Scripture Introduction
A turtle in Cleveland wanted to winter in Florida. Since it was too far to walk, he convinced two geese to tie a rope around their necks and fly south while he hung on with his vise-like jaws clamped onto the rope. As they crossed the river into Kentucky, some other geese joined the formation. Very impressed with the getup, one said, “Hey, who thought up that brilliant idea?” The turtle immediately opened his mouth to say, “I did…” and fell to his death.
The Bible warns often about the dangers of pride: “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall… (Proverbs 16.18). By pride comes nothing but strife and shame (Proverbs 11.12; 13.10 NKJ). Satan was cast from heaven because of pride. It is considered one of the seven deadly sins. And few things destroy a church’s unity quicker than pride.
The Church in Philippi was not unified; they were too selfish to be. Like the Queen obsessed by the answer to: “Mirror, Mirror, on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?” they were self-absorbed.
John MacArthur was asked the secret to Grace Community Church’s growth. He first reminds people that God sovereignly determines the membership of a church, and numbers alone are no gauge of spiritual success. But given those caveats, he recognizes that the numerical growth combined with spiritual vitality has been remarkable. “Our elders both model and proclaim Jesus’ call to discipleship: ‘Whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it’ (Matthew 10.38-39). And a commitment to self-sacrificial discipleship produces an attitude that is antithetical to selfishness—humility. Here is the prescription for a healthy church: ‘Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others’ (Philippians 2.3-4).”
MacArthur’s prescription is our text. As we read and study it this morning, may God make us a healthy church.
[Read Philippians 2.1-5. Pray.]
Introduction
The key principle for unity in the body of Christ is simple and clear: in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Easy to say, but oh, how my flesh argues against the practice. Nevertheless, the promise is glorious.
Psalm 133.1 notes: “Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity.” “Good and pleasant”—we have not always experienced that, have we? God has shown me again how difficult it is to maintain unity in the short two weeks since we returned from vacation. I discovered that some are troubled by my editing the words in a few hymns and printing those in the programs. So I am working on the worship service, imagining how you appreciate your pastor caring enough to type out the words to some hymns to make it easier to follow along without distractions, and updating some archaic words, only to discover that you worry that I have compromised with the world. Seeds of disunity sprout even from efforts to plant a garden of pastoral care. Three things to remember as we begin:
• Unity good and pleasant: remember Psalm 133.1.
• The command is clear (Philippians 2.1-4). Everyone here responsible to work hard on this.
• The power is available (Philippians 2.5-11)
We can do all things through Christ who strengthens us—we can build a unified, healthy, Biblical church testifying to the world that God is doing great work in our lives!
1. Apart from God’s Supernatural Work, We Live for Ourselves (Php 2.3a, 4a)
Philippians 2.3a, 4a: “Do nothing from rivalry or conceit…. Let each of you look not only to his own interests….”
The good news begins with a sad truth. Have you seen this in yourself? Have you noticed your inclination to cast your own motives and behaviors in the best possible light? Do you realize that you cut yourself more slack than you do others? Have you recognized that your heart insists on looking out for number one?
There is a song in Oklahoma, which shows our hearts all too well: “Oh, what a beautiful mornin’, Oh, what a beautiful day. I got a beautiful feelin’, Ev’rything’s goin’ my way.” Have you sensed how circumstances control your mood—whether “everything’s going your way”?
Almighty God promises that everything works together for my good. In Christ we have God’s everlasting love, perfect providence, and provision of every spiritual blessing—all the promises of God find their Yes in Jesus! But when someone at work treats us poorly, we fall apart. Why?
It is because, since the fall in Genesis 3, our sinful desires naturally order the priorities of the universe with self at the center. According to this way of thinking, when my needs and desires are met, when my circle is full, then I can consider others.
Now contrast that with the mind of Christ. His heart desired 1) to know God; freeing him 2) to consider others; while he trusted God 3) to supply his needs.
This radical reordering of priorities shows why becoming a Christian must be a “conversion”; why Jesus says we must be “born-again,” a whole new way of thinking must be given us by God. The first step of which, God tells us three attitudes and behaviors we must “put off” in order to think well and promote unity in our body.
1.1. By God’s Grace, Put Off Rivalry
My version calls it “rivalry,” others translate it as “selfishness” (NAS), or “selfish ambition” (NKJ).
John MacArthur explains the Greek word: “It was often used of the unfair pursuit and self-serving preservation of political office. By New Testament times, it had come to mean unbridled, selfish ambition in any field or endeavor…. It usually carried the idea of building oneself up by tearing someone else down” (Philippians, 110).
That sounds ugly, and surprising that a church must be warned against such behavior! But concerned with my own success and reputation, I naturally disregard the effect on others of grabbing honor, position, or preference. We must put off that attitude, and the behaviors which come from it, to be a Spirit-filled and unified church.
1.2. By God’s Grace, Put Off Conceit
Conceit is arrogant pride, wise in our own estimation. It destroys unity by devaluing others’ gifts and contributions, by not recognizing that I need you as much as you need me. Conceit demands complete conformity in place of Biblical unity, because it imagines that my way is the only way, my thinking the only Biblical thinking, my opinions must sway all discussion. Conceit makes us do what is right in our own eyes. We must put off conceit to be a Spirit-filled and unified church.
