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Continuing on in Philippians. This week we’re entering chapter 2 of this amazing letter that Paul wrote to the church at Philippi. We remember he wrote it from prison, and yet it has an amazingly joyful tone.
So let’s pray and then jump write in. We’re looking at this morning.
PRAYER
1 So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy,
2 complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.
3 Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.
4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.
5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,
6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,
7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.
8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name,
10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Wow. There’s a lot in there.
At the end of the last chapter Paul had described the Philippians’ united stand against their adversaries as participation with him in the great struggle to advance the gospel. This opening paragraph in chapter 2 “turns from the problem of withstanding persecution from the outside to healing the wounds of strife within the Philippian church itself.” He talked about enduring the suffering for the Gospel.
Let’s begin by looking at Paul’s opening appeal in verse 1.
So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy,
The first thing that stands out is the word “If”. Is there doubt that this “encouragement,” “comfort,” “participation,” “affection and sympathy,” exist? No. There isn’t. so it’s sort of a rhetorical “if/then” statement.
IF you have these things...
SINCE you have these things...
THEN...
complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.
And how exactly do we do that, that is what the focus of the next part of our passage is.
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.
DO NOTHING from selfish ambition
but - cancels out that selfish ambition and conceit - so it’s going to give us the opposite
IN HUMILITY - count others more significant than yourselves.
LOOK - not just to your own interest - notice he doesn’t take your interest out of the equation
but - again cancels out that idea of looking out just for oneself
ALSO to the interest of others - last week we considered JOY -
JOY = Jesus, Others, You.
JOY = Jesus, Others, You.
Our JOY is wrapped up in putting Christ first - dying to self, full submission to our Lord Jesus Christ, becoming a “slave” like Paul, the emptying of ourselves. And he now supports that.
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.
and then here is the support for that argument
Phil 2:5-
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.
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.
All of this: not considering equality with the one with whom He was equal, emptying of one’s self, taking the form of a servant, dying to self and for others - that’s the example that Jesus set for us.
We are to have the same mind among ourselves as that which is in Christ Jesus.
In argument it is often the lesser arguments that support the grand argument. This is often turned upside down in the New Testament where we find the greater statement standing in support of the lesser statement.
In this case it is Jesus and his example as stated by Paul in vv. 5-8 supporting his encouragement in verses 3 & 4.
Christ humbles himself
equality - not something to be grasped
emptied himself
took on the form of a servant
being born in the likeness of men (don’t get caught up in this. It’s not saying that Jesus was not fully human but rather that he took on the likeness of sinful man
For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh,
And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.
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.
Phil Jesus did not sin, but he did take on the fulness of what it is to be human
Jesus did not sin, but he did take on the fulness of what it is to be human
he humbled himself to the point of death
even death on the cross.
Notice the downward direction of Paul’s explanation of Christ’s humiliation. Each of these statements is a statement of putting one’s self lower than before.
For what purpose?
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.
This grand statement that is from vv. 5-11 is all ultimately to the glory of God the Father, the maker of heaven and earth. The one true God. The only one that is worthy of glory.
Paul said in our last chapter:
For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better.
For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell.
For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
There are examples throughout Scripture of the lifting up of Christ:
John the Baptist said,
He must increase, but I must decrease.”
Jesus himself said in the Sermon on the Mount,
Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.
So we return to the original imploring of Paul:
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.
The lesser idea stated here is our humbling ourselves and serving one another. The foundation and reason for it is incredibly great.
The truth is Scriptural
Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.