Every Knee Will Bow

Because of Christ's humble obedience to the point of death on the cross, God the Father exalted Him to the highest place (indicating supremacy/preeminence) and gave Him the name that is above every name (indicating power, glory, and honor that's higher than any other). "The God of our ancestors raised Jesus from the dead--whom you killed by hanging Him on a cross. God exalted Him to His own right hand as Prince and Savior that He might bring Israel to repentance and forgive their sins." (Acts 5:30-31) "He exerted when He raised Christ from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come." (Ephesians 1:20-21) "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under Heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12) "She will give birth to a son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:21) "The name of the Lord is a fortified tower; the righteous run to it and are safe." (Proverbs 18:10) Indeed, Jesus is the greatest and sweetest Name of all!

God's Word tells us that one day every knee (no exception whatsoever) will bow to Jesus and every tongue will acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord. Every creature in Heaven, on earth, and in Hell, will bow in submission to Jesus. Sadly, many people still go on living their lives without acknowledging Jesus as their Lord and Savior. They don't realize that they, too, will bow to Jesus, whether willingly or not. May we sense the urgency to share the gospel with the unsaved! "I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation." (2 Corinthians 6:2b) They need to repent of their sins, trust in Christ as Savior, and submit to Him as Lord...before it's too late.

Paul tried to encourage the believers to embrace Christlike humility by pointing out how Christ was highly exalted by God the Father after He greatly humbled Himself for us. "Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you up in due time." (1 Peter 5:6) If you humble yourselves, in order to maintain and preserve peace and unity within the Body of Christ, God will honor you.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, I'm eternally grateful for Your death on the cross that paid the penalty for my sins! May I live to glorify and magnify Your Name! I surrender all to You; please have Your way in me. Please transform my mind and attitude to be like Yours. Help me be humble and teachable. Use me, Lord, to spread the gospel and lead others to You. In Your precious Name, I pray. Amen.

Unity Through Humility

"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others." (Philippians 2:3-4)

Once again Paul called for unity; he told the believers in Philippi that they could make his joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. Then he proceeded to tell them how they could achieve this unity. Selfish ambition (selfishness/self-gain) and vain conceit (pridefulness/self-importance) are unity killers. "Whereas selfish ambition pursues personal goals, empty conceit seeks personal glory and acclaim. The former pertains to personal accomplishments; the latter to an over inflated self-image. Understandably, a person with such conceit considers himself always to be right and expects others to agree with him. The only unity he seeks or values is centered on himself." (MacArthur) Paul wanted us to see that in order to have unity, we must get rid of self-centeredness and arrogance. Preoccupation with self destroys the unity among the Body of Christ. Humility is the antidote for vain conceit and consideration for others is the antidote for selfish ambition. We should not focus on our own needs & interests and become completely absorbed by our own concerns. Instead, we should be considerate of others and seek to meet the needs of others. "Consider the rights of others before your own feelings, and the feelings of others before your own rights." (John R. Wooden) "It is not a weak man’s surrender, but a strong man’s rejection of selfishness and determination to be actively concerned with the needs and interests of others." (Richards) "Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves." (Romans 12:10) 

Humility means realizing that "our competence comes from God." (2 Corinthians 3:5) Humility means being willing to selflessly do any task God has given us. Don't be envious of what gifts God gives others and/or how He uses them to do His kingdom work. Humility means recognizing that we are not infallible. In other words, be teachable no matter how old we are or how many years we have been Christians for. Get rid of superior attitude, prejudice, and boasting. True humility is about self-denial. To put others above ourselves is contrary to our human nature and can only be accomplished by the power of the indwelling Spirit in us.  "Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other." (Galatians 5:25-26) "Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace." (Ephesians 4:2-3)

"Humility does not mean thinking less of yourself than of other people, nor does it mean having a low opinion of your own gifts. It means freedom from thinking about yourself at all." (William Temple)

"Humble yourself and cease to care what men think. A meek man is not a human mouse afflicted with a sense of his own inferiority. Rather,...he has stopped being fooled about himself. He knows well that the world will never see him as God sees him and he has stopped caring. He has obtained a place of soul rest. The old struggle to defend himself is over." (A.W. Tozer) 


"It is in seeing others as persons of great worth because they are loved by God and in seeing ourselves as their servants that we find the fulfilling lifestyle of humility." (Larry Richards)

Christians are to move from self-seeking/self-promotion to self-denial and servanthood. Want true joy? "J.O.Y." "J" for Jesus first, "O" for others next, and "Y" for yourselves last.

