May I speak to a Manager?

Introduction

A monk joined a monastery and took a vow of silence that we was permitted to break once every ten years, but only with two words. After the first 10 years his superior called him in and asked, "Do you have anything to say?" The monk replied, "Food bad." After another 10 years the monk again had opportunity to voice his thoughts. He said, "Bed hard." Another 10 years went by and again he was called in before his superior. When asked if he had anything to say, he responded, "I quit." The Father replied "It doesn't surprise me a bit. You've done nothing but complain ever since you got here."

Complaining. Something we all do, as it comes naturally to our flesh. Most, if not all of us have likely already complained about something this morning. And yet, even though we all do it, we all know that its a negative thing. Our culture even recognizes this. It’s not fun to be around someone who constantly complains as it just pulls everyone down.

I used to work with a guy who complained all the time about everything, and it began rubbing off on the others except the things we complained about were....that other guy’s complaining.

But did you know that complaining has been scientifically proven to be bad for your health. Complaining releases certain chemical in the brain that increases stress levels which consequently can shorten your life span.

But there are even better reasons to keep yourself from venting about this that or the other thing. And we are going to see those things today.

Open your Bibles to Philippians chapter two. We will be in verses 14-18.

As we come into this section, we are going to see the practical application of everything that Paul has been saying going back to the end of chapter 1 when he first called us to live lives worthy of the Gospel of Christ, urging us to stand firm in one spirit. This unity can only take place when we are willing to act in humility to show deference to others and serve others. It’s not all about you. It’s not all about me. As we will with one about we aren’t trying to advance our own desires or agendas, but are seeking to serve others.

From there Paul gave us the example par excellence of Jesus Christ. The one who did not use his position for selfish reasons, but selflessly gave of himself to take the lowest possible position. Because of what he willing did, he was exalted by the Father.

In light of what Christ accomplished, Paul then gets into the practical application of this teaching. He urges us to work out our salvation, or to show the results of your salvation, and we do so with confidence and joy because ultimately it is God who works in you both to will and to do for his good pleasure.

That brings us into the section under examination today. Paul continues his exhortations to the church, and from our text today we are going to see four results of living lives of humility as Paul has been urging us. Four results of humility.

First.

Humility demands that we live with joy

Philippians 2:14 ESV

14 Do all things without grumbling or disputing,

This may be one of the most difficult commands in all the Bible. Do all things without grumbling or disputing.

In the original text the emphasis is on the “all things” All things do without grumbling or disputing. Everything we do in life. No matter what, no matter where, we are to do so without these two things.

This is not a command for one area of life that can ignored in another, but it applies everywhere.

Grumbling refers to exactly what it sounds like. In fact, the original word in the Greek sounds like the action itself. mumbling under our breaths, grumbling to ourselves, complaining about this that or the other. Paul says no. don’t do that.

What are the things that you find yourself complaining about the most? These last 18 months certainly brought many opportunities for us to complain. Masks. The government. Raise any political issue and we find a way to complain about it.

But then there are other things. Poor service at a store or restaurant. Traffic. Children. Our Spouse. Many opportunities for our flesh to step in an begin grumbling about the things around us.

It’s interesting that this word is the word used in the Greek translation of the Old testament of the nation of Israel as they were in the wilderness…grumbling against Moses! They grumbled for lack of water, they grumbled because of the manna. They grumbled because of the quail. They expressed their grumbling to Moses and thought they complaining against him and Aaron, but in Exodus 16:8 Moses says “What are we? Your grumbling is not against us, but against the Lord” and God ultimately judged the Israelites for their grumbling.

Why is grumbling such a big deal?

It displays a lack of gratitude for what God is doing in your life.

It displays a lack of trust in what God is doing in your life.

It can display a lack of taking personal responsibility. Often we complain about the things happening to us, without realizing that it was our own choices that led us into the mess in the first place. “Now you’ve gone from preaching to meddling”

It displays selfishness. I’m only thinking about me and my situation and not others.

It displays pride. I shouldn’t be treated this way, I’m better than that, I should have gotten this that or the other. Pride.

Ultimately when we grumble and complain about life’s circumstances, we are putting ourselves in the position of God, claiming we know better.

Paul says no. Don’t do that. We’re to live lives of humble service to others. We don’t do that while grumbling under our breathe. We do so with joy.

The opposite of grumbling is joy! Which is the overall theme of the letter! Life isn’t always easy! Sometimes your stuck in prison for crimes you didn’t commit. Sometimes your persecuted because of your faith. Sometimes you face other difficulties that challenge your faith, your patience, and you joy.

And yet,

because we know that He who began a good work will complete, because we know that he is at work, even when we can’t see it, because we know that we have a savior who gave up more than anyone else, because we know that it is God who works in us both to will and to do for His good pleasure

We CAN live a life of joy, free from grumbling, because when you see what Christ has done, when you see what God is doing, how can you have any other reaction than joy??

