Phil. 2:14-18 - Crooked, Perverse People

14 Do all things without grumbling or disputing;
15 so that you will prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world,
16 holding fast the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I will have reason to glory because I did not run in vain nor toil in vain.
17 But even if I am being poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I rejoice and share my joy with you all.
18 You too, I urge you, rejoice in the same way and share your joy with me.

You Are to be a Light in a Dark World

Paul ‘fleshes out’ his exhortation “work out your salvation” in the next paragraph.

Vs. 14 - “Do all things” - Whatever we do in our Christian lives should be done heartily, not grudgingly. (Col. 3:23,24).

“Grumbling and disputing” - Referring to secret displeasure (maybe without speaking up); deliberating and questioning what is true. It is symptom of pride and disobedience. Grumbling is a sure sign you are not getting you way. God is not doing what you want Him to do. Disputing is questioning what is going on, questioning the decisions being made - again substituting your own personal vision of ‘the way it should be done’. Anger or displeasure when you are not getting your way is symptomatic of an over-generous valuation of your self-worth. See Rom. 12:3.

For example, in Num. 16 , we see one of the most famous incidents - a group of Israelites, led by Korah, seemed to be plotting a coup against Moses and Aaron. They were angry they were not in the Promised Land. They were angry with Aaron as high priest and demanded to be priests also. They grumbled and disputed Moses’ decisions. They accused Moses of incompetence - after all, they weren’t in the Promised Land! Why should they accept Moses’ leadership? Moses pleaded with God not to wipe out the whole assembly. It does not end well for them.

Go back to Phil. 2:3, “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit”, or Phil. 2:5, “Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus”.

Vs. 15 - “you will prove yourselves” - Show the world your nature, the new nature given you by Christ Jesus. If you follow Jesus’ example (v. 5) - putting others ahead of your personal wants (v. 8) - you will become what God has planned (v. 12, 15).

“blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach” - Jesus will present His church to God the Father free from fault or defect. God determined we, the believers, would be perfect in Jesus. We will stand before His Glory confirmed blameless. God in His sinless perfection provided the perfect answer to our sin - Himself! We who are guilty of sin against God - it is our nature - will be pronounced innocent. (See: Jude 24, 25; Psa. 32:1,2; 1 Cor. 1:8, Eph. 1:4, 5:27; Col. 1:22; 2 Pet. 3:14; Jude 1:24 )

I love the verses in the letter, 1 John: “Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.” (1 John 3:2-3) We will like Him! We will be pure! Without spot or blemish. Free to walk and talk with God, face-to-face, without fear, without shame. Above reproach - no one, no man, no angel, even God Himself finds no fault in us.

“a crooked and perverse generation” - This describes all generations, in all parts of the world, for all time. Some like to say people are basically good. While it is true that all people have a conscience (provided by God), not all people follow that conscience. Just consider the political shenanigans in the United States in the last two or three years - ‘nuff said. However, even the most perfect and considerate person is crooked and perverse when compared to God.

God is too glorious, too much for humans to face. See Isaiah’s and Ezekiel’s reaction to their visions of God. (Isa. 6:5; Ezek. 1:28) They thought they were going to die - it was too magnificent. Moses, who probably had more interactions with God than any other human (excepting Jesus!) desired to see God’s glory. He was told no human could see God and live! (See: Exo. 33:18-23).

Vs. 16 — “holding fast the word of life” - Pay attention to Jesus’ words; cling to them; apply them to your lives. Have them always in ‘front’ of you so you can heed them as you go through life. This is similar to the exhortation in Proverbs, "Let your heart lay hold of my words; keep my commands so that you will live. Acquire wisdom, acquire understanding; do not forget and do not turn aside from the words I speak. Do not forsake wisdom, and she will protect you; love her, and she will guard you. Wisdom is supreme - so acquire wisdom, and whatever you acquire, acquire understanding! Esteem her highly and she will exalt you; she will honor you if you embrace her. She will place a fair garland on your head; she will bestow a beautiful crown on you." (Pro. 4:4-9)

“So that...” - Paul is looking forward to eternity. When we all face Jesus, Paul will be rejoicing with the angels, the saints, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit for the believers saved by the blood of Christ. Paul will know that the gospel shared with the Philippians bore fruit - lives saved.

