Devotional Series Oct 19-22
This Devotional Series is based on a message delivered on Oct 18, 2026, and can be viewed at: https://www.kallamgrove.org/messages/the-mind-of-christ/
Jesus was God; He didn’t use His position for His own advantage.
Philippians 2:5–6
Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped.
Have you ever noticed how difficult it can be to give up something you have a right to? Maybe you’ve earned recognition for something you accomplished. Maybe you have the authority to make a decision, or you simply know you’re right in a disagreement. There’s nothing necessarily wrong with those things. But when we become more concerned about what we deserve than about the people around us, something begins to change in our hearts. We start holding on a little tighter.
That’s what makes Paul’s description of Jesus so remarkable. Jesus didn’t have to prove His importance or fight for recognition. He already possessed everything that made Him worthy of worship. He was God, yet He didn’t use His position for His own advantage. Instead, He chose to serve. And Paul tells us to have that same attitude toward one another.
What might that look like today? It might mean helping someone when you feel you’ve already done your share, letting someone else receive the credit, or choosing not to insist on having the last word. Jesus didn’t serve because He lacked importance. He served because He was completely secure in who He was. And when we know that we belong to Christ, we don’t have to spend our lives protecting our importance either. We are free to love, to serve, and to give.
Reflection Question: Is there something you’ve been holding tightly because you believe you deserve it, when Christ might be calling you to put someone else first?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, help me become secure enough in Your love to serve others without insisting on my own way. Amen.
Jesus Christ, who was fully God, became fully human.
Philippians 2:7
But emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.
Most of us know what it’s like to feel that nobody understands what we’re going through. Perhaps you’ve experienced a loss that others quickly moved past, or you’ve tried explaining a problem to someone who just didn’t seem to understand. Sometimes even the people who love us most cannot fully grasp what we’re feeling. And in those moments, it’s easy to wonder whether God understands either.
Philippians 2 gives us a remarkable answer. Jesus Christ, who was fully God, became fully human. He didn’t simply observe human life from a distance. He entered it. He knew what it was like to be tired, hungry, misunderstood, and rejected. He experienced sorrow, physical pain, and eventually death. He didn’t become less than God when He became human. He willingly entered our world and experienced the difficulties of human life.
Think about what that means when you pray. You’re not speaking to someone who has never known suffering. You’re speaking to the Savior who willingly entered a world of suffering because He loved us. That doesn’t mean every painful circumstance will suddenly make sense. But it does mean we never have to wonder whether our Savior is indifferent to our pain. Sometimes the greatest comfort isn’t having someone explain why we’re hurting. It’s knowing that we don’t have to face the it alone.
Reflection Question: What burden are you carrying right now that you need to bring to Jesus, remembering that He understands suffering and cares for you?
Prayer: Father, thank You for sending Your Son into our world, and help me remember that Jesus understands my weakness and cares for me. Amen.
Jesus willingly chose obedience, even when obedience led to suffering.
Philippians 2:8
And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
There are some things we’re willing to do for others as long as they don’t cost us too much. We’ll help someone if we have the time. We’ll give something if we can spare it. We’ll make a sacrifice if the inconvenience isn’t too great. But what happens when love becomes costly? What happens when doing the right thing requires us to give up something we really want?
When Paul describes the humility of Jesus, he doesn’t stop with the fact that Jesus became human. He tells us that Jesus became obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Jesus wasn’t forced into it because someone was stronger than He was. He willingly chose obedience, even when obedience led to suffering. And He didn’t go to the cross simply to show us how to love. He went because we needed a Savior. Our sin had separated us from God, and Jesus accomplished what we could never accomplish ourselves.
So when we look at the cross, we should see more than an example to imitate. We should see a Savior to trust. And when we truly understand what He has done for us, it begins to change what we’re willing to do for others. Love becomes more than something we say or feel. It becomes something we demonstrate through our actions, even when those actions require sacrifice. We don’t sacrifice to earn Christ’s love. We learn to sacrifice because we have already received it.
Reflection Question: Is there an act of obedience or love you’ve been avoiding because of what it might cost you?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank You for willingly going to the cross for me, and help me respond to Your love with grateful obedience and a willingness to serve others. Amen.
Paul reminded the Philippians of a power greater than that of Rome – Jesus Christ is Lord.
Philippians 2:9–11
Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name.
There are days when the world seems completely out of control. We hear about wars, violence, and political turmoil. We face problems closer to home, like a frightening medical report, financial difficulties, or concerns about someone we love. And sometimes we wonder how everything is going to turn out. The Philippian Christians understood uncertainty. They lived in a city where following Jesus could bring real consequences, and Paul was writing to them from prison.
But Paul reminded them of something greater than the power of Rome. Jesus Christ is Lord. The same Jesus who humbled Himself and died on a cross has been exalted by God the Father. One day every knee will bow before Him, and every tongue will acknowledge His lordship. That includes the rulers and authorities who seem so powerful today. The future isn’t ultimately in their hands. It belongs to Jesus.
That doesn’t mean life will always go the way we want, or that following Jesus will spare us from suffering. But it does mean that suffering, evil, and death will not have the final word. Jesus will. And there’s something especially comforting about remembering what kind of Lord He is. He isn’t a distant ruler who has never experienced our troubles. He is the One who humbled Himself and willingly went to the cross for us. So when you’re worried about the future, remember who holds it. Jesus Christ is Lord, and that’s a truth we can rest in today.
Reflection Question: What situation in your life would look different if you approached it with a deeper confidence that Jesus Christ is Lord?
Prayer: Heavenly Father, help me face every uncertainty with confidence in the goodness, love, and authority of Jesus Christ. Amen.