Philippians chapter 1 is found on page 980 in the Pew Bibles.
This summer we've been doing a series in Proverbs, but today we're taking a break from that
to look at a passage from Philippians.
So we're going to read Philippians chapter 1 verse 27 to chapter 2 verse 11.
So let's read these words, the Apostle Paul's words to the church in Philippi and God's
word to us today.
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.
This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God.
For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ, you should not only believe
in him, but also suffer for his sake, engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had, and
now hear that I still have.
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.
Therefore, 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, 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.
Let's pray.
Father, we pray that you would speak to us through your word this morning, open our hearts and minds,
shape us, that we may live as citizens in your kingdom today because of it.
In Christ's name, amen.
Well, as we've said this morning, we have the joy of joining together with our Ethiopian
and Eritrean ministry to worship the Lord Jesus Christ.
And I want to thank those of you from the Ethiopian and Eritrean ministry for coming to
worship with us this morning.
We're thankful for the way that you're reaching out to people who speak Tigrinya and Amharic with
the gospel of Christ every week.
In Philippians chapter 3, verse 20, the apostle Paul says, our citizenship is in heaven.
And from there, we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.
And that's really why we join together today.
That whatever nation we belong to, whatever language we speak, whatever family we were brought
up in, whatever place on earth feels like home.
The Bible says we're united in Christ because we belong to something greater than any of
those things.
That we're citizens of the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
That's where our ultimate hope comes from, and that's where our ultimate loyalty belongs.
So this morning, what we're looking at is what it means to live as citizens of Christ's kingdom
in this world.
Chapter 1, verse 27, our passage begins, Paul says, only let your manner of life be worthy
of the gospel of Christ.
Or more literally, the verse could be translated, only live as citizens worthy of the gospel of
Christ.
Paul was writing to the Christians in the city of Philippi.
And the city of Philippi was a proud, privileged, prosperous city.
It was a leading city in the region of Macedonia.
It was located on the main east-west road, lots of people passing through.
And most importantly, it was a Roman colony whose citizens enjoyed special advantages.
So here's the way it worked.
If you were a citizen of Philippi, you were treated under the law as if you were a citizen
of the capital city, Rome.
So that meant a few things.
That meant, first of all, you didn't have to pay certain taxes.
Second of all, you had the right to purchase and own property and to appeal.
And third, you had the right to appeal directly to Caesar in legal matters.
So you had more legal protections, you had more property rights, and you had freedom from
some taxation.
So even though you didn't, and normally those privileges only belong to people who lived in
the capital city of Rome.
But for the Philippians, if you were a citizen of Philippi, even though you didn't actually
live in Rome, you were treated as if you were a citizen of Rome.
And you had all the rights and privileges and responsibilities of Roman citizens.
So what Paul's doing is he's reminding the Christians in Philippi, he's saying you're not
just citizens of Philippi who have special privileges in the Roman Empire, but as Christians, you're
citizens of heaven.
You're citizens of Jesus Christ's heavenly kingdom.
And you have special privileges before God the Father.
You have free access to the presence of God the Father through Jesus Christ.
You have the Holy Spirit living inside you.
You have the encouraging Word of God.
God, your sins have been paid for.
You don't owe anything on that account because Jesus Christ has paid it all.
Even though you live on earth, God treats you as citizens of heaven with all the rights and
responsibilities that come with that.
And so what Paul says in verse 27, he says, live as citizens worthy of the gospel of Christ.
Live in a way that rightly reflects your citizenship in heaven.
And he even says, only do this.
And in some sense, he's sort of saying this is the one thing you need to do.
This is the one thing you need to know in order to fulfill God's commands and God's calling
on you as a Christian.
He's saying, above all, at all costs, whatever happens, whether I'm with you or not, do this
one thing, live as citizens worthy of the gospel of Christ.
And in this passage, Paul shows us that living as citizens of Christ's heavenly kingdom means
two things.
First of all, it means to stand boldly for Christ.
