So Philippians chapter two, we're gonna be in the first 11 verses today, and right now together, we're gonna read the first eight verses. So this is Paul under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Here's what he says. So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition 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. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped. but emptied himself by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men, and being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. So we come to Paul's letter to the Philippians. And if you've ever read through it, you would know that it's a very practical letter. And it's one that, as a Christian, should give you great encouragement. A major theme of Philippians is pursuing Christlikeness, not in order to gain points before God, but because, as a Christian, you want to strive to be like Christ. And Philippi is one of the healthiest churches that Paul writes to. Paul has a deep affection for them. If you'll notice, going through it, Paul doesn't correct any theological issues. So it's not like in Romans, where Paul has to continuously say that salvation is by grace alone through faith alone, that salvation has always been that way. Or like in Galatians, where Paul has to correct the Judaizers, these people who were perverting the gospel and essentially saying that you had to convert to Judaism before you could become a Christian. Or like Colossians, where Paul is adamant in defending and expressing the deity of Christ. Philippians is different. These people at Philippi, these saved Christians at Philippi, are theologically sound. These people love the truth. And yet they still needed to be rebuked and warned by Paul. Why is that? Well, that's because there was this subtle self-centeredness that was showing itself. And as a result of this, these people at Philippi face the threat of disunity in the church. We kind of get a glimpse of this in chapter 4 of Philippians. We're introduced to two women. Their names are Euodia and Synthike. And what it seems was happening is that these two women, who by all accounts were doing great things for the Lord, were allowing a personal squabble to sow disunity in the church. And that's what weighed the most on Paul's mind. was the threat of disunity in the church. And that's part of the reason why he pens this letter. And in order for us to fully understand what's going on here in the text that we're in, in chapter 2, we need to go back to chapter 1, specifically in verse 27 of chapter 1. So if you'll read that along with me, here's what Paul says. He says, only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ. So that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you, that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind, striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, and not frightened in anything by your opponents." So before we get into what this verse means, we have to make clear what this verse does not mean. Paul is not saying that as a Christian you need to have unity with anybody who professes to be a Christian. So Paul is not saying that you need to have unity with a Jehovah's Witness, for example, or with a Mormon, for example. That is not what Paul is saying. But what he is saying here is he's talking about the idea of citizenship. So if you look at your footnote, whatever Bible you're using, whatever version it is, it'll probably say something about citizenship and specifically being a citizen of heaven. And what Paul's saying is he's saying to them, you guys are citizens of heaven and therefore you must act like you are a citizen of heaven. And he's also saying that we cannot let the opposition divide us but that the pressure that they put on us must bring us stronger and closer in unity. So why is unity in the church important? Well, according to this verse, we must be united so we can win the spiritual battle for the faith. It's a battle. You and I are literally at war every single day against Satan, against his angels, against all those who hate Christ. We go to war. every day. And what we need to do is we need to take a stand for the gospel, and we need to unite around the gospel. And from that conclusion, a few questions arise. What does behavior befitting a citizen of heaven actually look like? And how do we humbly learn about humility? And that's what Paul is going to get into in the first four verses of chapter 2. So let's read these four verses together. He says, so if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition 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. So right off the bat in verse one, we see the motivation of Christian unity. Paul starts off and he says, and what he means here, he's not implying that there may not be encouragement in Christ. It's just a way of talking, which you and I probably do every single day, it's most likely gonna rain later today, so if I were to say to you, if it rains later today and you're standing outside, you're going to get wet. Or if I were to say to you guys, if you love your kids, you want them to do well in school, it's implying that this is something that is true. So if you would like, you could actually read verse one, you could change the if to since, and you could read it like this. Since there is encouragement in Christ, since there is comfort from the love of God the Father, since there is participation in the Spirit, because that's the message that he's getting across. Or you could read it like this, if there is any encouragement in Christ, and there is, if there is any comfort from the love of God the Father, and there is, if there is any participation in the Spirit, and there is. So that is the message that Paul is getting at right there in verse 1. And what he's saying is that we need to be united because of these three things, because we have encouragement in Christ, the love of God the Father, and we are participating in the Spirit. Right off the bat, we see our triune God's love and sympathy for us. And our call to selfless Christian unity is grounded in our relationship with each member of the Trinity. Next he goes on, he says, complete my joy. So how is