"As we esteem others better, we will naturally have a concern for their needs and concerns; this sort of outward looking mentality naturally leads to a unity among the people of God. If I am considering you above me, and you are considering me above you, a marvelous thing happens: we have a community where everyone is looked up to, and no one is looked down on." (Guzik) Humility brings unity!

Test of true humility:

"First, the test of precedence:

'Do you feel badly when others are honored, because they outshine you?'

Second, the test of sincerity:

'All too often, people say things about themselves to sound humble, when they really are not.'

Third, the test of criticism:

'Do you react unfavorably when someone points out your shortcomings?'

If you gave yourself a perfect score on this test, you failed the test of humility." (Richard DeHaan)

Beware of false humility--When you are proud of your humility, that's false humility. When you try to appear humble so that others think you're humble, that's false humility. False humility is self-centered; true humility is God-centered.

To ponder: Do we care too much about our own comfort, pleasure, and recognition? Do we seek approval, appreciation, and admiration from others more than seeking to encourage, edify, and serve others? Are we quick to give grace and forgiveness or quick to judge and criticize? Is our motive and attitude "What can I get out of this?" or "What can I do for you?"?

Prayer: Abba Father, please forgive me for my pride and selfishness that keep rearing their ugly heads from time to time. Please help me be able to continually die to self and put others above myself. Please instill in me Christlike humility and love. Please empower me to faithfully and joyfully put Philippians 2:3-4 into practice in my daily life. In Jesus' Name, I pray. Amen.

Philippians 1 in Poem

What God begins, He will complete
He is working in you and me
When you feel you trudge through life in defeat
Remember He's not yet finished with you or me

May your love abound more and more continually
May God bless you with wisdom and insight
May you be pure and blameless for the day of Christ
May you bear much fruit for God's praise and glory

God's children never suffer in vain
He uses our trials and our pain
To encourage others to persevere
To proclaim the gospel without fear

Rejoice when Christ is preached
Rejoice when lost souls are reached
Messengers' motives may not be right
Leave it to God; it's not our fight

If you want lasting joy, focus on Jesus
Be daring like Paul who was confident
To live is all for Christ; to die is gaining Heaven
We are one with the Victor; nothing can defeat us

May we live worthy of the gospel of Christ
May we stand firm and faithful day and night
May we work together with one heart and mind
May we unite to share the Gospel and His light to shine

~ Copyright 2017 Urailak Liljequist

To Live Worthy of the Gospel of Christ

"For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain...
Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel." (Philippians 1:21, 27)

For Paul, to die is gain because he would be with Christ in Heaven for eternity and to live is all about Christ (he lived to proclaim Christ and the gospel of Christ). "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God,who loved me and gave himself for me." (Galatians 2:20) 

"It did not matter what anyone did to this man, he loved God and continued to show it in every possible way. We see Paul's gospel fixation echoed throughout his letter to the Philippians. He is the man who when threatened says, 'Well, to die is gain.' In response his captors will say, 'We'll torture you, then.' He says, 'I don't count the present suffering as worthy to even compare to the future glory.' You can't win with a guy like this. If you want to kill him, he's cool with that because it means he gets to be with Jesus. If you want to make him suffer, he's cool with that, so long as it makes him like Jesus. If you want to let him live, he's fine with that, because to him, 'to live is Christ.' Paul is, as Richard Sibbes says of everyone united with Christ, a man who 'can never be conquered.'" (Matt Chandler)

"He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose." (Jim Elliot)

Since Paul's main reason for remaining on earth is for their spiritual growth in Christ and joy in the faith, he encouraged the believers in Philippi to live in a manner worthy of their Heavenly citizenship and of the gospel of Christ. Essentially, we are to walk the talk and live what we believe. "Our manner of life either helps or hinders the Gospel. It either recommends the truth to others or else makes the truth repulsive. Paul is pleading for Gospel-worthy Christians who will carry on for Jesus Christ without the prop of the apostle's presence. Paul is saying, "Live for Christ whether I am with you or absent from you." (Ron Mattoon) Our lives should reflect Christ and testify of the gospel's transforming power. A life worthy of the gospel is a life lived in the power of the Holy Spirit. "I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace." (Ephesians 4:1-3) 

Paul wanted them to stand firm/faithful in one spirit (focusing on our unity with Christ) and to work/strive together with one mind (having the same purpose) as one team for the advancement of the gospel (focusing on our unity with one another which flows out of our unity with Christ). The Body of Christ's unity was very important to Paul and to Christ Himself, as reflected in His prayer to the Father in John 17:23, "May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that You sent Me and have loved them even as You have loved Me.” Disunity among God's children mars the gospel testimony and gives unbelievers excuses to not believe. We must not fight each other but should unite to fight against our common enemy. Don’t waste your time and energy on foolish arguments and on things that don’t contribute to advancing the gospel. Satan loves to divide God's children because he knows that “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand." (Matthew 12:25). We are stronger when we stand together!

