Get Your Mind In The Game!

Scripture: Philippians 2:5-11

Theme: Mindset of Christ

Paul instructs us to have the Mindset of Christ

1. The Mindset of Servanthood (Humble and Agape Filled)

2. The Mindset of Living in the Supernatural

3. The Mindset Birthed and Bathed in Prayer

INTRO:

Grace and peace from God our Father and from His Son Jesus who came to take away the sin of the world!

Growing up in the state of Kentucky I was able to see my share of basketball games. Basketball is a major part of Kentucky culture. And over the years I have heard more than once a coach or an interested fan yell out to some basketball player - "Hey, Get Your Mind in the Game."

"Hey, Get Your Mind in the Game" could also have been yelled out by the Apostle Paul. When it came to living out the life of a follower of Jesus, the Apostle Paul was intense. He was an all in or nothing type of guy. And when it came to Jesus the Apostle Paul was all in. He challenged everyone he knew to surrender their heart, mind and soul to Jesus Christ.

The Apostle Paul also had a deep love for the disciples living in and near the city of Philippi. They were his first Europeans converts that had received and accepted the message that Jesus was the Savior of the World. They were also one of the most loving and giving congregations. As soon as the Church at Philippi heard about Paul's imprisonment they send Epaphroditus to him with a rather large gift in order that his basic needs would be met. For you see, while Paul was under arrest it would have been almost impossible for him to get any work and the Temple back in Jerusalem had labeled him as a blasphemer and so he would not be getting any help from them.

However, upon arriving with the Church's gift Epaphroditus fell deathly ill. It was only Paul tells us by the grace of God he recovered. Now, the Apostle was sending Epaphroditus back to his friends at Philippi along with this letter to thank them and to challenge them to be unified in heart, mind and soul. Paul further challenges them to stay true in the midst of some intense persecution from both inside and outside of the church. He encourages them to hold fast to the true teachings of Jesus and not to allow any false teachers to come in and steal away their joy and freedom.

And then in chapter 2:5-11 Paul shares seven little verses that have become some of the most loved and important verses in all of his writings. They deal with having the right mind - that is to say - to having the mind of Christ. Paul is wanting to make sure that at all times they are to have the right mindset when it came to how to live their lives for Christ in the here and now. Paul wanted in effect to make sure that they "Got their Mind(s) in the most important thing of all - LIFE".

So, for a few moments this morning let's look at what it means to have the Mind of Christ.

I. It means to have the Mind of a Servant

- The Mind of a Servant which is Born out of Heart of Humility and Agape Love

It doesn't take long in reading this section of scripture to know that Paul's overall theme is centered on servanthood, on humility and on agape love.

For that is what true Christian servanthood is - it is love - it is agape love. It is a love that displays itself in the form of:

+Humility - Jesus did not come to be served but to serve (Mark 10:45). Jesus came to earth and took on the form of humanity in order to experience what it means to be human. That is what Incarnation means. It ultimately means the oneness of God and humanity. God came down and become one of us. 100% God and yet 100% man. Man who had to be born, who had to live off the land, who had to work by the sweat of his brow so that he could have food, shelter and clothing, man who had to suffer temptations, trials and suffering. Jesus did not come to have others serve him but instead as John 13 spells out so vividly, Jesus came to pick up a towel and serve others.

Throughout His life here on earth, Jesus showed us how to focus on others. He did his best to show us that it is through loving others that life has meaning. Without loving others everything really becomes meaningless. Jesus showed us that true living is when we learn how to give without expecting anything in return.