The Ties That Bind

Psalm of the Day” Psalm 69:1-18

Psalm 69:1–18 ESV

Save me, O God! For the waters have come up to my neck. I sink in deep mire, where there is no foothold; I have come into deep waters, and the flood sweeps over me. I am weary with my crying out; my throat is parched. My eyes grow dim with waiting for my God. More in number than the hairs of my head are those who hate me without cause; mighty are those who would destroy me, those who attack me with lies. What I did not steal must I now restore? O God, you know my folly; the wrongs I have done are not hidden from you. Let not those who hope in you be put to shame through me, O Lord God of hosts; let not those who seek you be brought to dishonor through me, O God of Israel. For it is for your sake that I have borne reproach, that dishonor has covered my face. I have become a stranger to my brothers, an alien to my mother’s sons. For zeal for your house has consumed me, and the reproaches of those who reproach you have fallen on me. When I wept and humbled my soul with fasting, it became my reproach. When I made sackcloth my clothing, I became a byword to them. I am the talk of those who sit in the gate, and the drunkards make songs about me. But as for me, my prayer is to you, O Lord. At an acceptable time, O God, in the abundance of your steadfast love answer me in your saving faithfulness. Deliver me from sinking in the mire; let me be delivered from my enemies and from the deep waters. Let not the flood sweep over me, or the deep swallow me up, or the pit close its mouth over me. Answer me, O Lord, for your steadfast love is good; according to your abundant mercy, turn to me. Hide not your face from your servant, for I am in distress; make haste to answer me. Draw near to my soul, redeem me; ransom me because of my enemies!

Scripture Reading: Psalm 25:8-10

Psalm 25:8–10 ESV

Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he instructs sinners in the way. He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way. All the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness, for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies.

Sermon:

Well, once again and as always good morning church, I was glad when they said to me, let us go and worship in the house of the Lord. Well, most of the time, you all know me. I'm, I'm fairly self-deprecating. I'm more than willing to humiliate myself for the sake of a laugh, or a giggle or to help teach a lesson. Usually, I hope that's what I'm doing. But this week, I thought I'd start a little different and just maybe share some of my strengths. Because as I Was preparing this message this morning, I had an epiphany. This thought occurred to me,

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That I think might be helpful. You know, this. Is really quite lucky. Because you guys have probably. The most humble Pastor. Of any church in the world. Though, I may have a lot of struggles, humility. I'm just I'm so humble right of all the humble people who've ever lived. I personally am probably the most humble. Right, you all should desire to be as humble as I am because I've got this online. That doesn't sound very humble. Because it's not. And in all honesty. This. Has a problem and it's that you have a pastor who struggles sometimes with humility

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But I can say that because I know we all struggle from time to time with humility. Our humility is never what it's called to be. Instead, I feel like we all go to two extremes one. What I just jokingly. Just. So we're clear. I was joking. I don't think I'm the most humble person to ever live for. Jokingly we think. I'm just so humble. I, I am the most humble person. I, I, we, we say that that's not true. Humility. But the flip side of that is we don't show humility rather, we show a lack of self-esteem, a lack of viewing of ourselves and how God has made us and a lack of knowing our right standing, right? Just being down on yourself is not humility either.

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So what is humility? I'm glad you asked. We'll be spending the next three weeks sort of exploring this. Philippians chapter 2 verses 1 through 4. Our passage for today is the first part of Philippians chapter 2 verses 1 through 11 Which is in many ways. Some of the more famous passages in all of scripture about our need to be humble. And so, if you struggle with humility, like I do from time to time, Either way. You think too highly of yourselves or you think too, lowly of yourselves and you don't understand what true humility is.

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These passages are for you. If you desire to know, how can we as Christians live together? Well, then these passages are for you because spoiler alerts. The way we live together is through humility. If you desire to know what it means to serve and follow Christ, Pay attention because humility is going to be a big part of that. So, this morning though, we're only covering Philippians 2 1-4. And just so, you know, I'm going to do this for the next three weeks. We're going to read Philippians 2 1 through 11, because the larger context becomes very important in all of the thoughts that we're going to be dealing with today.

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So let's read our passage before we dive in Philippians chapter 2, starting in verse 1. So, If there is any 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 selfish ambition or conceit. But in humility count others, more significant than yourselves. Let each of you 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.

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Who though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God. A thing to be grasped but he emptied himself by taking the form of a servant being born in the likeness of men 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 other name. So that in 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. These are the words of the Lord for us this morning. Let's open.

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With the word of prayer. Our Father in heaven. We do thank you for today. Another day that you have made that we may rejoice and be glad in it. We thank you for your goodness and your grace and your mercy. And we thank you today, especially for sending your son, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The one who would willingly condescend from Heaven down here to Earth, to live the life. We could never live so that we wretched. Sinners could be made alive together with him. Help us to live in these precious truths. Thank you for the gift of your son. Thank you for the gift of your grace and salvation. May we walk in these things.