Dietrich Bonhoeffer gave seven principles that help Christians live together. He said that Christians should:
"1. Hold their tongues, refusing to speak uncharitably about a Christian brother;
2. Cultivate the humility that comes from understanding that they, like Paul, are the greatest sinners and can only live in God’s sight by his grace;
3. Listen “long and patiently” so that they will understand their fellow Christian’s need;
4. Refuse to consider their time and calling so valuable that they cannot be interrupted to help with unexpected needs, no matter how small or menial;
5. Bear the burden of their brothers and sisters in the Lord, both by preserving their freedom and by forgiving their sinful abuse of that freedom;
6. Declare God’s word to their fellow believers when they need to hear it;
7. Understand that Christian authority is characterized by service and does not call attention to the person who performs the service."

To ponder: Is our conduct congruent with our creed? Does the way we live correspond with the gospel we share? 

Prayer: "May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." (Romans 15:5-6)

Summum Bonum: Christ Is Proclaimed

What really mattered to Paul was the message rather than the messengers' motives. Paul rejoiced because Christ was being proclaimed, the Gospel was being advanced, and the lost was being saved even if some preachers' motives were wrong/impure (such as envy, rivalry, selfish ambition). Motives do matter to God. However, Paul chose to leave that matter in God's hand and focus on the preaching of Christ and His Gospel, instead. Nothing could rob Paul of his joy in the Lord. Where your focus is will influence your response to trials and difficulties. Paul's focus on Christ & His Gospel never wavered and that's why his joy was not disturbed even in the midst of his afflictions...even when some tried to stir up trouble for him. His ultimate goal ("Christ is preached") was still achieved; therefore, he was filled with joy. Paul's attitude reminded me of this verse, "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." (Genesis 50:20) 

We must care more about sound theology than we care about the motives or the methods of those who preach/teach it. Like Paul, let us resolve to rejoice as long as the true Gospel of Jesus Christ is proclaimed, no matter who gets the credit or how it's accomplished.

To ponder: Where is your focus in life? How does it affect your response to trials and difficulties?

Prayer: Abba Father, may my focus always be all of Christ through all of me at all times in all circumstances! Thank You for the deep, sweet joy in exalting Christ, proclaiming Christ, and leading people to Christ! Please use me, including my trials, for Your glory and Your kingdom. And help me rejoice with others when You use them to carry out Your kingdom's work. In Christ's Name, I pray. Amen.

Proclaim the Gospel Without Fear

You never know how God may use your trials and hardships to encourage others and to further His kingdom. I believe that we, Christ's followers, never suffer in vain. Even during Paul's house arrest in Rome, God still used him to share the gospel (with Roman soldiers) and write letters. Seeing Paul keep his faith steadfast and persevere in proclaiming the gospel despite his dire circumstances, many believers gained fresh confidence in the Lord and became bolder in telling others about Christ without fear. Their own faith was strengthened by Paul's faithful, fearless example. Their vision was fueled by Paul's passion. They realized that because of his imprisonment, Paul could not go outside to share the gospel on the streets. Therefore, they were moved to step up and take over this responsibility. Enthusiasm is contagious. Faith is encouraging. Courage is inspiring. Often stories of the persecuted Christians inspire some timid, silent Christians to step out of their comfort zone and to take the Great Commission seriously. 

"A soul all on flame has power to kindle others." (Alexander Maclaren)

"Our walk (especially, our attitude) always has an effect, not only on the lost, but also on the Lord’s people. If we’re cheerfully trusting in the loving sovereignty of God in the midst of trials, as Paul did, we proclaim the reality of faith in Christ both to the lost and to the saved. Lost people will want to know why we’re different, why we don’t complain like everyone else. The Lord’s people who are discouraged will see our faith in God in the midst of trials and be encouraged to trust Him and bear witness for Him." (Steven Cole)

To ponder: Are you willing to share God's Word and tell others about Christ with boldness even though you may face possible danger, opposition, ridicule, problems, and persecution? Can people tell that you are passionate/enthusiastic about spreading the gospel?

