Third Thursday Devo

Pose a question

How are you?

Rules

1. Be in God's story (I'm struggling with this one. Basically, we're coming together to consider how we fit into God's work in the world. We want to share stories of our lives that glorify God, show his work in us)

2. Honor other men

3. Be yourself

Devotional - Called to a higher standard

The other day me and my wife were talking about our expectations for kids. And how kids in general will often perform better if the adults around them expect a higher performance.

In fact several studies have studied the effects of academic expectations on children - and found overwhelming evidence to support that our expectations of kids have a significant impact on how they perform and behave(1).

So expectations matter and in some ways they form us.

The standards that we hold ourselves to play an important role in our behavior

and as Christians - there’s a standard that we’re being called to.

It’s a big task to define what that standard is - but Paul lays it out pretty clearly.

1 Corinthians 11:1 NASB95

1 Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.

Paul is calling us to imitate him.

That’s the standard that we’re being held to.

That’s the expectation.

And in doing so - we’ll be imitating Christ!

Sure we’ll sin and stumble along the way. Scripture promises us that.

But we’re called to imitate Christ nonetheless.

Straining towards this standard of Christ is a way of live for Christians.

It’s how we live lives that glorify the Lord - it’s how we minister to those around us. It’s how we learn to love the unlovable and forgive the unforgivable.

Paul considered it a worthy enough standard to command us all to mold our lives to follow it.

And in speaking of his own efforts to meet the standard he offers these words. They’ll probably sound pretty familiar to you.

Philippians 3:7–17 NASB95

7 But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 8 More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, 9 and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, 10 that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; 11 in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. 12 Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. 13 Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. 15 Let us therefore, as many as are perfect, have this attitude; and if in anything you have a different attitude, God will reveal that also to you; 16 however, let us keep living by that same standard to which we have attained. 17 Brethren, join in following my example, and observe those who walk according to the pattern you have in us.

So we need to be imitators of Christ - counting our earthly gain as loss in the pursuit of the standard to which we are called.

If we neglect our calling to that standard we may reap some earthly rewards.

We might get some more sleep as we neglect to wake up earlier to spend time in the scripture and prayer.

You might gain more friends if you shirk off your conscience and tacitly participate in immorality.

You might gain a false sense of peace if you slough off your responsiblity to lead your family for fear of conflict.

But hear me on this - whatever it is that you stand to gain - it’s a loss if it doesn’t help us to get closer to the standard.

The best news about this is that it’s God who works within us to accomplish His plan.

Phil 2:13 says

Philippians 2:13 NASB95

13 for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.

The reason this is good news is because we’re weak.

This scripture is telling us that we’re not doing this under our own power, but rather when we submit ourselves to God and seek to be used by the Spirit - He strengthens our hands.

So let’s rise to meet these expectations.

We as believers have a common standard that we’re held to.

Each of us are growing in our walk with the Lord in unique ways. And that leads me to the question that I wanted to pose for us tonight.

What is the unique standard that God is calling you to right now? Is there a sacrifice associated with it? Is that sacrifice worth not glorifying the Lord for?

1. Benner, A. D., & Mistry, R. S. (2007). Congruence of mother and teacher educational expectations and low-income youth's academic competence. Journal of Educational Psychology, 99(1), 140–153. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0663.99.1.140

Prayer

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Submission

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