Boy, I sure hope I wasn't on a moment ago. Anyway, I think I was. Poor people and wine. So anyway, all right, so Philippians 2, verses 5 through 11 is where we're gonna be, verses 5 through 11. The Bible says, let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God, but made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men. Being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him and given him a name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven and things in earth and things under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of the Father, to the glory of God the Father. Father in heaven, we thank you, Lord. for the time again to be together this morning. We pray you bless our Bible study today. Bless our time together. Thank you, Lord, so much for the prayer already and the time that we've had one with another. And we pray that you would in a great way bless each and every one of us, Father. In Jesus Christ's name, we ask these things. Amen. Amen. So we looked last week at quite a few verses, and I want to look at a few more here this morning. Now, last week, we looked at verse six, and we're gonna finish up on verse six in this segment this morning, and then I kinda wanna skip, if we will, and jump into verses 12 through 16, if we can. I'm gonna go as far as we can with our time this morning. I'll be sensitive to that today. But in verse six, the Bible says, who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God. And so we looked at the idea that Christ not only is the form of God, but he's equal to God. And we saw that in Hebrews chapter one, verses one through three, 2 Corinthians 4, 4, Colossians 1, 3 through 15. So we looked at the fact that he was equal with God, as we see in John chapter eight through chapter 10, and that he claimed his title, Isaiah 9, 6, his power, Matthew 26, 64, his attributes, John 3, 13, his authority, Matthew 25, 31 and 32, and his nature, Colossians 1, 3 through 10, and John 1 through 4. So he claimed all those things and thought it not robbery for all of those. We see that he was manifested in the flesh, according to 1 Timothy 3.16, and God's blood was with him, Acts 20, verse 28. Here's the caveat that we want to kind of, the cap of verse six that we want to put on this morning, is that Christ never hesitated to let people worship him, okay, as God Almighty. All right, so he never, ever, ever hesitated. Look in Revelation chapter 21 with me, Revelation 21, just real quick, and we'll hit a couple of verses in Revelation here, and then we'll move on today and get into the rest of the chapter. Revelation 21, verse six, it says, and he said unto me, He said unto me, it is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is the thirst of the foundation, of the foundation, I lost my place, of the water of life freely. So he is the Alpha and Omega. We see that in the verse that we just read. We also see that in Revelation 22, verse 13. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, and the first and the last. We see he is the beginning, and so he is correlating in these last two chapters of Revelation. He's going all the way back to his introduction and confirmation of whose Revelation this is. It's not John's, but it's Jesus Christ. We see that in Revelation 1 and in verse 8. Revelation 1 and in verse 8. One thing that's interesting, if you'll go back to the book of John with me, Jesus Christ never told any man to get off his knees from worshiping him if he was worshiping him as God. So look in John chapter 20 with me. John chapter 20 verse 28. Notice what happens when, you know, when the Lord shows up and this is Thomas, what does Thomas say to him? And Thomas answered and said unto him, my Lord and my God. All right, so there was never rebuke, there was never any refutation, nothing along that line whatsoever with the Lord Jesus Christ when it came to him being worshipped as God, not one time. Matthew 14 is another example in verse 33, where it says, then they that were in the ship came and worshipped him, saying of a truth, thou art the Son of God. And so why is this important for us today? It's important for us to understand that as we look at what the mind of Christ is, that he was willing to take on the mind of a servant. He humbled himself to live as a man, to die as a man, but he humbled himself even to the death of the cross. And the Bible says, cursed is he that hangeth on a cross, okay, or on a tree, sorry. So we need to understand that mind that Jesus Christ has, that the apostle Paul is saying by, by inspiration here, this very mind, let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. Again, he thought it not robbery to be equal with God because he is equal with God. He is the second part of the Holy Trinity, yet he was humble enough to be found in the fashion of a man. He made himself a new reputation. And this is the mindset that Paul is telling us, by inspiration of the Holy Spirit of God, that we need to apply into our life, that if anyone, I said this, I guess, on the two Sundays ago, or the opening Sunday of our Vision 2023, if there was anyone who ever has walked the face of this planet who had the right to make their life about them, well, it's Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Creator, the Savior, the Messiah. He had every right to make life about him, and yet he didn't. He came with no reputation. Now, our society today would evaluate the life of Christ, who had every right to make life about himself, who'd evaluate his life and say, you know what? If he was God, why didn't he just come down here with his royal robe, with his gold ring, and stand, and everybody would have just followed him. They would have flocked to him. Why didn't he do that? Well, number one, the prophecy commanded that he could not do that. Number two, he is God, and he thinks it's not a robbery to be equal with