UNITY IN THE CHURCH
PHILIPPIANS 2:1-4
Abraham was a man of wealth. Genesis 13 tells us that Abraham was wealthy with livestock and silver and gold. Abraham lived a nomadic life so that his flocks and herds always had fresh food. Abraham was not alone. He had his nephew Lot with him. Lot was also becoming wealthy. The two of them together were wearing out the land wherever they stopped. There was not enough water for all.
Genesis 13:7 tells us that a quarrel arose between the herdsman of Abraham and the herdsman of Lot. They had a job to do and it was far too crowded. Abraham did not want quarrels or fights to break out between he and Lot, so Abraham proposed that they part company. It was not an angry parting, but a parting of practicality. Abraham told Lot, "If you go to the left, I’ll go to the right; if you go to the right, I’ll go to the left" (Genesis 13:9).
Abraham allows Lot to choose where his herds would go. Abraham wanted peace and harmony between his family members. Abraham showed a great amount of selflessness when it came to this potentially family crushing issue.
READ PHILIPPIANS 2:1-4
The Apostle Paul is commending the Philippians on their faith and wants them to continue in faithfulness. His desire for them is made clear in verse 2 when he says that he wants them "to be united in spirit as one." He wants them unified. What is unity? What does unity look like? Whenever I search for a picture of unity I think back to the time in the United States after 9/11. I am sure the sale of American flags spiked and the display of patriotism was at an all time high. You couldn’t walk or drive down a street without seeing red, white, and blue waving in the wind. That is unity.
Philippians 2 describes unity in terms of mind and love, but also gives byproducts of unity as well. Paul tells us that encouragement comes from being unified. Comfort also comes from being united. Fellowship and tenderness and compassion are also produced when believers are unified. Those are all things that we want in our church... are they not?
We want to be an encouraging place.
We want to be comforting to those who are hurting and mourning.
We want to be a place of fellowship and support.
We want to be a place of love and compassion.
If we want our church to be these things and more, we must have unity. What does unity look like? Paul defines what unity will look like in the church. He states that he wants them to be "like-minded" and wants them to "have the same love." These two defintions show us what unity is. I guess I want to skip ahead and ask the question: How do we get there? How do we get there? But we first have to know what we’re after before we decide how to get there.
Joseph was a man who had a life with many ups and downs. He grew up as the favored son among all of his brothers. He was treated better than his brothers and his brothers grew to resent him. He was sold into slavery by his brothers. Yet, God blessed him in the home in which he served and later in prison. He got to prison by the way by being falsely accused. He later became the number two man in all of Egypt. He went from slave to big boss.
Joseph’s family moved to Egypt to escape famine and eventually his father died. A great fear came over his brothers. Genesis 50:15, states, "When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, ‘What if Joseph holds a grudge against us and pays us back for all the wrongs we did to him?’" Joseph showed his brothers grace. They probably deserved something for their sin against Joseph, but Joseph saw with eyes of faith what God had done. He did not do anything but love his brothers and their families. Joseph showed a great amount of selflessness when it came to forgiving wrongs against him.
Verse 2 records the desire of the Apostle Paul that the Philippians be "like-minded." To be "like-minded" means to have unity. The Apostle Paul knows that when they are united their minds on the same subject and moving in the same direction. He sees that unity will mean their thoughts are in-tune with each other.
I want you to imagine the church as a canoe. Inside the canoe are two paddlers. One paddler is rowing forward and one backward. Maybe one paddler is paddling and the other is just sitting there. Will they get anywhere? Will they get anything accomplished? It is only when they come together and decide on a common destination and work together that the canoe gets moving.
Paul wants our minds focused on the same things... "like-mindedness"
* Matthew 22:37 admonishes us to love our God with all our heart and soul and mind.
* Romans 8:7 tells us that a sinful mind is hostile towards God.
* Romans 12:2 commands us to renew our minds and to pattern ourselves after God
* 2 Corinthians 13:11 equates being of one mind and peace
When people of a church are "like-minded" they are focusing their attention on God. They are studying Him and engaging their brains as to what and why they believe. They are studying God to pattern themselves after Him. Paul does not want the Philippians to have their mind on the divisive things of the world, but for them to have their minds on God and the peace that flows from Him.
Jonathan was David’s best friend. Jonathan was a prince. David was a shepherd. God chose the shepherd to be king and not the son of the King. 1 Samuel 18 shows how the jealousy of King Saul grew as David became more and more successful as a warrior and as he realized that God had chosen David to be the next king. What do we expect from Jonathan? We expect jealousy. We expect perhaps a plot to get rid of him. Jonathan did none of those things and in fact protected David from others who were jealous and plotting against him. 1 Samuel 18:4 tells us that Jonathan took off his robe and princely attire and gave it to David. Jonathan and David became best friends even though David had taken Jonathan’s place. Jonathan showed a great amount of selflessness when it came to a humbling circumstance when his inheritance was taken from him.
Verse 2 records the desire of the Apostle Paul that the Philippians have "the same love." What does that mean? Just like being ‘like-minded’ means our minds are focused on God, having "the same love" means that our hearts are focused on God. What should our love be focused on? I know without a doubt that our love should not be directed at earthly things: money, success, entertainment, etc. These things are not of God. God wants our love directed towards Him. The Bible directs us to love God (Deuteronomy 6:5), love the law and the Word of God (Psalm 119:97, 119, 163, 165), love our families (Eccelesiastes 9:9, Ephesians 5:25), love our neighbors (Matthew 19:19, John 15:17), love each other (1 Peter 1:22, 1 John 3:11). God loves each of us and this love motivates our love for ourselves and for each other. The source of our love is the same. Our love for one another should be the same as well.
CONCLUSION
The answer to ‘How do we get there?’ is not an easy question to answer. We know that encouragement and fellowship and love are byproducts of unity, but how to we get there? The Apostle Paul states very clearly in verses 3-4 that unity requires that one push selfishness away and put others before yourself. Verse 3 directs us to think of others better than ourselves. Verse 4 directs us to think about the needs of the people around you and to help them. One step towards unity means we must be selfless.
* Abraham showed a great amount of selflessness when it came to this potentially family crushing issue.
* Joseph showed a great amount of selflessness when it came to forgiving wrongs against him.
* Jonathan showed a great amount of selflessness when it came to a humbling circumstance when his inheritance was taken from him.
Unity is created when we put others before ourselves and we compomise. Unity is created when we put others before ourselves and forgive their mistakes and sins. Unity is when we humble ourselves and think of others. Unity happens when everyone is looking out for everyone else. It creates a ’team’ or a ’family’ atmosphere where everyone is taken care of and where everyone’s needs are met. This creates a bond that unifies people together. Selflessness creates unity.
