Three Keys to Unity
Philippians 2:1-4
Introduction: Walking around the peninsula during
these last couple of years, it is obvious that we’ve had some pretty strong
storm come through. Quite a few really big trees have been knocked down! I was
interested to read this week that the huge redwood trees in California are
considered the largest living things on earth and the tallest trees in the
world. Some of them are over 300 feet high and are estimated to be over 2,500
years old. One would think that trees so large would have a tremendous root
system, reaching down hundreds of feet into the earth. However, the redwoods
actually have a relatively shallow system of roots. So how do they get so big and
stand so long? Apparently, though it’s a shallow root system; they
all intertwine; they are locked in to each other. So, when the storms come and
the winds blow, the redwoods stand, and they don’t stand alone, the trees
support and protect each other. They hold each other up. The same is true for
the church. How will we stay strong and be able to withstand the storms of life in this fallen world? God
designed us to stand together, side by side, shoulder to shoulder. Alone we
would be vulnerable. We are stronger together than any of us could be alone. Paul desired the Philippians to strive for unity, God desires
the same for us (1:27b).
The Context: In 1:27-30, Paul encouraged the
Philippians to let their manner of life as kingdom citizens show the worth of
the Gospel, firmly rooted in love, bravely holding forth the message of grace. In
2:5 he’ll hold up Jesus as the example of humble service. Here, we’ll see that
1) Unity comes from grateful hearts; 2) Unity flows from a humble attitude; and
3) Unity springs from a generous spirit, putting others before ourselves.
The Maine*
Idea: Gospel-centered thinking,
characterized by thankfulness, humility, and generosity, will lead to
Gospel-shaped living, which will be evident in the unity of the church.
I. Unity comes from grateful
hearts: Since God
has blessed us so abundantly in Christ we should strive for unity for His glory
(1-2). Paul said that we are “…living
letters, seen and read of men…” (2 Cor 3:2). Unity is a sign to the world
that there is something real in this place. And so Paul returns to that subject
in 2:1ff…
So if there is any encouragement in
Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection
and sympathy, 2 complete my
joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and
of one mind.
God has abundantly blessed us in Christ (v.1). Paul rhetorically
asked the Corinthians, “What do you have that you have not received? If you
received it why do you boast as if you had not received it?” Here he is not
doubting or questioning whether these blessing are part of the experience of
true believers. He assumes the Philippians will agree that yes, these are some
of the wonderful blessings of the Christian life. He is essentially saying that since we have been abundantly
blessed in these ways, we should live differently! This is not intended as a
logical argument based on these four points of theological truth. He is
pleading with them from his heart, repeating these truths that every believer
would recognize as blessings from God…
“…consolation in Christ…” “consolation”, paraklesis,
is the same root word that is used of the Holy Spirit as our “comforter,” and
of Jesus as our “advocate”: one called alongside to help. We have a new
position “in Christ,” and it is here we can have true encouragement and comfort.
“…comfort of love…” “If there is any solace afforded by
love…” Everyone wants to be loved – that is what we are made for, it’s
something we long for. In Christ we have
the truest, deepest form of love. When all else fails, when it seems as though
the world is against us, there is solace in knowing we are known and loved by
God.
“…fellowship of the Spirit…” “koinonia”,
fellowship, or sharing. We are connected with God through the indwelling
Spirit. Because that is true, God is
with us always, to convict, to guide, to comfort. I Cor 3 – “You are a temple of God…”
“…affection and mercy…”
Heartfelt compassion, we have a High Priest who can sympathize with our weaknesses, one
who was tested in all points as we are, yet without sin. One outcome of suffering is that we can
empathize with others who are going through struggles. In Christ we have one
who understands and has compassion. In
the church, though others may not understand fully, we do care for each other, and reach out to one
another.
God’s
abundant blessing toward us demands a response (v. 2). I've spoken before about how Paul especially structures the letters he wrote to the churches. He states the "indicative" that sets forth truth, doctrine, and then he brings "imperatives" that exhort us to live in the light of that truth. Romans, for example, sets forth theology in the first 12
chapters: this is who you are, this is what you have in Christ. 12:1 begins the practical application of that
truth, “Therefore… I urge you brothers…” Following that transition we read in Romans 12:16-18 some specific application,
Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but
associate with the lowly. Never be conceited.
17 Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is
honorable in the sight of all. 18
If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.
