Renewing Our Mind

This morning we’ll continue working through a part of the Bible called Philippians. So please turn with me to Philippians, Chapter 2. Philippians was originally written as a pastoral letter to encourage and instruct church members in a city called Philippi. And in this letter, we see a reflection of God’s own mind and heart for his people. And we hear his encouragements and instructions for us, as well. So I’ll be reading from Philippians, Chapter 2, starting at verse 1. But before I read our text, please pray with me:

[Pray and Read Text]

A Precious Treasure

Earlier in the New Testament, Jesus tells a parable about a man who’s out in a field one day, digging around, and suddenly his shovel hits something in the ground. As he clears the dirt away, he begins to find coins, and jewelry made of precious metals – and he realizes that he’s just found a pile of buried treasure! The greatest find of the century! And then Jesus explains what this man does next, in Matthew 13[:44]: “Then, in his joy, he goes out and sells all that he has and buys that field.”

I think it’s pretty obvious why that man would buy the field. It’s because he knows that there’s a vast treasure in it, that’s wildly more valuable than anything else he possesses. And so he goes out and sells everything he has – his life is radically affected. Everything in his possession is mobilized for the purpose of taking hold of that treasure.

Jesus tells this parable because he wants his disciples to recognize that God and his kingdom are a treasure. In fact, they aren’t just one out of many equals – but being with God is the highest treasure of all treasures. When Jesus calls us to come and believe and receive – and to live in light of what he has done, we’re being called to his treasure field. He’s urging us to make it our own.

And it’s important to emphasize this, because I think there are many people who have been fooled by Satan into thinking that the Christian life is just about dull or burdensome traditions, or that the Christian life is just about fluffy, emotional experiences and there’s no substance to it. But instead, the good news of Christianity is the treasure map that directs us to God. The good news reveals God’s vast goodness, and how we can glorify and enjoy him forever. God shows his love for us, in that he has sent his Son, Jesus, to suffer the penalty for our wrongdoings, in our place. Everyone who trusts in Jesus is forgiven of every wrong, and supplied with new hearts. They’re brought into fellowship with Christ and his people, in the Church, and they’re given access to God himself, forever. Having God like this is the treasure of treasures.

Now, the reason all this is relevant for our passage today is because the Philippians have seemingly forgotten about the great treasure they’ve received. They have forgotten how rich God’s mercy and kindness toward them has been. And so they’re starting to live as though there’s not enough mercy and kindness to go around. They’re withholding warmth and friendship from their brothers and sisters. They’ve forgotten how secure God has made them, with their heavenly citizenship. So they’re hyper-fixating on trying to secure earthly prosperity and positions for themselves. They’re even treating people in the church as competitors who endanger their abundance, instead of (as) co-laborers to dig with them in the treasure field of God’s grace.

So Paul reminds the Philippians how well-supplied they are in Christ – because he wants to spur them on to treasure godliness, and to turn away from their worthless pursuit of self-gratification.

You’ll see this flow of thought here in the text. Paul reminds the Philippians, in verse 1, of the rich conditions that have been established for them by Christ. And in the beginning of verse 2, he calls them to complete his joy by growing in Christlikeness. And then in the remainder of this passage, Paul calls them to abandon conceit, in order to humbly serve one another.

So these will be our three points as we work through the text. First, the conditions established by Christ. Second, the completion of joy. And third, the conceit we must abandon. [The conditions established by Christ, the completion of joy, and the conceit we must abandon].

The Conditions Established by Christ

So first, the conditions established by Christ. In verse 1, Paul is setting up the first part of an “If – then” statement. If this first thing is true, then this second thing is what you should do about it. “If there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy – “ then, Paul says, it should drive the Philippians to a certain goal. If the Philippians have experienced the real preciousness of the gospel in any sort of meaningful way, then there’s a course correction they need to make in how they’re living.

And the sorts of things that Paul lists out in the first part of his “if-then” statement describe the spiritual conditions or environment that Christ has established for his people. The first thing he mentions here is encouragement in Christ. And encouragement here doesn’t just mean that we have people saying nice things about us –though that’s often what we think of. Instead, encouragement here refers to being cheered onward. It means that we’re being urged into motion and motivated in some way.

