Daily Devotion (August 28, 2024)
Philippians 1:21–24
21 For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
22 But if I live on in the flesh, this will mean fruit from my labor; yet what I shall choose I cannot tell.
23 For I am hard-pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better.
24 Nevertheless to remain in the flesh is more needful for you.
Life is all about Jesus. Bottom line. Paul understood this. Paul’s goal, his mission in life was to preach Christ. Nothing he did was about Himself. His desire was to be with Christ in Heaven. There was nothing self-centered about Paul. He looked out for the spiritual needs of others.
Paul went to the churches.
Paul wrote letters to the churches.
Paul prayed for the churches.
Each of these in themselves were important. Paul was a mentor to those new to the faith. There was nothing nefarious about Paul. Everything he did was open. He led people to know Jesus and then he helped them to grow in Christ. Paul knew his life was all about Jesus.
Paul lived his life for Jesus even to the point of death. When we accepted Christ as our Savior, we were not just saying we wanted to be in Heaven with Him when we die. We also accepted Him as the Lord of our lives. Our lives took on a radical change. We, as Paul did, gave up everything. When we gave our lives to God, we gave ourselves to Him to be used by Him in whatever He chooses.
Paul was a teacher – 2 Timothy 1:11
Paul was an encourager – Acts 20:1-2
Paul was a prayer warrior – Ephesians 1:16
Paul sacrificed his life for Christ – 2 Corinthians 11:23-28
Paul was a mentor to younger leaders. – 2 Timothy 2:2; Philippians 4:9
Jesus is our Savior and Lord. Jesus is who we follow. As Paul was a mentor of Christ helping others grow in Christ, we too are to be mentors to others.
The Christian life is all about Jesus!