Living Out the Life of Jesus in Us
Just as a full pitcher overflows without effort, so the life of Jesus flows through a yielded heart.
Devotional Credit: Abide Above – Sacrificial Service
Photo Credit: Unsplash
In today’s reading from Miles Stanford, the focus shifts from the idea of simply doing for God to living from the indwelling life of Jesus. There is a difference between compulsive activity and Spirit-led fruitfulness. Many in the body of Christ might assume that the believer who seeks to grow in grace is passive, but Scripture shows that the life of abiding in Jesus produces genuine, Spirit-initiated action. True service flows from His life within, not from our own effort to prove ourselves or keep up with the expectations of others.
We are reminded that the measure of our service is not how much we do, but whether it is what the Lord has given us grace to do. The best servant of the Father is the one who knows the Father’s love deeply. When we live from the reality of His love, we are equipped to go where He sends us, carrying His heart to those who need it. This is not a life of self-driven labor but of yielded participation in His work.
The passage also contrasts the love commanded under the Mosaic law with the love that comes under grace. The old standard was to love others as we love ourselves. The new standard is to love as Jesus loved us and gave His life for us. This is not a sentimental affection, but a sacrificial, others-centered love that flows out of the life of Jesus within us. It is a love that is willing to lay down comfort, convenience, and even reputation to meet the needs of others.
The heart of sacrificial service lies in knowing not only the work Jesus has done for us, but knowing Him as our very life. If we only know His work, we may be willing to make sacrifices. But when we know Him as our life, we are ready to suffer for His sake. Death working in us means that His life is made manifest in others.
Journal Entry – Voice of the Holy Spirit Through Scripture
I have called you not to live for Me in your own strength, but to live from Me as your life. My grace is sufficient for all I have assigned to you. Do not measure yourself by the expectations of others, for I am the One who directs your steps. I will never give you a task apart from the grace to fulfill it.
Abide in My love, for as you remain in Me, you will carry that love to others. You are not sent in your own name, but in Mine. The more you receive My love, the more you will express it in truth and action. Under grace, your standard is not self-love, but the love I have shown you when I laid down My life for you.
Keep your gaze fixed on Me, not on pleasing people. Let My truth conform you, rather than shaping truth to suit human opinion. As you share in My sufferings, you will also share in My life being revealed through you. Death may work in you, but My life will flow to others through you.
Scripture References: 2 Corinthians 4:11–12, 2 Peter 3:18, John 1:18, 1 John 3:16, Galatians 2:20, John 15:4–5, Philippians 2:13, Colossians 3:3–4
Real-Life Analogy
Think of a pitcher of water being poured into cups. The pitcher does not strain to create water. It simply pours out what it already holds. If the pitcher is full, the cups will be filled. Our lives work the same way. When we live full of the life of Jesus, what we pour out is not our own limited supply, but His inexhaustible fullness.
Today, when someone’s need feels greater than what you can give, pause and remember the source from which you draw. You can quietly say, “Lord, I trust You to express Your life through me right now.” That might be in listening patiently to a weary friend, extending kindness to someone difficult, or stepping into a task you had not planned for.
Prayer of Confidence
Lord, thank You that I am not left to serve in my own resources. I rejoice that Your life in me is more than enough for whatever You set before me today. Thank You that Your love is my standard and Your grace is my supply. I rest in the certainty that You will accomplish through me exactly what You desire, and I yield myself to be the vessel through which You love and serve others.