When someone rejects the saving grace of Jesus, it is their personal decision. Paul is making their success - salvation - personal. He has worked so hard to clearly tell the message. If they turn their back on Jesus, he sees that as a personal failure. See Rom. 10:13-14. He came, he preached, and they believed. Praise the Lord. But some do not believe, and Paul wonders how he failed them. Was he not clear enough? If the believers are lured away by false teachers, Paul wonders did he not work hard enough to show them the way?
On the other hand, should God cut you some slack, and forgive you even when you have rejected Him and His grace? You must make that decision, and no one else. (That is a rough paraphrase of Job 34:31-33)

Vs. 17 - “drink offering” - Paul looks back to the sacrifices and offerings of his Jewish upbringing. This may not have had much significance to Gentiles. The ‘drink’ offering was always wine. Seldom was it offered by itself, but with another type of offering or sacrifice. We might consider it a tithe, returning to God what is already His.

“Sacrifice and service” - The sacrifice is the object offered; the service is the act of offering. Christ is the one in whom we believe and are saved. His death is the sacrifice that pays for our sin. We offer our faith to God, believing in the Son and the efficacy of His death and resurrection. The evangelist or preacher is not the sacrifice, but offers himself as a tithe to God. Returning to God that which He has provided, a life blessed and sent out for the lost.

A couple of commentaries indicated the ‘drink offering’ along with ‘sacrifice and service’ were Paul’s reflections on his upcoming execution when convicted in Roman court. I am not sure I buy that premise. There are a couple of reasons: (1) This letter was written about 61 A.D. during Paul’s first imprisonment. (2) Paul was not executed until his second imprisonment, about 68 A.D. (3) Paul thought he was about to be set free, and planned to come to Philippi.

“I rejoice and share my joy” - And I am happy to do it! My joy comes from knowing Christ as Lord and Savior. I want you to have the same joy. Our joy is not circumstance dependent. Do we confuse happiness with joy. I think it is very probable.

Vs. 18 - “rejoice in the same way” - Our joy is in the Lord, and what He has done for us.

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Phil. 2:12-13 - Obey

12 So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling;
13 for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.

Without Me Looking Over Your Shoulder...

Vs. 12 - “So then... work out your salvation” - The heart of this sentence is right here. Read carefully - it does not say ‘work for your salvation’, i.e., earning your salvation. “Work out” is a busy word in the NT, and it always seems to be about action! Here is just a few thoughts:

• Tribulation produces perseverance (Rom. 5:3; Jam. 1:3)
• Sin is manifested in what I am doing (sometimes even though I don’t want to be doing it) (Rom. 7:13, 15, 17, 18, 20)
• Jesus worked through me (Rom. 15:18)
• Affliction produces glory (2 Cor. 4:17)
• The world produces death (2 Cor. 7:10);
• Having done everything, stand firm (Eph. 6:13)
• The salvation provided in you from Jesus Christ will be demonstrated by your actions. “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” (Matt. 5:16)
• Believers are not to be passive. “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations...” (Matt. 28:19)

Does this mean you are to whip out your copy of the “Four Spiritual Laws” (an booklet for sharing Christ) to everyone you meet? No. (But have it memorized so you can be ready to share!)
Christ working in you should be obvious to everyone - it will be out there.

“With fear and trembling” - Always being aware that it is Christ whom you serve - the Lord of Lords, the King of Kings, creator and sustainer of the universe. “Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men.” (Col. 3:23) Christ working in me, will show in my actions - which is where the ‘fear and trembling’ comes to bear. Is my life pleasing to God? Am I living out my salvation in such a way that others will want the same?
These are not rhetorical questions!

“Just as you have always obeyed” - The things they learned from him they have followed, whether he was there or not. Paul commends the church family and exhorts them. (See: 2 Tim. 2:2, Phil. 4:7)

Vs. 13 -“it is God who is at work in you” - One of the beautiful things about living the Christian life is that you are not on your own! The command to work out your salvation is not sending out on a solo mission.

We can do nothing without Christ. (John 15:5)
He has provided a “helper”. (John 14:6, 26; 15:26; 16:7)
God works in us that we may be successful! He has given us gifts - over and above salvation! (Rom. 12:3)
God works in each of the believers. (1 Cor. 12:6, 3:6)
When we work out our salvation it is by God’s grace. (1 Cor. 15:10; 2 Cor. 3:5)God equips us (sets everything up, provisions us, prepares us, strengthens us, etc.) for what is pleasing to Him (not our will, but His will). (Heb. 13:21)

It is our surrender to Jesus’ and the Father’s will that empowers us. We can do nothing of worth on our own power. It is ALL GOD, and none of me.