the church supposed to complete this joy? Well, it's by getting focused on unity, by being of the same mind, by having the same mindset and attitude befitting a citizen of heaven. We all need to have the same focus. What should be our focus as Christians? Well, that's an easy question to answer. Our focus as Christians should be to glorify the Lord Jesus. In everything we do, our focus needs to be to glorify Jesus Christ. And he goes on, he says, having the same love, which is just a way of saying loving God's people in a Christ-like manner. He says, being in full accord and of one mind, which is intent, being intent on one purpose, being intent on the one reason that we're here, which again goes back to what we just said, is to glorify Christ. That's the reason we're here. And you know, it's not enough to simply just agree with each other theologically. Yes, sound doctrine certainly glorifies Christ when it's preached, when it's talked about, but what he is saying here is that God calls us to care deeply for each other in a loving way, and that also glorifies Christ. You know, our cultural backgrounds, our life experiences, they're so different that we don't naturally fit in together. but the gospel, it breaks all of that down. And if we're saints in Christ, we are supernaturally united. Even if we don't think like that, it's just a fact. If you are a saint in Jesus Christ, you are supernaturally united. In our backgrounds, life experiences, social status, economic status, none of that matters anymore because we're saints in Christ. And I read this, what Paul says in verse two, And I go, Paul, this is essentially what you just said in verse 27. And that's the point. He keeps saying it over and over and over again to drive the point home. And he says, do nothing from selfish ambition and conceit. Do nothing from selfish ambition and conceit. You know, if you were to make the argument that all the things wrong with so-called Christianity in the world today are done from these two things, selfish ambition and conceit. You see all these places that are compromising on the gospel, all these places that say Jesus Christ is not the Savior, Jesus Christ is a Savior. All these places that say, yeah, you know what? Jesus Christ, he's right for me, but who am I to judge? Who am I to say that Jesus is right for everybody? That's between that person and God. What those places are doing is they're saying those things out of selfish ambition and conceit. Because what they want to do is they want to look good to the outside world. They want people to glorify themselves instead of glorifying Christ. And this is something that we need to ask of ourselves. Am I doing things out of selfish ambition and conceit? Do I have the wrong motives in what I'm doing? And hopefully, when we start to ask ourselves that question, we say, well, I don't want to do anything out of selfish ambition and conceit. So what must replace those two things? What must replace selfish ambition and conceit? And he says it in the next verse. He says, in humility, count others more significant than yourselves. So humility must replace selfish ambition and conceit. And you know what he says here in that verse, that's just the basic definition of true humility, which is to count others as more significant than yourselves. And this doesn't come naturally to any of us. We aren't wired this way at birth. In fact, we're wired the exact opposite. We're wired just from things you see on TV, things you hear in school to look out for yourself, look out for number one. But that is not what God tells us to do. And only from the grace of the Lord Jesus can you be humble in a way that is pleasing to God. And he says in verse four, he says, let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. So this is just a side note. It's okay to look out for your own interests. Like that is totally fine. The Bible does not condone asceticism. Asceticism is when people adhere to this strict, strict self-denial as a way of attaining a higher spiritual plane. The Bible does not condone that. The Bible does not condone asceticism. It's OK for you to want a good paying job so you can provide for your family, it's OK for you to eat healthy to work out, looking out for your own interests. All that stuff is fine, but what God is telling us through Paul is that even more so, we need to look out for the interests of others. We need to look out for our brothers and sisters in Christ. Now, naturally, someone might ask, well, why should I care about this? Why should I care about the church being united? Why should I care about looking out for my brothers and sisters in Christ? Well, go back to what he says in verse 1. I care about it because I have encouragement in Christ, the love of God the Father, and I'm participating in the Holy Spirit. I should care because Jesus Christ desires for his church to be united. Here's what he said, in John 17, this is God the Son talking to God the Father, he says, I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me, the glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one, even as we are one. So Christ cares about the testimony of his church. You know, Jesus said that the whole world will know that we're Christians based on the love that we have for each other. He said it in John chapter 13. He said, by this all people will know that you are my disciples if you have love for one another. So Christ wants us to be united. He wants us to love each other. He wants us to be humble. And you know, humility That's really what's at the core of it all. Humility is at the core of building others up. Humility is at the core of loving each other. I mean, can you imagine just what it would be like if the people of God always had this level of humility no matter what? And you may start to think to yourself, you go, Well, Dan, that level of humility is tough. I mean, I can't think of anybody who is this humble all the time. Like certainly I could be that humble for a few hours maybe, maybe even a few days, but being this humble all the time is really, really tough. Well, in the next verses, we are given the perfect example of the one person in the history of the world who never