Forsake grumbling, pursue joy.

Grumbling is only half of the equation here. He also says to do all things without disputing.

This refers to arguments between one another. While we might express our complaints to others, often our grumbling is to ourselves as we mutter things under our breathe.

To dispute always needs at least two people. It’s an argument. two or more people have come to two or more conclusions about something and the result is that there is an argument about the issues.

At the beginning of the chapter Paul said not to do anything out of selfish ambition or conceit. When we covered that passage we talked about how this was a prohibition from doing anything in order to further your own desires, to elevate your own status, or to push your own agenda, but rather we are to humbly set aside our own desires for the sake of serving others.

Here, Paul says to do all things without disputing or arguing. It could be that as the Philippians were jockeying for position that they were arguing for what they wanted out of a given situation.

This is our mentality so often as well. I know for my part, if I’m convinced that I’m right about something, it’s very difficult to let it go. I want to argue about it. I want to prove that I’m right. I take great pride in being right and by golly, you’re gonna know that before we’re done!

That’s my own personal tendency, and I think that may be true of the majority of us in this room. It’s part of American culture in many ways.

Does this mean we can never have disagreements? no. Does this mean we never discuss those disagreements?

No.

But we all know when a disagreement has crossed the line into an argument, don’t we?

I remember one time growing up during a Bible study the teacher was walking the class through a passage and there was a man who disagreed about the definition of a word and its connotations. So he raised his hand and respectfully asked a question about the meaning to bring clarification. The teacher said, okay I hear you, but this is what this word means. There was a disagreement, which would have been fine, until the man almost seemed to stomp his foot and said “no it doesn’t. it has to mean this other thing” and was being rather forceful with it.

The teacher had a choice to make. He could continue to argue his point and prove he was correct. He could back down and admit the other guy was right. Or he could offer to discuss things more fully after the lesson.

Wisely the teacher chose door number three. He didn’t double down or back down, but he offered to address the man’s concerns after the lesson.

The one man wanted to be argumentative for reasons I can’t say. The teacher wisely would not engage.

All the time there are opportunities for disagreements to become arguments, and Paul urges us not to fall into that trap.

Similarly to grumbling, arguments of this nature reveal pride and selfishness in our hearts. When we insist on our own way, or that others come to view things as we do, we fail to live humbly as Paul directs. Just as Paul seems to pit grumbling as the opposite of joy, here we find disputing as an opposite of humility.

Where do these arguments come from?

James 4:1–6 ESV

1 What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? 2 You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. 3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. 4 You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. 5 Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”? 6 But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”

James also pits an argumentative spirit against humility. Our disputes come from our own evil desires, our own selfishness. So we need to watch out for this in our own hearts. God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.

So we’re not to argue. We’re not to grumble. We are to be joyful! And we are to humbly serve others. why?

Because we stand before a watching world. Humility demands that we live with joy

Humility elevates our witness to the world.

Humility elevates our witness to the world

Philippians 2:15 ESV

15 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,

When we live lives of humble deference and service to others, the world see that. There is a reason the devil loves to stir up disunity in a body! It damages our witness! When the SBC is divided over critical race theory. When the IFCA is fighting over matters of sanctification. Sometimes the division is necessary, sometimes the disagreements are important. But the spirit of disunity and ill-will is damaging to our witness before a watching world.

Our witness is elevated when we live in humility.

Notice the terms that Paul stacks up in this verse:

blameless, innocent, without blemish. These three words are stylistically similar in Greek and have a similar semantic range.

Blameless, or faultless. You can be examined an no fault is to be found.

innocent. Literally unmixed. Undiluted. Pure.

And without blemish. The picture is of a sacrificial lamb who is to be offered to God.

It’s interesting that Paul seems to stick with language that would have brought to mind the Israelites in the wilderness. The Israelites grumbled. As a result the Lord called them a crooked and stiffnecked generation. They had to continually make sacrifices to God with unblemished lambs.

Now here, Paul calls them to not behave as the Israelites did, to offer themselves as living sacrifices to God, and that they, rather than being the crooked generation like the Israelites were, are instead in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation.

The words for crooked and twisted are striking.

Crooked. It’s not straight. It’s bent. Often this carries the connotation of dishonest.

Twisted. This word in particular is a fascinating word. It’s similar to crooked in that it means “to make crooked”. It speaks of moral perversion that it not satisfied with being perverted itself but seeks to pervert others as well.

The Philippians of Paul’s day lived in the midst of a crooked and twisted and twisting generation.

And can we not say that is true of our generation today? Dishonesty abounds. It’s not enough that one chooses sinfulness, but they seek to lead others astray also.

