Humble Servants
Notes
Transcript
Last week:
Here in Chapter 2, really, the whole theme is joy in humility. We see that humility, and having the same attitude as Jesus is the key to unity within the church, the body of Christ.
And how can we have joy no matter what people are going through, no matter how poorly they might be behaving… is because it is the Lord who is working in and through us
Today, we get to see wonderful examples of those who are serving the church do it in humility. Humble servants as I like to call them.
Illustration:
I want you to remember the story we read in Numbers 16, when Korah led a rebellion against Moses and Aaron, claiming that they had exalted themselves above all Israel, and that they were no longer needed. As Korah was accusing them of this, we read in Numbers 16:4-5
4 When Moses heard this, he fell on his face;
5 and he spoke to Korah and all his company, saying, “Tomorrow morning the Lord will show who is His, and who is holy, and will bring him near to Himself; even the one whom He will choose, He will bring near to Himself.
Moses didn’t fight, he didn’t come against Korah, he didn’t argue back, he simply fell on his face… a picture of humility. In fact, look at what it says in Numbers 12:3
3 (Now the man Moses was very humble, more than any man who was on the face of the earth.)
Moses wasn’t seeking fame and fortune, he was humbly serving. Which meant that when Korah came to him, he humbled himself even more and said they would let the Lord decide. What we see is that Korah and 250 men were swallowed up, and they became a warning to Israel and us.
But what I want you to see is that this is the leadership we desperatley need in the church today, humble leaders, people like Moses, but also, as Paul is going to point out, men like Timothy and Epaphroditus. Men who were humble, men who Paul could trust to take care of the sheep.
Point #1
V.19
19 But I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you shortly, so that I also may be encouraged when I learn of your condition.
Timothy:
Remember, Paul introduces this letter with Timothy
encouraged when I learn of your condition:
Paul wants to know how the Philippians are doing, so he is sending Timothy.
Why Timothy?
V.20-22
20 For I have no one else of kindred spirit who will genuinely be concerned for your welfare.
21 For they all seek after their own interests, not those of Christ Jesus.
22 But you know of his proven worth, that he served with me in the furtherance of the gospel like a child serving his father.
No one else of kindred spirit:
like minded
Timothy was like minded, Paul even says “Like a child serving his father.”
Remember Ephesians 5:1
1 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children;
Then also 1 Corinthians 11:1
1 Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.
This speaks of the closeness that Paul and Timothy had, and Paul’s purpose to raise up such a young man
genuinely concerned for your welfare:
Timothy was one who actually had a heart for the Philippians, who loved them.
Timothy wanted what was best for the Philippians, not motivated by a big ministry or lots of money, but because he cared for their welfare
V.21- They all seek after their own interest.
V.21- They all seek after their own interest.
A problem we still have, men wanting to build their kingdoms, not the Lords.
The 3 downfalls of any ministry… Gold, Glory, and Gloria.
Be careful of what someone wants, because it may be for them and their gain, not what Christ wants.
Go back to what Paul says in Philippians 2:3-5
Humility will always be the key to oneness and unity in the body, not some elaborate scheme or perfect planning.
This is the big red flag that Paul is exposing, that these guys are not humble and do not care for the needs of the Philippians.
In fact, we will see this more in chapter 3
Consider also what Jesus says in Matthew 7:15-20
15 “Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.
16 “You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they?
17 “So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit.
18 “A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit.
19 “Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
20 “So then, you will know them by their fruits.
Know them by their fruits, that is important for us to know and remember.
Keep in mind, however, there is a big difference between a wolf and one who needs to repent of their ungodly behavior.
Too many times we see a pastor who is misbehaving, and then all of a sudden, people look at him and assume everything he has done has been malicious and evil. Know this, every pastor and so called “Man of God” is just as human as the rest of us. They should never be put on a pedastal and never thought of as infallible. There will be times that a pastor will make mistakes, behave badly, and need to be corrected. They aren’t wolves, just men, and ones who need to repent just like everyone else.
I think of a pastor who I had interacted with years ago. He was a wonderful teacher, was very gracious from the pulpit, and was very concerned and mindful of the sheep. But with his leadership, he was very harsh. He had a problem with alcohol, and his family suffered because of it. His problems didn’t make him a wolf, but he needed to humble himself and repent. Instead, he just continued to hide things and now is no longer pastoring and lost his whole family.
I personally believe this man could easily pastor again, he has the gifting and calling, he just needs to humble himself. And that is true for all of us.
This is what Paul is wanting for the Philippians, and even these men who seek their own interests, is that they humble themselves before the Lord.
But until then, they only seek their own interest.
So be mindful of these people who are unwilling to humble themselves, because lets be honest, in our culture, these type of people are revered and draw big crowds, but this isn’t God’s way to run the church, that is man’s way.
