Citizens: Humble Citizens of a Humble King
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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, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but 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 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.
Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me.
Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus,
To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and deacons:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus. And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.
I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ. And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.
Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from good will. The latter do it out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment. What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice.
Yes, and I will rejoice,
PRAYER
Illustration
When a church in Dallas decided to split, each side filed a lawsuit to claim the church property.
The issue was taken to court. The newspapers loved it.
But the law courts gave it back tho the church to take care of.
They came to an agreement and the “losers” decided to go nearby and start their own church.
Church growth the North American way!!
It was reported in the Dallas News that the court had traced the trouble to its source.
the conflict had all begun at a church dinner when a certain elder received a smaller slice of ham than the child seated next to him.
There was a book written in the 70s dedicated to telling the tales of great church fights.
In one story a newspaper records what happened when a church was looking for a new pastor; and two groups that wanted a different pastor had a preach off. Simultaneously!!
“Yesterday the two opposition groups both sent ministers to the pulpit. Both spoke simultaneously, each trying to shout above the other. Both called for hymns, and the congregation sang two — each side trying to drown out the other. Bibles were raised in anger. The Sunday morning service turned into bedlam. Through it all, the two preachers continued to out shout each other with their sermons. Eventually, a deacon called a policeman. Two came in and began shouting for the congregation to be quiet. They advised the 40 persons in the church to return home. The rivals filed out, still arguing. Last night one of the group called a ‘let’s be friends’ meeting. It broke up in argument.”
Today we take a look at something at the core of the Gospel.
The Gospel, a word new Christians are excited about, older Christians are comfortable with, and newcomers are confused by.
What is the Gospel. The Good news!!
OK!! Good news about what?
When we say the Gospel we are talking about the good news that God has not left us! That although we naturally run from Him, and even if we aren’t running from Him, we have a hard time finding him, He is writing and acting our a beautiful story of revealing himself and engaging with us. That we do not have to be defined by our efforts, our accomplishment, because everything we need to be in relationship with a Holy God has already been accomplished, because he has put it in motion.
And the cross takes any imperfection and burns it away. The cross is where everything that might get in the way of me seeing my sin for what it is and His holiness for what it is seen is removed.
So the gospel is not only the cross and resurrection, (that is part of it), but without the entire story of man falling from God and all the consequences that come with that, the cross has no context. ‘Without an understanding of Gods Holiness that we see throughout scripture and our brokenness, the cross makes little sense.
And the cross takes any imperfection and burns it away. The cross is where I see my sin for what it is and His holiness for what it is.
But without the entire story as a backdrop....
Otherwise it is just..... “Jesus died for you!”
“Well, I didn’t ask him to!!”
Now here is the thing. When we look at Jesus, as Paul describes him here,.....there is no room for a church to divide over ham!!!
There is no room for the kinds of competitions we often see within a church. The kinds of battles we see in marriages.
The anger you and I hold against each other when we feel we have been unjustly treated.
Christ’s humility is the model for the lives of citizens of the eternal Kingdom of God and it is a terrifying model when I put it up to my personal agenda for my life!
Because the first thing about Gospel Life is that it means that...
I. Humility is our New M.O. (vv.1-2)
I. Humility is our New M.O. (vv.1-2)
Modus Operandi - the new way of doing things that takes us over
a. encouragement in Christ
b. comfort from love
c. participation in the Spirit
d. affection and sympathy
Everything about verse 1 focuses us away from ourselves and toward unity in our purpose.
Which is what? The promotion and spread of he gospel.
Paul says this in chapter 1:27
Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel,
we now find our encouragement in all that Jesus has said and done on our behalf
(anything else is less)
we find comfort in his love
(any other love is less)
we find that we are not alone, but are brought into the family of God, the Spirit in-dwelt church
(any other participation is less)
we become people of affection and sympathy
PAUSE
Hopes that these motivations will move God’s people, the church to......
So as we enter into this new life.........
