Philippians 2:3
“Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.” One of the most convicting verses in the Bible. Earlier this year, we discussed our reactions with a verse out of this same chapter: Philippians 2:14. As convicting as it is to read, “Do all things without murmurings or disputings:”, today’s Truth may be even harder to achieve. Paul tells us in today’s passage that we should do nothing through strife or vainglory. Jameson, Faussett & Brown’s commentary on “Let nothing be done” mentions, “It is the thought which characterizes the action as good or bad before God.” Whoa. We know that God knows our thoughts, and certainly His thoughts are higher than ours, but how many of our thoughts are contrary to this verse? Convicting isn’t it? Then we read “lowliness of mind”. How lowly are your thoughts? JF & B goes on to note that, “The man lowly of mind as to his spiritual life is independent of men, and free from all slavish feeling, while sensible of his continual dependence on God. Still it indirectly affects his behavior toward his fellow men; for conscious of his entire dependence on God for all his abilities, even as they are dependent on God for theirs, he will not pride himself on his abilities, or exalt self in his conduct toward others.” What about esteeming others better than ourselves? This does not mean to simply focus on your weaknesses and call yourself “humble”. Instead of focusing on our strengths & weaknesses, God wants us to realize other people’s strengths. True humility is not focusing on yourself at all, but rather in seeing other people’s needs and experiences. As convicting as this verse can be, it becomes overwhelming when we realize the context of this passage. The first four verses of this chapter set up the context, which is brought forth in verse 5: “Let this mind be in you…” Whose mind? “…which was also in Christ Jesus:” May our thoughts and minds be like Christ Jesus today. Bible Reading: Numbers 21-22 | Luke 22 | Psalm 40
0 Comments
2 Corinthians 4:17-18
“For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.” Though the weight you are carrying today may seem very heavy and nearly unmovable, the Apostle Paul describes our affliction as “light”. You may feel that the battle you are facing today is anything but light! The Lord understands that feeling, but thankfully the verse does not stop there. The next phrase reminds us that though we are afflicted, it is “but for a moment”. Our battle is temporary! Not only is it temporary, but it is also promised to work “for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory”. The load we carry in our daily lives cannot compare to the glory that it will bring Him in eternity. The circumstances we see around us are temporary, but thanks be to God that those things that He provides for us that we cannot see are eternal! Be encouraged today that not matter what you are facing, it is “but for a moment”… our time is running short, and our Lord will soon be coming for us in the air! “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” I Corinthians 15:52 Bible Reading: Numbers 19-20 | Luke 21 | Psalm 39 2 Corinthians 1:3-5
“Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ.” Are you hurting today? We serve the God of all comfort. Let’s see what the word comfort means: Comfort: to give strength and hope; to ease the grief or trouble Then if we serve the God of all comfort, and we do, this tells us that He is able to give us strength and hope when we need it the most. He is also able to ease our grief and make our troubles cease. Have you ever wrapped a comforter around you on a dark and cold night? The warmth and relaxation provided by that quilt as it wraps around you helps us forget how cold and dark it is outside. When we allow God to comfort us, He will wrap His loving arms around us, providing strength to make it through the storms of life. No matter what you dealing with today: confusion, sadness, persecution, oppression, trouble, etc. God is willing and able to comfort you. He allows us to suffer so that we may be partakers of Christ’s sufferings, and be able to comfort us so that we may have peace and comfort others. “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 Bible Reading: Numbers 17-18 | Luke 20 | Psalm 38 Isaiah 55:8-9
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.” For those times in our life when we don’t understand why things happen the way they do, may we always remember that His ways and His thoughts are higher than ours. When we focus on the disappointments, we forget that God is in control. Things may not work out how we had hoped, planned, or prayed for, but God is always working things for our good! Imagine what Joseph must have thought when he was forsaken by his brothers, and cast into a pit. He then ended up being sold, working for Potiphar, and then cast into a prison. Those dark times weren’t what Joseph had planned, but God was working things for his good. When God has another plan… We can walk in faith, believing He is knows what is best for us. We can trust Him despite our confusion. We can rest in His sufficient grace. Our circumstances may be dark and lonely… but God has another plan. Like Joseph, God is using the difficulties we are facing today to one day bring us to a palace of our own, whether here or there. Trust the Lord today, and remember that His ways and His thoughts are higher than ours. Bible Reading: Numbers 15-16 | Luke 19 | Psalm 37 Proverbs 16:9
