Actions to Reveal Your Convictions
Notes
Transcript
Handout
The Mindsets of Christ
The Mindsets of Christ
The woman in the grocery store labored to push
one shopping cart full of groceries before her
and one behind.
Katie was 15.
She was at the store with her youth pastor
shopping for the youth group’s end of the year pool party.
Katie watched the woman struggle,
but her teenage mind was filled with other things-
like
what she would wear to the party
and who might be there.
She was shaken from these speculations
when her youth pastor stepped forward
and offered to help the struggling woman.
He then proceeded to help her finish her shopping
all the while he asked her questions about her life.
When it came time to pay,
he covered her bill,
then helped her load the groceries into her car.
As he lifted the final bag into the car,
with tears in her eyes
the woman thanked him
and asked why he was so generous.
He replied,
“When I saw you in the store,
Jesus told me to give you a helping hand.”
He then proceeded to tell the woman about Jesus
and to share his testimony with her.
Katie watched in awe
as the woman gave her life to Christ,
right there in the grocery store parking lot.
Later Katie asked her youth pastor,
“how did you know Jesus wanted you to help her?”
He replied,
“Katie,
it is only through a pursuit of godliness-
a daily commitment to the spiritual disciplines
that I have learned what pleases God.
I have disciplined my heart and mind
to listen to the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
That voice gets stronger every time I obey it
and weaker when I choose to disregard it.
If you listen and obey,
there is no end
to what you will see God do through you.”
Church,
what do you want God to do through you?
This morning
we continue our study of Philippians 2
and the three mindsets of Christ that we are to share.
The first mindset we explored
was Christ’s servant mindset
and last week we learned
that we are to share Christ’s mindset of humility
by preferring windows to mirrors.
This week
I want to discuss the final mindset of Christ
outlined in Philippians 2:5-8
we must share Christ’s mindset of obedience.
We must share Christ’s servant mindset.
We must share Jesus’ mindset of humility.
We must share Christ’s mindset of obedience.
For our visual learners,
on the back of the sermon notes this morning
is a diagram of Paul’s teaching
from Philippians 1:27-2:30
that you may find helpful.
And now,
turn with me to Philippians 2
as I read our passage this morning-
starting with verse 5 and ending with verse 13:
In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
rather, he made himself nothing
by taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.
The Word of the Lord
Although in every essence, God
Jesus willingly gave up
some of His divine privileges
when He came to earth
and became one of us.
Although equal to God the Father in authority,
while on earth,
Jesus chose to submit to the will of the Father.
Jesus was obedient to God
and we are to follow His example.
In the garden of Gethsemane,
on the night before His death Jesus prayed,
“Not My will,
but Yours be done”
saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.”
:This is a mind-blowing declaration.
Jesus did not look forward
to the upcoming suffering that He would endure.
He felt the shadow of the cross.
He knew the excruciating pain the cross would bring.
He anticipated the betrayal of Judas,
the taunts and scorns,
the beating and the rejection.
Worst of all,
He foresaw that Father God
would turn His back on Him
as He took on the sins
of all humankind-
as He took on the consequence
of your sin
and mine.
And so,
Jesus asked the Father if there was another way-
an alternative to bring about salvation
without having to endure the cross.
But astonishingly,
even though He wished to avoid the upcoming pain,
Jesus willingly submitted
to the will of the Father.
He placed obedience to God
above His own comfort and desires when He declared,
“Not My will,
but Yours be done”.
Jesus chose to remain faithful
to God’s redemptive plan.
At any point during His suffering,
Jesus could have used His divine authority
to save Himself.
Even as the foolish bystanders taunted Him,
“Come down from the cross,
if you are the Son of God!”
Jesus chose obedience.
It was not the nails that held Jesus to the cross
it was His fathomless love for us
and His submission to the will of God
that kept Him on that tree.
Famous pastor and author
Tony Evens explains:
“Paul tells us to have the mind of Christ,
the mind that sees obedience to God
as the thing of highest importance.
Out of love,
Jesus came to earth to be a servant
and to obey the Father’s plan,
even to the point of death and separation
from God.
When He sweat blood in the garden
and prayed that the cup of death on the cross
would pass from Him,
He asked that the Father’s will be done.
And He followed through in obedience,
trusting that God’s plan was best.
The result of Christ’s obedience
was that ‘God highly exalted Him,
and bestowed on Him
the name which is above every name,
so that at the name of Jesus
every knee will bow,
of those who are in heaven and on earth
and under the earth,
and that every tongue will confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of the Father.’” (end quote)
Notice how verse 12 starts with the word
“therefore.”
Thus we must ask ourselves
what “therefore” is there for.
In this instance,
Paul is connecting
Jesus’ example of obedience and His resulting reward
to his next command
to obey God
and to work out our salvation
with fear and trembling.