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Give us eyes to see, and ears to hear your word. May you speak to our hearts? May we be a people changed by the hearing of your word. It's in Jesus name that we pray. Amen. Amen.

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If we remember the context of Philippians and what we've been dealing with, it makes sense to me. That Paul would come here to humility. Just to remind us of where we've come from. Right. Paul's in prison writing, a thank you note to a church that sent him some money. Thank you for your precious gift, thank you for your life, lived out in the gospel. Thank you for the goodness and Grace that I see of God in your lives. And know this Philippian Church Paul writes. If I come see you, Or I languish here in prison.

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As long as the gospels proclaimed. I'll be okay. So you Philippian Church need to also live lives. Under the hope of the Gospel. That was last week, only let the manner of your life, be worthy of the gospel of Christ. And so as you live your lives impacted by motivated by and seen in the gospel, You do so together. But here's the rub. It's hard. To live life. Together. It's messy. As soon as we include ourselves, let alone other people. And then you throw on top of that, our responsibility to love one another. Hey, we are all called.

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Universally as Christians, we are all called but more particularly here as a local congregation, as a local assembly of Believers. We are called even more particularly to love and care for one another. But how do we do that when the people around us? Maybe we don't like them. Maybe they don't like us. Maybe our personalities. Just seem to rub each other. Just the wrong one. When the people that God, has placed around us feel a bit like sandpaper. They're abrasive to our hearts and souls. How do we live together? Okay. Paul. The gospel moves us the gospel motivates. Our lives, should breathe the gospel. Our lives should be worthy of the Gospel. How do we do that? Here's the answer.

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Humility. Because humility and this is the focus of the first four verses and what we'll be talking about today. Humility. Ultimately Is what ties us together? So, be humble. Well, how do you do that? Paul will tell us. But first, we have to start with What motivates our humility? What

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it? That causes us to want to be humble? Because we should start by noting. This humility is not 99 of mankind's natural. Inclination. Humility is not necessarily something that we we look at and we instantly have or even what the world should say. We desire. Right. Is a dog eat, dog world and you have to the only the strong survive. You you should think highly of yourself. You should think that you are the best, the greatest and who can tell you. Otherwise, That is the message of the world. That you're the best. You're the greatest. You're the most important. You take care of you.

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And yet, the message of scripture is polar opposite to that. So what in the world then can motivate our heart to put aside, our desires for self-importance, and self-aggrantizement and instead be humble, what? Motivates that the simple answer, the simple answer Is the change in our heart. From the gospel. What motivates? Here's the David simple answer. The gospel motivates Paul will give us some details. But each of these are tied to the work of who Jesus is and what he has done for us. What motivates our our humility Will we start? So, if there's any encouragement,

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In Christ.

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What motivates me to want to be humble. It's to know the encouragement that my heart has in Christ. This first part, Paul writes. So if there is and he lists these things, Then right, if you do this, then you should be humble. So, what's the first, if, if you experience any encouragement from being in Christ, then you should be humble. If you have ever experienced the the change in your heart, the joy that comes in knowing you are sealed and saved by the god of the universe. If in your heart, there is any encouragement to know that God so loved the world that he sent his only son. If that encourages you at all.

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You should be humble. If when you think of the great love that, God has for us. That God himself would enter into creation to save and deliver you if that encourages your heart at all. That should motivate you to be humble. As you think upon and you Ponder on and you sit there and hear and understand what it means to know that Jesus Christ died for Sinners. Of which I am one. And all those who call upon his name will be saved. Including me if that encourages your heart, humility should come forward, What motivates? Humility in my life is seeing and knowing what Christ has done for me.

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So, as your heart is encouraged by what God has done for you, Be humble. There's a lot of ways we can get there. You can't earn it. You don't deserve it. God graciously gave this to you. So that should spark our humility. But also just realizing who Jesus is and who we are. Should spark our humility. So if you are sitting there and you think man God has been good to me because of who Jesus is That should motivate humility. And then as you Ponder this we can move to the second one. So as you are encouraged that should motivate humility. But also as you find Comfort,

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You should also find. Humility. So if there's any encouragement in Christ, then we should be humble, but also if there is any comfort from love.

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The promises that we have in Jesus Christ. Are the most wonderful. Beautiful. Life-altering promises. We have Not the least of which That he will love us and keep us most famous verse in the Bible. Probably, John 3, 16. For God. So loved the world. That he gave his only begotten, son, that whoever believes in him, will not perish, but will have everlasting life. What is the comfort of love look like it's knowing This for all time forever and ever, I will rest in Christ. That God loved me so much that he would send his son that if I believe in him. I will not perish.