Some time ago a very prominent pastor in evangelicalism abruptly announced that he was stepping down from his church in order to pursue additional education. After some time he announced that he was separating from his wife. Not long after that he came out and declared that he was no longer a Christian, but had gone through a period of deconstruction. This sent ripples through evangelicalism as it all was happening. Just this last week, this same man announced that he was selling an online course designed to help other deconstruct their faith as well.

What’s going on here? How do we think about this? This is nothing new. We live in the midst of a crooked and twisted and twisting generation. A generation that not only seeks to go their own way but lead others to do the same.

How do we keep ourselves free from their polluting influence? If we endure with joy and humility, we’ve already taken huge strides towards that. Not only will that help us guard our faith, but it will also e a witness and a testimony to others!

Paul says you shine as lights in the world! Lights to the crooked and twisted generation!

If you can keep yourself from complaining and selfishly arguing with others, guess what. The world is going to see the light of Christ within you! Especially when you’re going through hard times as Paul and the Philippian church was!

You’re going to shine!

Humility elevates our witness to the world.

Third,

Humility drives us to dependence on the Word

Look at verse 16

Philippians 2:16 ESV

16 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.

We are in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation that seeks to pervert others. How do we withstand the onslaught?

by holding fast to the world of life.

What is the word of life?

It is the Gospel! It is the message of Jesus Christ! The Gospel is life!

Jesus Christ, though he was in the form of God did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, by taking the form of a slave. And being found in human form he became obedient to the point of death even death on a cross.

This is the message! This is the word! It gives life!

Are you ever tempted to think that the Gospel is only for unbelievers? We don’t! We need it as believers! We need to be reminded of our own sin, driven back to the cross of Christ, revel in the grace and mercy that is shown to us, and rejoice in the resurrection and ascension of Christ!

How do you maintain purity from the world, even as we live in the midst of it? How do we shine as lights and not succumb to the darkness?

It’s in this book. The blessed Gospel of Jesus Christ. The live-giving words of hope. The Word of Life. This is one reason we observe communion here on a weekly basis. The purpose is to center us back on the reason why we gather: to proclaim the excellencies of Him who called us out of darkness and into his marvelous light! It’s to drive us back to our need and dependence on Christ!

When we are being humble we will recognize that we cannot live this life on our own but we desperately need the Gospel of Christ and the wisdom of His word and the direction of the Spirit. The arrogant heart says I don’t need the word. The humble heart holds fast the Word of Life.

The humility that Paul is urging us to display drives us to dependence on the word.

finally,

Humility rejoices in the Work of God

Keep reading in verse 16

Philippians 2:16 ESV

16 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.

Philippians 2:17–18 ESV

17 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. 18 Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me.

Paul greatly desired to see the Philippians persevere unto the end. He desires it so much that he doesn’t mind being “poured out” as a drink offering.

Paul continues to use the language of the Israelites. He says through humility you can be without blemish. A pure sacrifice before God. He contrasts them with the crooked, grumbling Israelites, and now Paul says, okay you’re a living sacrifice to God, and I’m willing to pour out my life in service to you for the sake of your sacrifice before God. I want to help make your life acceptable to him, even if that means I lose my own.

And, again, Paul did not know if this very well might cost him his life.

But Paul says it’s worth it. Yes, I may suffer many things, but it’s worth it if I can do even just a little bit to help you become more like Jesus Christ. If I can help you work your salvation with fear and trembling, if I can drive you just a little bit closer to the cross, even if it costs me my life I’m glad to do it.

Because ultimately Paul knows that standing behind his labor for the Philippians is the work of God.

And so, even if it means his life is lost, he rejoices.

And he wants the church to rejoice with him.

The way this is all constructed is fascinating. This is where the theme of joy is most strongly expressed: If we translated it literally it would read “I rejoice and rejoice with you. Now you rejoice and rejoice with me”

There ought to be a mutual joy over what God is doing in and through us. Humility rejoiced in the work of God, even if that means it costs us dearly.

In our text we have found the results of humility.

Humility demands a life free from complaints and arguments, but rather joy and humility

Humility elevates our witness in the world.

Humility drives us to dependence on the word

Humility rejoices in the work of God, even if it costs us our life.

Humility. The virtue that as soon as you discover you have it, you’ve lost it.

The virtue on perfect display in Christ.

The virtue that is the fountainhead of all other virtues.

A virtue that can only come from the grace of God in Christ.

Would you go to him today? Confess your pride to him, thank him for his mercy and grace, ask him to increase your humility. and wait.

Let’s pray.

Lord I am proud man. Your word has convicted me. It has shown like a mirror on my own heart that I still have arrogance in my heart. Help me to be humble. May I not elevate myself or my own perceived wisdom higher than it ought to be. I ask that you keep me humble. Help me to ever be dependent upon you.

I pray the same for those sitting here today. It is as we behold the glory of Christ that we are driven to humility. Help us to shine as lights in the world. May they see our good works and glorify our Father who is in heaven.

Amen.