September 7, 2019 Our Daily Bread Devotional : Topic - Walking Backward

--> Note :- Are you born again? You are never going to win the battle against the devil if you are not born again. I plead with you to give your life to Jesus today because the longer you stay in sin and remain unsaved, the more hardened your nature becomes against the purpose and the way God wants you to be for His purpose. To give your life to Jesus now, say this prayer: “Father, I come to You in the name of Jesus. I know that I am a sinner and I cannot save myself but Jesus died for me and shed His blood that I might be saved. Today, I accept Jesus as my Lord and Saviour. Jesus, I ask You to come into my heart, be my Lord, wash me with Your blood and make me whole. I believe with my heart and confess with my mouth that Jesus is my Lord. Thank You for saving me. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.” I congratulate you and welcome you to the family of God if you have sincerely said that prayer. Now you are fit to discover, know and walk in your destiny. Call our helpline on +2348037252124, Join Our Daily Whatsapp Devotionals Group : +2347033046607 for Daily Devotionals, crucial discipleship and counselling.s"
September 7, 2019 Our Daily Bread Devotional : Topic - Walking Backward




Rather, [Jesus] made himself nothing.

Philippians 2:7





Today's ScripturePhilippians 2:1–11 (NIV)


Insight

In Philippians 2:1–11, Paul calls believers to live counter-culturally. He wasn’t naive about the capacity for believers to live driven by “selfish ambition” (v. 3), by a self-interested need for power or control. It would be only natural for the Philippian believers to continue the habits learned in their culture, which Paul described as a “warped and crooked generation” (v. 15).

But Paul urged them to learn to live “worthy of the gospel of Christ” (1:27). And in chapter 2, he paints a stunning picture of the life believers are invited into, one of radical self-giving love (vv. 1–4). Living in a community marked by unity, joy, and freedom is only possible when we follow the example of Christ (v. 5) and remain rooted in, nourished by, and sustained by the Spirit (v. 1).

I stumbled upon footage from a British newsreel crew who filmed six-year-old Flannery O’Connor on her family farm in 1932. Flannery, who would go on to become an acclaimed US writer, caught the crew’s curiosity because she’d taught a chicken to walk backward. Apart from the novelty of the feat, I thought this glimpse of history was a perfect metaphor. Flannery, due to both her literary sensibilities and her spiritual convictions, spent her thirty-nine years definitely walking backward—thinking and writing in a counter-cultural way. Publishers and readers were entirely baffled by how her biblical themes ran counter to the religious views they expected.

A life that runs counter to the norm is inevitable for those who would truly imitate Jesus. Philippians tells us that Jesus, though His “very nature” was God, didn’t move in the predictable ways we would expect (2:6). He didn’t use His power “to his own advantage,” but “rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant” (vv. 6–7). Christ, the Lord of creation, surrendered to death for the sake of love. He didn’t seize prestige but embraced humility. He didn’t grab power but relinquished control. Jesus, in essence, walked backward—counter to the power-driven ways of the world.

Scripture tells us to do the same (v. 5). Like Jesus, we serve rather than dominate. We move toward humility rather than prominence. We give rather than take. In Jesus’s power, we walk backward.

Reflect & Pray

How has Jesus demonstrated a way of walking backward in the world? Where is God calling you to live out Christ’s humble example?
The only way to healing and goodness, the only way to move forward, is to join Jesus in walking backward.
September 7, 2019 Our Daily Bread Devotional : Topic - Walking Backward September 7, 2019 Our Daily Bread Devotional : Topic - Walking Backward Reviewed by Muyiwa Abodunrin (Muyilight) on September 07, 2019 Rating: 5

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