Godly Attitudes: A Recipe for Church Harmony
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Introduction:
Introduction:
300 Sermon Illustrations from Charles Spurgeon Do Not Let Your Head Grow Faster than Your Heart (Matthew 23:23; Luke 11:42; Philippians 4:8)
Do Not Let Your Head Grow Faster Than Your Heart
Matthew 23:23; Luke 11:42; Philippians 4:8
Preaching Themes: Holy Spirit, Pride, Speech
If your child should have a rapid growth in its arms but not in its legs, or if its legs should lengthen but not its arms, what a strange being it would be! What a monster! It is the growth of each limb in proportion that brings the man to perfection.
So when our heads grow faster than our hearts, it is an ill sign. Yet how many know a great deal more than they feel, and criticize much more than they believe! It is also an evil thing when a man’s tongue grows bigger than his head; when he has more to say than he knows or does; when, like Mr. Talkative [of Pilgrim’s Progress], he can talk about the road to heaven but makes no progress in it.
God give you an abundance of his Holy Spirit, that you may never deserve our Lord’s rebuke to the Pharisee, “It was necessary to do these things while not neglecting those,” but “Whatever things are true, whatever things are honorable, whatever things are right, whatever things are pure, whatever things are pleasing, whatever things are commendable, if there is any excellence of character and if anything praiseworthy, think about these things” (Phil 4:8). May you have them all.
Mark Twain once said,
"I built a cage and in it I put a dog and a cat. After a little training I got the dog and the cat to the point where they lived peaceably together. Then I introduced a pig, a goat, a kangaroo, some birds, and a monkey. And after a few adjustments, they learned to live in harmony together. So encouraged was I by such successes that I added an Irish Catholic, a Presbyterian, a Jew, a Muslim from Turkestan, and a Buddhist from China, along with a Baptist missionary that I captured on the same trip. And in a very short time, there wasn’t a single living thing left in the cage."
https://www.sermoncentral.com/sermon-illustrations/72268/unity-by-guy-mcgraw?ref=TextIllustrationSerps
Our text for today is about harmony, and unity, within the church.
The quote I just read illustrated disunity, and discord between people of different religious convictions.
18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.
14 Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.
14 But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled,
11 let him turn away from evil and do good;
let him seek peace and pursue it.
We are
The NT is clear that as Christians we are to strive to live lives of peace. Certainly peace within the church and yes, even peace within the communities we live in. Knowing what we know about 1st century Christian living, both in Israel and in Roman colonies, it was a challenge. It was and still is a challenge because as puts it “the nations rage” against God and His people.
18 “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. 19 If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.
31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
Mark 12:31
So again, it’s clear, we are to love our neighbors, Christian or not and to strive for peace. But as we mentioned last week, we can never compromise truth for the sake of unity. We can’t change the gospel message just so people will like us.
4 For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. 5 We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, 6 being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is complete.
2 corinthians
Our weapon is truth and the convicting powers of the Holy Spirit.
15 For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people.
Silencing the ignorance of foolish people in this verse is directly related to doing good. So the combination of our speeach, actions, and really the whole life we live should serve to silence the ignorant.
John Calvin argued that it was the task of the apologist to stop the mouths of the obstreperous.
The opposite of striving to live peaceably is what, to sow discord. We see the flip side of God’s commands to strive for peace with God’s view of those who do the opposite.
16 There are six things that the Lord hates,
seven that are an abomination to him:
17 haughty eyes, a lying tongue,
and hands that shed innocent blood,
18 a heart that devises wicked plans,
feet that make haste to run to evil,
19 a false witness who breathes out lies,
and one who sows discord among brothers.
18 a heart that devises wicked plans,
feet that make haste to run to evil,
19 a false witness who breathes out lies,
and one who sows discord among brothers.
19 a false witness who breathes out lies,
and one who sows discord among brothers.
15 therefore calamity will come upon him suddenly;
in a moment he will be broken beyond healing.
16 There are six things that the Lord hates,
seven that are an abomination to him:
17 haughty eyes, a lying tongue,
and hands that shed innocent blood,
18 a heart that devises wicked plans,
feet that make haste to run to evil,
19 a false witness who breathes out lies,
and one who sows discord among brothers.
The title of the lesson today is Godly Attitudes; a recipe for church harmony.
So we have just discussed how Christian lives are to be ones striving for peace, both within the church, and outside the church but peace is not the same thing as harmony.
The faithful church will never be in harmony with the world. Jesus told us that, we just read that verse in .