A quote from Dr. Tim Keller: “Helplessness, not holiness is the first step to accessing God.” Accessing God is to be in His will, filled with His power.

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Phil. 2:9-11 - Christ Glorified

9 For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name,
10 so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Every Knee will Bow to Him

Vs. 9 - “For this reason” - Jesus carried out God’s plan for the redeeming of the world, and the salvation of mankind. (Note: it is Jesus’ plan also - He is God!) He voluntarily took on a humble position, that of a human. He agreed to step out of the glory of heaven on to sinful earth. Jesus agreed to die for us - death to the point of being separated from God the Father. This death is not like a patient ‘dying’ on an operating table for a few minutes - technically, clinically dead - and then being revived. Jesus was dead for three (3) days. There is no doubt he was completely dead, not almost dead.
As an example, see the story of Lazarus in Luke 1:1-44. When Jesus arrived people tried to dissuade Him from going to Lazarus. “He’s been dead for four days. He’s going to stink!”
Most of His followers were thinking, “If Jesus was dead after three days, He was going to be dead forever.” Jesus had been buried in a rush in order to get it done before the Sabbath started that Friday evening. After the Sabbath, which ended Satuarday evening, several of the women followers went to the tomb, hoping to get inside and properly prepare the body for burial. They were expecting a dead body inside the borrowed grave.

Except.
That is not what happened! Go to Matt. 27:59-66. The Jewish leaders completely understood Jesus’ reference to His coming resurrection. (I am not sure the disciples understood it as well as the Pharisees.) The Sanhedrin asked Pilate to set a guard, a Roman military unit, over the grave site. They didn’t believe Jesus would be raised from death, but thought His followers would fake it. Jesus’ followers would kidnap the body and then claim Jesus was raised as He said would happen. They knew a few fishermen could not take out a Roman guard. This would kill the upstart religion - its leader was dead and would remain so.

Except.
God flattened the Roman guard, rolled the grave stone away from the entrance. Jesus was raised to life - life eternal. The stone did not have to be moved. The burial clothes did not have to be left in the tomb. Those evidences were for our benefit. You want proof? “Come. Look! The grave is empty!” You want more evidence? “He is no longer wrapped in the funeral clothes! He no longer needs them, for He is Risen. He was dead, and is now alive!”

“God highly exalted Him” - The highest honor possible has been given to Jesus. The United States gives medals to honor our military servicemen and women - Purple Heart, Bronze Star, and Distinguished Service Medal to name a few. There is one honor that is above all others - the Congressional Medal of Honor. Many Congressional Medals of Honor are awarded posthumously. A living honoree is saluted by generals!
Christ died to free us from sin. He paid the ultimate price for us - he gave His life that we may live eternally with Him. (See: Rom. 5:8; 1 Pet. 3:18) The honor Jesus received: His name is the only one that will save. (See: Acts 4:12) Those who believe in Him are recorded in the Lamb’s Book of Life. Jesus is the one who can say, “This person is mine, and can be with Me in glory.”

God’s perfect justice was satisfied. Jesus’ death was for God, to pay for sin. His resurrection is for us. How do we know that ‘Jesus’ sacrifice was more than sufficient? If the price was not paid, Jesus would not have been resurrected! Our sins no longer keep us from God. He is alive; we will live with Him. We will see God face-to-face and rejoice. We can come “boldly to the throne of grace” (Heb. 4:16) because of Jesus. We can come without fear; we come rejoicing! Compare this to the warning in Eccl. 5:2 to “not be hasty” as you approach God’s throne. God’s love for us eliminates fear (1 John 4:18).

“bestowed on Him the name” - There are certain people that when you meet them or are introduced, you are immediately respectful. When someone says, “The President of the United States” you are respectful (if you have been raised right, you will show respect even if the President is not in your political party). Whether it is a mayor, a governor, the head of a college, a Nobel Prize winner, a Hall of Fame athlete, etc, these people have earned respect.

