GOD'S HOLY PEOPLE

Philippians 4:21-23 says, "Give my greetings to each of God's holy people—all who belong to Christ Jesus. The brothers who are with me send you their greetings. And all the rest of God's people send you greetings, too, especially those in Caesar's household. May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit." Paul bid his final greetings to the church in Philippi. He addressed it to each of God's holy people, which refers to everyone who belongs to Christ Jesus through faith in Him. The believers in Philippi were holy not because of what they had done, but because of what Christ Jesus had done for them. When they believed in Jesus, God had forgiven their sins and put the righteousness of Christ in them so that when they stand before our Heavenly Father, He sees the righteousness of our Lord Jesus Christ in them. The other word for holy is saint, which means that God has set them apart for His glory. The other thing that we can point out in Paul's final greetings is that they all belonged to God's family; thus, they were all brothers and sisters wherever they may be. The believers who are with Paul in Rome and all the believers in Philippi were all children of God, and they were all joined together with their faith in our Lord Jesus. 

Praise be to God that we are holy before Him, not because of our good works or accomplishments, but by our faith in our Lord Jesus alone. We all become children of God when we put our faith in Jesus as our Lord and Savior. As children of God, we are all brothers and sisters in Him. As a result, God wants us to love one another. We need to think of others more than ourselves because we are all in God's family. We must not become self-centered, selfish, and care only about ourselves. God expects us to love our brothers and sisters. When we go to church this Sunday, everyone we meet who truly believes in Jesus is our brother or sister in the Lord. We are all one in Christ Jesus, saved by His grace. May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with our spirit wherever we may be or whatever we are going through this Christmas season. 

Congratulations to those of you who have read the daily devotions since we began the book of Philippians. You amazingly read through the book of Philippians and allowed God to speak into your hearts. May the Lord continue to draw us to Himself, and may the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with our spirit always. 

Questions for application: (Think through these questions carefully, meditate on them while answering them, and let the Spirit of God speak to you.) How can I be holy before God? How can I join the family of God? How should I live as a child of God? 

Take a moment to write down all your worries today. Then, lift them to God in prayer, surrendering them to His will and trusting in His guidance.

Prayer:

Dear Father in Heaven, I am holy not because of what I have done, but because of what my Lord Jesus has done on the cross for me. I belong to your family because you adopted me as your child through my faith in my Lord Jesus. I praise you and honor your name for adopting me as your child despite my sins and failures. Please help me show my love and support to those who belong to your family. In your name, Jesus, I pray. Amen.