What do you think of when you think of harmony?
har·mo·ny - noun
1. the combination of simultaneously sounded musical notes to produce chords and chord progressions having a pleasing effect.
noun
1.
the combination of simultaneously sounded musical notes to produce chords and chord progressions having a pleasing effect.
I think of an orchestra, or a barbershop quartet. For harmony to exist there has to be multiple sounds coming together to make one sound that is pleasing.
The reason that I say we will never be harmony between the church and the world is because harmony implies a striving together for a united cause, task, or reason. It implies a common goal and a common foundation to work from. That is something we will never have with the world.
Read the Text
1 Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved.
2 I entreat Euodia and I entreat Syntyche to agree in the Lord. 3 Yes, I ask you also, true companion, help these women, who have labored side by side with me in the gospel together with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.
4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 9 What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.
Key Verse:
8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.
Philippians
Christ - The Foundation for Agreement (Vv 2-3)
Christ - The Foundation for Agreement (Vv 2-3)
Verse 1 - We concluded our study last week in 4:1 and I have now included it in our text today. It serves both to connect what Paul said in chapter 3 verses 17-21 and also now 4:2-9. The exhortation in verse 1 is to stand firm and we mentioned the idea of standing side by side. It has military overtones as well just as the military tactics of the day were to stand and fight side by side in rows of soldiers. Paul refers to them as brothers, his joy and crown, and his beloved. He is using these endearing terms to express his love for them and as a motive for them to obey.
In verses 2-3 Paul now gives us a real life situation that is presumably at the front of his mind as he once again is calling for unity within the Church at Philippi.
We don’t know much about these two that Paul mentions but they are presumably in places of influence within the church. It’s clear that Paul knows them personally and has spent much time with them as he mentions they have labored side by side with him in the gospel.
I’m sure they weren’t excited about being called out by name before not only the other Philippians but to every Bible reader throughout the ages. If you were going to be named in the Bible you certainly wouldn’t want it to be in this context and under these circumstances.
Our Bibles say Paul ‘entreats, urges, or beseeches”. The Greek word here has the idea of calling to ones side. It’s an invitation to join with another and be by their side. So just like in verse 1 where the idea of standing firm implies and standing together side by side the idea carries to both Euodia and Syntyche and there situation.
So just like we have already seen in this letter Paul’s foundation for unity, his illustration if you will, is Christ.
He tells them to “agree in the Lord”.
What does it mean to ‘agree in the Lord”?
Essentially he is calling to set aside their differences for the sake of Christ. That’s the short way of putting it but Paul is calling them to a mindset.
If you recall our study back in chapter 2 Paul explicitly calls them to share in a Christ-like way of thinking.
4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.
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,
The mind is where a lot of the battle is won. How we think will shape how we live and act. Our thinking shapes our attitudes and this passage is most certainly about having godly attitudes. It will serve to shape our will, that is our desires for life and living.
Rejoicing, Praying, and Peace
Rejoicing, Praying, and Peace
Rejoicing, Praying, and Peace
Rejoicing, Praying, and Peace
Rejoicing, Praying, and Peace (Vv 4-7)
Rejoicing, Praying, and Peace (Vv 4-7)
Some of you may recall but I entitles our study of this epistle as “Joy in Jesus”. That’s because it is a central theme to the book. There are 14 different mentions about joy, joyful, and/or rejoicing. Paul in verse 4 once again directs our thinking to Christ.
At first glance this may seem like a random outburst by Paul but no doubt it is at the core of the exhortations to unity. It’s again about remembering who we are and what we share in Christ as the cause for our joy. We prefaced our study of this epistle with a study on the fact that God is a God who has joy, mainly the joy He has in saving sinners. So it is no wonder we have this command given here .
The joy we have in Christ transcends any ill feelings we may have towards other brothers and sisters in Christ. A joyful person wouldn’t be characterized as being quarrelsome. The two attitudes are the opposite of each other. The more joyous we are the more we can navigate church life and all of our personal differences. They say misery loves company well the same can be said of joy.
Perhaps Euodia and Syntyche just needed a good dose of joy in Jesus. Paul’s command to rejoice is part of the solution to their problems.
Verse 5
Paul tells them to let their reasonableness be known to everyone. Were one or both of them being unreasonable? Probably.
How much of our own personal relationship conflicts can be resolved merely through being reasonable. Most Bible translations rendered the word here as some form of gentleness.
Gentleness - a fruit of the spirit but what is it. It’s not having a bent to tear down, or destroy but to build up.
I believe it carries with it a sense of caution and carefulness. It’s the opposite of a bull in a china closet. How many people do you know who always seem to want to be abrasive or even destructive in their personal relationships.
Paul goes on to mention that the Lord is at hand. I think there is a twofold understanding of this.