Jesus has done so much more. He saved you from eternal death, He provides the only way to salvation (Rom. 1:16; Acts 4:12). Almighty God. Omnipotent Lord. Lord of Lords. King of Kings. Forever and ever. The Lamb Who was slain. The Alpha and Omega. The First and Last. The First-born of all creation. Any one of those names is higher and greater than any President or athlete. The One above every other: He is Savior. Jesus.

Vs. 10-11 - “so that at the name of Jesus” - Jesus means: “Jehovah is Salvation”. While interesting, it’s not what is important to this discussion. Think of a convention or conference, when the main speaker is introduced all the people in the room clap or cheer. No one else in the world cares, the world trudges on. The picture painted here is entirely different: Jesus is announced to those around the throne of God. Everyone immediately bows to Him, goes down to one knee with head bowed, acknowledging He is Lord. Everyone, alive or dead, everywhere stops and surrenders to Him.

“who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth” - There is no place in all creation, there is no being - physical or spiritual - who will not acknowledge that Jesus is Lord.

“every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord” - There will be some who may want to give grudging acquiescence. When Christ the Lord is revealed, the awesome power and glory will overcome them. An example: I played a round of golf with a guy who had played on scholarship for a college. On the first hole he almost drove the ball onto the green on a 300 yard hole! He did it so smoothly, I knew at that moment there was no way! I was along for the ride, not for competition.
When we see Jesus in heaven there will be no doubt who is in charge - Jesus! Throughout scripture the appearance of God, or an angel of the Lord, causes awe and fear. Look at Exodus 19 an 20. Even when angels from the Lord appear to people, one of the first things said is, “Don’t be afraid.” These are angels, not God Himself. The visions that Isaiah and Ezekiel, or the apostle John, had indicate the scene is vastly overwhelming.

“to the glory of God the Father” - What does this mean? It is something we hear in church all the time, so commonly heard that there is almost no impact. However, the Holy Spirit inspired Paul to write this (See: 2 Tim. 3:16, 17) so let’s think about it. God is already glorious, as evidenced in other scripture. (See: Exo. 19, 20; Isa. 6:1-6; Ezek. 1:4-28; Rev. 15:4ff; 20:11) The verses from Revelation are pictures that give us a better understanding of this phrase - Giving praise to God for what He as done. One of my favorite hymns has a line, “To God be the glory. Great things He has done.” (see note 1)

From Francis A. Schaeffer, “ ‘The chief end of man is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.’ It would be scripturally false to leave out the second phrase - ‘and to enjoy Him forever.’ Nevertheless, the first phrase is the first phrase: ‘The chief end of man is to glorify God.’ And in Christianity we have a non-determined God who did not need to create because there was love and communication within the Trinity, and yet having been created, we as men can glorify God. But we must feel the force of both sides of the issue. If we fail to emphasize that we can glorify God, we raise the whole question of whether men are significant at all. We begin to lose our humanity as soon as we begin to lose the emphasis that what we do makes a difference. We can glorify God, and both the Old and New Testament say that we can even make God sad. That is tremendous.”

Why Wait to Rejoice? Rejoice Right Now!

Giving glory to God is you and I standing in the presence of God and proclaiming, “You, O Lord, did it! You alone saved me! You alone had the power! You alone made the sacrifice!” When a team wins the World Series, or the Super Bowl one player gets honored as the Most Valuable Player (MVP) acknowledging his contribution to the victory. Jesus is the MVP here. But let me be clear, it is all Him and none of us. We made no contribution to His victory over death.
Perhaps that is why we cast our crowns to Him on the throne. Our crowns have been given to us by Him, and are His. We are saved and are with Him - forever. We are not in hell. What rejoicing that will be.
But why wait to rejoice? He has saved you now. You are His now, not just in the glorious future. Paul makes it clear in the first letter to the Corinthians, our hope is in heaven and is sure because Jesus is raised from the dead. We have hope for the future. We also have hope for here and now. “For if only in this life we have hope in Christ, we should be pitied more than anyone.” (1 Cor. 15:19) Clearly, Paul believes Jesus came to give us abundant life (John 10:10), in the here and now. If release from the shame and guilt of sin in our life here on earth is all there is, it is pitiful. Pitiful in the respect that God has so much more planned for us. “But just as it is written, ‘Things that no eye has seen, or ear heard, or mind imagined, are the things God has prepared for those who love him.’ God has revealed these to us by the Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.” (1 Cor. 2:9-10) Wonderful, majestic things await us in heaven! Wonderful things are with us now - joy, the peace of God, joy, peace with God, joy!