And we see that in verses 27 through 30.
That'll be our first point.
We're to stand boldly for Christ because we're soldiers in God's army.
The second thing Paul teaches us is that we need to serve humbly in Christ because we're
members of God's family.
We see that in chapter 2, 1 through 4.
And finally, in chapter 2, verse 5 to 11, we'll see how through Christ we have the power
and the enablement to do both of those things.
So first, as citizens of heaven, Paul says, stand boldly for Christ in the face of external
pressures.
Look down at these verses, verses 27 to 30 of chapter 1.
Look at some of Paul's language.
Verse 27, he talks about standing firm.
Talks about striving side by side.
Not being frightened by opponents.
Verse 30, he says, you're engaged in a conflict.
Paul's using athletic and military imagery to describe the Christian life.
And the people in Philippi would have recognized that.
The city of Philippi was full of military veterans.
It was a place where veterans of the Roman army would go and retire.
And so, they would have recognized this language because when the Roman army went into battle,
they would march side by side.
Sometimes, the front row of soldiers would carry their shields in front of them,
and then the people behind them would carry their shields on top of their heads.
So, it was sort of like a wall and a ceiling that protected the army and made them, in many ways,
almost invincible when they stood together.
And Paul says, as fellow believers, you need to stand firm and stand together, just like an army.
Paul says, you're in a conflict.
Verse 30, that word conflict is the word agon.
It's where we get the word agony.
It's a word that can also refer to a long-distance marathon or a wrestling match,
something that is intense and prolonged.
And Paul says, you're engaged in this agonizing conflict, this struggle.
And so am I, he says.
We're in this together.
We're on the same team.
And he says, we need to stand boldly for Christ together against opposition to the gospel.
Now, just to be clear, Paul is not advocating for Christians to use any kind of physical violence
or force or threats against non-Christians.
But he is saying we're in a spiritual battle.
And we need to stand firm.
We need to remain united and unwavering against external pressures.
Now, you might say, well, what exactly were the external pressures that the Christians in Philippi were facing?
Well, if you look at Acts 16, it tells the story of when Paul comes to Philippi
and begins preaching the gospel there and the church begins there.
And for the first couple of weeks that Paul is there, everything seems to go pretty smoothly.
He finds a group of women who are meeting by the riverside on the Sabbath day,
who are praying to the one true God, reading the scriptures.
And Paul teaches them about the fulfillment of the scriptures in Jesus.
And Lydia, her heart is strangely warmed, and she comes to faith.
And she opens her home to Paul and Silas and Luke and Timothy, who are with him.
And for a while, everything seems to be going well.
But then, a young woman starts following Paul around and making a scene day after day.
She was a fortune teller.
She was also a slave.
And Paul discerned that she was not only being exploited by her owners for financial gain,
but she was also being oppressed by an evil spirit, which enabled her to do her fortune telling.
And so, finally, one day, Paul turns and he rebukes the evil spirit in the name of Jesus Christ,
and the evil spirit leaves, and that's when everything goes crazy.
Her owners are furious because their business is done.
They seize Paul and Silas.
They drag them into the marketplace.
They accuse them of being foreign agents and disturbing the peace of the city.
They rally a crowd against them.
They have them beaten and thrown into jail.
Now, that was how the church in Philippi began.
Now, Paul and Silas were released.
The authorities actually come to them, and they just want to release them quietly.
And Paul says, actually, no, you need to acknowledge that what you did was wrong.
And what Paul's doing there is he's actually sort of providing some legal protection for the Christians
who are going to stay in Philippi after he leaves,
because he doesn't want the same thing to happen to them.
And so, he makes the authorities publicly apologize because they were wrong.
There was no grounds on which they should have beaten and imprisoned Paul and Silas as Roman citizens.
So, Paul stands up for the believers who are going to come after him,
but still think about it.
The church in Philippi began with verbal harassment, false accusations, mob violence,
and imprisonment of its primary leaders.
Now, think about it.
