Today and tomorrow we are going to be in the primary text that connects the humility of Jesus with the incarnation.
Philippians 2:1–11 NIV
1 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: 6 Who, being in very nature 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 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! 9 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.
The purpose of the Philippians letter is a little different than many of Paul's other letters. This one doesn't seem to have an immediate need or question that Paul is addressing. He seems very positive and congratulatory of them in the intro to his letter. There are a few logistical details that he seems to need to communicate to them like why he is sending someone back to them. So this seems to be a general call for them to conduct themselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ (Phil. 1:27). Verse 27 is likely what Paul is referencing with the "therefore" of 2:1. So this call to unity in the church through humility is a general call on the Christian life. This is what it looks like to live a life that is worthy of the gospel of Christ.
The context here is pretty straightforward theoretically but incredibly difficult experientially. He begins in verse 1 by essentially saying, "If you value Christ at all then you will do these things." Reading verse 1 should be quite piercing to anyone acting out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. As a side note, the word "tenderness" in verse 1 is our word from last week (splanchnon).
This type of commitment to unity through humility and a willingness to lay down our rights for the sake of others, is a concept that many Christians love to ignore. This seems strange to me because Paul, here seems to make this a pretty big deal of what it means to be living in a manner worthy of the gospel. He comes on strong and makes a big deal out of this. So maybe we should too.
The other thing I want us to see here is that Paul uses the incarnation of Jesus as a model for how we are to live in community with one another. This text, among others, sets the precedent for the Incarnational ministry model.
Additional Content
Reflection
Reflect on your commitment to unity and giving up your privileges for the sake of others. Are unity and a commitment to the common good values that you cherish? How central are these values to the Christian life? Tomorrow we will dive in more specifically to these but today I want you to think big picture about whether or not you actually value unity and sacrifice in community.