Philippians 2:1-4. This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on Mother’s Day Sunday, 5/14/2017.
There are many voices today that promise women a better life by offering some philosophy or way of approaching life. However, most of them are various ideas that come from the same source, the spirit of this age. So women have a choice they can listen to the spirit of this age and go after the things that it promises by the ways it promotes (self fulfillment, self love, self adulation), or they can listen to the Spirit of God calling to them, “Save yourselves from this wicked and perverse generation!”
It is important to recognize that women have had a tough road throughout history. Too often, men are guilty of not recognizing this and not loving women as we should. So women need encouragement. Yet, like any of us, they also need challenged. Women are not inherently drawn to do things right. They have the same battles with the sin nature as men do. I believe our passage today has a good balance of encouragement and yet also challenge for God’s people, including women. In fact, this is a hallmark of the Bible. On one hand it recognizes our weakness and does much to give us encouragement and comfort. Yet, on the other hand, it also recognizes our spiritual lethargy and does much to wake us up and get up headed on the right path. Let’s look at our passage today.
In this passage Paul is trying to encourage Christians to have unity. But he starts with a series of things that we all have in Jesus. He uses a grammatical device of a series of conditionals. These are intended to remind them of the fact that each of these conditionals is understood to be rhetorical. Of course we who are Christians have all of these things. There is no “if” about it. This is going to be critical later. But just understand that Paul is highlighting our relationship with Jesus. We have everything that we need in this world without having to clamor and strive against others to get it because of our relationship with Jesus. Christians are called to quit looking to the world for fulfillment and start receiving from Jesus all he has for us. So what do we have in him?
The first “if” is consolation in Christ. This word may give you the idea of a consolation prize. Who wants that? The word has the idea of calling someone to your side in order to speak to them. Thus it is generally connected to some kind of help, encouragement, comfort, or even advice. In Jesus we have this relationship in which the God of heaven calls us to His side and He speaks into our life those things that we need to hear. You could say that the “if” statement does more than remind. It can also be a testing question operating in such a way as to question. Are you receiving this from Jesus or are you blocking his words into your life? There is no question that it is available and at work in the life of a Christian, but sometimes we are not so cooperative with the Spirit of God.
The next “if” is comfort of love. It is still understood to be “in Christ.” The comfort of God’s love for us, especially through the person and work of Jesus, is immense. When one thinks about how Jesus died for us while we were yet sinners, it leaves one with a powerful sense of God’s love for them. However, the love of Christ also comes to us through other Christians who are also cooperating with God’s design to love others. In fact, everything that we see around us becomes a testimony of the love of God intended to help us. We are swimming in His provision and grace. What a comfort that gives to our hearts, “if” we are seeing it and resting in it.
Next we are reminded of the fellowship of the Spirit. “Fellowship” refers to the emotional bond that we have with other Christians by the Holy Spirit. It starts with an inner relationship with the Holy Spirit. He speaks to us and teaches us to follow Jesus. When we connect with other believers who are doing the same thing, we have a powerful, shared experience of listening to the Holy Spirit. This shared experience of learning to trust the Lord gives us a bond that is more than emotional; it is even spiritual. When we connect with others of “like Spirit,” we have fellowship with them. This also refers to the common lot, and common place that we have in this group we call Christians. We have dropped away from the spirit of this world and taken our place among those who are following Jesus through the Holy Spirit.
Lastly we are reminded of the affection and mercy of Christ. Affection is a reference to the knowledge that God deeply cares about us, which leads to his compassionate mercy towards us. His emotions have and do lead to actions of mercy in our life.
In all of these things there is a direct reception of them from Christ spiritually. However, there is also an indirect reception of them through those who belong to Christ. Granted, this is received imperfectly because it is flowing through imperfect people to a person who imperfectly receives. That is why Paul is writing this letter. Think about how often we wonder why God is “holding out on us,” (insert thing you want here). Yet, at the same time He is daily pouring out such wonderful treasures upon us, directly and indirectly. The real question is this. Are you taking time to open yourself up to Jesus and when you do are you receiving it or are you pushing it away? It is when we are filled with what Jesus has for us that we are enabled to get along with others, and this is directly where Paul wants to go with this.