If that's how this church began,
and everybody knew that Trinity Baptist Church began with a riot and violence against its leaders,
and you knew that that was the reputation that whatever happened, that it was a mess.
Think about it.
You might be a little hesitant to just come in here and visit on a Sunday morning,
because you might think,
I don't know what's going to happen to me.
What if I join them?
What if people turn on me?
And if you did join such a church,
you might be a little wary of publicly acknowledging that you were part of it.
Oh, you're with them?
The guy who caused a riot?
You see why Paul has to encourage the Philippians to stand boldly for Christ?
They really did have opponents.
Paul wasn't making that up.
There were real things they could have been fearful of,
and Paul said,
don't be frightened.
Don't be driven by your fear.
Now, what about us?
Right?
Most of us aren't facing the same kind of physical threats,
the same kind of opposition that Paul and the Philippians were,
but what are the external pressures that we face?
You know, in the book of Revelation,
it's quite interesting.
There are three figures in the book of Revelation that represent different forms of opposition to God's people.
One of them is the beast.
And the beast simply attacks God's people by intimidating them and by physically persecuting them.
The second is the false prophet who seeks to lead God's people astray by deceiving them,
by filling their minds with lies and half-truths.
Just like the serpent in the Garden of Eden who said,
did God really say that?
God must be wanting to hold something back from you that would be good for you.
Don't you see this fruit?
Why would he say no to that?
Just try it out.
Deception.
And the third figure is the prostitute who undermines God's people by seducing them.
The picture is she's enchanting God's people to fall in love with this present world and its pleasures
and to lose all desire for Christ.
So we have intimidation, deception, and seduction.
Each of these are tactics of the enemy of our souls, and we need to be vigilant against them all.
But here in Philippians 1, Paul focuses on intimidation.
The things that press us to be driven by the fear of man instead of by faith in God.
Now what might that look like for some of us here?
Maybe you work in academia.
Now physical violence is pretty rare in academic circles.
But there's plenty of passive-aggressive undercutting and sly political maneuvering.
Some of you have experienced that and been in the middle of it.
And then occasionally a professor publicly adopts a position that is outside the current boundaries
of academic orthodoxy.
And they might find protesters outside their house,
their names slandered in the student newspaper editorial page.
Perhaps they even get fired.
Now, I am not promoting the example of all professors who publicly espouse controversial views.
The Bible doesn't encourage Christians to be obnoxious.
It does encourage us to be discerning and wise.
But you know, if you're a professor or a PhD student or a trainee of some kind,
are you intimidated into saying nothing publicly about your faith in Christ?
Or only acknowledging your faith privately to groups of fellow Christians?
Are you trying to be like Joseph of Arimathea,
who was a disciple of Jesus but secretly out of fear of the authorities?
You know, you may need to discern what this means,
given your particular context and your particular position.
But let me encourage you, students, professors, stand boldly for Christ.
Don't let fear drive you to be silent or to make your faith a completely private thing.
Now, maybe some of you feel pressure from a different direction.
Maybe some of you feel pressure from non-Christian family members.
You know, when Paul was seized and dragged before the authorities in Philippi,
they accused him of disturbing the city and advocating foreign customs.
They said, these men are Jews and they're advocating customs that are unlawful for us as Romans to practice.
They were basically framing Paul and accusing him of being a foreign outsider who was undermining their culture.
And maybe you feel a tension along these lines.
Right?
Maybe your parents or your grandparents are from a different religious background.
Maybe you come from a country where there are very few Christians,
or a culture or part of the world where there are very few Christians.
Maybe your family members have even told you,
either explicitly or implicitly,
if you become a Christian,
if you get baptized,
you'll be betraying your heritage.
You know, our religion has been good for our family for generations.
Why isn't it good enough for you?
Or maybe your parents are happily non-religious,
modern American secularists,
and they can't see why you're so into this Jesus thing.
Why do you spend so much time reading the Bible and meeting with other Christians and praying?