Our pastor Jeremy T. gave a great sermon Sunday (28-Oct-18) on Worship. He said, (I am paraphrasing it) “How you worship shows what you believe.” This echoes a line from a sermon given a few years ago by our senior pastor Jerry B., “How you live and act shows what you believe, not what you say you believe.” Do you believe that Jesus saved you from death and hell? Rejoice and glorify Him!

*** Note 1: “To God Be the Glory”, Fanny Crosby, & William Doane. (page 363, right there in the front of the hymnal). ***

Phil. 2:5-8 - Christ is Obedient

5 Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,
6 who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped,
7 but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men.
8 Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Christ is Our Model

Vs. 5 - “Have this attitude in yourselves” - Putting others first is a different attitude than what we see in our society, “You have to take care of yourself before you can take care of others.” Jesus said He came to serve an save. (See: Matt. 20:28; Mk 10:45; Luk 12:37) He emphasized to His disciples that the person who would be ‘first’ must serve others and be ‘last’. (Matt. 19:30, 20:16; Mk 9:35; Luk 13:30) Whoever wants to be looked upon as first among many is putting personal interest and aggrandizement ahead of all other people.

Put the needs of others ahead of your own. So the question may arise, “How do I look out for the interests of others” or, “How do I regard others as more important?” These may sound like stupid questions. The answers seem obvious, yet they are big concepts, and people will want to know procedures, actions to be taken in order to do these concepts. Rather than just concepts, show me what you want me to do. What do you mean by that?
Paul says, “Here is a perfect example. Follow Christ’s behavior.”

Vs. 6 - “did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped” - This seems like a weird statement, because Jesus is God, was God, will always be God. God the Father is wholly God. God the Holy Spirit is wholly God. God the Son is wholly God. If Jesus is God ( He is! ) (John 1:1; 8:58; 10:28-30, 36-38; 14:9), why would He have to ‘grasp equality’?
There may be a feeling that Jesus becoming a human would make Him “less” than God. I am not saying that Jesus was less than wholly Holy God. One of the great theological mysteries is that Jesus was wholly human and wholly God at the same time. The triune God had a plan for salvation of the world, and its humans. That plan involved Jesus the Son of God coming to earth and dying for our sin. If Jesus had balked at that plan, He would be placing His Godship above the needs of the world - placing His position and Himself above the need for salvation of the world. Jesus has equality with God. He chose not to demand to keep it.

Grasping for equality with God has been the basic sin that has led to this point. Satan, a created being (perhaps a cherub), a beautiful and powerful angel desired to be like God. That temptation gave way to evil desire, which led to sin, and a rebellion. (See: Isa. 14:12-20; Ezek. 28:12-19; Rev. 12:7-9) That rebellion, an attempted coup, was put down by God’s army of angels led by archangel Michael. (See note 1)

Satan lured Eve and Adam with the idea they could be just like God if they ate from the forbidden tree.(See: Gen. 3:4, 5.) Fast forward to the 17th and 18th century - one of founding principles of the Enlightenment is that man is the ultimate judge of all things. In other words man is a god. Man is the “captain of his soul, the master of his fate” (See note 2).

Replacing God on the throne of your heart and life with your own ego and spirit is ‘grasping equality with God.’ You are declaring you can run your life better than an all-powerful, all-knowing God who loves you and wants the best for you.

Vs. 7 - “emptied Himself“ - Going from Heaven and being in the presence of God the Father to being fully human has to be a BIG STEP DOWN. We have no idea, cannot imagine, what heaven is like. We only have glimpses, hints and allegations. Jesus became a human to save sinners; I am one He saved. Jesus voluntarily laid aside His privileges as the Son of God, when He became a human. (See: John 1:14, 10:17, 18; 12:48-50; Rom. 8:3; Gal. 4:4)

“taking the form of a bond-servant” - See the paragraphs about bond-servant in previous discussion about Phil. 1:1. Jesus God was not forced to be the sacrifice for our sins. We are not forced to accept His sacrifice.
God offers. We accept or not. See: John 3:36. Our salvation is conditional - we are saved if we accept and believe. Just as the bond-servant became a servant for life, Jesus became the propitiation for all who believe. (Propitiation: Christ became our substitute, took our penalty, paid the price for our sin.)