The text doesn’t specifically say what it is that we’re being encourage to do, but in the flow of Paul’s thought here, he seems to be saying that in Christ, we’re encouraged to embrace new attitudes and actions. Specifically, knowing Christ encourages us to seek Christlike character, and to follow his pattern of living. And there are two reasons why this is the case. For one thing, knowing Christ expands our admiration for who he is. The extraordinary excellence of God’s heart is made visible to us in Christ. Hebrews 1:3 says that Christ is the exact imprint of God’s divine nature. So as we behold the divine brightness of Jesus’s perfect patience, justice, wisdom, mercy, and love, it makes sense that we’d be motivated to have the brightness of Christ’s character shine out of us. And secondly, knowing Christ expands our appreciation for what he’s done to save us. Understanding his vast love for us motivates us to express our gratitude by loving him.

But the love of Christ doesn’t just motivate and encourage us into Christian living. It also comforts us. This is the second thing Paul mentions: comfort from love. The love Christ has for us is a consolation when people reject us because, for those of us who are Christians, we know our future isn’t one of rejection, but of acceptance. We’re comforted, because we know we’re forgiven – we have God’s smile forever – and we won’t face judgment and Hell for our sins. And his love comforts us in every other trial – when we’re diagnosed with a serious health issue, when our car breaks down, when someone threatens us, or opposes us, or criticizes us. Because of this comfort we have, from Christ’s love, we don’t need to fight, tooth and nail, to try to construct a bubble of earthly comfort for ourselves. The comfort he supplies sets us free to love others, without getting tripped up by our fears and reservations.

Paul also mentions a third thing that Christ has established for us – we have participation in the Spirit. And this word translated participation is a word we’ve seen before. It can also be translated partnership or fellowship. And this phrase, participation in the Spirit indicates that Christians are in a condition where we both have fellowship with the Spirit, and we’re brought together by the Holy Spirit to have fellowship with one another. So the assumption from this fellowship with the Spirit is that we’d be like-minded with God’s own Spirit, and aligned with our brothers and sisters who are likewise a part of that fellowship.

Paul also adds a fourth phrase to describe the conditions Christ has established for his people. He has brought us into an atmosphere of deep affection and sympathy. If you’re reading from the King James Version of the Bible, you won’t see the word affection here – instead, you’ll see the word bowels. This is because, in the Greek language, when someone wanted to speak about deep affections or passions, they didn’t refer to the heart, like we usually do in English. But they instead spoke about the intestines – the bowels. So Paul’s assuming here that, in Christ, the Philippians have understood Christ’s deep affection and pity toward them. And he seems confident they’ve probably experienced or demonstrated this type of compassion toward others, as well – even if at times it’s been imperfect or incomplete.

So as Paul’s piecing together his argument here, he’s asserting that if there is any encouragement in Christ (which there is!), if there’s any comfort in love (which there is), if there’s any fellowship in the Spirit, and any affection or sympathy (these are all things we have, too) – if these conditions have been established for us, by Christ – it should affect how we live. It should impact on how we work together with our brothers and sisters.

The Completion of Joy (by Having the Mind of Christ)

And in verse 2, Paul goes on to finish his “if-then” statement. “If you have experienced the joys of Christ’s love and spiritual fellowship,” then verse 2, “complete my joy.” When Paul considers the Philippians, he already thinks of them with joy. But Paul’s joy in the Philippian church is incomplete, because the church’s Christlikeness is incomplete. So he urges them to bring his joy to completion. And this brings me to my second point – the completion of joy.

Paul recognizes that the Philippians have a problem with being too focused on themselves. They were coming to church to control others, instead of to care for others. They came to church to advance their glory instead of to adore their God. And so it’s interesting, here – that in verse 2 Paul’s command for the Philippians is to complete his joy, “by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.” In order for the Philippians to do what Paul says, they’ll need to take their eyes off of themselves – their cravings, their concerns, their conflicts – and to start to care about Paul, and about each other.

I recognize, it might seem at first like Paul’s being a bit hypocritical here. Because on the one hand, Paul is encouraging them to take their eyes off of themselves. Yet here Paul is, telling the Philippians to complete his joy. It almost seems like Paul is being selfish himself.

But notice how Paul is asking them to complete his joy. He isn’t demanding tickets to an amusement park, or a fresh pan of homemade brownies – or whatever the 1^st century equivalent of those things would be. He doesn’t imagine that his joy in the Philippian church will increase by extracting money, or approval, or anything else from them. Instead, he tells the Philippians, to complete his joy by doing something that will bring them joy and wellness. Paul isn’t looking for selfishness to bring him joy. Instead, he finds joy in the wellness and gladness of others.