wavered in this type of humility ever. that's the Lord Jesus Christ. Christ and Christ alone shows us what true biblical humility is. Here's what he says in verse 5. He says, So in other words, look to Jesus. Look to Christ. Whatever his approach was to humility, that needs to be our approach. We need to strive to be like Jesus in every single way. And he goes on to describe Jesus's approach to humility. The attitude of Christ in the selfless love of Christ that we've seen in three things. We've seen it in his incarnation, his humiliation, and in his death. Look at what these verses say. It says, have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself. By taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men, and being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Paul writes these verses so we could have the practical example of what true humility is. And you know, these verses have generated a lot of controversy in Christianity. That's because there are people out there who will take what these verses say and distort it into a dangerous, dangerous theology known as kenosis theology or kenosis doctrine. And the name comes from the Greek word that Paul uses in verse 7. But what this dangerous doctrine teaches is that Christ ceased to be fully divine while on earth. What they'll say is they'll say that Jesus set aside his divinity completely, choosing instead to live as a man only completely dependent on God. They'll say that Jesus gave up his power on earth. Let me tell you guys something, Jesus Christ did not give up any power while here on earth. Here's what he said in John chapter 10, talking about giving his life. He said, no one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again." Christ was fully God and fully man for the entirety of his time here on earth, and he remains the exact same today. But this is how they'll explain it, this doctrine, this dangerous teaching. They'll say, Jesus did all of his miracles, not as God, but as a man filled with the Holy Spirit. So the thinking goes like this, Jesus was a man who did all these things filled by the Holy Spirit. You also are a man or a woman who can be filled with the Holy Spirit. Therefore, you can do everything that Jesus did. So if you aren't raising people from the dead, if you aren't healing the sick, then you are not filled with the Holy Spirit. And it's amazing that all these people who claim to raise the dead, how it never gets recorded on video, nor can it ever be verified by anybody else, although everybody is just walking around recording everything. But it's amazing how that never happens. Or these people that claim to heal the sick never go to like children's hospitals and heal kids there, because you would think if they could heal the sick that that's where they would be going, but of course they don't. But they'll say, Well, you know what, if you're against this doctrine, then you just don't realize what scripture says, because in John chapter 14, Jesus said, greater works than these will he do. So their thinking is, are you doing greater works than Jesus? If not, you don't have the Holy Spirit. Now, I will submit to you that a Christian who is able to participate in potentially leading somebody to Christ by sharing the gospel with them, has done a far greater miracle than anything physically that you could do for somebody. One, this spiritual miracle lasts forever. This physical miracle lasts for a few years at most. And it's a dangerous theology because if it were true, it would mean that, number one, Christ was a liar because he claimed to be fully divine the entire time that he was here. And it would mean that his atoning work was not sufficient to atone for our sins. And if you believe that Jesus Christ was not truly God and truly man all the way through, then you have the wrong view of Christ. But let's go through what these verses actually mean. He says in verse 6, he says, Christ did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped. So Christ did not view or use his equality with God the Father as a way to achieve his own self-interest. And we know this, that this is what he's talking about because of what he says next. He goes on and he starts to talk about what it is that Christ did for us. He says in verse 7, he says, but he emptied himself. Emptied here, what he means is that Christ made himself insignificant. That he humbled himself not by getting rid of his deity, but by adding a human nature to it. As R.C. Sproul describes it, it was subtraction by addition. So what Christ did was he emptied himself of the privileges of deity. You know, prior to the incarnation, Jesus Christ, he never hungered, he never thirsted, he never got tired. And then when he came to earth, he did hunger, he did thirst, he did get tired. In heaven, he emptied himself, but when he came down here, because in heaven he had all the rightful honor that he deserves, all the rightful glory that he deserves, but he emptied himself of all of that when he came here. Christ rightly deserved the high place, and he took for us the low place. And notice what it cost Jesus to come and save us. Notice what it cost Jesus to become human. Notice what it cost Jesus to come and redeem us. It's laid out for us in three ways. The text says he took the form of a servant. He was born a man and death on a cross. Here's what it says. It says, but he emptied himself by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men, and being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. First, it says that Jesus took the form of a servant. You know, Christ could have came back to earth as a king with some massive castle with some angelic army behind him with a bunch of warhorses on the other side. He could have been this king who just enacted all these wonderful reforms. But no, that's not what he did. He could have came back as a rich man. He could have came back as a rich man who just went around to the poor giving away free money. and then trying to run for political office or something, but no, that's not what he did either. Christ humbled himself and Christ came back as a servant, as the servant that was prophesied in Isaiah chapter 53. Here's what it says about