LAMENTATIONS 3:22-24 – The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.”

I am about to share two truths that shouldn’t be great revelations to the believer, but they are to be often thought of by every believer. The first one is found in the Apostle Peter’s first letter. It is the truth we are not our own, but God’s purchased possession – all of us, all the time – But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light (1 Peter 2:9).

The second truth comes from the pen of the Apostle Paul and is the application from Peter’s revealed truth; we no longer live for ourselves – For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised (2 Corinthians 5:14-15). Now we come to a look at our own hearts and lives.

Are we living as owned by God’s people who structure our lives around the interests of Christ and others? One of the greatest results from God saving us is the breaking of the sinful chains of self-centered living. Christ has set us free from the bondage of self so that we might walk in the newness of life centered on serving Him which is manifested in serving others. Do these experiences describe our understanding and living of the Christian life? Again from the Apostle Paul, we receive instructions pointing to this death to self and alive to Christ for the sake of others type of Christian living – Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men (Philippians 2:4-7).

When we survey our lives, here is the proper perspective to hold. Each day a Christian is given life by the Lord is to be a day we are to impact a life for the Lord. We live by Him, through Him, for Him, and that in the lives of other people. And don’t look for some “extraordinary” service to perform to make a difference for Christ. A kind word, a gentle touch, a sacrificial deed, an uplifting note, a loving act, and an encouraging outreach of concern to another person in Jesus’ name will produce far-reaching results, bring great pleasure to the Lord, and deepen our joy in Him (Matthew 25:31-46).

So, each new day. Let it begin with the awareness we are not our own and thus we live not for ourselves, but for Him who owns us and the good of others.

PRAYER: “Father, help me to see that my life is not only Yours but I exist for the betterment of others.”

QUOTE: “When Jesus bought us with His blood, the greatest freedom we received is the freedom from our selfishness.”

Because of Him,

Pastor Jim