And Paul recognizes that there’s a specific something that the Philippians need for their wellness and gladness. They need to be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.

But what does this practically look like? What does it mean for the church to be of the same mind, and to have the same love? Well, when we talk about being of the same mind, it may sound like the passage is saying that all our beliefs must be absolutely, 100% identical to one another. But Paul isn’t speaking here about the beliefs of the mind, but is instead talking about the attitude of the mind. The same mind that Paul wants the church to have is the mind spoken of in verse 5. Paul says, “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus.” And then Paul goes on to explain the attitude of Christ – his radical humility. So when Paul says he wants the Philippians to be of the same mind, his main point seems to be that the church should share together in having Christlike humility. The whole church – elders, deacons, members – everyone who belongs to Christ should operate according to his mindset, in humility.

And since this is what it means for the church to be of the same mind, then it naturally follows that having the same love means that the church should have the love of Christ. We should love what Christ loves, and reject what Christ hates. We shouldn’t force people to earn our love or kindness, because Christ’s love for us is a gift. Our love should be just as free as Christ’s love. We should be willing to extend love, even if it’s costly and inconvenient – even if we don’t feel like it – because this is how Christ has loved us. As Christians, we shouldn’t be content to have a wimpy, insincere love that’s secretly motivated by self-interest. Instead, we’re called to share together in one love, which is the love of Christ.

Don’t expect it to be easy. But it will be good. The most beautiful campsites are often the one’s that are the hardest to hike to. God has saved us from our bondage to sin, so that we’d be free to follow Christ. We’ve been called to a noble life – to put off the old self, which belongs to our former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of our minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness (Ephesians 4:22-24). We’re called to have the same mind, and the same love – the mind and the love of Christ.

This is important to understand, because some people might “same mind” and “same love” and jump to the wrong conclusions. They may think that as long as people are working toward some sort of sameness – some sort of unity or mutual tolerance – then it doesn’t really matter what people believe, as long as they all get along. But unity, just for the sake of unity, isn’t a virtue. I can guarantee you, that if the Philippian church went off and were united and like-minded with one another in worshiping the Roman emperor, Paul would be horrified. Having the same mind and the same love is virtuous, only insomuch as the Church has the mind and the love of Jesus.

The Conceit We Must Abandon

But Paul isn’t seeing Christlikeness reflected in the Philippian church. So he calls them to put away their selfish ambition and conceit. And this brings me to my third and final point – the conceit we must abandon.

Paul recognizes, before we’re able to put on the new self of Christ-mindedness, and Christ-heartedness, there’s a self-mindedness and a self-heartedness that’ll need to be put away. So he says in verse 3: “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit.”

The word translated selfish ambition here refers to someone who is self-willed – particularly, someone who is self-willed in a way that results in conflict with other people. That impulse in our hearts that bucks against being accountable to other people, or having a responsibility to care for other people – that’s selfish ambition. That self-willed attitude that fixates on the worst qualities of people, that talks about peoples’ shortcomings behind their backs – that’s selfish ambition. And the desire to distance ourselves from our brothers and sisters who have different personalities or preferences from us, to create factions or subgroups within the church – that’s also a fruit of selfish ambition. At the root of this selfish ambition is the conviction that we need to have things our way.

But in addition to avoiding selfish ambition, we’re also called here to abandon conceit. Conceit here literally means empty glory. It refers to pride that’s over-inflated – someone who thinks of himself as a king, without having the credentials to back it up.

When we think that it’s more important to carry out our desires than God’s commands – that’s conceit. Because our glory isn’t more substantial than God’s. When we think that we deserve nicer things than our neighbors, or more credit and thanks than our co-workers, even though we’re simply mortal human beings, just like them – that’s conceit, too. We can sometimes feel bitter or offended when people agree that our ideas are brilliant, or when they don’t marvel over our leadership skills. In our conceit, we can sometimes think that people owe us more respect and affirmation than they do, and we can withhold kindness from the very people we’re called to partner with and love.

So both selfish ambition and conceit divide the church. These things threaten to make the church a place of public performance instead a place of humble service and worship. I’ve already mentioned that Paul is calling the church here to humility – he did that by urging them to be of the same mind, to have the mind of Christ.