1 - He is referring to Christ’s return. Paul has mentioned 2 other times (1:6, 2:16) the day of Christ.
2 - It refers to Christ’s nearness to His people spiritually.
5 Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
18 The Lord is near to the brokenhearted
and saves the crushed in spirit.
The nearness of Christ both comforts us and again motivates us to obey.
Verse 6
Don’t be anxious, pray.
Our hope and trust in the Lord’s sovereignty cures us of the need to be anxious or worry. We can nourish that faith in prayer.
Whatever might concern us or cause us to worry we can carry to the Lord in prayer.
Our joy in Jesus is not circumstantial. Paul told us to “Rejoice in the Lord always” not rejoice in the Lord if everything in your life is going according to your own will and desires.
Ultimately we have no need to worry. Certainly we have concerns for things in our lives and the lives of others and that’s okay. We should have concern for things in life.
3 He was despised and rejected by men,
a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief;
and as one from whom men hide their faces
he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
1 Who has believed what he has heard from us?
And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
2 For he grew up before him like a young plant,
and like a root out of dry ground;
he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,
and no beauty that we should desire him.
3 He was despised and rejected by men,
a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief;
and as one from whom men hide their faces
he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
4 Surely he has borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows;
yet we esteemed him stricken,
smitten by God, and afflicted.
5 But he was pierced for our transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with his wounds we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned—every one—to his own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,
yet he opened not his mouth;
like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,
and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,
so he opened not his mouth.
8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away;
and as for his generation, who considered
that he was cut off out of the land of the living,
stricken for the transgression of my people?
Isai
We have much to feel sorrowful about and much to grieve over.
But from an overall standpoint we have the assurance that God’s will is perfect. We trust that all things work together for our good and God’s glory. And that is where we find rest for our souls.
Paul tells that our response to worry and anxiety is prayer. It’s time with the Lord. Prayer will serve to renew us in the things we already now.
Verse 7
The blessing of prayer is peace. He tells us also that the peace of God surpasses our understanding. If you’ve ever experienced this peace, particularly during a hard trial, we know this. It can’t be explained and even understood. It’s not something that a scientist can put under a microscope.
God isn’t just to be pondered and studied but experienced, He is to be enjoyed. The gospel is about our relationship to our creator. Peace is a result of knowing God and experiencing Him when our sins are forgiven.
But our experience of God and our joy in God certainly does come as a result of know Who He is and what He is like.
2. Help (Verse 3)
3. Rejoice in the Lord (Verse 4)
4. Make known your reasonableness (verse 5)
5. Do not be anxious (verse 6)
6. Pray - thankfully (verse 6)
7. Think on Good and Godly things (verse 8)
8. Practice what you’ve seen and know (verse 9)
Furnishing Our Minds (Vv 8-9)
Furnishing Our Minds (Vv 8-9)
SF Paul takes us to the store with which we are to furnish our minds.
Our minds are to be furnished with things that are true, honorable, just, purse, lovely, commendable, excellent, and worthy of praise.
Paul commands us to thing about these types of things. Again, much of spiritual battles are fought in our very own minds Paul tells us how we should think and thus live.
We could probably spend an entire study just on this one verse. I think we understand it but applying it consistently in our lives is the challenge.
We talked last week about distractions and how Paul tells us to keep are eyes on those who walk according to example we have in the Apostle Paul and others like him.
There are many things we can do to help aid in this process.
Can you think of things in your life that may not be necessarily sinful but are definitely distractions to your pursuit of Christ-likeness?
I read an article recently how the media and big business marketing’s sole mission and purpose is to get your attention. Essentially to distract you.
‘s sole mission is to get your attention.
If you have a smart phone you know exactly what I’m talking about. You get an email, a text, and also a notification on your phone.
Companies are competing for the bandwidth of your mind.
Conclusion
Conclusion
I have cataloged all of the exhortations in these verses and consequently the blessing that comes from applying them to our own lives.
1. Agree in the Lord (Verse 2)
2. Help (Verse 3)
3. Rejoice in the Lord (Verse 4)
4. Make known your reasonableness (verse 5)
5. Do not be anxious (verse 6)
6. Pray - thankfully (verse 6)
7. Think on Good and Godly things (verse 8)
8. Practice what you’ve seen and know (verse 9)
Blessings
The Book of LIfe
The closeness or nearness of the Lord
Guarded by God’s peace
The God of Peace will be with you
Summary and Conclusion
Unity in the church
Godly attitudes overcome petty differences
Keep Christ central, He is the foundation of the church
Furnishing our minds with good and godly things will equip us and guard us from division