Question
HAVE THE MIND OF CHRIST
Philippians 2:1-11
Key Verse 5
“In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus”
1. Read verses 1-5. How should our personal unity with Christ affect our relationship with other believers? (1, 2) How can we value others above ourselves? (3, 4) In all of our relationships, what kind of mindset should we have? (5)
2. Read verse 6-8. What was Jesus’ attitude? (6) How does Jesus’ birth and life show his humility? (7) How did he show his humility even in His death? (8) How can we have the same attitude of Christ?
3. Read verses 9-11. What was the outcome of Jesus’ humility? (9) How does every creature honor Jesus? (10, 11a) How did Jesus’ humility glorify God the Father? (11b) How can we be truly honored by God?
Manuscript
Biblenote
HAVE THE MIND OF CHRIST
Philippians 2:1-11
Key Verse 5
“In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus”
Introduction
Apostle Paul encourage believers to live a life worthy of the gospel because God began His holy work in them. God calls on us to empty ourselves of our wishes, wants, and desires. God calls on us to humble ourselves, to deny ourselves, and to take up the cross. Our Lord, Jesus who became like us showed the perfect example in humility. When we do follow His example, God will be glorified. Not only did Jesus receive the glory of the Father, but he is now seated at the highest place and has been given the highest name. Philippian church had difficulty being united even though they had personal faith in God. In today’s passage, Paul taught them how they could build up unity among themselves and how they could be truly honored and exalted.
1. Read verses 1-5. How should our personal unity with Christ affect our relationship with other believers? (1, 2) How can we value others above ourselves? (3, 4) In all of our relationships, what kind of mindset should we have? (5)
1-1. Read verses 1-5.
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, 2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. 3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. 5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
1-2. How should our personal unity with Christ affect our relationship with other believers? (1, 2)
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, 2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind.
· Therefore - In the previous passage Paul encouraged the believers to conduct themselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ and encouraged them to stand firm in the one Spirit striving together as one for the faith of the gospel.
· Chapter 2 is the practical application how believers can live according to the encouragement.
· Encouragement from being united with Christ, comfort from his love, common sharing in the Spirit, tenderness and compassion- are the grace that we can have through personal relationship with Christ.
· In the grace we can be strong in Jesus and there grace are the foundation of our relationship with others and enable us to build up unity with others.
· When we have good relationship with Jesus, we can have better relationship with others.
· The ultimate purpose of God’s grace in Jesus is to build up loving relationship with others and be united with others.
· Make my joy complete : Just having good relationship with God is not enough. When we are united with others, God will be happy and our joy will be completed too.
. We should not be satisfied with just personal relationship with God. It should be extended to relationship with others. Until we build up unity with others, our spiritual life is not completed. Especially we need to learn how to be united in the church.
· By being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. – These are the things that we should have to be united with others and to be one.
· We can be like-minded, have same love, being one in spirit and of one mind by having Jesus’ mind and love and Spirit together. We can become one by learning from Jesus.
· Jesus called his people to be fully united and build up one church.
· Our spiritual life and maturity can be evaluated by checking how much we are united with others in the Lord.
1-3. How can we value others above ourselves? (3, 4)
3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.
· Corrupted human heart is self-centered heart and selfishness. Believers should be saved from this corruption and sin.
· Saved heart in Jesus is to be God centered and others centered heart.
· Self ambition, vain conceit, or pride work to break the unity.
· In humility, value others above yourselves. – we need to consider others as the ones who have more value than us and more precious than us. It is not matter of who have more gifts and doing better performance. It is a matter of how we value others.
· We could have more gifts than others. We could do something better than others objectively. But we still can value others above ourselves despite any human condition.
· Humility is to know about our worthlessness and uselessness and miserable condition before God. When we truly know who we are, how much terrible sinners we are we never become proud.
. Apostle Paul used to be proud but became humble after discovering who he really was. Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst (1Ti 1:15)
· When we recognize ourselves as terrible sinners, we can become humble and value others.
· Not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.- The person who seeks others’ interest first is the one who has Jesus’ heart, for in Jesus’ heart we can’t find any selfishness or self-seeking interest.
· Seeking others’ interest is the expression of love. Love for someone can be expressed by seeking others’ interest. This is practical expression of love.
1-4. In all of our relationships, what kind of mindset should we have? (5)
5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
· have the same mindset as Christ Jesus – This is the best secret to build up unity with others and keep the best love relationship with others.
· Jesus’ mindset is humility and love. If we keep Jesus’ mindset, there will be peaceful relationship always. But if we keep the sinful mindset or Satan’s mindset such as pride and selfishness, broken relationship will be inevitable always.
· Church is the place where believers learn how to have and practice Jesus’ mindset and experience blessed relationship through this.
. It is all too easy for us to read the story of Jesus’ humility and admire it from a distance. God wants us not only to be amazed by it, but also to see it as something that we must imitate. It is something that we have choice about. This mind is something granted to us by God.
1 Corinthians 2:16 says,
For, “Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ. that we have the mind of Christ.
2. Read verse 6-8. What was Jesus’ attitude? (6) How does Jesus’ birth and life show his humility? (7) How did he show his humility even in His death? (8) How can we have the same attitude of Christ?
2-1. Read verse 6-8.
