The Great Example
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The resurrection of the Lord is the most pivotal moment of our faith.
Yes His death is the completion of His work, but it is His resurrection that is the divine sign of the Fathers vindication of the Son.
4 who was declared the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness by the resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord,
The resurrection proves that Jesus thing Jesus taught and His mission to save sinners is legitimate and ordained by the Father.
So important is this vindication that the Word says:
17 and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins.
So the resurrection of Jesus Christ has huge spiritual implications, of that there is no doubt.
But today i ask: Does the resurrection of Jesus have implications for our normal day to day life?
Yes we know that because of the resurrection of the Lord, we too shall be like him in our own resurrection:
14 Now God has not only raised the Lord, but will also raise us up through His power.
This of course is a wonderful promise when our life on earth comes to its end.
But what about now?
But what about now?
That we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ, what implications that this power have for me today?
In other words: Does the fact of the resurrection have implications for my mind, my thinking, my attitude?
Turns out: Yes!
AND it turns out that example of Christ in both His death and resurrection is directly linked to our JOY!
What has always stunned me is that one of the motivating factors in Jesus, that motivated His self sacrifice was:
That ONLY through Self sacrifice can we ever actually experience true JOY.
That ONLY through Self sacrifice can we ever actually experience true JOY.
You say “Was it not love?”.
Love sent Him to the cross, but joy kept Him on the cross
2 looking only at Jesus, the originator and perfecter of the faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
There can be no joy in the life of the Christian who puts himself above others.
The secret of joy in spite of circumstances is the single mind.
The secret of joy in spite of people is the submissive mind.
The key verse is:
3 Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility consider one another as more important than yourselves;
It is important that we understand what the Bible means by “humility.”
The humble person is not one who thinks meanly of himself; he simply does not think of himself at all! (I think Andrew Murray said that.)
Humility is that grace that, when you know you have it, you have lost it.
The truly humble person knows himself and accepts himself.
3 For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith.
He yields himself to Christ to be a servant, to use what he is and has for the glory of God and the good of others.
“Others” is the key idea in this chapter.
The believer’s eyes are turned away from himself and focused on the needs of others.
3 Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility consider one another as more important than yourselves;
4 do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.
The “submissive mind” does not mean that the believer is at the beck and call of everybody else or that he is a “religious doormat” for everybody to use!
This is not what Paul is suggesting at all.
5 For we do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bond-servants on account of Jesus.
What does this mean?
It means that we should be servants for Christ sake, that is we should serve to honor the name of Christ.
But if your service is being taken advantage of, then its no longer for Christs sake and you can say no.
What does a submissive mind look like?
What does a submissive mind look like?
Of course, the great Example is Jesus.
Jesus Christ illustrates the four characteristics of the person with the submissive mind.
He Thinks of Others, Not Himself
He Thinks of Others, Not Himself
5 Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,
6 who, as He already existed in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
Outlook determines outcome.
The biblical language of this is “Whatever you sow you will reap”.
If the outlook is selfish, the actions will be divisive and destructive.
And divisive and destructive actions DO NOT produce JOY.
Let me show you:
These verses in Philippians take us to eternity past.
Certainly as God, Jesus Christ did not need anything!
He had all the glory and praise of heaven.
With the Father and the Spirit, He reigned over the universe.
But Philippians 2:6 states an amazing fact:
He did not consider His equality with God as “something selfishly to be held on to.”
Jesus did not think of Himself; He thought of others.
His outlook (or attitude) was that of unselfish concern for others.
This is “the mind of Christ,” an attitude that says, “I cannot keep my SPIRITUAL privileges for myself, I must use them for others; and to do this, I will gladly lay them aside and pay whatever price is necessary.”
Jesus used His heavenly privileges for the sake of others—for our sake.
He Serves
He Serves
7 but emptied Himself by taking the form of a bond-servant and being born in the likeness of men.
8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death: death on a cross.
Thinking of “others” in an abstract sense only is insufficient; we must get down to the nitty-gritty of true service.
A famous philosopher wrote glowing words about educating children but abandoned his own.
It was easy for him to love children in the abstract, but when it came down to practice, that was something else.
Jesus thought of others and became a servant!
Paul traces the steps in the humiliation of Christ:
(1) He emptied Himself, laying aside the independent use of His own attributes as God;
(2) He permanently became a human, in a sinless physical body;
(3) He used that body to be a servant;
(4) He took that body to the cross and willingly died.
What grace!
From heaven to earth, from glory to shame, from Master to servant, from life to death, “even the death of the cross!”
Have you noticed as you read the four Gospels that it is Jesus who serves others, not others who serve Jesus?
He is at the beck and call of all kinds of people—fishermen, harlots, tax collectors, the sick, the sorrowing.
28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.”
In the Upper Room, when His disciples apparently refused to minister, Jesus arose, laid aside His outer garments, put on the long linen towel, and washed their feet! (John 13)
He took the place of a menial slave!
This was the submissive mind in action—and no wonder Jesus experienced such joy!
He Sacrifices
He Sacrifices
8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death: death on a cross.
Many people are willing to serve others if it does not cost them anything.
But if there is a price to pay, they suddenly lose interest.
Jesus “became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross” (Phil. 2:8).
His was not the death of a martyr but the death of a Saviour.
He willingly laid down His life for the sins of the world.
Dr. J.H. Jowett has said, “Ministry that costs nothing accomplishes nothing.”
If there is to be any blessing, there must be some “bleeding.”
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He saw a sign above one booth: “Cheap Crosses.”
He thought to himself, “That’s what many Christians are looking for these days—cheap crosses. My Lord’s cross was not cheap. Why should mine be?”
The test of the submissive mind is not just how much we are willing to take in terms of suffering, but how much we are willing to give in terms of sacrifice.
It is one of the paradoxes of the Christian life that the more we give, the more we receive; the more we sacrifice, the more God blesses.
This is why the submissive mind leads to joy; it makes us more like Christ.
Is it costing you anything to be a Christian?
He Glorifies God
He Glorifies God
9 For this reason also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name,
10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
This, of course, is the great goal of all that we do—to glorify God.
Jesus humbled Himself for others, and God highly exalted Him; and the result of this exaltation is glory to God.
The person with the submissive mind, as he lives for others, must expect sacrifice and service; but in the end, it is going to lead to glory.
6 Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, so that He may exalt you at the proper time,
Joseph suffered and served for thirteen years; but then God exalted him and made him the second ruler of Egypt.
David was anointed king when he was but a youth. He experienced years of hardship and suffering, but at the right time, God exalted him as king of Israel.
Conclusion:
Conclusion:
The joy of the submissive mind comes not only from helping others, but primarily from the knowledge that we are glorifying God.
We are letting our light shine through our good works, and this glorifies the Father in heaven.
16 Your light must shine before people in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.
We may not see the glory today, but we shall see it when Jesus comes and rewards His faithful servants.