Good morning, so glad to be with you this morning. I hope you had a wonderful Independence Day and being thankful to God for His provisions for our life yesterday and continuing. We shouldn't forget God's faithfulness to our life every day. This morning we are reading from Philippians chapter two versus one to 11, and I just want to make a comment before I read God's word this morning, and this is such a great and huge passage for us this morning. I would probably split it into three. I would preach from verses one to four, five, and eight, and then nine to 11. But we're going to try within the short time we have to try and put everything together. So we're just going to try and see if we can get a bigger picture. So if you're able to, will you please stand with me as we honor the reading of God's word this morning? Philippians two, one, two, 11, Paul writes. So if there is an encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord, and of one mind. Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves, that each of you not look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. 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, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of man, and being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. May you, Lord, guide us as we hear your words, spoken to us, made convict or hearts that we may obey. We pray this in your holy name. Amen, please be seated. There was a story that I read just recently. It was a story that happened a while ago. I think it was a long while ago. It happened in the big state of Texas, in Dallas, Texas, where there was a church that had a split, then there was two groups that came out of the church split that happened. And so the two groups decided to file a lawsuit one another to try and see who was gonna take the church property. So the two factions filed a lawsuit and went to court to try and see if they could convince the judge that the property belonged to them. So after the case was taken there, the judge rightly so, and I think he might have been a Christian, or you knew something about church, because he said that his hands were tied, that he was not gonna rule on the case. That case ought to be taken to an ecclesiastical court, which is a church court, for them to sort out their differences. So it so happened that the case was taken to the church court and the church determined who the rightful owner of the property was, and so they handed the case to that group. But they did something else that was good. They decided that they wanted to find out the root cause of the split. What really started the whole dispute? And it turned out that the whole dispute happened because at a church event at one time, one of the elders was served a small slice of ham than the child that was sitting right next to him. And that was the beginning of the church split. Funny, isn't it? What causes disunity in the church? The things that we will go to, the things that will cause us not to be unified. The passage that we've just read this morning is a passage that I believe is an extremely powerful and strong and something that as a church, we need to hear and heed the call as far recognizes the importance of unity among believers. As we saw last week that the evidence, as we're talking about it, but tornado was to hit in the Midwest as Pastor Dan was preaching, what would we see? We would see evidence that the tornado has hit that particular town. It's the same thing that Paul is continuing here by saying that if we want to live lives that are worthy of the gospel, lives that are worthy of God, of Christ, that we ought to continue to strive for harmony. We need to be united in Christ. But what is the one thing that Paul is telling them that will bring them together as a community of believers? What is their motivation? What is the motivation for us as believers to be unified? Look at verses one to four and I'll read it through again. So if there's an encouragement in Christ and a comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit and the affection and sympathy complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind, do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit but in humility count others more significant than yourselves that each of you look not only to his own interests but also the interests of others. An impassioned plea. You know, some people have looked at it and said, well, these are just four rational theological treaties that Paul is giving to his people. But no, this is a plea that arises from the fact that the Philippian church, though it was a healthy church as we've seen from chapter one, there were dissensions within the community. We read later in chapter four verses one, the story of Eodia and Sintiki, as Paul is telling the church, let them unite, let them work throughout the differences. And Paul, as we saw earlier, cares and loves this church so much that he wants them to be one and so he wants them to know that unless you guys are united and put together, then my work in you is gonna be in vain. So he says, complete my joy by being of one mind. And then he uses this for, if you will, for full rational argument or if you will, he's using the word if, if there is any encouragement, any comfort, in love, any fellowship of the spirit and his sympathy, the ifs that we would mistake or we'd make a mistake if we're just to see them as ifs. Because the Greek translation there is not if, it's actually since. Paul is saying, since you have been united with Christ, he's not asking a question, he's telling them what they already know to compel them to be united in Christ. As we said, it's really