But in the second half of verse 3, now, Paul comes out and states it directly: “In humility, count others more significant than yourselves.” And do you see, here, how humility is explained? Having humility doesn’t just mean that you have low self-esteem, or that you tell self-deprecating jokes.  But according to this passage, humility simply means that you count others as being more significant as yourself – that you count others as having higher status than your status – that you count others as having more of a right to your time, love, and resources than you have a right to theirs.

And I want to be clear on that – this passage isn’t saying that you need to count other people as being worth more than you, as though everyone else can be considered a normal human being, but you have to think of yourself as a cockroach, or a floorboard, or something that’s subhuman. And this passage also isn’t saying that you should count other people as being more talented than you in every way. We tend to think that people who are more talented are worth more – that people who are smarter or more socially adept, are more significant than we are. But Paul isn’t telling talented people in the church to pretend like they’re less talented than everybody else. Because that just wouldn’t be honest.

Instead, this passage is simply affirming that we should count others as having a higher station or status than we do. To put this in practical terms, we should see ourselves as servants – that’s our station – and we should see the people around us as those God has called us to serve. Remember how Paul introduces himself at the beginning of this letter – not as a church leader for Christ, or a prince of Christ – but as a servant of Christ. That’s the right mindset. Regardless of who we meet on the street – whether they’re dirty, awkward, or obnoxious; young or old; handicapped or foreign to us – in humility, we should count others more significant than ourselves.

Being talented, or having a high position, or having a certain high standard of living doesn’t excuse us from the call to humble ourselves. If anything, if you’re talented, or whatever else, that simply means you have more giftings or resources to serve people.

Imagine if a well-trained officer in the Air Force was sent out in a state-of-art fighter jet. But instead of fulfilling his mission, he decided that he was too important for that – so instead he used the plane to take a joy ride. And he used up the ammunition by shooting into the ocean to make waves. We’d be offended, as taxpayers. Because we know that his rank doesn’t lessen his responsibility to do his job. If anything, it makes his responsibility greater. And it’s the same with us. Parents, teachers, business owners, supervisors – these are positions for humble service.

But it’s important to remember – humility not only means helping others, but it also means that we’re willing to ask for help. In humility, please let someone know when you’re struggling with your finances, or with your marriage, or with your health, or with temptation. It isn’t selfish to ask for help. In fact, it’s promotes the health of the Church. Giving your brothers and sisters an opportunity to serve is actually a way of serving them. Because you’re giving them an opportunity to take their eyes off themselves. You’re giving them an opportunity to practice kindness, service, and self-sacrifice. It builds trust and love. Whereas pride puts up walls and shuts people out, humility brings us closer together. So don’t be ashamed to ask for help. Let’s practice humility, together.

Verse 4 reiterates our responsibility here: “Let each of you look not only to his interests, but also to the interests of others.” The word translated here “look” isn’t just saying we should glance over and notice the interests of others – but it actually means “Keep watch! Pay attention!” With a similar attentiveness to how a shepherd watches for wolves, or how a stock trader pays attention to the markets – we’re urged here, don’t just watch out for your own interests – but watch out for the interests of others.

Very few of us need encouragement to watch out for ourselves. But to watch out and pay attention to the needs of others, just as intently – that’s a challenge. That’s not natural. Indeed, it’s divine. And even though we fall short of this high standard of love and humility, God himself has taken it upon himself to do the very thing we have failed to do. God the Son, did not only look out for his own interests. If he had, he would’ve remained in the comfort and glory of heaven. He would’ve ignored our cries of suffering, in the midst of our sin. We’d still be left in darkness, left for dead.

But Jesus Christ was watching out for our interests – to save us. In humility, the Lord of heaven considered himself to be our servant. As Mark 10:45 explains, “For the Son of man came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.” The king of glory came to serve. Incredible! On our behalf, he obeyed the commands we had broken. He bore the curse of death, so we could receive encouragement and comfort. And even now, our Resurrected King is continuing to care for us. He intercedes for us before God. He supplies the Spirit. He works all things for our salvation. Christ is using his heavenly position to serve!

So as you go out into the world this week – into your homes, your classes, your shopping locations, your church life here in Mount Pleasant, your clubs and organizations – every place – show the world what Jesus looks like. Use your position to serve. Let’s share together in this with one mind, and with one love. Let’s put on Christ.