Sermon Outline
Sermon Outline
1. To share in Christ’s mindset of obedience
we must commit to a spiritual workout.
Few passages of Scripture
have been more misunderstood
than this passage.
What does it mean to “work out our salvation?”
The temptation here
is to interpret this to mean that
obedience to God brings about our salvation.
That following the Law
or some legalistic action
will some how get us into heaven.
In fact,
if you were to ask people on the street
“how do you get into heaven,”
if they believe in such a place,
most will say
that it is by good works,
“ah well,
I am a relatively good person…”
or
“Well…
Hopefully the good I do
outweighs the bad.”
You have to be good,
you have to do the right things-
NO!
because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
tells us
how you get into heaven:
If you declare with your mouth,
“Jesus is Lord,”
and believe in your heart
that God raised him from the dead,
you will be saved.
saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.”
“Not My will, but Yours be done”
And Ephesians 2:8-9
Goes further declaring,
“For by grace
you have been saved through faith
and that not of yourselves;
it is the gift of God
not of works,
lest anyone should boast.”
Beyond trusting Jesus as your Lord and Savior,
there is nothing you must do,
There is nothing you can do,
to earn God’s love and forgiveness.
But that is not where our relationship with God ends.
Jesus did not come and die on the cross
just to give us fire insurance
against the heat of hell’s flames.
Theologian David Jeremiah explains:
“The Christian life does not end there,
and neither does the passage.
The next verse in Ephesians
explains the purpose underlying God’s rich kindness,
‘For we are His workmanship,
created in Christ Jesus for good works,
which God prepared beforehand
that we should walk in them.’
These works are the natural result
of a relationship with God,
and He provides the power to accomplish them
through His Holy Spirit.
When we trust Jesus Christ as our Savior,
the power of Almighty God
is unleashed in us;
He energizes us
and electrifies us
to live a godly life.
The strengthening of our faith
is a joint effort by our Savior
and ourselves,
but many Christians miss the importance
of adding works to their faith.
And without realizing it,
they limit the Holy Spirit’s power in their lives.” -End Quote
Here is the important distinction:
When you sincerely accept Jesus as Savior and Lord of your life you are instantly and eternally saved from sin’s penalty.
From that point on as you “work out your salvation”
you are gradually saved from the power of sin over you.
Dr. Jeremiah explains:
“Philippians 2:12 gives this instruction,
‘Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.’
Strong’s Concordance describes the meaning
of the original word for work out
as to ‘effect by labor,
achieve,
work out,
bring about.’
To the original audience,
work out referred to those
who worked in the coal mines.
They mined out of the ground
what the Creator had already placed there
and then brought those riches to light.
The Christian’s role
is to work out what God has worked in us
by cultivating the characteristics
of a godly life.
Salvation from the penalty of sin
is a gift.
Like any other gift,
it is up to us
how we use it.
We can leave it unopened,
or we can unwrap its treasures
with fear and trembling.
When we demonstrate thankfulness for God’s gift
by working to be more like Him,
we find freedom from the power of sin.” (end quote)
This brings us to Point number two this morning,
2. To share in Christ’s mindset of obedience
we must commit to a spiritual workout by daily engaging in the spiritual disciplines.
When I say
we need to “work out”
what comes to mind?
For me
I think of a gym filled with sweaty,
panting people dressed in spandex
all straining their muscles.
I get exhausted just thinking about it.
Did you know that 80% of people
who sign up for a workout program
or gym membership
will quit after 5 months.
Why?
Because it is hard.
As one jokester said,
“My first workout at the gym was great.
I did 15 minutes of cardio,
10 minutes on the defibrillator,
then 3 days in the hospital.”
I’ll be honest friends,
a spiritual workout isn’t any easier.
However,
Our actions reveal our convictions.
You can say Jesus is Lord of your life
but if your actions don’t reveal that conviction
it is seen as hollow,
empty,
and your life will not change.
The sin, you know-
the sin that steals your joy,
that hurts you and those you love-
that sin…
well you will not find earthly freedom from it
until your actions reflect your convictions.
So we must commit to a spiritual workout
by daily engaging in the spiritual disciplines.
Right about now,
you may be asking one of your fabulous questions.
“Pastor Kimo,
what are the spiritual disciplines?”
Well I am so glad you asked.
There are several spiritual disciples
all of them designed
to exercise and grow you spiritually.
Today I am only going to highlight five
and my hope,
is that these will help you to become
more like Christ
and will make obedience to God
easier.
Donald Whitney explains:
“The Spiritual Disciplines
are those practices found in Scripture
that promote spiritual growth
among believers in the gospel of Jesus Christ.
They are the habits of devotion
and experiential Christianity
that have been practiced by the people of God
since biblical times.” -End Quote
Here are the Five,
Discipline One is Bible Study.