As we enter into the life of the gospel it is an invitation to replace the unending life of outdoing, keeping up, and keeping record of our own and others sins, and replacing it with encouragement in Christ, comfort in love, a participation with the Spirit of God, and an expression of affection and sympathy for others!
Paul says, if you get this and couple it with unity, it is powerful.
Introduction
complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.
the opposite of that is selfish ambition and conceit v.3
Which Paul points out comes from a lack of humility.
And it pointing this out, when reflected on it, points one of the greatest barriers to spiritual and emotional health in families, society, and church.
a lack of humility
The Gospel Life means that....
II. Humility is our Model and Means (vv. 3-11)
a life that “looks not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.” v. 4.
now press pause: If we were to look over our last week and take note, how many of our decisions were made with a view of something larger than ourselves.
We can say we love Jesus, we can say we are changed by the gospel, Paul would say the gage of that truth is our humility.
John Dickson in his book, Humilitas defines humility this way:
Humility is the noble choice to forgo your status, and deploy your resources or use your influence for the good of others before yourself.
Humility was invented by Jesus.
and I don’t mean that as a metaphor.
Scholars and historians today believe that....
the word humility (or lowliness) was not found in the Roman or Greek vocabularies of Paul’s day. The word was probably invented by Christians, perhaps by Paul himself. Romans and Greeks did not aspire to humility—to a downwardly mobile lifestyle of self-sacrificial love and service.
Just like today, people wanted to be upwardly mobile—to be served by others not to serve them.
The emperors knew nothing of humility, raising monoliths and monuments engraved with their accomplishments, military defeats. And above them all stands a wooden cross proclaiming the power of humility.
Jesus descended from heaven, abandoned heavenly rights and protections, and aspired only to a cross and a grave. This idea, this accomplishment was so new it needed a new word to describe it—humility!
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 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.
Philippians 2:
PAUSE
Paul is saying that the model and the means of our new life came from Christ’s humility. Our response as citizens of the Kingdom He purchased for us is to model the same humility.
Some of you have walked through the entire process of citizenship for Canada. You learned about our culture, about our history, about what makes us what we are. Then you had to answer questions about what it means to be Canadian.
Paul says THIS is what it means to be a Christ follower.
At the essence of our citizenship is humility.
I am ashamed to say that I can nurture plenty of characteristics in my life and excuse them as Christian. So my default is righteous anger at those who do wrong; my default is to make a theological stand, my default is judgement;
Paul doesn’t say those have no place, but fundamentally he says that without humility, we misunderstand our what it means to be a Christ-follower. And we are just going through motions.
When President Obama spoke at Nelson Mandela’s memorial service, his words were turned into sign language for the benefit of the hearing impaired. Unfortunately, the sign language interpreter was a fake. For several hours, this interpreter made childish hand gestures that looked like a game of rock-paper-scissors.
At the time of the incident , official sign language trainers said “much of what he was signing was incomprehensible, but he did make reference to prawns and rocking horses.”
He was pretending to be something that he wasn’t.
Paul is saying without humility it is all just gestures, without substance, That true Gospel Life grows and is authenticated by humility.
Jesus deals with this among his discipes:
look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.
Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came up to him with her sons, and kneeling before him she asked him for something. And he said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Say that these two sons of mine are to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.” Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.” He said to them, “You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.” And when the ten heard it, they were indignant at the two brothers. But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave,
I. Humility Defined (3, 4)
Take everything you think you know about power and importacne and what it means to be somebody, ok are you watching??
eeerrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
This is the life of the life of the Gospel.
III. Humility is our Strength (vv.6-7)
A. A servant does nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Consideration for others must precede concern for ourselves.
The story of Scripture the template of the Gospel takes us in the opposite direction than what we presume.
The story of Scripture the template of the Gospel takes us in the opposite direction than what we presume.
In fact where the ancient emperors and military leaders did all they could to promote themselves, humility was considered dangerous to their kingdom and their power because it meant weakness.
B. A servant also looks out for the needs of others. It is not wrong to care for one’s self, but not to the exclusion of those about us.
