first above everyone else. But if we trust our lives to Jesus, allowing Him to guide and provide, we will experience real life. The life of trusting Jesus brings fulfillment when we put others' needs before our own.
Out of respect and reverence for Jesus' example and His direction, and out of trust that Jesus' way is life-giving, let's submit to one another today.
APPLICATION: Ask God to show you an opportunity to put someone else's needs before your own. Consider what life would be like if that happened every day.
PRAYER: Father, thank You for sacrificing Your precious Son to save Your precious children. Give me strength today to sacrifice my own needs for others. Thanks for the life You give when I trust You. Amen.
"… Our Father in heaven…" Matthew 6:9b (NLT)
• What do You want to say to me today as my Father?
"… may your name be kept holy." Matthew 6:9c (NLT)
• What do You want to reveal to me about Your power today?
"May your Kingdom come soon." Matthew 6:10a (NLT)
• Help me make Your priorities my priorities today.
"Give us today the food we need," Matthew 6:11 (NLT)
• Is there anything specific You want me to do with my time or the people I'm around today?
"and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us" Matthew 6:12 (NLT)
• Reveal to me anyone I need to forgive or ask for forgiveness.
"And don’t let us yield to temptation…" Matthew 6:13a (NLT)
• Is there anywhere I'm vulnerable to temptation?