a continuation of verses 27 of chapter one, he's saying therefore, asking the Philippian church to live in a manner that is worthy of the gospel. The only way for the church, the only way for you, Philippians, to stand strong in faith is by making sure that you are united. It is not just talking about them being united for their common foes, the false teachers and the persecution. He wants them to be united together within, to have one mind, to have one mutual regard for each other. And so if, or rather since, you are in Christ, since you're experiencing this great love that Christ has shown upon you, since you have been encouraged by the spirit of God, since you all worship one Christ and striving towards one faith, one God and one Father of all. He says, then be united. It is this unity of fellowship that is essential to a witness of the gospel. How else could we witness? Listen to Jesus' prayer in John chapter 17, verses 21, we know it. Jesus proclaims and prays to His heavenly Father and says, I pray that they will all be one just as you and I are one, as you are in me, Father, and I am in you and may they be in us so that the world may believe that you sent me. What message, what gospel do we proclaim near this warning brothers and sisters? It's a message of reconciliation. Isn't that what the gospel is all about? Of unity or bringing people into the family of God? How else then can we declare that same love and that same reconciliation to the world? If we ourselves are not together, it is not possible. Because we waste our energy on those things that don't matter. And we have nothing, we have no energy left to be a shining light to the world. And so Paul is showing the Philippian church this unity that he's talking about is actually a byproduct of the gospel, as we've said. It is coming from within them being united with Jesus Christ, but it doesn't come automatically, it doesn't mean that just because you've been united with Christ, then voila, we are all united with one another. No, it means that we have to strive, we have to work hard. It doesn't come automatically. It's something that we ought to do, something that we ought to cultivate in ourselves. It's originating from God's spirit, ensuring that we're not just passive, recognizing, yes, we are united with Christ, but what about with one another? And so in order for Paul to reinforce this message in order for Paul to make sure that they understand their unity and how that affects that they're supposed to be united with one another, he points them to someone. He points them to one that will motivate them to be united. He points them to the humility of Jesus Christ himself. And look at the words and the language that Paul uses. He says, be of one mind. That's, he's starting point B of one mind. And it repeats that twice. We don't really say, as you think, so you are, right? Meaning that Paul wants them to set their minds on the same thing, on one thing. This really has to do with the practical implications of living together, doing life together, of knowing Christ, but yet living with one another. It is simply having this. It is simply having the same purpose, the same goal, and that purpose and that goal, we know it. It's one thing. It's Jesus. It is a unity of love and a chord. This one mind, this one mindedness begins somewhere though or says, it begins with an inner attitude that, or added you towards others. He says count yourselves, counting others, not yourselves, but counting others more important than yourself. But not being conceited. You know, one of the, my favorite church fathers is several. Christos the one said, there is nothing so foreign to a Christian than arrogance. Because it's only when we see ourselves for what we really are that conceit and vain glory can begin to recede and we really begin to count others as more important, as more significant than ourselves. I don't think Paul is saying here that we cannot have differences. I don't think Paul is saying that having a difference opinion is not allowed in the church family. I think that's not what Paul is saying, but Paul is saying that we should be selfless. We should put others in their needs and their concerns ahead of our own, speaking in love to one another. Paul cares about the community. He cares about the church. That's what he's talking about. He's writing this letter and addressing it to the church, but guess what? Obedience to what Paul is calling them to do only begins or starts first and foremost with me, with you. It starts with the individual. And I do really believe that if we truly hear the message of this word, we might actually begin to see the healing that can take place in our own lives here as a church, in our own marriages, in our own places of work, and in our country. And the reason why I say that is because it's really easy for us to get along as a larger group, isn't it? It is easier for us to get along in a larger context, in a larger group. And that's because you don't have to live with me. But if you live with me, then you would know just how difficult it is to live with one another. And I'm not just speaking of me, I'm speaking about you as well. And so Paul is saying, I care about the community, the church, but I want obedience and your call to this humility, to this unity begins with you as a person. And he's imploring the church to cultivate this unity because, again, what is your natural bent? My natural bent is not to be humble because I don't really tell people, you know, I'm a humble man, meaning I am not really humble. Our natural bent is self-centeredness. It is pride. That is who I am. That I find myself, I find it so difficult to be humble even in the most important relationships with my wife, with my brothers and sisters, with my pastor, with my deacons, with my elders.