“A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps.” Isn’t it funny how many times throughout our lives we think we have our life all figured out? The job we will have, the person we will marry, the kids we will raise, the house we will live in, and so on, and so on. Too often in our lives we let our heart’s desire guide our way without even consulting the Lord about what He would have us to do. What does the Bible say about our heart? In Jeremiah 17:9, we see that our heart is deceitful and desperately wicked. Can you look back over your life and see how the Lord has directed your steps? That person you thought for sure you would marry…they are now off the deep end. That job you wanted…it would have prevented you from doing what God has called you to do. That disappointment you faced… turns out it prepared you for what the Lord knew you would need later in life. Sometimes the Lord lets us look at our life from the Shepherd’s point of view, and allows us to see the big picture that God saw from the beginning. What in your life has the Lord directed you away from? What has He directed you to? Our flesh often times thinks that it knows what we need, and always leads us to destruction; but if we follow the Lord and His direction for us, we cannot fail. Resist the temptation to manipulate and plan for the future you think you want or need. Seek the Lord, and His guidance while placing your life into His hands. His ways are higher than our ways. Bible Reading: Numbers 13-14 | Luke 18 | Psalm 36 Ecclesiastes 4:12
“…and a threefold cord is not quickly broken.” Threads are easily broken. When a thread stands alone, it is not nearly as strong as it can be when it is banded together with other threads to form a rope or cord. The illustration that Solomon gives us in the fourth chapter of Ecclesiastes shows us what type of relationships the Lord wants us to have. We find in verses 9 & 10, “Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour. For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up.” The Lord wants us to have friendship and communion with different people along our journey. He wants us to choose fellowship over isolation. “Two are better than one…” The Lord puts people in our life for a reason. It might be for a short season, or a lifetime, but He brings us to certain people right when we need it the most…to fulfill His purpose. A family member, a friend, a coworker, a significant other, a spouse… with the mention of these, faces fill our minds of those that the Lord has brought across our path in one way or another. In verse 12, we see the illustration for the foundation of any successful relationship: “…a threefold cord is not quickly broken.” Picture an unbraided rope with three strands… one of the strands represents you; another represents someone that God has placed in your life… that family member, that friend, that significant other. The third Strand stays in the middle while the other two strands are braided around It. When completed, you would have a much stronger rope than you would if each of the three strands were on their own. When we wrap our relationships with people around the Lord, we have a threefold cord that is not quickly broken. Think of a past relationship that did not have Christ at the center of it. Was it successful? Most likely it was easily broken. We need partners in the ministry. “After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two by two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come.” Luke 10:1 We need someone to encourage us to keep going. “Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.” Proverbs 27:17 We need someone to rebuke us when we are wrong. “Faithful are the wounds of a friend…” Proverbs 27:6 We need someone to always point us to Him. “Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another…” I Thessalonians 5:11 If we put Jesus Christ at the center of every relationship, we will find that our threefold cord is not quickly broken, and that it gives God the glory He deserves. Bible Reading: Numbers 11-12 | Luke 17 | Psalm 35 Psalm 18:18-19
“…but the LORD was my stay. He brought me forth also into a large place; he delivered me, because he delighted in me.” Why did the Lord deliver David? Because the Lord delighted in David. Isn’t it amazing to think that the Lord delights in us? David didn’t earn the Lord’s delight by his merit, it was by God’s grace. He was a man after God’s own heart. He was seeking the Lord and delighting himself in the Lord, therefore the Lord delighted also in him. We read in our theme verse, Psalm 37:4, that we should “Delight thyself also in the LORD”. Like David, if we will delight ourselves in Him, He will be delighted in us. This is not because we deserve it; we are nothing outside of Him. But through God’s unmerited favor, we can find Him delighting in us as we delight in Him. Our Saviour reciprocates our delight. How encouraging that is to know! Delight in Him today, and remind yourself that He delights in you too. He will deliver us from the storms of our lives because of His delight in us. Bible Reading: Numbers 9-10 | Luke 16 | Psalm 34 I Kings 17:8-16
“And the word of the Lord came unto him, saying, Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee. So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, the widow woman was there gathering of sticks: and he called to her, and said, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink. And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her, and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand. And she said, As the Lord thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die. And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; go and do as thou hast said: but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son. For thus saith the Lord God of Israel, The barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the Lord sendeth rain upon the earth. And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days. And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord, which he spake by Elijah.” There were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, but unto none of them was he sent except into Zarephath where this simple widowed woman lived with her son. They did not have much. In fact, they had so little that because of the drought that was upon the land, they were down to their last meal. This woman went to gather