God, but at the same time, he humbled himself to live as a man, because he had to be tempted and tried and suffered just as we do in order to pay for mankind's sin. Therefore, when you find, let this mind be in you that was also in Christ Jesus, which is our Lord, yeah? He's telling us to have a mind of humility, a mind that would esteem others better than themselves, a mind that would apply in everyday life. You know, so I mean, we need to think about those things when we look at what Paul is saying here about this very mind being you. I heard a man preach one time. It was the first and the last preacher's fellowship I had at my church with this particular group. a guy wanted to form a preacher's fellowship and asked me to come down. I was 29 years old, had just started our church, and come down and preach in the summertime, and I did, it was a good little meeting, and asked if I would host it, you know, the next one, and I did, and we were in our little round building, and all these guys came up, and we had a great, it was a good time until one bloke got up there, and he used this verse right here to say that at the great white throne judgment, that we're gonna stand there, and we're gonna, because we're gonna have the mind of Christ, and those who deny Jesus Christ, we're gonna say, depart from me. You know, ye who work iniquity. And I settled it right then and there in my heart, I will not be part of this group anymore. The Bible tells us there's tears in heaven, amen? Jesus Christ wipes away tears two times in the book of Revelation, and both of them after Both of them are after the two judgment seats, the judgment seat of Christ, which is for the church, and the great white throne judgment, which is for the lost and the millennial saints. Two times, tears are wiped away. 1700 years, I mean, sorry, 1007 years, bad math there, after the rapture of the church, the final tears are wiped away. Then there's no sickness, then there's no crying, then when eternity begins. So while we're on earth, we're told to have this mind. What mind is that? Well, a humble mind, one that is of no reputation, the form of a servant, the likeness of men. I think it's very important for us to understand. And second of all, that clown that said that, man, that's not even talking about the great white throne judgment. That's a nation's judgment, Matthew 25. So anyway, get your Bible right. Philippians chapter two, let's go into some other verses here, and then we're gonna move along. I know, guys, this has been a little bit disorderly, if you will. We've kind of started in the back side of Philippians, and we've worked backwards, and now we're coming to the middle of it. But Philippians chapter two, I want us to kind of start looking here at verses 12 through 16. We probably will not finish this morning, but that's okay, because unless the Lord comes back, we have next Wednesday, and if he does come back, then you don't need it. Amen? So verse 12 says, It is God which worketh in you, both to will and to do of His good pleasure. Do all things without murmuring and disputing, that ye may be blameless and harmless, these sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world, holding forth the word of life, that I may rejoice in the day of Christ. But I have not run in vain, neither labored. in vain. So take a look again real quick at verse 13. I want you to remember in times past we've established the idea that the best commentary on the Bible is the Bible. And verse 13 is no different. The cross-referencing verses or the cross-referencing commentary, if you will, we're going to look at five verses here in just a moment. But let's go back here to verse 13, saying, for it is God which worketh in you, both to will and to do of His good pleasure. Now, I'll stop you there for a second. I want you to stop and think. I'm going to put the verses on the screen, guys, so you're not having to turn, so we're not having sore drills as we did last week and just here earlier. When you submit, when you submit to a mindset of a servant, then you have no problem to understand that the one that you're serving is everything that you do is according to his good will and according to his good pleasure. That's when, when you have that mindset, you have no problem. Now, when you have the mindset of reputation, the mindset of you want to be exalted, the mindset that you want to make it about yourself, that's when you have the problem. Even if you say you're humble and you say you're this and you say you're that, when you have the words without the actions or the unctions of the heart, that's when you have a problem. Paul says, let this mind be in you. Christ had every right to make it about himself, but he says, I'm not gonna do that. I'll be of no reputation. I'm gonna come in the form of a man. I'm gonna humble myself. He became obedient to death, even the death of the cross. So notice this with me, if you will, as we allow the word of God to answer itself. Verse 13 links up with Hebrews chapter 13, verse 21. He says, make you perfect in every good work. Why? To do his will. working in you, that which is well-pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom he glory forever and ever. Amen. Now, when you submit to that thought, and you submit to that mindset, I'm not gonna say life gets more simple. I won't say that, because quite often it's not. I will say life can be a little easier. What's easier? Is it easier going uphill or downhill? What's easier, swimming against the grain, or swimming against the current, or with the current? What's more comfortable, running against the grain, or running with the grain? Okay, do you understand what I'm saying here? When you submit to His will, and understand that it's according to His good pleasure, even though it may not make your life simpler, We can understand that He's ready to make us