In our reading today, we discover that this attitude isn’t just for periods of pandemic though - this is the way Christians should always live. The life of a Christian will be a life of humility, as we follow the Lord Jesus together.
We’re now in the main section of the letter, where - as we saw lat week - Paul is urging the Philippians to ‘stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel.’ It’s the image of Roman soldiers locking shields together; or the rugby scrum pushing together.
But how do we actually do this, in the local church? How do we stand firm together? Perhaps you’ve heard the little saying:
‘Living above with the saints we love, Oh that will be glory. Living below with the saints we know, now that’s a different story.’
So how do we live below with the saints we know, as we stand firm together? Well, first of all, Paul reminds us of all that we already have in common together. In verse 1, he makes four ‘if’ statements. He says: ‘If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then...’
He invites them to work through this checklist. And I invite you to do the same! These are some of the benefits and blessings that come from being a Christian. If you’re not a Christian, we’re glad that you’re listening in - and these could be yours if you turn to Jesus and trust in him for yourself. So here’s the checklist:
If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ - yes;
if any comfort from his love - yes;
if any fellowship with the Spirit - yes;
if any tenderness and compassion - yes;
all the Christians say yes, yes, yes, yes - full house! These are the benefits and blessings we have - together - as Christians. Have you realised what all you have received as you’ve trusted in Jesus? So what now?
If you have (all these, and you do) then... ‘make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose.’ (2) Just as we share in all the blessings together, so we are to share in this unity of mind, of love, of spirit and purpose together.
But how do we do that? Paul tells us in verses 3-4: ‘Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.’
Not selfish ambition, but humility. Not your own interests only, but also the interests of others. In other words, we’re not to be about ‘me first’ but rather about ‘you first’. We’ve already seen an example of selfish ambition in Philippians - do you remember the people who were preaching Christ out of envy and rivalry, trying to stir up trouble for Paul? They were doing so, 1:17 ‘out of selfish ambition.’
And I’m sure you can think of ways in which this type of behaviour can happen. But rather than climbing over other people, using them to further our own desires and interests, we’re to lift them up, and look out for their interests too.
This was something that the Philippians had to work at, because they weren’t already doing it. This unity through humility doesn’t come naturally - it can only come supernaturally, as the Spirit is at work in our lives. But if the Philippians were to be united through their humility, then it would make Paul’s joy complete. And that word joy is a helpful reminder of our priorities when we live out this united through humility church life - J O Y - Jesus, Others, Yourself.
Up to now, Paul has reminded the Philippians of all they have already received - the If; and urged them to live out this unity through humility - the Then. But now, in the closing verses of our reading, he gives us the supreme motivation and the perfect example of this life of humility.
They are words that are familiar to us, because we’ve been using them as our creed in recent weeks. They would probably have been words that were familiar to the Philippians - it’s thought that verses 6-11 are an early Christian hymn which Paul quotes. They set out what Jesus has done for us in achieving our salvation, but they are also an example for us to follow.
‘Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death - even death on a cross!’
When you think of all that Jesus did for us, it’s all down, down, down. Someone suggested that it can be summarised as the crown, the crib and the cross. First, the crown - The Son of God, fully God, didn’t consider his divinity as something to be grasped, or exploited. He who set the stars in place, who was used to the worship of angels, left his place in heaven, and came down to earth. Why did he do it? Not for his own benefit, but for ours.
He laid aside his crown, to be born and laid in the crib - made himself nothing, taking the nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. The Son of God took on our flesh - God with skin on - to become one of us. Can you imagine the depth of descent he made to come to this world? A few years back there was an interview with Prince Charles on TV. And he recalled how, when he was small, the Royal family would be on holiday in Scotland, and anonymously, they’d get a boat across to Northern Ireland, and drive to visit their friends at Baronscourt outside Strabane. No guards, no fanfare, just Prince Philip and the Queen and the family driving along like normal people. But that’s small compared to how Jesus became one of us.
And even that wasn’t enough. He deserved to be served, but he came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many. And that was the final downward step - even death on a cross! Why did he do it all? In order to save us, in order to bring us back to himself by taking our sins and bearing the punishment we deserved. He was the humble king who went down, down, down from crown to crib to cross.
Because Jesus did all this, and lived the perfect life of humility, ‘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 confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.’
Having descended to the very bottom, God raised him to the very top, to heaven’s throne. The name of Jesus is above every other name - in honour and value and worth. And while now, you might hear his name used as a swear word, it will not be like that forever. One day, at the name of Jesus, every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.
If you’re a Christian today, you might have some of your friends or family wondering why you’d still bother tuning in to church. Why would you bother with all that, and with Jesus? But here we see just how precious the name of Jesus is to us - he who gave up all for us, how could we not give our all to follow him? He who humbly served us in order to save us - who lavishes his blessings on us - how could we not gladly serve him and follow in his footsteps - as we seek to learn his humility and stand firm with our brothers and sisters in Christ.
If you’re not a Christian, then please look again at the Lord Jesus. He did it all for you. Perhaps you’ve been hurt by others, even by the church, by people seeking to take advantage of you and exploit you and use you for their own gain. Jesus is not like that. He is the humble king who gave himself for you. One day, you will bow before him and confess that he is Lord - why not do it today, willingly, gladly, joyfully?
Jesus our Saviour is also our example, as he calls us to rejoice in unity through humility. I’m going to read the prayer I’m going to pray, and if you want to pray this too, then say it outwardly or inwardly with me the second time through.
Lord Jesus,
you have given yourself for me.
I give myself to you,
as I bow my knee to you,
and confess that you are my Lord.
Help me to follow you,
and by your Spirit change me,
to be more like you, my humble King. Amen.
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