“The only accurate way to understand ourselves is by what God is and by what he does for us, not by what we are and what we do for him.” (Last part of verse three.)

“In this way we are like the various parts of a human body. Each part gets its meaning from the body as a whole, not the other way around.” Verse 4, Romans 12, The Message

He is God. We are not. This must become our daily, bottom-line way to think. Only then will we begin to get rid of being full of ourselves, acting in selfish ways. For it is the grace of God that we are still here. It is the by the grace of God through Jesus Christ that we are saved…not by anything we could do for ourselves or by any work that we could do to please him. This is hard to swallow for people pleasers such as ourselves. And get this…the underlying reason we “aim to please” is because of the good feeling or reward we might get for ourselves! We are a selfish lot.

We are defined by God. We do not limit or define Him. We function as a part of the body of Christ. We have graciously been given a part that contributes to the functionality of the Body. If we think too highly of ourselves and the “part” that God has given us, then the body does not function as God intended. We are just beginning to dive into this thought. But for now, let’s remember the bottom-line for today. HE is GOD. We are not.

Dear Heavenly Father,
Hallowed is Your Name. May Your Kingdom come and reign on us and in us. May Your will be done in every detail of our lives today. We cannot save ourselves. Only by Jesus Christ are we saved and made whole. It is Your Holy Spirit working out this salvation to maturity in us. We have not arrived. We repent of ever thinking we have “made it” to full maturity. The more I meditate on Your Word to us, the more I realize I must learn and work on in my own life. I also know, without a doubt, that I have not “arrived”. So I praise You and thank you for continuing to work on me, by Your grace. Thank you for never giving up on me or my other believing friends. We are all part of Your Body who love You because You loved us first. Keep on shaping us, but do it gently. Deliver us from evil.
In Jesus Name, Amen