The obstacle to unity, to being together, church, is not a difference of opinion. It is our pride because I tend to focus more on me. Have you ever had an argument with someone where it really wasn't about the argument? It really wasn't about what you're talking about. But it's all about me getting my way and having my way. And just wanting to prove a point because I'm right. The call for this unity is a gospel-oriented unity that can only show itself, that can only show itself in the way we care for others. Paul is not saying that we consider other people better than we are. That's not the point. And you can be better than other people and that's all right because that's how God has made you, right? But it's putting the needs of others ahead of your own. It is saying this. Other people's needs and concerns surpass. My own, because humility truly is the cure to self-ambition and to vain can see. And so Paul is saying it is this humility that will guide us and help us to be unified with one another. But we all know it. Humility really does stand in utter contradiction to the values of all all. Even as Paul was writing to this church, we know from the Roman culture, humility was not something that it wasn't a virtue. Because that's being weak and so we are. So we think, even now that humility is not really a virtue in our world. Why? You know how we say, you know what we do. And I don't think that Paul by talking about humility is talking about this false modesty that says, oh, I'm no good, you know, I'm just, you know, only God is good. And I don't think he's talking about a kind of an abject civility that only repulsed. And if you ever heard people who just present themselves being humble that he just repulses you, just makes you think, why are you trying to show yourself to be this humble person? I think Paul is getting into something that's much deeper and much more important than just a mere recognition of humility. It is a stance that you are just God's creator, standing before God himself as your creator and being utterly dependent on him and being able to say, others are more significant than I am. What are your aims? That is the selfish ambition. What is your assessment and perception of other people? How do you look at other people? That's conceived. Paul recognizes the key here to joyful living. And what is that? What I keep repeating over and over again, caring for the needs of others. Remember what Paul had said before in chapter 1 verses 17, we talked about Paul when he was seeing those who were opposed to him, but they were preaching the gospel. They were doing the right thing by preaching the gospel even, yet they were preaching out of rivalry and selfish ambition. Paul responds to the aggression, right? He responds by saying, you crazy people, what is wrong with you? No, he does not. How does Paul respond to them with humility and kindness and saying, I don't care. So long as you're preaching the gospel, that's all that matters. He's focusing on his citizenship of heaven by living an exemplary life looking to the interest of others and saying, I'm leaving revenge to God. That belongs to God, not me. I'm not gonna assert my own rights, my own privileges of others and try to climb the ladder of selfish interests. I will be kind. Symphony conductor once was asked, what is the most difficult instrument to play? I think Lee and Andrew will really like this. And he said, the second violin. He said, I could find the first violin with ease. It's easy to find, but finding a second violin is, I was difficult. He said, that's a problem. Why was it a problem? Because without a second violin, we have no harmony, right? And so he said, it takes more grace than I can tell to play the second fiddle well. We unite because of Christ. It's the point that Paul is driving to us. It is who we are in him, not just to fight or come and fall, whatever that may be. We unite because of Christ. It is by allowing the realities of the reality of who we are in Christ or being united in Christ and allowing that to become a reality in our relationships. I will say that again, because I think it's important. We unite because of Christ. It is who we are in him, not just because we have a common fault that we can fight out there. What happens if that fault is silent? Does that mean that we cannot unite? No, it is by allowing the realities of being united with Christ and letting that reality become a reality in our own relationships with one another. So Paul points them to Christ. That is their motivation. But he again points them to the same Christ for a different reason, because he is the source of their unity. What do I mean by he is the source of their unity? Read together verses 5 to 11. He says, have this mind among yourselves, which is used in Christ Jesus, who though he was in the form of God in our county quality with God, a thing to be grasped but emptied himself by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of man and being found in human form. He humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow in heaven, in earth and under the earth. And every time can fast the Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God, the Father. Paul is actually giving the Philippian church the manual. The manual for what a right attitude ought to be, they are going to be united together. What does true humility look like? And he points to them that this manual is Jesus Christ himself. He is the premier manifestation of the character of God. This is who God is. And then