Selflessness – I Corinthians 10:24
Let no one seek his own good, but that of his neighbor.
Sacrificial, selfless love can only flow from a heart tendered and purified by Love Himself, Jesus Christ.[1] He takes our cold, hard hearts and replaces them with beating, compassionate organs of flesh. He gives us a generosity of spirit capable of honoring His commandment to love others in response to the devotion with which He loves us.[2] He knows no boundaries as He presents His offering of love, bringing the riches of heaven’s grace to people trapped in the depths of financial poverty, locked away in prisons, or hardened by cruel circumstances. He transforms spoiled, privileged people, who have unrestrained freedom and lavish prosperity. He teaches all who will receive Him to put others’ needs above their own, so their service of love will bring Him glory.
Heeding the instruction of the Apostle Paul, we should not merely seek our own profit, but the profit of those with whom the Lord intertwines our lives.[3] We are to approach our days with a single-minded passion, a self-oblivious desire to see Christ proclaimed through our benevolence and faithfulness. Caring not for our comfort, we should use our strength and resources to build up others, forfeiting our license to do whatever we feel like doing, presenting ourselves as lights to those who desperately need the Light of Heaven.[4] Our delight should be in pleasing the Lord through our service to others. We need have no fear that an other-focused life would leave us deprived, for we need but remember that the pursuit of self-fulfillment and gratification leads only to disorder, unhappiness, and evil.[5] How much more desirable than unhappiness and evil is having our hearts rejoice when we selflessly love others and make their eternal glory our overriding ambition.[6]
Show yourself as a friend of Christ by obeying His command to love others.[7] Array yourself with selflessness, and follow in the footprints of our precious, love-constrained Lord. Take on the character of Jesus Christ, and allow the never-ending stream of love, which flows into you from the Fountain of Life, to spill out onto the people around you. Set aside your own desires, and hold out your hands to others with a heart eager to minister in whatever they need. Generously, actively, follow the Spirit-inspired, selfless instincts of your heart to love others, and you will understand what Jesus meant when He said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.”[8]
Heaven’s floodgates opened wide
Pouring blessings, streaming grace
Into the life where selflessness
Greediness and want replaced
Sacrifice of giving bears
Abundant joy, a laughing heart
A freedom formerly unknown
In one whom love has set apart
From a world turned upside down
Where selfish interest reigns supreme
Where a lust for things controls
And peace is but a distant dream
Happy is the one who came
In Christ, to finally believe
Giving brings more blessings than
We gain in longing to receive
[1] Deuteronomy 30:6
[2] John 13:34
[3] 1 Corinthians 10:31-33
[4] Romans 14:19-22
[5] James 3:16
[6] Philippians 1:12-18
[7] John 15:14
[8] Acts 20:35