Here in Philippians 2 Paul is bringing some application. He says,
“…fulfill my joy…” Paul is saying this one truth will complete
his joy in the Lord. Being released from
prison? The end of persecution? In a
word, unity, unity in the church. God’s
abundant blessings toward us should elicit a response… If we have all of this in Christ, how then must we live?
Because all of those things described in v.1 are true for those in Christ,
help Paul, the apostle-prisoner, have full joy, “…by being like minded…
having the same love… being of one accord, of one mind…” Notice the context: Paul started with a call
to unity in v.27, and here repeats that idea.
And the repetition of “like-minded” and “one-mind” here will be
clarified in 2:5, “Let this mind be in you which has also in Christ Jesus…” As
we follow Christ’s example of humility and service, we will experience unity
that glorifies God. Gospel-centered thinking, characterized by thankfulness,
humility, and generosity, will lead to Gospel-shaped living, which will be
evident in the unity of the church. Unity comes from grateful hearts, and 2…
II. Unity flows from a humble attitude: You are never too high or too important to serve (2:3).
“Do nothing from rivalry or conceit,
but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.”
“Do nothing from rivalry… [or,
selfishness]…” The simple truth is that too often we tend to
live our lives cafeteria style: self-service only. It’s like the little boy who
was riding a hobby horse together with his younger sister. The boy said: “If
one of us would just get off there would be more room for me!” My professor Moises Silva said in his
Philippians commentary, “The true obstacle to unity is not the presence of
legitimate differences of opinion but self-centeredness. Shifting attention
away from ourselves becomes the challenge…”
“…or empty conceit…” CH
Spurgeon said: “Humility to make a right estimate of one’s self… The higher a
man is in grace, the lower he will be in his own esteem…” My Uncle Charles, when he was bragging a
little bit (or a lot!), would often say “No brag, just fact!” Or as my dad would
quote the song, “It’s hard to be humble when you are perfect in every way!” The
word used here, translated “empty conceit,” was used in the Greco-Roman
world to denote a person who thought too highly of himself. It is a compound
word that would translate literally, “empty glory”, baseless self-glory.
“…but with humility of mind regard one another as more important…” C. S. Lewis made this insightful comment about
pride:
"We say
that people are proud of being rich, or clever, or good-looking, but they are
not. They are proud of being richer, or cleverer, or better looking than
others. If everyone else became equally rich, or clever, or good-looking, there
would be nothing to be proud about."
Pride afflicts all of us, not just the rich and famous. We compare
ourselves to others, and so we find something to be prideful about, or envious.
A.W. Tozer, in his book, The Pursuit of God, tells us how to not only
find humility, but also gain greater unity…
"Has it ever occurred to you that one hundred pianos all
tuned to the same fork are automatically tuned to each other? They are of
one accord by being tuned, not to each other, but to another standard to which
each one must individually bow. So one hundred worshipers [meeting]
together, each one looking away to Christ, are in heart nearer to each other
than they could possibly be, were they to become ‘unity’ conscious and turn
their eyes away from God to strive for closer fellowship…”
Pursuing intimacy with God. The more we know God, the more we’ll
understand the truth about ourselves. It is pride that causes us to feel hurt
when someone snubs us, ignores us, or takes credit for something we did. Pride
is behind the envy we feel toward people who are more successful than we are. Christ's
solution for pride is the only cure: consider others better than ourselves. That
implies a reasoned decision to think of others first. Let me quote again the eloquent words of
Andrew Murray…
“Humility is perfect quietness of heart. It is to expect nothing,
to wonder at nothing that is done to me, to feel nothing done against me. It is
to be at rest when nobody praises me, and when I am blamed or despised. It is
to have a blessed home in the Lord, where I can go in and shut the door, and
kneel to my Father in secret, and am at peace as in a deep sea of calmness,
when all around and above is trouble… The humble person is not one who thinks
meanly of himself, he simply does not think of himself at all.”
Gospel-centered thinking, characterized
by thankfulness, humility, and generosity, will lead to Gospel-shaped living,
which will be evident in the unity of the church. A grateful heart, a humble
attitude, and finally…
III. Unity springs from a generous spirit: Look to the interests of others (2:4).
“Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the
interests of others.”
