[Christ] died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. 2 Corinthians 5:15 (NIV)
Faith is the bond of a living union with Jesus Christ, by which Christ lives in you through the Holy Spirit. And the Christ who lives in you came into the world to serve.
Think of that picture of sin: a man bent in on himself. He is preoccupied with his own needs and problems, how other people have let him down, how he is going to make his mark in the world, and when he will get the break that he deserves. Sin has us bent in on ourselves, but Jesus came to save his people from their sins (Matthew 1:21).
When Jesus, who is not bent in on Himself, comes into a human life, what is the effect? He straightens us up. He saves us from loving, trusting, and serving ourselves. Christ lifts us up from preoccupation with ourselves, so that looking into the face of God, we are able to say, “I love you, I trust you, and I will serve you!”
In Psalm 3:3, David says, “You are the lifter up of my head.” In other words, “God, you deliver me from being consumed with myself and with my troubles. You deliver me from being my own god. You lift up my head so that, by faith, I can see You. You put your Spirit in me so that I desire to serve others.”
Faith unites us to the Christ who serves, so true faith will show itself in serving.
What is your response (thoughts/feelings) to Jesus as the lifter of your head?
