Peace that Passes All Understanding - Part 2

​“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything in prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Jesus Christ.” (Philippians 4:6-7)

Lesson 1 showed us that we must not allow circumstances to control our thinking. Rather, we are to allow our minds to be at peace knowing that God is in control of all things, even when they look bleak.  God often works through providence, turning what we see as “bad” into what he sees as “good”.  He sees it beforehand, therefore, we must be at ease and trust Him. We will look at another key to peace in this devotional.

Key #2 To Peace – The Humble Mind of a Servant (Philippians 2:1-11)

In this passage, we are taught not to do anything from pride or glory.  We are told to have a lowly mind, a mind that puts others first in all things. We must learn that the world does not revolve around us and we are not the most important person is God’s world. We are to choose to look out for the interests of others. This does not mean that we are to neglect our own needs. We are to put others first.

But let’s be honest.  Do any of us have a magic switch to be able to do this?  Can self-centered people take a pill and become unselfish and servants of others? You tell me! Because we normally don’t flip switches, we need a model to follow. Little boys don’t figure out how to fix the tractor. Their fathers must teach them. Christ must teach us to be humble and lowly. He did it by showing us the ultimate example of sacrifice and submission.  He came down from heaven to this sin filled planet. He took on human form and humiliated himself by doing so. But why did He do it? For himself? No. He did it for us. He did it to be able to serve us. The Son of God became the Son of Man to serve man. Service and humility is a key to peace. We can’t be at peace if we are arrogantly striving to control everyone and every situation. We can’t have peace if we fight and argue endlessly because we want to have “our way” like a childish brat. But do you see servants fighting? No. They are too busy serving the needs of others. There is always a need, therefore, there is always a need for service. Be a servant and imitate Jesus.