Why do you want to give away so much money
and go overseas to do mission work
or move to the inner city?
Can't you just settle down and live a normal American life?
The Apostle Paul says,
stand firm and strive together,
side by side.
Don't try to fight these battles alone.
You need the prayers and the encouragement
and wisdom and discernment
and the love of your brothers and sisters in Christ.
Whatever might be the external pressures that you're facing,
stand firm and stand together.
And Paul encourages them to trust that in all their struggles,
in all the pressures they're experiencing,
that God is working out His purpose.
Verse 28,
this is a clear sign to them of their destruction,
but of your salvation and that from God.
One writer said,
it is God who sends the trials they must undergo.
It is God who gives the solid resistance with which they must confront them.
And it is God who gives the assurance of salvation which follows.
And Paul goes on,
verse 29,
for it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ,
you should not only believe in Him,
but also suffer for His sake.
That's a very strong statement.
Right?
Sometimes we talk about how faith is a gift from God.
This verse affirms that.
But this verse says,
not only is faith in Christ a gift of God,
but suffering for Christ's sake is also a gift from God.
It's actually the same verb,
the same verb that's used when talking about spiritual gifts
is used right here.
It has been granted.
It has been given to you by God.
Now,
Paul's not saying that every kind of suffering that we endure
is a gift from God in the same way.
Right?
Sometimes suffering is God's instrument to correct us
when we fall into sin.
Sometimes suffering is just part of the human experience.
Living in a fallen world.
Sometimes it's,
it's not always a good thing.
But Paul here is talking about suffering for the sake of Christ.
For the sake of righteousness and faithfulness and loyalty to Christ.
In other words,
think about it this way.
Have you ever suffered,
have you ever gone through a difficulty
and thought,
you know,
if I wasn't committed to following Christ,
I would have an easy way out of this.
Or I wouldn't even be in this situation in the first place.
If you're in a situation and you realize
following Christ is going to be harder,
and yet you say,
yes,
I'm committed to following Christ,
even if it is harder.
Paul says that,
Paul,
that's what suffering for the sake of Christ is.
And 1 Peter 3 says,
if you should suffer for righteousness sake,
you will be blessed.
Jesus said in the Beatitudes,
blessed are you when others revile you
and persecute you
and utter all kinds of evil against you
falsely on my account.
How are we blessed when we suffer for Christ's sake?
It's probably not how most of us tend to think about it,
right?
Well,
I think for one thing,
it draws us deeper.
It draws us closer to our Savior
who suffered for us
and who even now suffers with us.
You know,
when Jesus confronted Saul
on the road to Damascus
and Paul was going to persecute the church,
Jesus did not say,
Paul,
or Saul,
Saul,
why do you persecute the church?
Even though that's exactly what he was going to do,
he said,
Saul,
why are you persecuting me?
In other words,
when you're opposing God's people,
you're opposing me.
When you're hurting God's people,
you're hurting me.
Jesus is united with us.
And so,
when we suffer for his sake,
he is right there with us.
He feels that.
And so,
when we suffer for Christ's sake,
we're united more deeply with him
and with believers
who suffer throughout the world
for the sake of the gospel of Christ.
So,
Paul encourages us.
It's the first way we live
as citizens worthy of the gospel.
Stand boldly for Christ
against external pressures,
against intimidation,
because we're soldiers in his army.
But the second expression
of living as citizens
worthy of the gospel of Christ
is found in chapter 2,
verses 1 to 4.
We're not just to stand boldly for Christ,
we're also to serve humbly in Christ.
Because we're not just an army,
we're also a family in Christ.
If the end of chapter 1
is about our response
to external pressures,
the beginning of chapter 2
focuses on our response
to internal challenges.
And if you've been around the church
for any length of time,
you know that the enemies
we face as Christians
are not only external.
When I joined the staff
of InterVarsity
to do full-time campus ministry
in 2003,
my pastor at the time
said to me,
the number one reason
why missionaries leave
the mission field
is not because of external opposition,
but because of internal conflicts
with coworkers.
