Thank you to Mark R for this message

  • Prayer

Lord, thank You for coming into our world, to serve us through your life of compassion and mercy, and through Your death on the cross. Please show us today how we can serve each other, as we come to Your Word today.

In Jesus name, Amen.

Whenever I look at the first 5 verses of Philippians 2, I immediately want to go to verses 6 -11, as Paul’s description of Christ and how He humbled Himself is surely the basis for what he says to us in these first 5 verses.

Christianity is based on an “upside down” gospel. It is the amazing news that the Creator of the universe chose to leave heaven behind and come to this world and be born in a stable full of mess.

As God’s Only Son, He chose to leave the paradise of being  with His Father, and come into a world full of pain, suffering, and the mess of human sin. Even at His birth, king Herod was conspiring to murder Him. The King of kings!

Philippians 2: 7,8 says this:

“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!”

In John 13, we find the Son of God kneeling at His disciples feet, washing away the dirt and mess they had picked up during the day.

In an even greater act of love, the next day, He will lay down His life on the cross, to wash away the sins of the world.

As Jesus says in John 15:13

“Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

And here is the foundation for the opening words of Philippians 2:1-5

V1“Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, v2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind.

V3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit.

Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, v4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

V5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus”

As we look at Jesus, are we encouraged by knowing we are in Christ? That we are United to Him, we are adopted into His family, we are His children? (V1)

As we look at Jesus, are we comforted by His love? (V1)

He loves us so much that He left heaven to save us. That was the reason for going to the cross. And His arms are open wide to us today, wherever we are.

Paul tells us if we’re encouraged by being one with Him, and if we’re comforted by His amazing love, then that love and that oneness needs to be shared with each other.

Rather than being self focussed, we’re called to demonstrate Christ’s love by doing what He did, humbling ourselves and valuing others above ourselves and looking out for the interests of others. (V3,4)

Not an easy task! Especially in a culture which is so self focussed and on getting our own needs met.

But Paul goes on to say that this isn’t something we do in our own strength. It comes only through where we focus our attention:

Philippians 2:5

“In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus”

There was a saying at Christmas that ‘Jesus is the reason for the season’ and that is absolutely right. But He’s far more. He’s the reason for every day of our lives.

And He’s the reason why we love one another; why we look to each other’s interests, and why we serve…

“Hands that flung stars into space,

To cruel nails surrendered”

“This is our God, the servant king,

He calls us now to follow Him,

To bring our lives as a daily offering

Of worship to the servant king”

Amen!


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