Notice the wording in
the NASB… “…do not merely look out for
your own personal interests…” Have
you ever been told, “Look out for number one!” No need to be told, that is what
we all do naturally. Elizabeth Chevalier, author of the novel, “Driven Woman,”
wrote this in a letter to Macmillan: “Have you heard the one about the novelist
who met an old friend? After they had
talked for two hours, the novelist said, “Now we’ve talked about me long enough-let’s
talk about you! What did you think of my
last novel?” I was interested to read
that one of Theodore Roosevelt’s own children commented about his self-centeredness: “When he went to a wedding, he wanted to be
the bride. When he went to a funeral, he was sorry he couldn’t be the corpse!” Paul
here says “not only,” he is conceding we will think of our own
interests, but don’t stop there, don’t stay there. Think…
“…also for the interests of others…” This is the church as it
should be! Our love for one another testifies to the world that we are His
disciples. We watch, we encourage, we comfort, we help, we bear each other’s
burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. And it is not so we get the credit
or the pat on the back, it is because the Lord expects us to extend love and
mercy to those around us, and yes, especially to those of the household of
faith. They are God’s children, and so we are actually showing Christ in us,
working through us. It's not all about me - my needs, my interests, my wants, and my
ambitions. But Paul teaches us to look out for others too. You might think, “I
can take care of myself.” We want the best for each other, we watch out for
each other, we’ve got each other’s backs. That’s humility in action. Thinking
of others, first…
Years ago on Candid Camera, children were used in an experiment
about generosity. The children were placed by themselves in a room with a plate
of cookies. On the plate were at least two cookies, there may have been more,
but one of the cookies was very large. The adult left the room and the kids
were allowed to take a cookie. You know, they all took the big one.
One boy was
challenged as to why he took the biggest cookie. Alan Funt, the host, told the
boy, "All you left me to eat was the little cookie. I would have eaten the
little cookie and given you the biggest one."
Without a blink the
boy responded, "Then you got the one you wanted."
Generosity is a tough thing to learn. We should put others first.
Thankfulness, humility, generosity, all lead
to unity, the way the church should be. Ecclesiastes 4:12 says: "Though one may be overpowered, two can
defend themselves" (NIV). Who
has your back? Who is there to defend you - watching out for your
spiritual welfare? God has given us the church. You need a community of people
who are saying to you: "We'll be with you when you're going through the
tough times. We're not going to let you be lost in discouragement or depression." Community is God's answer to defeat. Ecclesiastes
4:10 says, "If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the
man who falls and has no one to help him" (NIV). That is not my plan, it is not
something that church experts thought up. God has designed us to be a family, interdependent,
bearing each other’s burdens. We all need other people - to walk with us, to
work with us, and to watch out for us. Like a Coastal Redwood, we’re stronger
together than we could be alone. So, we must stand together, for the good of
each other, and for the glory of God. If we fix our eyes on Jesus, and follow His
example of servanthood we’ll experience the unity that God intends for the
church.
What is God saying to me in this passage? Gospel-centered thinking,
characterized by thankfulness, humility, and generosity, will lead to
Gospel-shaped living, which will be evident in the unity of the church.
What would God have me to do in response to this passage? Our church has entered a period of transition that is really a
great opportunity. First of all, after meeting “virtually” for something like
three months, we are back meeting together, yes, with some limitations, sometimes
it’s hard to recognize who is behind the mask, but we’re here, or if not here yet,
we’re sharing online with those who are. Rejoice in the Lord!
This “restart” is not
a time to just pick up where we left off, but an opportunity to examine our
priorities, to reconsider why we do the things that we do, and to make every
effort to sharpen the focus of the church.
We’re also preparing
for a pastoral transition, which is another great opportunity. What does the
Bible tell us to look for in a pastor? That
will be one of the first jobs of the search committee, thinking through those
criteria. It is not a time for personal preferences, but for uniting around
a Biblical portrait given by God himself. It is not something to rush into,
but a time for the entire church to commit to prayer, if you haven’t started,
start today, asking God for unity, and for clarity. A few things are clear:
1) You want to find a man of integrity, a good reputation in the
church and in the community, someone who manifests the fruit of the Spirit (I
Timothy 3; Titus 1);
2) I hope you’ll seek someone who
is both teachable, and himself a teacher committed to studying and preaching
the Bible; we need biblical preaching.
3) someone growing in his own
spiritual life; and committed to equipping others.
It is not something to rush into,
but it is also important to know that whoever God calls, he will not be
perfect. He will have weaknesses. But if
he loves God he will grow to love you. The best is yet to come for Boothbay
Baptist Church! AMEN.
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