this servant. It says, he had no form or majesty that we should look at him and no beauty that we should desire him. That's how Christ came back with no former majesty that we should look at him, no beauty that we should desire him. There was nothing in Christ's physical appearance that would make you and I stop and say, guys, look, there he is. There's Jesus Christ. There's the Son of God. There's the man we need to worship. There was nothing in his physical appearance that would have made us do so. Next it says, he was born a man. So let's just think about this for a second. You have the eternal son of God being born a man. Being born of a woman, becoming a little baby in his mother's womb, becoming a teenager, laboring as a carpenter, feeling pain and sorrow just like you and I do, being like us in every single way, except for one way, except that he never sinned whatsoever. He didn't even have one millisecond of a sinful thought. And then it says that Christ was obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Death on a cross is death by humiliation. and not only death on a cross but all the events leading to that death on the cross. Did you know that at any moment Christ could have stopped what was happening to him? At any moment Jesus could have snapped his fingers and every person, every creature in the entire universe that was against him at that time would have just dropped dead. He wouldn't have even had to snap his fingers. He could have just thought it. And every single person would have just dropped dead. When he was being spat on and mocked and ridiculed, at any moment he could have just said, you know what? Enough of this. Enough. And he could have just ended them all right there. But he didn't do that. He was faithful to the end. He was obedient to the very end. I like how John Gill describes Christ's obedience. Here's what he says. He says, he was obedient from the cradle to the cross, to God, to men, to his earthly parents, and to magistrates. He was obedient to the ceremonial law, to circumcision and the Passover, to the moral law, to all the precepts of it, which he punctually fulfilled, and to the penalty of it, death, which he voluntarily and cheerfully bore in the room and stead of his people." That's what Jesus did for you. That's what Jesus did for me. And if Christ, the one who lived and died for us, was this humble, how can you and I not love humility after seeing what it is that he did for us? So what should be our response to Christ's humility? What should be to obey Christ? to obey, obey in what the text says, in being of the same mind, being in one accord, being intent on the same purpose, which is to glorify Christ. And finally, what we'll see is we'll see the purpose and result of Christ's humility and suffering. We'll see that Christ's humility has a future eternal purpose. Here's what the last three verses say, verses 9 to 11. says, therefore, God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name. So at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth. And every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. There is coming a day when every person who has ever existed will be brought together. Those who are still living on this day will be gathered about, and those who have died prior to this day, what will happen is their soul and their body will be reunited, and everybody, you and I, everybody we've ever met, everybody that they've ever met, will stand before the Lord Jesus Christ. What a terrifying day for the unbeliever this is going to be. What a frightening day this is going to be for them. The unbeliever will try to run from Christ on this day. But how could you run from the one who's faster than you? The unbeliever will try to hide from Christ on this day. But how can you hide from the one who knows exactly where you're hiding? The unbeliever will try to lie to Christ on this day. They'll try to deceive Christ on this day. But how can you deceive the one who knows all things? There'll be no appeal for the guilty on this day, no paying for the best lawyer to get you out of judgment, none of that. On this day, Christ will execute perfect judgment. You know, the entire creation even is longing for this day. Romans 8, verse 19 says, for the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. Will you be a son of the living God on that day? Will you be a daughter of the living God on that day? Don't live in the land of make-believe. Don't live in la-la land. This day that the Bible is talking about is coming. This day is approaching. And there'll be two sets of people on that day. There'll be those who are in Christ, and there will be those who are outside of Christ. There'll be those that are in Christ that bow willingly. out of the grace that has been given to them. And there'll be those outside of Christ who bow unwillingly because their kneecaps will be shattered by him. There'll be those in Christ who acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord with gladness and joy. And there'll be those outside of Christ who acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord with anger, bitterness, hatred, moments before they're cast into hell forever. This is a day that the Lord has been very clear all throughout scripture was going to happen, that one day everybody was going to stand before Jesus Christ. Here's what it says in Isaiah chapter 45. The Lord says, I have sworn from my mouth has gone out in righteousness a word that shall not return. To me, every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear allegiance. Two categories on that day, in Christ and outside of Christ. And for those in Christ on that day, there won't be any subcategories. It'll simply be those who have been born again by the grace of God. But for those outside of Christ on that day, just think of all the subcategories that there's going to be for that. You're going to have those who are boastful about their hatred of Christ. These are people like Sam Harris, Richard Dawkins. These are people who go to you and say, you're a Christian? Well, tell me, where is your supreme Christ? Where's your Supreme Christ? Look at all the evil in the world. Where's this Jesus that