Someone said, “The greatest argument for Christianity is Christians. There is nothing more compelling than those who live the life of Christ.” But do you know that the greatest argument against Christianity is Christians also? There is nothing more discouraging than Christians who don’t live the life of Christ, believers who follow a “me” rather than a “we” mindset.[1]
In my last message, I said that if we want to enjoy our best life now, we must shift from a “me,” “my” and “mine” mindset and focus on a “we,” “our” and “us” mentality.[2] How can we make that shift? And how can we show that we already made that shift?
According to Philippians 2:1-4, we were united with Christ to unite with each other: “If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being likeminded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.”[3] This morning we will talk about “Made One To Be One.” Let us pray…
Unity in the church is one of the major topics of the book of Philippians. If we go a few verses up, we find that Paul commanded the believers in Philippi: “Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you.”[4] We conduct our lives worthy of the gospel when we stand united in the face of forces opposing us from inside and outside of the church. “The emphasis in [Philippians] 1:27-30 is on unity in the face of pressure from without. In [Philippians] 2:1-4 Paul continues to urge the church to maintain unity, but now in the face of problems from within… It is of little value to be unified against opposition from without and then fail to be unified within.”[5] There will always be threats to unity from all directions. But we must remain united no matter what.
For example, in Acts 20:29-30 Paul warned us: “I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them.” Note the words “come in among you” and “from your own number”. False teachers will attack the church from inside and outside. But we are to stand united for the truth. Also, persecution from outside the church can shatter our unity. Bitterness or hatred against each other inside the church can fragment us. But always remember that united we stand, divided we fall.
Verses 1 to 4 of chapter 2 are actually one long sentence in Greek. Probably Paul was so carried away in his appeal for unity to the Philippian believers that he almost forgot to place a period. We see the only command and the main point of the passage in verse 2: “make my joy complete by being likeminded”. The word “complete” means “to make full, to fill up, to complete, to finish or accomplish.”[6] Paul experienced joy with the Philippians. But he will be more joyful if they are united or “likeminded.”
In the NASB, “likeminded” is translated “of the same mind”. Paul was not saying that we think the same way. “It does not mean that Paul wants the Philippians to hold to exactly the same opinion on every issue… The expression is focused on an attitude… It is a call for the church to focus on what they have in common in Christ and their relationship bound up together with him.”[7] In short, we need to have an attitude of unity, not just acts of unity.
For Paul, there is unity in diversity. We don’t have to agree on everything. We may have to agree to disagree. Someone wrote, “In the essentials, let there be unity. In the non-essentials, let there be liberty. In all things, let there be charity” or love. We must agree on the principles or the essential teachings like the Trinity or that we are saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. But on preferences, we can disagree, as long as we disagree agreeably. We don’t have to divide over non-essential issues such as our choices of music or our tastes for clothing or hairstyle. Let us major on the major and minor on the minor. “Kung hindi mo na rin lang ikamamatay, hayaan mo na.”[8]
Is this ever possible? Yes! Christ made unity POSSIBLE. We are not trying to be united. We are already united because of Christ. If ever we are to agree on one thing, let us agree that we are one because of Christ. Let us read verses 1 and 2: “If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being likeminded”. Because of the way these conditional clauses are constructed, we can translate “if” into “because” or “since.” So this passage can be read this way: “Because you have encouragement from being united with Christ, because you have comfort from his love, because you have fellowship with the Spirit, because you have tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being likeminded.” Because we were united with Christ, then we can be united with each other. Since we are already one with Christ, then we can actually be one with one another. These are the grounds for our unity.
First, we are ENCOURAGED by our union with Christ. Verse 1 starts with “If you have any [or, since you have] encouragement from being united with Christ…” When we accepted our Lord Jesus as Savior, we were united with Him spiritually speaking. Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” We are one with Christ, “Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross!”[9] We are one with our Lord who humbled Himself. And we are encouraged by His example to do the same. “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus”.[10] Next week we will look at verses 2-4 and we will see that it takes humility to unite.
Second, we EXPERIENCE comfort through God’s love. Verse 1 continues, “if any [or, since you have] comfort from his love…” The question is who is being referred to by the pronoun “his”? Though the NIV translators added it for good reasons, the word “his” is not in the Greek text. Whose love was it then? Note that “if any comfort from his love” is sandwiched between “united with Christ” and “fellowship with the Spirit”. There are Bible scholars who see the Trinity being pointed out here. So the source of love here that gives comfort is God the Father.
Later, in verse 2, Paul exhorted the Philippians in “having the same love”. In fact, Romans 5:5 tells us that “God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.” Since we experienced comfort from the love of God, let us extend this love to others also. “We love because he first loved us… Whoever loves God must also love his brother.”[11]
Third, we ENJOY fellowship with the Spirit. Let us look again at verse 1: “if any [or, since your have] fellowship with the Spirit…” The word “fellowship” means “to share in someone or something common.” The Holy Spirit is one of the blessings we received when we put our trust in our Lord Jesus Christ. He dwells in each one of us. “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?”[12] We are one body because of the Spirit. “Some of us are Jews, and others are Gentiles. Some of us are slaves, and others are free. But God’s Spirit baptized each of us and made us part of the body of Christ.”[13] So, we have a common life in the Spirit.
Lastly, verse one ends with “if any [or, since you have] tenderness and compassion…” Because we are encouraged by our union with Christ, because we experience comfort through God’s love and because we enjoy fellowship with the Spirit, we EXUDE tender compassion. Tenderness and compassion goes hand in hand. “It signifies the manifestation of tender feelings in compassionate yearnings and action.”[14] In other words, when we genuine care for one another and when we are authentically concerned for each other, then unity comes naturally.
These are the grounds for unity. Our union with Christ made this unity possible. “Thus the Philippian believers could count on encouragement from Christ, comfort from the love of God, and communion with the Holy Spirit to enable them live in unity with one another, each of them seeking first the interests of others in the community.”[15] Therefore, we Christians must PURSUE unity. I like how The Message translation goes: “If you’ve gotten anything at all out of following Christ, if his love has made any difference in your life, if being in a community of the Spirit means anything to you, if you have a heart, if you care—then do me a favor: Agree with each other, love each other, be deep-spirited friends.”[16] Next week, we will study how we can pursue unity.
This morning we saw that what unites us is more than what divides us. Before our Lord Jesus was arrested, he prayed this prayer: “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me… May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”[17] He prayed that you and I will be united. Would you be an answer to this prayer of the Lord? Christ already made unity possible. We were united with Christ so that we can unite with one another. We were made one to be one.
Let us pray…
[1]Adapted from the illustration database of Sermon Central.
[2]“We” Instead of “Me” (Our Best Life Now series). Available in http://sermoncentral.com/sermon.asp?SermonID=112619
[3]All Bible verses are from the New International Version, unless otherwise noted.
[4]Phil. 1:27-28a.
[5]J. Hampton Keathley, III, “Exhortations to Unity—Part II” (Emphasis in the original). http://www.bible.org/page.php?page_id=1435.
[6]Dictionary of the Greek Bible (The Logos Bible)
[7]Keathley, III
[8]In English, “If you will not die because of it, let it be.”
[9]Philippians 2:6-8.
[10]2:5
[11]1 John 4:19, 21b
[12]1 Corinthians 6:19
[13]12:13, Contemporary English Version
[14]New Linguistic and Exegetical Key to the Greek New Testament.
[15]Keathley
[16]Philippians 2:1-2, The Message
[17]John 17:20-21, 23b.