And it was a helpful word for me.
In my first year
doing campus ministry,
one of my biggest challenges
was my relationship
with my supervisor.
He and I were very different
in personalities
and working styles.
As a result,
some of our sinful tendencies
and weaknesses
became quickly evident
to one another.
I had to learn
to initiate hard conversations
when I became frustrated.
Instead of just being silent
and growing inwardly resentful,
I had to listen to his feedback
and examine some of my own blind spots.
It wasn't easy
and it didn't always come naturally.
But this is what Paul says
we must do here
in verses one to four.
Look down at verse one.
Paul begins by reminding us
of all that we share
in common in Christ.
He says four things
we share in common
with every other Christian.
Encouragement in Christ,
comfort from the love
of God the Father,
participation or sharing
in the Holy Spirit,
and affection and sympathy
with other believers.
Paul says,
think about this.
You have the whole Trinity,
the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
on your side.
And you have the community of faith,
the affection and sympathy
that we have for one another.
You're part of the family
of believers.
Think of all that you have
in common
with every other Christian,
even the ones you think
you share very little
in common with,
the whole Trinity
and the church.
And then in verse two,
he gives us four things
to pursue,
being of the same mind,
having the same love,
being in full accord,
being of one mind.
And that word translated mind
in verse two,
as well as in verse five,
it's a word that means
both feeling and thinking.
So Paul's not just saying,
have the exact same ideas.
Because you know what?
We won't always have
the exact same ideas
as Christians or opinions.
Paul's talking about
sharing a common attitude
and purpose
and being able to sympathize
with one another's thoughts
and feelings.
And Paul says,
this is what will fill me
with joy
as we feel and think
according to Christ.
Psalm 133 says,
behold how good
and pleasant it is
when brothers and sisters
dwell together in unity.
For there the Lord
has commanded His blessing,
life forevermore.
You know,
pursuing unity
and love with other believers
is not always easy.
Sometimes it can be
even more challenging
than dealing with
external opposition
to the faith.
But Paul says,
it's necessary
and ultimately
it's life-giving.
You know,
I think one of the
sweetest blessings
that I have experienced
as a follower of Christ
is seeing Christian believers
who were once angry
and adversarial
and accusatory
against each other
humble themselves
before God,
confess their sins
to one another,
ask and receive forgiveness,
forgiveness,
be reconciled,
and go on to appreciate
and honor
and love one another
and even to work together.
I can think of times
this has happened
in my own life
with some people
that I know
and love even today.
It's also happened
in the history
of this church.
A long time ago,
before most of us
were here,
in the 1990s,
there were some messy
conflicts in this church.
There were bad decisions
made,
many people were hurt,
many left the church,
and for five years
this church struggled
and barely survived
with about 25 members
and no pastor.
And then one night
there was a church
prayer meeting
and people began
confessing their sins
even from years ago
and seeking one another's
forgiveness
and beginning to heal,
seek God's healing
from hurts
that had been
from long in the past.
And the people
who were there
at that prayer meeting
say it was an important
turning point.
And God began
to work in this church
in new ways
after that.
In particular,
the next month
God brought a new pastor
seemingly out of nowhere
and the church
began to grow again.
Now I want to acknowledge
reconciliation
doesn't always happen
immediately
when there's been
conflict and wrongdoing
in the past.
Sometimes people
want to reconcile
but they're not quite
ready to repent
or they are so blind
to the ways
they've hurt
someone else
in the past
that it's hard
for the other person
to fully receive them.
Sometimes we need
patience
through that process.
Sometimes there's
real forgiveness
but then trust
takes longer
to rebuild
and that can be
appropriate
at times.
Reconciliation
is often a process
that requires
patience and prayer.
prayer.
But Paul encourages us.
