The Walk Of Christ

THE WALK OF CHRIST

Phi 2:1-11

In our passage this morning, Paul is talking to the Christians in Philippi. He has great hope and desire for them to be a loving church that makes a difference in their city and surrounding area.

Phil 2:1-2 1 if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, 2 make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose.

Notice Paul’s desire is that the believers will live in unity and love sharing a common purpose- glorifying God and sharing the hope of Jesus Christ with all people.

Phil 2:3-4 3 Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; 4 do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.

Paul describes how this unity and love should look... don’t be selfish. Don’t be arrogant. Always look for ways to love and serve other people.

Phil 2:5 Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,

So, Paul tells us that, as believers, Christ Jesus ought to be our role model. Our message today will look at 4 characteristics of walk of Jesus when He came to the earth.

What did His walk look like?? It was a.....

1. WALK OF HUMILITY

** The Sea Shell-There was a little boy in Africa that loved his teacher very much. He wanted to get her an awesome gift for Christmas, but had no money. He ended up giving her a beautiful seashell that was from the beach 5 miles away. The teacher told him it was beautiful and that she would treasure it, but added that he shouldn’t have walked so far to get her this gift. The boy smiled and said, “The long walk was part of the gift.” The teacher could only sit in wonder as this child as she realized this little boy cared enough for her to walk all the way to the shore on his own. A feat of love worthy of praise and remembrance. The God of the Universe made a similar long walk for us as He left the glories of Heaven and came to the earth.

Phil 2:6-7 He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men.

Although He was the Lord of all Creation, Jesus left the glory of Heaven and came to the earth as a human baby boy born to humble parents. In Heaven the angels flew around Him praising Him and giving Him glory.

As a little babe born in a stable, He had only dirt and dust and the odor of smelly animals surrounding Him. He came to the earth to give us the priceless gift of salvation..... His journey from glory to humility was part of the gift!

2. WALK OF PURPOSEFULNESS

** The B-17 Miracle- Bohn Fawkes was the pilot of a B-17 bomber in WW2. His plane was “The Tondelayo”. Nazi flack was heavy one night. They knew a 20mm shell pierced their gas tank because they were losing fuel, but how did it not explode? It was a miracle! They got home safely and slept thru the day. He went to the mechanics to ask for a piece of the lucky schrapnel. The mechanic told him that he was luckier than he had imagined. There were actually 11 shells recovered from the gas tank and none of them had exploded. So, the mechanics opened each shell to find there was no explosive charge in any of them. In one, though, was found a note written in Czech language that read “This is all we can do for you now.”

Those Czechs were slaves of the Nazis forced to make these bombs. As prisoners, they couldn’t fight, but they surely served those who were fighting by making these bombs ineffective.

Phil 2:7 {Jesus} emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant,

Jesus, the Everlasting God, humbled Himself and came to the earth and became Himself a servant. He did not come to be served by man, but to serve him. Jesus perfectly demonstrated what it meant to be a servant. Just as the Czech prisoners did what they could, Jesus served people during His walk as a bond-servant on earth.

* He taught the great truths and wisdom of God.

* He healed the sick.

* He made the lame to walk, deaf to hear, and blind to see.

* He cast out demons and He raised the dead.