And let me add one more thing… there is always disagreements of what the governmental structure of the church should look like. But let me be honest, that the structure doesn’t matter. What does is that men humble themselves before the Lord, and whether you have a church that is ran by one elder, many elders, or even a congregational rule, you must have humility, because pride will always destroy the unity and joy that we should see in the church.
You know his proven worth:
Timothy has proven himself, not as a strong leader, but as a servant, as a child serving his father to further the gospel, not his own agenda.
Timothy is an example of a humble servant.
He seeks the concern and welfare of the sheep, and he serves to further the gospel. He hasn’t allowed his pride to create competition, but rather, humbled himself to serve.
And this is why Paul trusts him. He is faithful, willing to serve, and is concerned for the welfare of the church. That is what humility brings
V.23
23 Therefore I hope to send him immediately, as soon as I see how things go with me;
I hope to send him immediately:
Because of Timothy, who he is, his humility and care for the Philippians, Paul wants to send him as soon as possible.
This is what humility builds, is trust. It goes right back to James 4:10
10 Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you.
V.24
24 and I trust in the Lord that I myself also will be coming shortly.
I trust… I myself also will be coming:
Paul isn’t just sending Timothy because he can’t be bothered, he wants to be there as well.
As far as we know, Paul never made it back to Philippi.
V.25
25 But I thought it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger and minister to my need;
Epaphroditus:= lovely; handsome; charming
Here is another example of humility.
Fellow worker, fellow soldier
He worked alongside Paul, and also, ministered to him (minister to my need)
Your messenger:
the word here is one we have heard before, apostolo… an apostle. One who is sent, specifically, to bring a message to the Philippians. And we see in the next verse, what that message would be…
V.26
26 because he was longing for you all and was distressed because you had heard that he was sick.
he was longing for you all:
He was concerned for the Philippians because they knew he was sick and worried about him. He didn’t want them worrying about him. He wasn’t wanting a sympathy card, he was wanting the Philippians to keep their joy without worry or concern.
Pride wants to take advantage of the sympathy people give us, humility wants to bring people comfort.
4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
Epaphroditus was the one bringing comfort.
V.27
27 For indeed he was sick to the point of death, but God had mercy on him, and not on him only but also on me, so that I would not have sorrow upon sorrow.
sick to the point of death:
This is how seriously sick he was, he almost died. Yet, he is the one bringing comfort to the Philippians
Again, this is humility. One who is willing to continue in the ministry even after and during potentially fatal situations.
Those who think of their interest, they get out of the way, they play it safe.
I remember not wanting to go on a mission trip because it was potentially dangerous. And another pastor, one whom I barely knew, I was sharing with him my concerns. And all I remember is him rebuking me, that my fear was because I wanted people to keep their eyes on me, not Jesus. And he was right. I didn’t want to go because I was afraid I wouldn’t be there for my kids. So instead of pointing my precious family to Jesus, to keep their minds and hearts fixed on Him, my pride was training them to trust me, and have their joy in the fact that I was around. But I had to humble myself, that my families one hope and joy was Jesus, not me. And that was a hard lesson for me to learn.
I would not have sorrow upon sorrow:
Paul admits it would make him sorrowful to see Epaphroditus die.
This is how much he meant to Paul, this is how much Paul thought of this man who was humble enough to face death for the gospel, not looking out for his interest, but for others.
V.28
28 Therefore I have sent him all the more eagerly so that when you see him again you may rejoice and I may be less concerned about you.
I have sent him eagerly:
Someone who has ministered to Paul’s needs, and he eagerly sent him… why?
Because it is best for the Philippians. Because it would bring them joy, and it would bring him joy knowing that it brought them joy.
A pastor heart… to let go of your interest and do what is best for others.
V.29-30
29 Receive him then in the Lord with all joy, and hold men like him in high regard;
30 because he came close to death for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was deficient in your service to me.
Receive him in the Lord with joy:
Have joy that he is there, that he is still alive
Also, have joy because of the blessing he was to Paul (service to me)
Finally, don’t feel guilty that he is with you and not me.
This is the humility of Paul coming through. They don’t have to feel bad nor lack in joy because he isn’t with Paul anymore.
When we see the humility of these leaders, these apostles, these pastors, these evangelists, these men who are serving Christ and the church, it brings wonderful joy to the body, a oneness and unity that could never come if we were pridefully arguing and bickering at one another.
Conclusion:
And this is humility, not looking after our interest, but the interest of others. And this isn’t just a call for leadership, but for all believers, because it is easy to see that when people humble themselves, even in difficult situations, it promotes unity within the body. We aren’t worried about our position or authority or how the Lord is going to use me, we can humbly accept the one God has placed in authority over us and know that when we humble ourselves before the Lord, He will lift us up, and He will lift people up who have humble hearts for the people they serve, not people who are trying to build their own kingdom.