This is what we're
called to in Christ
and let me just say
it's really sweet
when you can
persevere
through that process
and be able
to look back
and say
boy we've come
a long way
and God has
kept us together
and we haven't
just cut each other
off
and gone our
separate ways
and left each other
alone
but we found
a way
in Christ
to love
one another.
Whatever the situation
might be
Paul shows us
how to pursue unity
in verses 3 and 4.
In each of these verses
there's a contrast.
You notice
there's a not
but contrast.
He says
do nothing
from selfish ambition
or conceit
but instead
live in humility
count others
more significant
than yourselves.
Don't
let each of you
look
not only
to your own
interests
but also
to the interests
of others.
Someone said
humility is not
thinking less
of yourself
but thinking
of yourself
less.
Seeking the good
of others
and not just
our own.
Even seeking
the good of others
above our own.
So Paul says
we need to stand
boldly in Christ
because we're
an army.
We need to serve
one another
humbly in Christ
because we're
a family.
Now before I go
on to the third
point let me
say this.
There are some
Christians who
are bold
and confident.
They know the
word of God.
They preach the
gospel to people
even if they've
never met
and people who
they've known
all their lives.
They start new
ministries even if
the money hasn't
come in yet.
They pray for
people to be
healed.
They drive out
demons in Jesus'
name.
They confront
people with
the truth.
They correct
people who
have fallen
into error.
But you know
what?
Sometimes to be
honest these bold
Christians can be
hard to deal
with.
Because some
of these bold
Christians are
stubborn and they
think they're always
right and they
don't listen well.
They think I know
the facts so I
don't really care
how you feel.
And in their
zeal for the
gospel they damage
relationships without
even realizing it.
And then on the
other side there are
some Christians who
are humble and
kind.
They visit the
sick and feed the
hungry and hug the
lonely and listen to
the perplexed and
forbear with
difficult people.
They forgive those
who have hurt them
and give them
another chance.
They take out the
garbage and close
up the building after
everyone else has
left when no one
else is looking.
They have a
servant's heart.
You know sometimes
these kind and
humble Christians can
also be hard to
work with too.
Because sometimes
they can be timid
and indecisive and
always wanting to
please the people
they're serving.
So they make
excuses for people
instead of
correcting them.
And sometimes the
result is they
enable people to
remain in unhealthy
attitudes and
patterns of behavior.
Now all of us
probably tend toward
one side or the
other of this
spectrum.
Right?
If we're honest with
ourselves, one or
even both of those
descriptions sometimes
applies to us.
But Paul says we
need both.
We need to pursue
boldness and
kindness.
We need to stand
boldly and we need
to serve humbly.
This is what it
means to be citizens
of Christ's kingdom
because this is what
it means to reflect
Christ's own
character.
It's to pursue both
of these and not
just one at the
expense of the
other.
So in our
concluding section
verses 5 to 11 of
chapter 2, Paul
shows us that there's
one source of both
kindness and boldness.
Humility and
boldness.
He says have this
mind among
yourselves.
Share this attitude
among yourselves
which is yours in
Christ Jesus.
us.
And what we see in
these verses, in
verses 6 to 8, we
see Christ's humility.
We see how Christ
humbled himself and
became our brother and
brought us into God's
family.
He showed us unsurpassed
kindness.
He was equal with God.
But he didn't count
equality with God a
thing to be grasped.
That means he didn't
forcefully retain his
power and privileges for
his own advantage.
Instead he willingly
emptied his divine glory
into the form of a
bondservant.
Now that's not saying
that Jesus stopped
being fully divine when
he became fully human.
Instead it's saying
that Jesus manifested
the full divinity and
glory of God as a
fully human being.
Subject to all the
human limitations that
we experience.
Hunger and thirst,
heat and cold,
time and space,
weariness,
and ultimately death.
Paul says,
Christ became obedient
to death.
Even the shame and pain
of death on a cross.
In another Bible passage
in Titus chapter 3
verses 3 and 5
puts it this way,
describing the kindness
of Christ.