perfect. It doesn't mean sinless, it means mature, it means full, it means complete, for the purpose of His good work and according to His will. Why? For the simple fact of being well-pleased in His sight. Again, verse 13, for it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure. Ephesians chapter three is another verse that we use to cross-reference in verse 13 of chapter two of Philippians. For the grace of God that bringeth salvation, I'm sorry, that's Titus, whereof I have made a minister, I have made a minister according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power. There's nothing, again, I'm gonna use Paul as a great illustration here. Paul exceeded well above all of his peers. He's the valedictorian of the school of Gamaliel. I mean, he was, let's just call Paul, Paul's the man, all right? He is the man, he's got the right stuff, he had the pedigree, he had everything that we don't, amen? And yet he says here, he's made a ministry according to the gift of the grace of God, the grace of God. Grace is receiving that which you do not deserve. Amen. God's riches at Christ's expense, we call it. The same thing we see in Titus that I kind of read a little bit ahead of time. For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men. Why do I tie this verse with verse 13 of Philippians 2? We'll go back to Philippians 2. For it is God which worketh in you, in you, both to will and to do of his good pleasure. We understand, and I don't have this verse on here, God's will is for no one to perish. So therefore salvation hath appeared in one way, shape, form, or fashion to all men. That way we understand Romans chapter one, that no one has an excuse. Everyone is without an excuse because the creation, amen, the invisible things of creation are clearly seen. Isaiah chapter 26 is another one, verse 12. Lord, Thou wilt ordain peace for us, for Thou hast wrought all our works in us." It's God's work who is working inside of us. Again, for it is God which works in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure. And then 1 Corinthians 15, verse 10, which is probably one of my favorite ones. But by the grace of God, I am what I am, Paul says. And His grace, which was bestowed upon me, was not in vain, but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God, which was with me." So take that verse on board and take it for what it says. But by the grace of God, I am what I am. He's a minister unto the Gentiles. He's a minister of the grace of God. He's a preacher. He's a missionary. He's a church planner. He was a pastor at times. This is what he is, but he says, by the grace of God, I am what I am. And he goes, and his grace, which was bestowed, it was poured out, it was given to me. Whose grace? God's grace. He said it was not in vain. Why was it not in vain? Paul goes on to say, but I labored more abundantly than they all. I did more work. I was busier. I wrote more letters. I planted more churches. I led more people. I mean, Paul was busier. He worked himself really and truly to sickness. In his first missionary journey, Paul was busy, busy, busy, busy, busy. Paul was a hard man to work for, but then he ends that statement. He could have said, I labor in more abundantly. More than all of them, more than Peter, more than John, more than all of them. But he says, yet not I. Comes back to that grace again. What is it? God working in you. God working in you, his will and his good pleasure. But the grace of God, which was with me. Guys, I understand that we can, you know, busyness is not always evidence of success. Trust me, I understand that. full houses, full buildings, by all means, is not the evidence of godliness or even the presence of God. The Church of England has a full building on Sundays, and God ain't anywhere near that place, amen. But the evidence here, guys, is that it is the labor. It is the willingness to allow God to work in us, and through us, and at the end of the day, this servitude mindset taken on board in our hearts and our lives, it's the grace of God that's working inside of us. That's where the fruit that you'll find. Look at verse 14 with me today, if you will. Verse 14 in Philippians 2. He says, do all things without murmuring. And the same is true in this verse, guys, as it applies to the same logic in understanding the verses, you know, by looking, again, looking at allowing the Holy Scripture to be the best commentary. The verse is simple. It's self-explanatory. It is a pre-context verse, okay? Do all things without murmuring and disputing. And then you have a colon there leading into verse 15, you know, which is very clear. But I want to tie this together with 1 Corinthians 10 and verses 3 through 11. And this is a reference from the Old Testament. I used this actually Sunday as we tied together the workings of the foundations of Jesus Christ, being that rock that we're going to read on. Verse 3 says, And did all eat of that same spiritual meat, and did all drink of that same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual rock that followed them, and that rock was Christ. And that's a reference to the Old Testament travelings of Israel. Verse 5, But with many of them God was not well pleased, for they were overthrown in the wilderness. These things were our examples to the intent we should not lust after evil things as they lusted, neither be idolaters, as were some of them, as it is written, the people sat down to eat and drink, rose up to play. Neither let us commit fornications, so as some of them committed and fell in one day three and 20,000. Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted and were destroyed of serpents. Neither murmur ye. as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer. Now all these things happened unto them for his samples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come." Guys, it's important for us to understand that the Holy Spirit of God just put murmuring together with lusting, with idolatry, and with fornication. Now when I find and temptation, tempting Christ. What I find sadistically comical are the preachers today and the men today and the families today who will strain in a gnat and swallow a camel and nitpick people to death and they'll shelve and ridicule men and women and children. The whole time that's called murmuring. I'm not supporting idolatry. I think idolatry is wicked. I think religious people are idolaters, amen, okay? Fornication is wicked and wrong. They've been destroyed. We're given the examples, amen. Adultery is wicked and wrong. It destroys homes and families and nations. Guys, I'm gonna tell you something right now. There's a reason Satan attacked the family first. You destroy the family, you destroy the culture. You destroy the culture, you destroy the country. Guys, if you wanna get our country back in order, well, get the family back in order. Amen? Marriages have dropped by 50% because people shack up now. God's not blessed in that. Do you understand that, please? God ordained and instituted the family first and primarily. then the government, then the church. You mess up the family, you mess up the government, and then you mess up the church. Guys, it's not the government's job to define and dictate to us what marriage is. God already did that. He did it in the beginning, and that's it. That's why Paul tells us that marriage is honorable and all, and the bed undefiled. You defile the marriage bed, you're defiling the culture. You defile the culture, you defile the country. Let that sink in for just a little while. John chapter 7 tells us in verse 12, and there was much murmuring among the people concerning him. For some said he is a good man, others say nay, but he deceived the people. And then we also see Acts chapter 6 and in verse 1, and in those days when the number of the disciples was multiplied, there arose a murmuring of the Grecians against the Hebrews because their widows were neglected in daily menstruation. Now, I'm saying all that in that point that we're making today, and I'm going to close it really, I think, I may be done here today and leave verse 15 and 16 to next week and keep it kind of short if we will this morning. I'm saying all that as a pretext we find verse 14, do all things without murmuring and disputing. And again, we tie this together, the very link that idolatry, that adultery, that fornication, that temptation or tempting Christ, if you will, is linked together with murmuring. And you say, well, preacher, I don't murmur. Do you complain? Stop it. Just stop complaining, man. Stop whining, stop whinging, stop murmuring, stop talking about this one, stop whining about that one, just stop doing it. If you don't like how your preacher does things, then leave, okay? Pastor Ellis was very clear with us. Don't rock the boat, don't change, you know, just leave. Because if you start fooling and messing around with the local church, God's gonna deal with you, amen. And you need to understand that. It's called murmuring. You know, one of the things that we made sure that when, as a pastor and a pastor's wife, we never discuss church business around our children, ever. And you know why? Because there was no need for young ears to hear some of the negative sides that needed to be dealt with as pastoral administrators, if you will. Situations had to be dealt with, problems had to be dealt with, all of those things. But that wasn't children's business, amen? And it wasn't everybody else's business either. We dealt with business in business times, in business meetings. And the rest of it was left. And when it was done, it was done. That's what we need to understand about what you're looking at the ministry. So a preacher, who's in the ministry? If you saved, you're in the ministry, amen? I loved it when my mama, good night 20 some odd years ago our first missions conference I was 29 Niecy was 10 I'm kidding that was that's bad I was 29 Niecy was 27 we had our first church we had our first missions conference in August 2001 it was hotter than blue blazes and a little round building that we had 80 some odd people inside this thing crammed packed like a bunch of sardines In the very opening day, I said, okay, if you're a missionary here tonight, today I want you guys all to stand up. And we had 27 missionaries that came through the missions conference that week. Everybody stood up and my mom stood up. You know why? Because you're all missionaries in some way, shape, form, or fashion. I understand what we mean when we have a missions conference and we have the visiting missionaries stand up. But she caught that thing and she knew exactly what I was trying to prove. When you walk out of these doors today, you're a missionary. You're representing the Lord Jesus Christ. And if you go through this city murmuring and disputing, that's what they're gonna see in Jesus Christ. Paul's telling us to let this mind be in you, a servant's mind, a mind that is willing to allow him to work in you according to his will and his pleasure, amen, by the grace of God. And that's what this world needs to see. Not murmuring, not disputing. There's plenty of that in the world today. Father, we thank you, Lord, for the time to be together for our Bible study this morning. We pray that you take this word and apply it into our hearts and our life. Lord, please touch us, tend to our hearts, tend to our days, dear God, and help us be a good representative of you, Father. Help us be an ambassador, dear Lord. Help us be the epistle known and read among all men that people may see and come to know the Lord Jesus Christ, not only through our words, but see him in our deeds as well. Lord, in Jesus Christ's name we pray, amen. Thank you so much, guys. I do hope and pray that the preachers