you worship? It's been 2,000 years. He's not coming back. Where is he? Just look at all the evil in the world. Which the response to that, by the way, when somebody asks you where is your supreme Christ, the biblical response is Christ is in heaven, storing up almighty wrath and fury to pour out on all those who commit such evil, and he will pour it out on this day. You have another subcategory of those who follow everyone and everything except the true biblical Christ. So you'll have followers of Muhammad, followers of Buddha, followers of the Dalai Lama, followers of Gandhi, followers of Joseph Smith, followers of the Pope and the Virgin Mary, and Ellen White. All of these people will be in that category of outside of Christ on this day. You'll have those who put off Christ. These are the people that say, yeah, I know I need to get right with Jesus Christ, But you know what? I'll do that one day. I'll do it a few months from now. I'll do it a few years from now. Or sometimes they'll say, yeah, I know I need to get right with Jesus. You know what I'll do? I'll be like the thief on the cross. I'll get right with him right before I die. On this day, it is going to be too late for them. And then you'll have those who pretend to trust Christ. These are people who pretend to trust Christ. Maybe they say, yeah, I believe in Jesus. But they don't have any true love for Jesus. They don't have any true love for his church. And the day of salvation is today. And it is only by God's grace that the day of salvation is today. Because there is coming a day when the day of salvation will no longer be the day of salvation. And instead, it will be the day of wrath and the day of justice. And Christ will be glorified on that day. executing his supreme justice. And everyone will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord on that day. Everyone will bow before him, and everyone will have a holy reverence for his holy name on this day. I love how James Montgomery Boyce puts it when he talks about the names that are attributed to Christ that we're privileged to say about our Lord and Savior. Here's what he says. He says, Jesus Christ is the wonderful counselor, the mighty God, the Prince of Peace. He is the Messiah, the Lord, the first and the last, the beginning and the end, the Alpha and Omega, the Ancient of Days, King of Kings and Lord of Lords, God with us, God our Savior, the only wise God, our Savior, the Lord who is, who was, who is to come, the Almighty. He is the door of the sheep, the chief shepherd, the good shepherd, the shepherd and bishop of our souls, the lamb without spot or blemish, the lamb slain before the foundation of the world. He is the Lagos, the light of the world, the light of life, the tree of life, the word of life, the bread that came down from heaven, the resurrection, the way, the truth, and the life. He is Emmanuel, God with us. He is the rock, the bridegroom, the wisdom of God, our Redeemer. He is the beloved. He is the head over all things. He is the one in whom the Father is well pleased. That's who Jesus Christ is. And don't forget how this all started. This all started in eternity past with the plan of God always being for one day everybody to bow before Christ. And along that sovereign plan of God, what Christ did was he came down, he humbled himself, he was humiliated for us, but it will result in his exaltation. It will result in everyone confessing that he is Lord. So how do we respond to this? Well, for the Christian, Seeing how Christ was humiliated on our behalf, seeing what he did on our behalf, how he left all the privileges of deity on our behalf, it should cause us to be in absolute awe of what it is that Christ did for us, how he lowered himself for us. And as a result, it should cause us to want to be imitators of Christ. It should cause us to always want to have the mind of Christ. Now for the unbeliever. How does the unbeliever respond to what it is that Christ did? Well, by repentance and faith. By turning away from your sin and turning to Christ. From turning away from your sin and believing the gospel. What's the gospel, you ask? Well, the gospel, it starts off with the bad news. And the bad news is this, you were born a sinner. a hater of God, an enemy of God. And you were justly under the wrath of God because of your wickedness, because of your vileness before him. But then there's good news. And the good news is that Jesus Christ came into the world. He was humiliated for you. He went through everything he went through in life for you. He lived a perfect, righteous life for you. And on that cross, what happened was that the wrath of God the Father that you and I deserve was poured out on Christ. And Jesus Christ, on that cross, knew exactly who he was dying for. He knew that this was going to save his elect. And you were commanded to repent and to believe in this Jesus Christ, because it is only through faith in Christ can you have eternal life. I'm not going to ask you to make Jesus Christ the Lord of your life. I'm not going to ask that because that's a ridiculous question to ask, because Jesus Christ already is the Lord of your life. Whether you acknowledge that or not, it really makes no difference, but I am going to ask you to submit to this Christ, to submit to him. And sometimes that word submit gets taken out of context, and people don't like it, and we're not going to get into that. But I will say this. Biblical submission is not a bad thing. And the greatest thing that you could possibly do is submit to the Lord Jesus Christ. And I pray that you will do that today. Let's pray. Father, I thank you, Lord, so much for what it is that Christ did for us, how he came here, how he was humiliated on our behalf, Lord. It's just so amazing, God. And I just pray that we just long for the day when he's exalted. And I pray for those who haven't come to faith in him that they will, Lord, that you'll put it into their hearts and that they'll repent and believe the gospel. So I thank you, Lord, for this time. Thank you, God, for what it is that Jesus did for us on the cross, how he lived for us, how he died for us, and how he rose from the dead for us. And it's in his name I pray. Amen.