Because it us assumed that humility is equal to humiliated
It assumed much like today that humility is equal to humiliation. It means your being weak and under the feet of others.It was a repulsive thought and if someone was humble they were less.
But if Humility is the noble choice to forgo your status, and deploy your resources or use your influence for the good of others before yourself.
Jim Collins-
II. Humility Developed (5–7)
We should recognize a few things about humility.
There are 3 things assumed when we speak of humility and they are perfectly modelled in Jesus:
A. Jesus did not hold on to what was rightfully His. He willingly relinquished His place in Heaven. Service reveals submission, not inferiority.
CHARACTERISTICS OF HUMILITY
A. Implies DIGNITY
humility acts from a height
Humility assumes strength
so it should never be confused with low self-esteem or being a doormat.
In fact it is impossible to be humble without a heathy sense of your worth and ability.
B. Jesus took the nature of a servant. shows that He expects His followers to do the same.
Jesus, who was “in the form of God” (v.6)
He is the image of the invisible God
- Paul speaks of Jesus as “the image of God”.
In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
Jesus said in the Gospel According to if you have seen me you have seen the father.
That is Jesus starting point of humility- full of position and height
but in strength he
(ESV)
III. Humility Demonstrated (8–11)
who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.
(ESV)
6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,
Humility starts from a height.
Second....
B. It is WILLING
it is a choice otherwise it is humiliation
He emptied HIMSELF, by TAKING the from of a servant(v.7)
However we understand the cross and what happened there we must always keep in mind that Jesus went willingly to it.
No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”
Would anyone call that weak??
Humility is willing! That is why it shows such strength!!
C. It is RELATIONAL
humility does not play out in a vacuum
it isn’t just modesty- keeping quiet, not talking to much about yourself
very good virtue
John Hickson again says that Humility is about
Humility is about redirecting your powers, whether physical, intellectual, financial, or structural, for the sake of others.
Or as one wise pastor wrote to a Roman colony around 60AD.
“in humility count others more significant than yourselves.”
What a beautiful default that would be.
In the 1930s there were three young men who tried to pick a fight with a man siting on a bus. They insulted him. He didn’t respond. They turned up the heat on the insults. Nothing.
When the bus came to its stop, the man stood up, larger than they had thought when he was seated- much larger.
He reached into his pocket and grabbed a business card, handed ti to them and stepped off the bus.
As the bus drove off they read the card. Joe Louis: Boxer
They had just tried to pick a fight with the heavy weight boxing champion of the world from 1937-1949.
Rated greatest fighter of all time; even above Muhammad Ali.
It was said he could knock out a horse with one punch. (I’m interested in how they found that out)
Very capable of of defending his honour, with a single blow.
Has dignity and strength, but chooses to hold his power back, in humility- fortunately for 3 young men.
Apparently this was very much the character of Louis throughout his life.
Born of slave parents, he always saw his success as opportunity to serve others.
generous to a fault, lavishing family members with money, paying back the city of Detroit for the welfare money his family received in their early days.
Made mistake, had financial troubles later in life.
But known for holding his power in such away that it served others.
The proper response of those 3 guys who were trying to push the buttons of Joe Louis once they read his card, once they understood who they had just come face to face with, all that he could have done to them with his power and strength, but witnessing his humility would have been and should have been -awe, respect, relief and praise.
PAUSE
How much more when we look at the power and position of Christ, who in humility looked at the world, and rather than rejecting, rather dismissing us as below him, He stood up, and took on flesh and humbled himself even to death on a cross.
That is why Paul says in vs. 12 to “work out your salvation with fear and trembling”.
Do you think that maybe these 3 young men , trembling, questioned not only their own circumstance, in light of his humility, but what their response ought to be.
SLOWLY
This is not a works based salvation he is talking about. He is saying, in light of this humility, that is moving toward a time where every knee shall bow and e3very tongue confess, strive to live lives that portray the salvation in your life. With lives of humility!
