Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
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Opening Prayer
Introduction
Looking back to Adam, someone whom Christ is often compared, What was his main downfall.
what was it that lead to him partaking in the fruit?
It was Pride
Pride is a nasty thing we find all around us today
Pride in our families
Pride in our country
Pride in ourselves
Pride in our accomplishments
In truth, we can find pride in just about anything we do
I’m sure Hitler found pride in the holocaust
Pride is often the source of our sins
On a very fundamental level, we willingly revolt against God, that in itself is a “triumph” of pride
We objectify, or commit adultery against our spouses out of pride
we prioritize our own pleasure over their wellbeing
Lies come out of pride
We believe ourselves smarter than another
Or we cannot bear to be seen in a negative light
It is out of pride that we commit murder
Just look at Cain and Able
Jealously rose up in Cain because his pride was hurt
That hurt pride lead him to commit the first murder in history
Pride seems to be inherent to humanity
This is emphasized in the Christian idea of a sinful nature
this nature is by very essence prideful
Doubly so in the Christian who willingly defies his master
Philippians 2:1-4
This problem of pride was within the Philippian church
It was breeding disunity amongst them
Verses 1 and 2 here clearly lay out what Paul is seeking for the church at Philippi to do, seek unity
Quote v. 2 “Make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose
Now note that the majority of the epistle Paul is praising the Philippians
Paul is in prison and Philippi has supported him even out of their poverty
Paul clearly loved them, in v. 11 Paul calls them his “beloved” which he rarely calls a church in his epistles
Yet Paul clearly does have something to correct in them, disunity
Vv. 4-5 lay out what is causing this disunity amongst the church at Philippi
Paul lists out 3 things that are causing disunity in the congregation
Selfishness
Empty conceit
Only looking out for one’s own personal interests
Paul also gives immediate responses to these ills
Instead of doing out of selfishness or empty conceit, do out of humility, regarding one another as more important than the self
Instead of only looking out for my own interests, also look out for other’s interests as well
Philippians 2:5-11
Paul then gives a pretty mighty example of humility that the Philippian Church should be embodying
An example we should also be embodying here
Paul just comes right in with the example of Jesus
the very person we are all trying to imitate as Christians
This went from a mere ethical dilemma, to a theological one
This is why we are talking about this on Christmas
Paul dives into the theology of Jesus’ coming and death here that I want to dive into with all of out
Paul sums up Jesus’ live in vv.
6-8
Jesus is apart of the Trinity, to quote John 1:1
This Word John was referring to is Jesus
Turning back to our main passage in Philippians 2, Paul lays out in v. 6 that Jesus existed in the form of God
Because Jesus is with God and is God
Yet despite His nature as deity, Jesus did not regard equality with God as a thing to be grasped.
Remember how I mentioned Adam earlier, well this is the complete opposite of Adam’s actions
Adam being in nature human, tried to grasp godhood
Jesus, being in nature God, didn’t regard his godhood as something to be grasped
To further this analogy, Paul says in the next verse that not only did Jesus not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but out of humility Jesus emptied himself and took on the form of a man
Adam, out of pride, tried to go from servant to king
Jesus, out of humility, went from king to servant
Paul then completes the picture by suggesting Jesus’ death was an act of obedience and humility
This only seals the contrast between Jesus and Adam
Adam died out of pride and disobedience
Jesus died out of humility and obedience
The responses were according
Adam was disgraced
Jesus was glorified
This heavily plays into the Christmas story
Jesus, literal God, came to earth
it was entirely out of obedience and humility
Jesus knew the entire time what was to come, and yet came anyways
What so easily could be seen as merely a tragedy, is in nature a love story
That love story doesn’t start, but is fulfilled when Jesus is born
The love story started in genesis, and hit it’s climax on the cross.
We are still in the resolution now.
Philippians 2:12-16
Paul now encourages them to pursue this unity through humility
Paul laid out their problem
Paul then laid out an example of how to act
Now Paul is closing this issue with an exhortation
Paul tells them to “work out their salvation”
This at first glance seems like a salvation by works passage
Yet with the context of what I’ve been telling you, Paul’s telling them to get it together
This isn’t about individual salvation, this is about saving the church at Philippi
If they don’t solve the pride and selfishness, it will tear the church apart
Don’t think that they have to figure it out by themselves either
In v. 13 here Paul tells them that God is here to help them solve this issue
Not only does God will for them to be a united church, it will be His Pleasure to see them united
Paul then commands them to fix their issues without complaining
it’s grumbling and complaining that likely got them into this situation
These are not things evident of love and compassion for one another
It’s like saying to your friend, “Ugh fine, I guess I’ll forgive you”
it’s not very convincing
Paul tells them in v. 15 that if they correct this issue, they will be blameless before a crooked generation
If they pull through and maintain unity through humility and love, they serve as the complete opposite of the world around them
This is very similar to what Jesus says Matthew 5:14
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