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That as I rest in Christ, my heart is comforted in comforted. So that like, Paul I can say to live for to me to live is Christ and to die his game. So that I can say whether through my life or by my death, I know this that Christ will be glorified. That I can say. With boldness and confidence that he who spared not his own son? Will he not with him graciously? Give us all things. That I can say that I am convinced that neither height, nor death, nor angels nor demons, neither the present, nor the future nor any powers, nor anything else, in all creation can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. Our lord.

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So that though we are LED like lamb to the slaughter still. I Rejoice for we are more than conquerors through him, who loved us. And as I rest then in the love of God. His love motivates me. To humility.

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Perfect. Love. The perfect love that. God gives to us. Works in us and motivates us such that. We then live out. Humble lives. Because there's encouragement in our hearts in Christ Jesus, we experience the love and the comfort that that love brings and third. We have participation in the spirit. The Holy spirit is I will say this clearly because this is important. We all understand exactly what I'm saying. Here the Holy spirit is given to all who call upon Jesus name. Every believer in Jesus is gifted the Holy In fullness. Always, you have to be in Christ, is to have the Holy Spirit. There are

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There are no Believers. There is no one who experiences more of the spirit. All of us have participation in the spirit. That's the point. So Paul can tell all believers, all believers, all time everywhere, if you have encouragement in Christ, be humble because you do, if you have comfort from love which you do, then you should be humble and if you experience the the participation in the spirit which all believers do then you should be humble. Because the spirit is in us, moving us. He draws us to repentance, he indwells all believers. He is the comforter promised to all who call upon Jesus.

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And so we then as believers who live and walk in the spirit, should then be humble.

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As we participate in the Holy Spirit, the spirit of God at work within us. Humility. Is the natural outpouring of that. Because, And all of these things just so you know what, we're going to talk about at our Grace groups this week, but Because as I participate in the spirit, I begin to realize it's not my own strength. The love joy. Peace. Pays. Kindness goodness faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. I have it's not my own strength.

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And so it is easy to be humble. When people can say me, you know you're a very loving person. I hope people say that about all of us you're very loving person. I'm glad, I'm glad to hear that. And I try. But here's the, here's the deal. The only reason I'm able to love is because God's empowering me to do it, that's the first fruit of the spirit. So, Thank you. And I try. But that's just the work of God. I'm just here for the ride and glad to be so. As we participate in the spirit, humility is the natural outpouring.

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So, the 4R any encouragement in Christ, you should be humble. If you experience the comfort of the love of God, you should be harmful as we participate in the spirit. You should be humble. And finally, is there any affection? And sympathy. Here, affection, simply. This is of all of these. If you go read all the commentaries, this is the one people sort of struggle. With the most, it feels a little different if we're not careful. I I think what Paul is saying here. Is this? As we experience being in Christ, As our hearts are encouraged.

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We can show humility. As we experience the comfort and peace of the love of God, Humility. Bubbles up as we participate in the spirit. With him at work within us. We experience, humility, and as we look around, And realize. That God has loved us. Set his love upon us, right? So the difference here between any comfort and love, what's the comfort of love and affection. I think the best way to understand it is this comfort of love is what we feel. When God works in our heart, affection. It is when God pours out that love upon us and we see his love at work. Does that make sense? One's the feeling of love? We have that's the Comfort. I think that's good but affection, God shows us his affection.

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By giving us gifts. Sympathy. The sympathy of God. What Paul is saying here is what we realize that God. Sort of the churchy way to say this, right? If you've ever heard preachers talk about, well, what's the difference between Mercy and Grace, right? They say, Mercy is when we don't get what we do deserve and Grace is when we get what we don't deserve, I think affection and sympathy what Paul's getting at here is sort of a similar thought That he gives us affection, he pours out upon us things, we do not deserve but because he loves us, he gives them to us and conversely in his sympathy. He forgives, our sins cast them. As far as the East is from the West washes us cleanses us and makes us new.

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So, we experience these things. But then affection and sympathy in particular, then motivate humility. Why? Because it's God, who grants the affection? And I just live in that it's God, who has shown me, great mercy, and sympathy. And so I just live in

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So ultimately as we tie this together, here's the point. What motivates humility in my life is understanding that? It's all a work of God. It's understanding the gospel who Jesus is, what Jesus has done for me. Now. I can live a humble life. So we have to start here. We can't start out by saying I'm going to be humble because then we'll end up like I started this sermon. We'll start out by saying I'm the most humble person. I know. No one is as humble as me of all the humble people in the world. I am the most humble, I'll bet you anything.

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That's what happens if what motivates us is our own self and our own ability to try to be more humble. But rather, when we understand what Jesus has done, Who he is, what he's done for us, we experience the encouragement, the Comfort, the participation, the affection, and sympathy as we live in these things. We are motivated to be humble. True. Humility. And then, We can see what results, right? So what motivates us is the gospel? But then, what are the results?