This is not a works based salvation Paul is talking about. He is saying, in light of this humility, that is moving toward a time where every knee shall bow and every tongue confess, strive to live lives that portray the salvation in your life. With lives of humility!
without grumbling and and disputing; because that does not display the humility we have had modelled. The humility that has saved us.
That causes us to shine in contrast to a world that is often “crooked and twisted” (v15), dehumanizing and aiming to manipulate for
It is the kind of Gospel Living where citizens of heaven stand out not in a show of power. They “shine as lights in the world” (v 15)
because they hold fast to the “word of Life”. That is the only real position we strive for.
SLOWLY
See because when we do that it is such a relief. There is no need to outdo, outperform or put someone in his place.
The entire basis of our faith is that Jesus was in his rightful place, and He willingly left it!!
Humility is our MO, our new way of living
Humility is the model of Jesus and the means of our salvation.
And it is the greatest expression of strength.
It is our “alternate lifestyle” in a culture that will call us names and dare us to stand up and fight.
See because we hold a card too. A card that reveals who we truly are.
But it doesn’t have our name on it.
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.
Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came up to him with her sons, and kneeling before him she asked him for something. And he said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Say that these two sons of mine are to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.” Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.” He said to them, “You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.” And when the ten heard it, they were indignant at the two brothers. But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave,
Matthew 20
Ways You Can Serve
Think of all the ways you might help someone this week: prepare food or clean house for someone sick; send a note or gift to a shut-in, serviceman, or student; call on someone bereaved; phone one who is discouraged or worried; offer respite to one who cares for a disabled or elderly relative; write a missionary; offer to do volunteer work in the church office. None of these requires any special talent, but all demonstrate a servant’s heart. Don’t just listen to a sermon on servanthood, but be a servant! William James once said, “Impression without expression leads to depression.” Even the sponge, to be useful, must release what it has absorbed.
Something More
The true servant is determined to do something more than might be expected or required. A man walked into a pet store and ordered ten mice and forty-two cockroaches. “That’s an unusual order,” the owner said. “Well,” replied the customer, “I’m moving from my apartment, and the lease says that I must leave it just as I found it.” Servanthood means you don’t leave things just as you found them.
I. Our Response to Christ’s Humility (14a)
A. “Do everything without complaining,” Paul declares. “Complaining” was used to describe the rebellious murmurings of the children of Israel on their journey to the Promised Land.
B. This requires the positive, optimistic outlook the apostle described elsewhere in this letter (e.g. 2:1–4; 4:1–9). Complaining comes from ingratitude. “I used to complain because I had no shoes, until I met a man who had no feet.”
II. Our Reaction to Humility (14b)
A. “Do everything without arguing.” Arguing stems from a selfish desire to prove that we are right (see ). It is a human tendency, but not for the Christian.
B. It is possible to disagree without being disagreeable (). It takes two to have a fight. The proper reaction is to avoid arguments (; ).
III. The Result of humility (15, 16)
A. To be blameless and pure children of God—that is our goal. Our reputation is to be pure, unmixed. Christian purity is blameless in the world’s eyes, sincere in the person’s own eyes, fit to stand the scrutiny of God.
B. When this occurs, we shine like stars in the universe. Our crooked and depraved world takes note of those whose lives are consistent with the faith they profess. Stars stand out (are obvious), sparkle (give beauty to the world), and shine (pointing the way, offering direction).
Illustrations
Like a Diamond in the Sky
Notice how an experienced jeweler displays a valuable diamond. With a bright light above, he slips the diamond onto the counter on a piece of black velvet. Against that backdrop, the gem glistens in all its brilliance. Christians are to shine like stars in a dark world.
Check Motivations at the Door (v.1)
Check Motivations at the Door (v.1)
And you can only imagine how hard everyone laughed when they heard about this huge fight among church people that began over the size of a slice of ham!
Check Motivations at the Door (v.1)
Check Motivations at the Door (v.1)
a. encouragement in Christ
b. comfort from love
c. participation in the Spirit
d. affection and sympathy
Hopes that these motivations will move God’s people, the church to......