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for Your constant, comforting presence in my life! I know You're with me in the fire and in the storm, loving, guiding, and sustaining me. Please show me how to use my trials as opportunities to proclaim the gospel and to exalt & honor You. Please empower me to be a bold witness for You, come what may. Make me a flaming soul that will set this world on fire for Jesus! May I radiate out the warmth of Your love and truth and thus draw others to want to know You! Please watch over Your persecuted children around the world and enable them to stay strong & steadfast in their faith and in their furtherance of the gospel. In Jesus' Name, I pray. Amen.

P.S. I hope this video will inspire you to go and tell the world about Jesus :)! 

Pray for Abundant Agape

With a shepherd's love for his flock, Paul prayed this beautiful prayer of spiritual growth for the believers in Philippi. He prayed that their agape (unconditional, selfless, sacrificial love) will keep increasing abundantly/exceedingly. Biblical love is not blind. This love is to be built on knowledge (of God and His Word) and depth of insight (spiritual & moral discernment). As a result (purpose of this growing in God's love), it leads to right decision (ability to evaluate what is best), right motives (pure, sincere) and right conduct (blameless integrity, not causing others to stumble), filled with the fruit of righteousness (the fruit of the Spirit) that comes through (our union with) Jesus Christ. All this is to bring God glory and praise.

We should follow Paul's example of praying for spiritual blessings (we tend to pray more for physical needs and material blessings). This is a wonderful prayer we should pray for ourselves and for one another.

Prayer: Lord, may our hearts overflow with Your love and our mind be filled with Your wisdom and discernment! May the fruit of the Spirit be evident in our lives! May You be glorified and magnified in our words, thoughts, decisions, motives, and actions!

God Will Finish What He Started

"Being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." (Philippians 1:6 NIV)

Paul was confident (no doubt, whatsoever) of this truth; we should be, too. God is dependable; He always keeps His promises and finishes what He starts. God is mighty to save us, transform us, sanctify us, strengthen us, sustain us, equip us (to serve Him), and conform us to the image of Jesus Christ. God faithfully continues His work in us until the day we see Christ face-to-face. He never gives up on us. He doesn't just save us and then leave us to fend for ourselves on our way to Heaven. God not only begins the good work of salvation (regeneration), but also continues to work in us (sanctification) and guarantees to bring it to completion (glorification) which includes eternal security. He is with us every step of the way, helping us in our faith journey and pursuit of holiness. As we surrender our lives (and wills) to Him, He gives us the desire and the power to live a godly life that pleases and honors Him. His omnipotence, omnipresence, dependability, and faithfulness give us confidence (to persevere), comfort, peace, and joy. However, this wonderful promise by no means negates the fact that we are called to be active instruments (to live out our faith in action/obedience).

Since sanctification is a lifetime process of spiritual growth (we're God's works in progress), we must be patient with our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ as we all grow spiritually at different rates. God has not finished with us yet. Understanding this should help us be empathetic, gracious, forgiving, and hopeful towards one another. By the way, we (esp. those of us who are perfectionists) must be patient with ourselves, too :). Don't listen to the Enemy's lies of discouragement and defeat. Be encouraged and remember that God is not finished with you yet.

"The Lord will perfect that which concerns me;
Your mercy, O Lord, endures forever;
Do not forsake the works of Your hands."
(Psalm 138:8)

"Listen to Me, you descendants of Jacob,
all the remnant of the people of Israel,
you whom I have upheld since your birth,
and have carried since you were born.
Even to your old age and gray hairs
I am He, I am He who will sustain you.
I have made you and I will carry you; 
I will sustain you and I will rescue you." 
(Isaiah 46:3-4)

"The work which His goodness began,
The arm of His strength will complete;
His promise is Yea and Amen,
And never was forfeited yet."
(Augustus M. Toplady) 

Prayer: Abba Father, thank You for giving us such an encouraging promise and for always keeping Your promises! It gives me such joy to know that You've got my back, You are working in me, and You will keep me for eternity. Please mold me to be like Christ and help me bear much fruit for Your glory and Your kingdom. Thank You for being patient with me! Please help me be patient with my children when they get off track in their spiritual walk and give me wisdom how to gently & lovingly guide them back and encourage them. In Jesus' Name, I pray. Amen.