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Complete my joy. Paul says. By being of the same month. 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. Let each of you look not only to his own interests but also to the interests Of others. What results, two things that I see here that are both very important that we grasp this Unity.

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We sing a song from time to time here at this church. We said they will know. We are Christians by our love by our love. They will know. We are Christians by our love. That's true.

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The way we show our love. It's by being together in all of life. And that can only happen. When we're humility, when we have humility, Because right, the other way to read chap verses one, and two, if we just figure out exactly what Paul is saying here, it's as if he's saying because Right, so he's framing this as a A question, a rhetorical question to get you to see the result. So let me reword it just a little bit to get you to see the the the force of what Paul is saying here. Since. You have encouragement in Christ.

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And since you experience the comfort of God's love, Since you yourselves experience, full participation in the spirit since, you know, the depth of affection and sympathy that God has given to you, then you must be of the same. Mind having the same, love being in full Accord. And one mind, It's Unity. Because we all and then here's how we get there. Here's the Practical, how do we get there? Because we all experience these precious Gifts of Salvation. We must all then be United. Having one mind, what is that one? Mind focused on the glory of God?

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Having the same love, what do we love? We love the gospel of Jesus Christ. And having one mind. What is that one mind to serve and bring glory honor and praise to God. We have this in unity. Together. Loving one, another caring for one, another living this out. The first result of our humility is that we will be together. Because as we do this, We will do nothing from selfish ambition, or conceit. But in humility count others, more significant than yourselves. We will all be willingly laying aside our own wants and desires for the for the good of those around us.

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In humility and love, glorying in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Together. This whole series through Philippians, I've called it together. In gospel. Joy. How do we get to the together part? Or being humble. Having the same mind, the same love being together in full Accord. As we focus on what God has called us to. The first result is Unity.

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I always. You guys, anyone who's been here or if you're a guest, when we do congregational meetings, I always say. Even if you're not a member, you're welcome to come to our congregational meetings because If you really want to know who a church is, you come to a congregational meeting.

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Because often when people are sitting there arguing about, not in unimportant things, right? The budget, the, the way the church is going these things are important.

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But you really see who a church is, when you sit down to have a congregational meeting, And by the grace of God, every congregation weaning, we've had since I've been here, Has been. A blessing. And I truly believe it's because We can all. By the power of God experience, a little bit of humility. And we can therefore operate.

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Though, we may disagree, how to get exactly to some points, right? I'm not saying we always agree on everything, we have the same mind, which is what to glorify God. World the same Accord. We're United. May that continue to be true of us. So, the first result is we, as we Are motivated to humility. And then as we live in this humility, The first result is Unity, the second one is care. We care for one another verse four. Let each of you look not only to his own interests. But also, To the interests of others.

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It's fairly straightforward. To say. Maybe not so straightforward to do. But we care for one another. Humility living in humility. Means laying aside my own wants and desires. For the sake of One another. This idea of looking out for your interest if we just hear and understand what Paul is saying,

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It's okay. For me to look at my life and think, you know what, okay, this is what I need to do. Right? You do this and you do this. I need to do this so I can take care of this done. That's okay. It becomes a problem. When I'm like, I need to do this, I need to do this. I need to do this, I need to do this and then we get a call. From a brother sister in Christ. Like, I really need some help. And we think, well, You gotta do this. I gotta do this. I gotta do this. I don't have time.

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It's not humility.

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I recently got a call.

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From someone who, I used to be a pastor of a long time ago. And they were in the midst of a difficult situation.

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I said, you know, I really need help and I know you're a pastor. And the church I currently go to

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I try to talk to the pastor and it's a bigger church and he just doesn't have time.

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Would you be able to meet with me?

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And I've said,

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If you'd like to, we can meet But know this, I know, even not even knowing your situation. I know. The advice, I'm going to give to you.

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You need to go to your pastor. And they need to care for you.

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That's their job.

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Because if we're truly humble, As we experience. The encouragement in Christ, the comfort and love. All of these things. We've talked about if we truly live these out, if we truly experience this, You will care for one another. Will be United.

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The point that that I have in sharing, that story is this,

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We are not. We are not a perfect.

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But the way we get closer.

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Is, if we are willing to care for one another, Put aside our busynesses. Lay aside, our to-do list. I can look out to my own interests. That's fine. I have my to-do list that I have to do. You know what I have never? Once in my entire life, gotten through my to-do list in a week. And that's okay. Because there always has to be room for this need that this person has, and this concern that this person has, and to look out to the interests of others, maybe they don't even bring it up. But you say, you know what, I know. They need this help.

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So I'm just gonna do it. We need to care for one another. That's the point. That is the result of living in humility. But in particular, living out, The gospel. Let's pray.