1.3. By God’s Grace, Put Off Looking Only to Your Own Interests
The Bible never asks us to totally ignore our own ideas, preferences, or desires. It does, however, point out that we often forget others’ interests. As I have reminded you before, my problem is not that I think too highly of myself, but that I think of myself too much. The solution to pride, therefore, is not thinking less of myself, but thinking of myself, less. In other words, elevate others’ needs on my list of priorities!
Now, having considered the negatives that we must put off, we can look to what God would have us “put on.” In other words, what positive characteristics promote unity?
2. By God’s Supernatural Work, We Become Humble (Philippians 2.3b-4)
Philippians 2.3b-4: “…but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.”
Note well that humility is the essential attitude for unity.
Chrysostom: “The foundation of Christianity is humility.”
Augustine: “When a certain rhetorician was asked what was the chief rule in eloquence, he replied, ‘Delivery’; what was the second rule, ‘Delivery’; what was the third rule, ‘Delivery’; so if you ask me concerning the precepts of the Christian religion, first, second, third, and always I would answer, ‘Humility.’” (Both quoted in John Calvin, Institutes, 2.11, 268-269).
Andrew Murray defined it nearly perfectly: “Humility is perfect quietness of heart. It is to expect nothing, to wonder at nothing that is done to me, to feel nothing done against me. It is to be at rest when nobody praises me, and when I am blamed or despised. It is to have a blessed home in the Lord, where I can go in and shut the door, and kneel to my Father in secret, and am at peace as in a deep sea of calmness, when all around and above is trouble. The humble person is not one who thinks less of himself; he simply does not think of himself at all.”
The greatest obstacle you and I face in learning how to love God’s way at home, at work, in a church or in any relationship is the pride in our own hearts.
C. S. Lewis well describes the problem and the way to recognize pride in ourselves: “There is no fault which makes a man more unpopular, and no fault which we are more unconscious of in ourselves. And the more we have it ourselves, the more we dislike it in others. The vice I am talking of is Pride or Self-Conceit; and the virtue opposite to it, in Christian morals, is called Humility…. According to Christian teachers, the essential vice, the utmost evil, is Pride…. It was through Pride that the devil became the devil: Pride leads to every other vice: it is the complete anti-God state of mind. Does this seem to you exaggerated? If so, think it over. I pointed out a moment ago that the more pride one had, the more one disliked pride in others. In fact, if you want to find out how proud you are the easiest way is to ask yourself, ‘How much do I dislike it when other people snub me, or refuse to take any notice of me, or shove their oar in, or patronize me, or show off?’” (Mere Christianity, 109).
So how does the supernatural work of humility flow into us? This will not answer every question, but three steps are essential to the process:
2.1. Recognize and Admit to Pride
The beginning point for all work of the Spirit is honesty. Could there be any place where honesty is more important and, at the same time, more difficult than in developing the humility which counts others more significant than ourselves?
C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity, 114: “If anyone would like to acquire humility, I can, I think, tell him the first step. The first step is to realize that one is proud. And a biggish step, too. At least, nothing can be done before it. If you think you are not conceited, it means you are very conceited indeed.”
2.2. Ask God for Humility
Why struggle to be humble, to be like Jesus? Why try if pride is endemic to humanity? Because the rewards for growth in this area are so great!
James 4.6-10: “‘God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.’ Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you…. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.”
Philippians 2.5 explains that we can have the same mind in ourselves which is ours in Christ Jesus: thinking which recognizes that humility is always rewarded!
If we believe the Bible, we will hunger and thirst for humility, we will ask our friends to tell us when pride wells up, and we will get on our knees to beg the Lord for this grace!
2.3. Fellowship Daily with Christ
Jesus said, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matthew 11.28).
True humility is a fruit of time with Jesus in Bible reading, meditation, and in Spirit-filled prayer, because Jesus is humble savior. He went to the cross because he considered your needs more important than his own: “What you my Lord, have suffered, was all for sinners’ gain; mine, mine was the transgression, but yours the deadly pain.” Why was he silent as a lamb to the slaughter when one word would have brought 10,000 angels armed for destruction to deliver him? What held his tongue? Sinners’ gain. In humility Christ counted you more significant than himself.
And for this service, “God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow… and every tongue confess than Jesus Christ is Lord.”
That same promise is for you. God exalts his people when we trust him enough to be humble, just as he exalted his son. James 4.10: “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.” 1Peter 5.6: “Humble yourselves… under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you.” When we fellowship with Christ, we will know the rewards of his humility.
3. Conclusion
Watchman Nee, the Chinese evangelist, tells this true story. A poor, Christian, Chinese farmer had rice fields high in the mountain. Every day he spent hours pumping water into the rice paddies; but when he returned to the fields the next morning, he would find that his unbelieving neighbor, who lived down the hill, had opened the dikes and drained the water to fill his own fields.
For a while the Christian ignored the injustice, but at last he became desperate. His rice would die if this continued and this was his livelihood. So he gathered his church and they prayed and discussed the situation and came up with a plan. The next day the Christian farmer rose early in the morning and first filled his neighbor’s fields; then he attended his own. He counted his neighbor more significant than himself; his looked to his neighbor’s interests as well as his own.
Soon the neighbor wanted to know the Jesus whom the farmer served as Lord and master. He was converted by seeing how the mind of Christ radically reordered the attitude and thinking of another man. Christ-like humility amazed him.
I wonder how our conflicts and disagreements, our hurt feelings and distrust, would end differently if we had the mind of Christ. You think about that. Amen.
