Sermon for MHBC (17 October 2021). You can listen on Facebook, YouTube, Vimeo, or our website. Live at 11:00am on Sundays. Also available as a podcast here or by searching “Monument Heights Baptist Church” in your favorite podcast app.
As many of you know, last week marked my first anniversary here at Monument Heights. It’s been a good year with some exciting things happening at the church. COVID has made many things uniquely challenging, but I’m still optimistic. I want to do some reflection this morning.
Leadership is difficult. It requires a lot of hard decisions, and often it’s not always clear what the best decision is. It’s just necessary to make a decision. I believe it was Churchill who said the worst decision is no decision. I am learning many things along the way, so I want to speak to you from my heart this morning. This text is challenging and promising.
Before we jump into our text in Philippians, I’d like to point to another verse. Paul writes to a young pastor named Timothy in two of the NT books. In 1 Timothy 4:12, Paul writes, “Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.” That has been an important verse for me and it’s one that strikes me as extremely important as I press on here. I am young (in case you didn’t know). I’m still 32. At the end of this year I will have completed seven years of full-time ministry, so I began pastoring full-time when I was 25. Paul speaks to someone like me here—a young pastor. His advice is not to worry about the age but worry about character.
Here’s where I want you to hear my heart. I want to be a faithful pastor. I take the task extremely seriously. I can’t turn it off. I go to bed thinking about it and I wake up in the middle of the night thinking about it. I care deeply about this. And I want you to understand that I am doing everything in my power to serve this church faithfully and I desire the growth and health of this church so badly. And I have to commend this congregation for being so receptive to my leadership. I know some of us disagree at times, but by-and-large I feel supported by an overwhelming majority. I am optimistic going into our second year together.
As we look at this text in Philippians, I want you to hear Paul’s pastoral heart for the Philippian believers and I want you to know that while I’m not Paul, I want you to hear my heart as well. Before we jump into v. 1, let me give you a summary statement: The incarnation of Christ sets the pattern for our lives. Christ is our example. To be Christians means to follow in the steps of Christ. What we see in the incarnation is the ultimate act of humility and service. And we are called to emulate that same humility and service.
Let’s look at v. 1: So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy. Notice this is the first part of a conditional statement. If there is any encouragement, comfort, participation, affection and sympathy. In English we might hear this as doubt, but I actually think Paul is stating a fact and it would be better to read it this way: Since there is encouragement in Christ, comfort from love, participation in the Spirit, affection and sympathy.[1] What Paul is doing is appealing to the resources available to Christians. Since you have been encouraged to follow Christ. Since you have experienced and been comforted by the love of God. Since you have experienced fellowship with the living God through His Holy Spirit. Since you have been granted deep affection and compassion. See the resources we have as believers in Christ. God has granted us these things and we experience them together. Since that is the case, Paul shares his heart in v. 2.
Verse 2: complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Look at Paul’s joy. Paul’s joy is for the Philippians believers to be united around the gospel of Jesus, following the way of Christ.
I know we talk a lot about change and moving forward, but I want to step outside all of that this morning, and say, my joy as a pastor is seeing you thrive in Christ. I pray that for you. I want that for you. I work toward that end. And I stand ready to help in any way possible. I’ve addressed some difficult issues in previous weeks. I’m afraid I unsettled some of you with that. That was not my intention. We’ve done a lot of new things this past year. I also fear I’ve unsettled some of you. So let me speak intently to you. I want nothing more than the health of this congregation. I desire your growth and your maturity. That is my joy and I want us to share in that joy together. I am here to press on with you.
In order for us to be healthy and unified we must be humble. Look at v. 3: Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. We saw Paul’s opponents who were out to promote their own agenda. We will make little headway toward true humility if our own agendas are getting in the way. If we seek our own glory, we will cut off opportunities for unity. Instead, we are called to count others as more significant.
Then there’s v. 4: Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Sometimes we think humility means talking badly about ourselves. But notice the biblical definition. It is a matter of showing preference for others, not looking only to our own interests but also to the interests of others. It doesn’t say discount your own concerns. But it does say that we must set aside our agendas and prioritize others. Now, of course, this doesn’t mean sacrificing truth or relegating the gospel to a secondary concern or allowing selfish agendas to rule the church (especially when those voices tend to be loudest). What it means is that for believers to be in fellowship and community together, we humbly seek to serve each other. Why is that? Because our Master did that.
Look at vv. 5–8: Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
So here’s the exhortation. Set your intention to follow Christ, who is in every way equal to God, very God, but He did not hold onto that. Instead, God became incarnate and not as a king, but as a servant. And God incarnate humbled himself by being obedient in every way even unto a cursed death on a cross. That is the pattern set before us. And Paul such an attitude is available to us in Christ Jesus. Don’t miss this: The Spirit of Christ enables us to live in humble service. Those resources are ours in Christ.
But look this isn’t a drudgery. There’s a reason Paul can call this a joy. There’s a reason that we find hope in this. And that’s because God exalts what is humble. And that is exemplified in Christ. And the hope we have in following Christ is that we will share in the redemption that He is bringing to all of creation.
Look at v. 9: Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name. Through His humiliation, Christ is exalted. Upon Him is the name that is above every other. And here’s the result. Verses 10–11: so 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.
Look at the scope of redemption. Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess. Service and humility may seem so counter intuitive in our world. They seem to run counter to strength and confidence. But in God’s cosmic plan for the universe, it is Christ’s humility that brings redemption to every corner of that universe. Look at the hope in these verses. There is going to come a day when every square inch of this universe will recognize Jesus as King.
And this gives us confidence to humbly serve each other, to be unified in the gospel, to reconcile and forgive, to love and link arms. We know that it will not be for nothing. We know that when all is said and done those efforts will not be lost. In the present moment, God uses those humble efforts at unity to bring redemption to a broken world, but when all is said and done we will share in the same redemption. We, too, will be lifted up with Christ.
I began this morning by telling you I wanted to share my heart. Part of that is a sincere desire to humbly lead as your pastor. The other part is that I want you to know that my sincerest desire is that this church would flourish in Christ Jesus. My joy will bubble over as we grow together, united around the gospel, being conformed more and more to the image of Christ. Let’s keep our eyes focused on Christ as we press on to know Him and be known by Him.
[1] So Hawthorne and Martin, Philippians, p. 82.