sticks knowing that she and her son were about to starve to death after they ate their little cake. Yet, as she was gathering the sticks, she heard a man speak to her, asking her to fetch him a little water since he was thirsty. She had never met the man, but she kindly went to grant him his request. As she went, he spoke again asking for a morsel of bread in addition to the water. She then explained her situation. Elijah was a man of such faith that he predicted the three-year drought in the land of Israel. This was the man that would pray fire and rain down from heaven. Although he heard the woman’s plea due to her situation, he knew that this was the woman that God said He would use to sustain him. He asked for a cake first, and despite knowing the amount of her supply, the woman gave him a cake first. God honored her sacrifice. Throughout the rest of the drought, the woman’s barrel of meal and cruse of oil never failed. She, her son, and Elijah were sustained because she did what the Lord asked of her. She did what she could. What could God do through us if we would only do the simple things He asks us to do? This widow was not only sustained by the Lord in her meals, but also after her son fell sick and there was no breath left in him she witnessed a miracle. God used Elijah to heal and revive the child and restored her son unto the woman. When we obey the Lord, we too can see Him work miracles in our lives. Whatever your need today, He can supply it. Whatever your hurt, He can heal it. Whatever your storm, He can speak peace in the midst of it. He can sustain us today to press on through our trial, if only we would put Him first in our lives. Bible Reading: Numbers 7-8 | Luke 15 | Psalm 33 Romans 8:28-31
“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified. What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?” When we are in the middle of a trial or a period of tribulation, we often forget the Truth of this passage of Scripture. Whatever your struggle, your storm, your valley… God is working it together for your good, and ultimately for His glory. If you’re focused on the wind and the waves of the storm you are enduring, remind yourself of how Peter had the courage to walk on the water and he didn’t start sinking until he took his eyes off of the Master of the Sea. If you will fix your eyes on Him, the Author and the Finisher of your faith, you like Peter can walk on the water of your stormy sea. Notice that after the Scripture encourages us “that all things work together for good to them that love God” the Lord then reminds us of our progressive transformation through Christ Jesus: God first foreknew us before the foundation of the world. He also predestinated us to be conformed to the image of His Son. He then called us to know and serve Him, while justifying us. Notice the tense of this verse. We are called, justified, and glorified. In the past tense this tells us that in the mind of God, He has already allowed those things to take place in us. As He sees us through the blood of His Son, Jesus Christ, we are called, justified, and glorified. Hallelujah! Because we are called, justified, and glorified, what can we say? “If God be for us, who can be against us?” Maybe the valley you are walking through began because you’ve been hurt by someone. This verse reminds us that no matter what people may throw at us, with God on our side we cannot be defeated. The circumstances surrounding you right now may seem hopeless and without end, but God is for you! Let Him do the fighting. There is a great reminder of this in Exodus 14:14, “The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.” Remind yourself today that through Christ you are called, justified, and glorified by God. He has made us His children, joint heirs with Jesus Christ. And because we love God and are called according to his purpose, He is working all things together for our good, and for His glory. Bible Reading: Numbers 5-6 | Luke 14 | Psalm 32 Psalm 12:6-7
“The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.” Praise the Lord for this promise that He will preserve His Word! Without this promise, we would not have the Word of God today. But thanks be to God that He has continued to preserve and protect the Scriptures so that we can have Them. Many people gave their lives so that we could have our Bible today. What if you were not privileged to have a copy of God’s Word? There are many people across the world that do not have access to their own Bible. We in America most likely have several Copies, and yet we forsake to open and read It every day. What a pity that is when millions of people are praying for their own copy of God’s Word. As we pray for labourers, we should also pray for those who do not have a Bible to receive one. With the promise that God has preserved His Word, we have even more evidence that there is only one True Word of God. As bookstores and websites contain countless versions does this not lead to confusion when we seek to find God’s Preserved and Inspired Word? We find in I Corinthians 14:33, “God is not the author of confusion…” This tells us that the confusion in the world today over the correct Bible to use did not come from God. The god of this world has blinded the eyes and minds of those that may have a form of godliness, but deny the power thereof. When Satan approached Eve in the garden, his first subtle tactic was to question the very Word of God. He asked Eve, “Yea, hath God said…” From the Garden of Eden the Truth of God’s Word has been questioned. Do you question the Word of God today? Within It’s pages you will find the answer to every problem you face. Seek the Lord through His Word, and thank Him for preserving It throughout the ages so that you could have your own Bible. Bible Reading: Numbers 3-4 | Luke 13 | Psalm 31 |
Archives
January 2021
Philippians 4:17Copyright © 2020
Delight Thyself Design Ministries, Inc. All rights reserved. |