If we have all this stuff from Jesus then it should be possible for us to be unified with other believers. Our relationships become better because we no longer seek to satisfy ourselves by them. Instead we are fulfilled by the vast and amazing grace that Jesus pours out upon us daily. Before we talk about our relationship with other believers, it is important to recognize that this applies to our relationship with unbelievers, too. Instead of needing something from them, we can love them fully and without selfish ambition because we have all that we need from Jesus. Yet, having all that we need in Christ can never mean that we disconnect from others and become apathetic towards them. It is Jesus himself who whispers in our ear, “Love them with my love. Regardless of how difficult it may be, show them who I am.”
In our passage Paul points, in verse 2, to the need for believers to get along and to have a unity of heart, mind and soul. Think of it. We can have unity because we are no longer looking at each other as some kind of payday. Jesus is our source. Yes, he may use others. But it is not dependent upon them. His list in verse 2 goes through three aspects of our inner being that need to be unified with other believers. He mentions the mind twice. Love is generally connected to the heart. And the word translated “one accord” in the NKJV literally means “same-souled (inner life).” Now, the world recognizes the power of unity. It has its own attempt at unity which usually employs a kind of dog-eat-dog system in order to see whose mind, heart, and soul gets to dominate the group. But this is not the way of Christ. You see, Paul wants us to have unity around the mind, heart, and soul of Jesus Christ. It is his mind that should instruct us and lead us. As we each surrender to Jesus, we are enabled to have unity with one another and Christ’s love can flow through us to each other.
So, what are the things that typically get in the way of Christians having unity? Verse 3 tells us to put away selfish ambition and conceit. When we adopt such attitudes and vices, they destroy our unity. The word translated “selfish ambition” is actually one word. It was used by the Greeks for those whose political electioneering was underhanded and marked by unfair means. Such a person was willing to do anything in order to get ahead, to get what they wanted. Now the word for “conceit” is a compound word that has the idea of vain glory, or empty pride. Such pride is empty because it has nothing to offer others. It is always selfish and sucks the life out of everyone that it touches. A good metaphor would be a dark, rain cloud. A farmer who is longing for rain is excited when they see a rain cloud. Imagine that the cloud works very hard at looking like a good rain cloud, but in the end it sails on past and only sucks up more moisture. Such are those who are conceited. They work hard at looking good, but they are only good for themselves. In fact, they are not even that. One day they will approach their death bed and how empty they will be on that day. They will look back with sorrow on all the relationships that they sucked the life out of, like some kind of vampiric beast. They will be left empty in the end. And, standing before God one day, they will be empty of anything to avoid their fate. If we want true unity of the Holy Spirit, then we have to reject the voices and the spirit of this age, which incessantly stir up angst within us, calling us to selfish ambition and conceit. So if these should be avoided, then what should we embrace?
The second half of verse 3 and all of verse 4 point us to the need for a humble opinion of ourselves and the need to esteem others above ourselves. When we walk into a room our sinful nature seeks to find those ways in which we are better than others. We tend towards an inflated view of self that affects our relationships. So what does it mean to esteem others above self? I don’t think it means to put yourself down in the sense of hating yourself and thinking that you have nothing to offer. Rather, it is when we see all the ways that others are better than us. In the world this is a threat. But in Christ it is part of His grace to us. Yes, we want Him to put all wisdom within us. But in the end He scatters His gifts of wisdom, and yet for each of our benefit. Even then we need to get to such a lowly place precisely because that is the place we need to get to if we are going to actually help others. You cannot help others full of yourself. God will bless you through others. But that is not to be your focus. Your focus is to be on Jesus and receiving from Him what you can then turn and give to others.
So ladies, and guys too, who are you following? The next time you find yourself annoyed with someone and fighting with them over something, take time to stop and think. What do I think I lack, and why do I think this person can give it to me? Lord, forgive us for making others our source, for looking to others in the way that we should only look to you. Lord, help us to walk in unity with other believers so that the world might see and know that you are a glorious savior.