Vs. 8 - “He humbled Himself by becoming obedient” - I like the way Heb. 2:17 says Jesus had to be made like us in order that all things pertaining to God (justice and mercy, forgiveness and eternal life) would be possible for us. Under the Old Covenant, sins were covered by sacrificing an animal - lamb, goat, bullock - its blood was poured or sprinkled on the altar in the tabernacle or temple. Those sacrifices were not permanent - they only covered what happened between the previous sacrifice and this one. The Jews had to have faith that God accepted the blood of the sacrifice.

Jesus’ sacrifice paid it all - all of our past sin, all of our present sin, all of our future sin - all of our sin. Note: We commit sin because of our sin nature. Our sin nature is not the result of our sins. Our sins are the manifestation of our sin nature. That sinful nature is inherited from Adam because of his disobedience in the Garden of Eden.

“to the point of death” - This needs no more explanation than He sacrificed Himself for us, that we might spend eternity with Him. “While we yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Rom. 5:8.

***

Note 1: (Some have posited that Gen. 1:2 where the earth was formless and void (a jumbled mess) was a result of the battle that raged between the warring angel armies. I am not sure about that, but it makes an interesting thought to ponder.
Note 2: paraphrased from “Invictus”, W.E. Henley

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Phil. 2:3-4 - Nothing from Conceit

3 Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves;
4 Do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.

Interests of Others

Verses 3 & 4 provide a guideline for the phrases from verse 2, above: “being of same mind”, “maintaining the same love”, “united in spirit”, and “intent on one purpose”. Verses five through eight will give us an example for which to follow.

Vs. 3 - “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit” - Almost self-explanatory. As Christians we are not to be focused on ourselves. We have nothing for which we can be proud.
Proud of our sins? Isn’t that why we try to hide our sins from others? Isn’t that why we try to hide them from God?
Proud of what we have done to attain righteousness? Can we say we have earned our salvation?
We are warned about putting too much hope in our self-worth. (See Rom. 12:3)
Thinking too highly of ourselves will lead to problems. (See: 2 Tim. 3:2; Jam. 3:14, 16)
Jesus had few kind words for the self-righteous and conceited Pharisees. (See Matt. 27, especially 27:27, 28.) If that chapter was one speech - no wonder the leaders were furious. If it was a collection of statements about the Pharisees’ leadership - He didn’t let up on them, at all!!

“with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves” - Sometimes when playing golf with buddies, and they hit a great shot, we tease them saying, “We are not worthy...” That obviously is fake self-abasement. Paul is telling the Philippians, “Realize your deep sense of your moral littleness.” We owe it all to Jesus, to God’s grace and His mercy

Vs. 4 - “do not merely” - Same thought as in verse three, above, stated differently. The ideas expressed by the repetition are for emphasis (Yup. I just repeated the thought). We see this technique used throughout the Bible, especially in Proverbs. “Selfishness” = Personal interests. “Interest of others” = others more important than yourselves.

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Phil. 2:1-2 - Encouragement

1 Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion,
2 make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose.

If There Is ...

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Vs. 1 - “Therefore” - He is saying to them, “Based on what I have just told you...” Go back to chapter 1:25-28. There five things on which the ‘encouragement’ is founded:

• They are progressing in their faith and joy
• Paul knows they can be proud of that progress,
• Conducting themselves in a manner worthy of Christ,
• They are standing firm,
• They are not intimidated by opposition.

“If there is” - A big “If-Then” statement follows. A similar ‘if-then’ is in the letter to the Galatians. The ‘if’ portion is also seen in Gal. 1:1, and is followed with the ‘then’ portion in Gal. 2:2.
Any of these four following items being true in their lives means they will bring joy to Paul:

Encouragement in Christ - Jesus promised He was preparing a place for us in heaven. (John 14:1-4) Jesus also appeared to the disciples, reassuring them of the resurrection and giving them the Great Commission. (Matt. 28:16-20, Mark 16:14-20, Luke 44-53) Believe in Him and you will be saved!

Consolation in love - We are to demonstrate Christ living in us by our love for one another. (John 13:34, 35; 14:21, 23; 15:9, 10, 12, 17)

Fellowship in the Spirit - We have a common bond that draws us closer together - the Holy Spirit - given to every Christian (i.e., believer in the Lord Jesus Christ). (See: Acts 2:42; 1 Cor. 1:9; 2 Cor. 13:13; 1 John 1:3, 7).