Who, being in very nature[a] God,did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;7 rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature[b] of a servant, being made in human likeness.8 And being found in appearance as a man,he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross!
2-2. What was Jesus’ attitude? (6)
Who, being in very nature God,did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage
· Jesus had same nature with God. He was equal with God having same glory and power. No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known. (John 1:18)
· As the one who had the same nature with God, he was in the highest in glory. No one can be valued above him.
· He was the one who must be honored and glorified by all creature in heaven and earth.
· But Jesus didn’t want to use the equality with God, the glory and power for his advantage even though he had the right to do it.
· People want to use anything if they have something to take advantage of it.
2-3. How does Jesus’ birth and life show his humility? (7)
7 rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness
· He made himself nothing – he gave up all his glory, emptied himself, lowered himself to the bottom. No God’s glory was seen in Jesus who became flesh like us.
· It is very hard giving up what we have. People even kill others not to lose what they have. Some people commit suicide when they lose something and become nothing.
James 4:1-2 reads,
What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? 2 You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God.
· Taking the very nature of a servant- Jesus became a servant giving up his nature of God. He became a servant even though he was the Lord of the lords.
· He came not to be served but to serve. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”(Mark 10:45)
· He didn’t consider his interest. Rather he considered sinners’ interests first and he gave up his interest for sinners’ interest. This is love. This is the expression of love.
· being made in human likeness- he became a perfect man. He became a mere human. People couldn’t see God’s glory from his appearance. He grew up before him like a tender shoot,and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem (Isaiah 53:2-3)
· He lowered himself and become human being to serve sinners. Without giving up what we have, without lowering down ourselves we can’t become a servant.
· He chose to suffer as a servant instead of enjoying glory.
· Jesus’ sacrifice is the biggest sacrifice that no one can imagine.
2-4. How did he show his humility even in His death? (8)
And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross
· becoming obedient to death – even death on a cross- He sacrificed even his life for the benefit of sinners who never deserve such sacrifice.
· Jesus humbled himself even to the point of death. Before death, he had to suffer a lot.
Hebrews 5:8 says,
“Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered”
· Death on a cross is the most shameful and painful death. Jesus’ death was the worst and most shameful and painful death. He died being considered terrible criminal. Jesus reached the lowest point with great shame and pain.
2-5. How can we have the same attitude of Christ?
· We need to keep remembering Jesus’ humility, sacrifice and love and the grace that we received.
· We need to keep practicing instead of just having knowledge about him.
3. Read verses 9-11. What was the outcome of Jesus’ humility? (9) How does every creature honor Jesus? (10, 11a) How did Jesus’ humility glorify God the Father? (11b) How can we be truly honored by God?
3-1. Read verses 9-11.
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name,10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,in heaven and on earth and under the earth,11 and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
3-2. What was the outcome of Jesus’ humility? (9)
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name,
· God exalted him to the highest place – God exalted him when Jesus lowered himself to serve God’s will
· Gave him the name that is above every name- God gave him the name “Lord of lords” giving him all authority in heaven and earth.
· God’s reward was matched with what Jesus had done. God never misses rewarding his servants who obey and sacrifice to serve God’s will.
· God’s reward fully compensates our sacrifice. So we don’t need to worry about losing something for God and others.
· When we sacrifice something to serve others, God pays to us with handsome rewards.
· We can sacrifice ourselves with the hope of God’s reward. All our sacrifice and suffering for the Lord and others will be greatly rewarded.
3-3. How does every creature honor Jesus? (10, 11a)
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,in heaven and on earth and under the earth,11 and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
· every knee should bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth- all creature worship Jesus and honor him. God glorified him above all creature.
· When Jesus lowered himself to the bottom being despised by people, God let all creature to bow down to him and worship him.
· All who are proud will kneel down before him and worship him. We don’t worry about people despise us.
· Every tongue will acknowledge him as the Lord- He came to this world to be a servant for sinners. But all people from all over the world will recognize him as the Lord.
3-4. How did Jesus’ humility glorify God the Father? (11b)
to the glory of God the Father.
· Through his humility and sacrifice, Jesus glorified God.
· When we serve others with humility and sacrifice and love, God can be glorified.
· But if we live a life with selfishness, pride and hurt others, we can bring dishonor God. Many people are not willing to become Christians because of believers’ wrong behavior and selfishness and pride and their fighting each other.
· Jesus clearly showed us how we can glorify God. We need to do practical action to serve others with the purpose.
3-5. How can we be truly honored by God?
· When we follow Jesus’ example, his humility, sacrifice and service, we can be honored by God.
· When God honors us we can truly honored. Man’s honor is temporary. So we better to be honored by God not by man.
· Having faith in God, we need to follow Jesus’ example. Then we will be honored by God and be build up unity with other believers becoming one. This is the real Christian life.
Conclusion
If we have personal faith in Jesus, we need to be united with other believers to become one body of Christ. Instead of being selfish or having proud mindset, we need to value others above us and take care of other’s interest than our own interest having Jesus’ mindset. Jesus showed the example of humility and sacrifice about how to serve sinners. God exalted Jesus to the highest place. May God help us to build up unity with others and serve others following Jesus’ example so that we can glorify God’s name and be truly honored by him in new year 2018
One word: Have the mind of Christ!