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| Life is Too Short to be Selfish |
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Greetings!
Today we continue the series "Life is Too Short ..." Our topic for this devotion is selfishness versus selflessness. Jesus was selfless while we, His followers, must work hard at not being selfish! Life is too short to be selfish! To follow Jesus we must deny self, our rights, our ways, our desires, and follow Jesus!
You know, it is easy to write the words above but difficult to live by them. Life is too short to be selfish but there are so many reasons why selfishness works ... mainly - my benefit! Although selfishness may prove to fulfill the desires of this world and this fleshly body, it will never fulfill the desires and plans of Jesus for our lives. To find the peace and love Jesus offers we must stop selfishness.
In Mark 10, Jesus is discussing prideful and selfish thinking with His disciples. He provides an answer to their questions about identity and authority in heaven with the example of His life on earth. He does this by comparing their God driven accountability with the accountability and desires of the religious leaders of the day;
"43 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." Jesus led by example. Here He is, the Alpha and Omega, the Creator of the Universe, the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, stating that He came to serve. He came to be selfless and not selfish! Jesus knew, and taught, that life is too short to be selfish.
Today, our world is full of selfish people. Our churches have many selfish Christians. Still, this is not God's heart or plan for His followers. No, we are to be people that die to self and live for Christ. We are to realize that life is too short to be selfish and then to live selflessly in the world. Then, and only then, will we be different. We will be set apart. We will begin to look like Jesus! |
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Be Christlike ... Be Selfless!
1 Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, 2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. 3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. 5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; 7 rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death- even death on a cross!
~ Philippians 2:1-8 ~
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Selfless Living needs to make it into the Christmas season
In Philippians, Paul was encouraging the church of Philippi to live like Jesus. Paul starts Chapter 2 with "if-then" logic. "If" you are encouraged in Jesus, if you are blessed with His love, if you share in God's Spirit, if you have felt the compassion of God ... then, be like Him and love like He loves! Wow! That's accountability and well said. If we are in Jesus then we should love like Jesus.
Paul provides instruction on living out the love of Jesus. He tells the church, and each of us, not to be selfish. We are to act like Jesus in our relationships and look out for others more than numero uno! Be like Jesus and realize that life is too short for selfishness. Be like Jesus and have His mind by thinking selflessly.
Selfless actions come from selfless thoughts. Selfless thoughts come from God's Spirit. It is impossible to live selflessly without God's help. Everything in our human condition cries to be fed, nurtured and selfishly guarded. Without God selfless living is truly impossible. Think of it. How much of your day is devoted to self? How much of your day is devoted to others? Next, what is the source of your unselfish acts? These are great questions to make sure you are not confusing selfless living with the martyr syndrome.
The martyr syndrome is really selfishness masked in "selfless" living. When we operate in the "martyr syndrome" we are serving for our benefit and it is very prideful rather then humble. True selfless living has a purity of source that springs forth from the great love of God. Life is too short for selfish living and too short not to experience the fullness of God's love through selfless living.
As we enter the Christmas season, be mindful of selfishness and selflessness. Serve others. Pray for others. Give to others of your time, your talent and your treasure. The God of Heaven and Earth showed us the way to selfless living when He humbled Himself and left Heaven to rescue our souls. He accomplished the greatest rescue ever by coming as an infant and dying as a man. He was obedient. He lived knowing that life is too short for selfishness. He gave it all for you! May you live it all for Him! |
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For King and Kingdom,
Randy Martin |
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