he portrays that in a even much large grand, whatever you will, manner. He's portrayed in this incarnation in his humiliation and his exaltation. See Jesus, when he enters our world, he doesn't enter our world as Lord. Even though that is the name that he's going to be given as we shall see later, but he enters our world in humiliation. As a servant, we read. But you know that the Greek word used there is not even a servant. It's a slave. That Jesus enters our world as a slave. What does that mean to us who are made in God's image? What does that mean to us who are supposed to be Christ-like? Taking upon Christ's nature by becoming, are we becoming slaves to others and we becoming servants to others that they may be able to see God's greatness? Being conceited and having selfish ambition is the exact opposite of what Christ does. Recall the story, the one great story that we all know in John chapter 13, as Jesus washed his disciples' feet in the most humble manner. Knowing so well that the midrash taught that no Hebrew, not even a slave could be forced or could be made to wash the feet of another. Yet the very Son of God, God himself, washing the feet of his arrogant and clueless disciples. And do you know what he asks afterwards after he's done? He says, as I have done, do the same to one another. And Paul is so pointing to us Christ's humiliation in such a powerful and moving example for us to show us the way to humility, to show us what true humility looks like. But he begins with Christ's pre-existence. His majesty says the form of God, which I think and I know for all of us is incomprehensible to us. We read in John 1-1 that in the beginning was the word and the word was God and the word was God. That God was there before creation. I have no idea how he existed other than he was God before and has always been God. And then he moves into him being born as one of us. Hebrew's one three reminds us how Christ was God before by saying he was not a mere reflect of God's glory, but was shining his own glory together with the Father and the Spirit. And then Paul says he did not even count equality, a thing to be grasped or understood, but rather so it is a qualifying for his humble descent for his incarnation for him to come and save his people. For Christ this was a matter of unselfish giving. He was displaying God's character itself and so Jesus character. And I think for Jesus as we're speaking of our own attitude of humility, for Jesus it wasn't an attitude of humility because an attitude of humility can be unknown, can be an abstract thing that we don't even understand. For him it had to become concrete, had to be expressed in some concrete manner. And that's why Christ acts in the most humble way by making himself nothing and taking on the form of a human being, emptying himself. Does that mean that Christ lost a little bit of his being God and so became more man than God? Absolutely no, emptying himself does not mean that he emptied himself of his qualities of his attributes of being God as some have argued. But it means that his divine attributes remains but he revealed the form of God in the form of a slave in the form of a human likeness. He wasn't exchanging God's glory, wasn't exchanging his form of God for any other. Mark tells us and reminds us in chapter 10 and verse 45 that instead of Jesus exploiting his status, his privilege, his God-given status, he used it to serve us, to serve me. As a slave, it was humble and Paul adds something in there. He says he was willing to die but even death on a cross. Jesus was God, he was real man, yet no one could humble him. Not heroin, not pilot, not the onlookers, not the priests, not the Romans themselves, Jesus, humble himself for you. But his self-humiliation meant something, it meant full obedience, obedience even to the most scandalous death.
And the reason why Paul adds that little phrase over the even death on a cross is because he wants you to see the picture of what Christ does because the cross you see was the most obscene and loathsome experience in the Roman Empire. Being crucified was the most cruel manner and form of execution anyone could receive and it was in fact reserved for the lowest of all people, especially slaves, and yet Christ, the very son of God, would stoop so low and go from this highest position imaginable to us, to the lowest of all, precisely why? So that he could show his selfless love to you. Do you know why I just explained to us that whole theological explanation of God being preeminent and all of that? It's because I don't think that Paul is just trying to show doctrine here. I don't believe that this passage is supposed to be for us to use it to argue that God was fully man and fully God all at the same time. That is not the point that Paul is making. I think the point that Paul is making is for us to understand or our understanding of God's of Christ's humiliation and his exaltation is key to our unity. Our understanding of Christ's humiliation and his exaltation is key to our unity. Why? Because my understanding that it means that we understand the sign that Christ has given to us by giving Himself to us. It means that we understand the transformation that has taken place in our own lives as God. The Father sends His only Son, Jesus Christ, to save us, to unify us as the prayer that we read in John 17, that we are made one with Him. If we understand that, if we understand that the gospel is well with us, that Christ is unified with us, how can we not think about our unity with one another? How can we not understand how important this means to us? May the Lord, by the power of His Holy Spirit, help us to have the