Before you can obey God,
you must first know Him
and what He is asking of you.
Very few people can hear the audible voice of God.
Not that He cannot speak to us that way,
but more often
God chooses to reveals Himself to us
through Scripture.
The study of the Bible is,
therefore,
the primary way to experience God
and to ascertain His purposes for one's life
and for the world in which we live.
Studying God's Word is vital
to one's spiritual workout!
Discipline two is prayer.
The second important spiritual discipline
is prayer.
Through prayer,
we knock on the doors of heaven,
and our needs,
thoughts,
feelings,
and desires
are heard by our all-loving
and caring God.
The Christian does
spiritual warfare for oneself
and others through prayer (Eph. 6:10).
Moreover,
if we listen in prayer
we often hear His still small voice
or the prompting of the Holy Spirit.
Discipline three is meditation.
The apostle Paul
instructs Christian believers
to meditate on the things of God
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.
“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.”
Unlike the mindfulness
and consciousness-
voiding activities of eastern religions,
godly meditation
is not an emptying of the mind
but the focus of the mind
on the "truths of God's revealed Word."
Obeying God is not always easy
and many times
it requires transforming our thinking
to conform to His viewpoint.
What you tell yourself
is vitally important
and often times
our inner thoughts don’t align with God’s truth.
Meditating helps us
put off our old self and sinful thought life
and put on
Holy Spirit inspired ways of thinking.
Discipline four is worship.
Calvin Miller beautifully explains
that through God's gift of worship,
we are "free from the killing love of self."
Worshiping God
takes my inner eyes off me,
my problems,
my needs,
and my desires
and puts them on He who is greater than I.
I worship because of all He is,
all He has done,
and all He has promised to do.
As we learned in our study of Philippians 1:21,
“God is most glorified in us
when we are most satisfied in Him.”
Worship is also an expression
of our love for God.
Remember that our motivation to obey
is not legalism.
It is out of our love for Jesus
and gratitude for His loving sacrifice
that we choose to obey Him.
Worship is an expression of gratitude
for all that God is
and all that He has done for us.
That brings us to point number three this morning,
3. To share in Christ’s mindset of obedience we must depend on God’s empowerment.
Are you aware
that every inclination you have for God
comes from God?
Every desire you have to crack open your Bible,
that was born in your heart,
birthed in your heart
by the Spirit of God.
Every sense of longing for the presence of God
and prayer,
comes from the Spirit of God in you!
He works in you to will,
to desire;
he inclines your heart toward himself.
He works in us to will,
and then here’s the second level:
he works in us to work.
That’s the Greek word energeō,
from which we get our word “energy”
or “energize.”
It means to empower,
to bring an act to completion,
and it means that God not only gives us new desires,
but he gives us the power to carry them out.
J.I. Packer calls this
“life supernaturalized
at the motivational level.”
God working in us to will and to work.
Your role and God’s role—
there’s this balance.
It’s not, “Let go and let God,”
and it’s also not
pull yourself up by the bootstraps.
It’s not quietism,
it’s not pietism.
It’s not that you are entirely passive.
You’re active,
but you’re active with dependence on God.
I love the illustration of Jerry Bridges,
an author from the late 20th century.
Bridges compares it to an airplane with two wings,
one wing is labeled discipline,
the other is labeled dependence.
Take off either one of these wings,
and the plane fails to fly.
Friends,
if your Christian life is all discipline
and no dependence on God,
you’re not going to grow.
And if your Christian life is all focused on,
“Depend on the Lord.
Let go, let God,”
but you don’t lift your finger to read your Bible,
you’re not going to grow.
There’s a balance.
Charles Spurgeon gives this powerful illustration,
““I have heard it said
that the good sculptor,
whenever he sees a suitable block of marble,
firmly believes
that there is a statue concealed within it,
and that his business
is but to take away the superfluous material
and so unveil the thing of beauty
which shall be a joy forever.
Believer,
you are that block of marble.
You have been quarried by divine grace
and set apart for the master’s service,
but we cannot see the image of you yet
as we could wish.
True,
there are some traces of it,
some dim outlines of what is to be.
It is for you,
with the chisel and the mallet,
with constant endeavor
and holy dependence upon God,
to work out that image of Christ in yourself,
so that you shall be like unto your Lord and Master.
God has sketched the image of his Son in you.
In the slightly carved marble
he has fairly outlined it;
you have but to go on chipping away
these sins,
infirmities,
and corruptions
till the fair likeness
of the incarnate God
shall be seen by all.” -End Quote
Actions to Reveal Your Convictions
Actions to Reveal Your Convictions
If we obey God,
work out what He has worked in us
we will see the image of Jesus
and there is no end
to what you will see God do
in and through you.
Let us pray