It says,
at one time we were all
foolish,
disobedient,
deceived,
and enslaved by all
kinds of passions and
pleasures.
We lived in malice and
envy, being hated and
hating one another.
But when the kindness and
love of God our Savior
appeared, he saved us.
Not because of righteous
things we had done, but
because of his mercy.
Jesus didn't just extend
kindness and humility to his
friends and family members
and people who liked him
and thanked him.
Jesus extended kindness to
people who were indifferent
and who could care less.
He extended kindness to
people who were full of
hate and envy toward him
and one another.
He extended kindness to
people who were addicted
to all kinds of passions
and pleasures.
He extended kindness not
because of righteous things
that we had done,
but because of his mercy.
You see, the message of the
Bible is not,
be a good person and try to
live a good life and
everything will be okay in
the end.
You know, that message
never changes anybody's
heart.
We might all admit that it
would be a good thing to
pursue, being a nice and
good person, but that
message alone is vague and
powerless.
The message of the Bible is
that we are more flawed and
sinful than we ever dare to
believe.
Every one of us without
exception, even our best
deeds are tainted by
self-serving and impure
motives.
Our sin was so bad that the
Son of God had to die on a
cross and in our place to
save us from it.
But the good news is that in
Jesus Christ we are more
loved and accepted than we
ever dared to hope.
We're more flawed and sinful
than we ever dared to
believe, but we're more
loved and accepted in Jesus
Christ than we ever dared to
hope because God extends his
kindness to us despite all of
our flaws and failures.
We can be reconciled to God
through Jesus Christ because of
his kindness.
Because he humbled himself to
share our humanity and even to
take our death, to die our
death.
So we can serve humbly because
of the humility of Christ who
served us and saved us.
But then we see in verses 9 to
11 that Christ, it not only
displayed humility, that Christ is
strong.
We can stand boldly because our
Savior is risen and exalted.
Verse 9 says,
Therefore God has highly exalted
him.
The same one who died on a cross
is now risen and ascended and
seated at the right hand of God, and
God has bestowed on him the name
that is above every name.
That is the name of Lord.
Jesus is Lord.
And that word Lord means God
himself.
The one at whose feet
every knee shall bow and
every tongue confess.
In the book of Isaiah,
the reading we had earlier in the
service, it says,
Turn to me and be saved,
all the ends of the earth,
for I am God and there is no
other.
By myself I have sworn.
From my mouth has gone out in
righteousness a word that
shall not return.
To me every knee will bow.
Every tongue shall swear
allegiance.
Only in the Lord it shall be said
of me are righteousness and
strength.
In the Lord all the offspring of
Israel shall be justified and
shall glory.
And what Paul is saying is that
the crucified and risen Jesus is
that Lord.
The Lord God at whose feet every
knee will bow and every tongue
will confess.
That only in him are righteousness
and strength and justification and
glory.
His kingdom will remain forever.
And we have the privilege of being
citizens in that kingdom so we can
stand boldly in the strength of the
risen Christ.
So in Christ we can serve humbly and
we can stand boldly because we have a
Savior who humbled himself to serve us
and we have a Lord who is risen and
exalted over all.
Let's pray together.
Our Father we
thank you for your son Jesus Christ.
We praise you for his humility
in laying down his life for us on a
cross.
And we praise you that you raised him in
power and glory that he is risen and
exalted.
We pray that by your spirit you would
fill us today with boldness and
confidence to stand firm in you.
Lord that we would not be driven by the
fear of other people.
Fear of other people.
Or a longing for their approval.
But that we would
stand in the confidence that we have
through Christ.
We pray also Lord that you would give us
the humility and servant heartedness of
Christ.
To love one another.
To pursue unity
through humility.
Lord we pray that this would characterize
Trinity Baptist Church.
We pray that this would characterize the
Ethiopian and Eritrean ministry.
We pray that this would characterize each of
our families
and our lives.
Lord that you would fill us with the
boldness and humility of Christ.
We pray these things in Jesus name.
Amen.