same attitude that Christ is calling us to have. One who did not take advantage of His God-given glory. How are you exploiting your own glory? Your own place of privilege, your own rights, your own freedoms, to exploit others just so you can be right. Christ is the focus here in verses 9. Paul says, therefore, showing a strong response that God has. See, Jesus does not ask for the exaltation that we're just about to see. God initiates that exaltation. He initiates it by giving Him the name that is above all names, and we've so rightly sang today, but there's one thing we missed on that song that we did not say, and I'll tell you what it is. But what name is this? What name does God give to this Son? We know Jesus by many names, don't we? He's the wonderful counselor, he's the door, he's the light, he's the almighty God, he's the ancient of days, he's the great shepherd, he's the rock, he's the word, he's the bread of life, he's the alpha, and Omega on, and on we can go on. But what is this name that he is giving to his Son, Jesus? Christ. Isaiah chapter 42 verses 8, and Isaiah 45 onwards gives us a key to what this name is. It's the name Jehovah. It's the name that in Greek is translated Cureos. It's the name Lord, meaning that he stands as the Lord of all things. Colossians chapter 1 tells us all things were created for him and by him. It is the name that shows his power and sovereignty over all things. It is the name Lord Jesus, it is the name Savior Lord. Does this mean then that Jesus was not Lord before, that he was not in control of all things before creation? Absolutely no. It means that Jesus identity now becomes even more clear. His majesty is now being revealed after his death and resurrection and ascension into the Father's right hand. And he says every knee shall bow and know that Jesus is Lord. What does that mean? Every knee bowing on earth and under the sun, it means that all human beings and jealous beings even demons. Now this is not universalism, that everybody will come to acknowledge Jesus Christ as Lord and be able to worship him. It simply means this, that his authority over all creation becomes even more evident. Has he sits on the Father's throne as we have seen but in the end, in the end no one will oppose Jesus Christ but will all know that he is truly in control and that he is the Lord of all people. The wicked will be ashamed to death and the pure and blameless will be resurrected to eternal life. That is the message that Paul is wanting us to see. So how do we imitate this amazing, magnificent, majestic Christ? I think it's hard, isn't it? Laying down our privilege and our glory and all of that for Christ, for others. Why is it hard? Because my desire is to dominate others. Our desire is to be dominant, our desire as we saw earlier. To bend to self-centeredness, to pride. My attitude is not one of Christ, of laying down all I have for others. The only way we can imitate Christ is by cultivating a spirit and attitude of an incarnational demeanor. We are so attached to our wealth, to our glamour, to our power, to our prestige, to our accepted ways of doing things that we are just prone and want to be dominant of all things. Think about advertising for one second. Think about how you see an ad on TV of this beautiful woman smoking a cigarette sitting on a highly Davidson or a nice car. And now misleading, that is subtle lines, which just want us to control us. And lying to our young teens that you can achieve the whole universe only if you smoke this particular brand of cigarettes. And not telling us the truth about the dangers of smoking cigarettes. It's all an attitude of wanting to be in control, of wanting to be dominant. See the hallmark of my life, of your life, should be this, should be giving and not getting. It should be serving and not being served. It should be obedience and not dominance. I easily forget that the road to greatness is through serving others. It's the passage in 1 Corinthians chapter 8 verses 11 as I land the plane. Paul addressing those who felt that they had the right to eat the cultic meals in the pagan temples. Despite the fact that there were people with weaker conscience that were lapsing back into idolatry. And Paul's response is powerful. He says simply possessing your right does not mean that you should use it. Love, not possession of rights, should be the believer's guide. One of my favorite African theologian Saint Augustine was asked to list the central principles of a Christian life. And he lists the three of them. He said this. Number one, humility. Number two, humility. And number three, only what goes down will go up. Those your life so you may gain Jesus tells us. Has Christ's humiliation and his exaltation as we've seen had any impact in you? True humility means entering the messy and broken lives of others as Christ is. And considering them and their needs more important than ours. Does your union with Christ mean anything? If Jesus entered your messy broken world. If Christ entered your messy broken life. And showed you great love and mercy and compassion. And now he asks you, he says, I want you to be the same for others for one another. He wants us to be united as he is with the Father and the Spirit. And the way to do this is imitating Christ. It's cultivating a Christ like me. And so as we think, so we are. So let us love one another. Let us be in one Spirit. Let us have one purpose, one goal. Let us Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen. Father, we thank you for your word this morning. But you continue to encourage us as we come before you and share it together in communion. We pray this in Christ's name. Amen.