Affection and compassion - Paul tells us in Col. 3:12 to be compassionate with each other.

Vs. 2 - “Make my joy complete” - Paul will be overjoyed they are demonstrating growth and solidarity in Christ. They can build their fellowship because of the encouragement, love, and compassion with following characteristics.

Being of same mind - This is not “Stepford Wives” type of same mind. We are not mind-numbed robots, little holy automatons. (See: Rom. 12:16, 15:5; 1 Cor. 10:10)
The one mind is: us focused solely on Jesus Christ and what He has done for us, “so that with one accord you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Rom. 15:6)

Maintaining same love - Loving each under in Christ. "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another” John 13:34. I think there are few commands laid down for us as Christians. We are given lots of guidelines and directions. The most important commands:
Love Jesus.
Love each other.
The worship song from the 70’s says “They will know we are Christians by our love”.

United in spirit - Recognizing we are joined in the Holy Spirit. “What we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ... If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.” (1 John 1:3, 6-7)

“Intent on one purpose“ - the world would see Christ living in us. To live a life worthy of Him. (Col. 1:10)

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Phil. 1:29-30 - Granted for Christ’s Sake

29 For to you it has been granted for Christ's sake, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake,
30 Experiencing the same conflict which you saw in me, and hear it to be in me.

Suffer for His Sake

Vs. 29 - “For to you it has been granted for Christ's sake, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake,”

“For to you it has been granted for Christ's sake” - The reason you need not be alarmed when attacked by Christ’s enemies (they are now also your enemies) is three-fold:
(1) You are saved. They are lost, eternally, from God. (See discussion in vss. 1:3-5 Posted 2-Jul-2019)

(2) You believe in Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit by God’s grace to Christ’s glory. Each individual who believes (comes to Christ) is cause for joy in heaven. Everyone there (I mean EVERYONE) says, “You did this, Lord! Worthy art thou our Lord, and our God.” See the following from Revelation:
"Holy Holy Holy is the Lord God, the All-Powerful, Who was and who is, and who is still to come!" (Rev. 4:8)
"You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals because you were killed, and at the cost of your own blood you have purchased for God persons from every tribe, language, people, and nation.” (Rev. 5:9)
“And the Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let the one who hears say: "Come!" And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wants it take the water of life free of charge.” (Rev. 22:17)
“Then I heard what sounded like the voice of a vast throng, like the roar of many waters and like loud crashes of thunder. They were shouting: "Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the All-Powerful, reigns!’” Rev. 19:6

(3) You will suffer persecution because of your faith to Christ’s glory (See the discussion below next).

“to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake” - This does not sound like something to look for in our lives. Christ warned His disciples that His followers would suffer persecution, because the world will hate them. The world will hate us, because the world hates Jesus (and God the Father, and the Holy Spirit.) See: Acts 5:41; Rom. 8:17; 1 Thess. 3:4; 1 Pet. 3:14; 1 Pet. 4:19; Rev. 2:10. Also, fear, awe, or respect for God has a higher potential for return than fear of mankind, See: “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Instead, fear the one who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” (Matt. 10:28)
“Whoever, then, acknowledges me before people, I will acknowledge before my Father in heaven. But whoever denies me before people, I will deny him also before my Father in heaven.”Matt. 10:32, 33.
Satan is the prince of this earth (world) (Eph. 2:2) and he rebelled against God. Basically it was an attempted palace coup (Rev. 12:6-9). Satan lost.

Rejoicing erupts in heaven at the announcement of another soul saved. There is rejoicing when a Christian stands firm in the gospel in spite of persecution. Hallelujahs ring out! Again, those present glorify Jesus because one of His own remained true and faithful to the end. He is glorified because He provided the power and strength. The martyrs are not successful by their own might or strength, but by His Spirit. (Zech. 4:6)

Vs. 30 - “Experiencing the same conflict which you saw in me, and hear it to be in me.”

“Experiencing the same conflict” - That is: which do I hope for, work toward? Stay here on earth fulfilling Christ’s mission for me? Dying and being in heaven with Jesus? Same dilemma Paul faced. We know we are instructed to preach the gospel and see people saved. We know we would be far better off seeing Jesus face to face, because we will be just like Him (1 John 3:1-3). The Philippians know from reports and communications with Paul what he was telling them.

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End of Chapter
Philippians 1:1-30 (NASB)