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Introduction
What’s your favorite spiritual song, worship
chorus or hymn? If you had to choose one or maybe two, which one(s)
would win?
Why did you choose the one you chose? Think about
it. When it comes to worship songs there are a few key criteria by
which we tend to “rank” our favorites:
Inspiration – does the
music/words “inspire” me? Does the lyric move me, lift me above my
own worldliness? Is the music particularly appealing to my soul?
Maybe just one instrument?
Theology – Is there some great
biblical theme dealt with in this verse? Does it proclaim the gospel
(ie, He came from heaven to earth to show the way, from the earth
to the cross my debt to pay, from the cross to the grave, from the
grave to the sky, Lord, I lift Your name on high.
Worship
– Does it help me/lead me to worship the Lord? Some songs in some
seasons tend to instantly move us into the holy of holies; they
bring us almost irresistibly into God’s presence. Holy, Holy,
Holy Mighty to Save Amazing Grace.
Familiarity – Is it
“familiar” to me? Have I hade occasion to sing it many times and
allow a whole history of emotional expression to build up around its
singing? For me, O Love That Wilt Not Let Me Go, Grace Greater
Than My Sin, It is Well with…
If you were to put the
question to most of the first century Christians, my guess is that a
majority would respond that the “Christ Hymn” or the “Hymn of
Christ” was their favorite. What song was that? It is one that was
most certainly sung in Christian gatherings most regularly, along
with other favorite texts out of the Psalms.
Philippians 2:6-11 is very clearly a poem that was, most
scholars agree, set to music and sung in Christian worship services
from the earliest times.
In
Philippians 2, Paul makes use of the hymn, much like I might do
when preaching or teaching on the topic of “mercy” and I might slip
into a brief recitation Jesus paid it all—all to Him I owe! Sin had
left a crimson stain—He washed it white as snow. Even though I
wouldn’t stop to reference the title or composer of the song, it
would be familiar to those listening, and they would get the point.
So, here in this section of his letter where the apostle
Paul is urging Christian unity and mutual servanthood, he turns to
the supreme example, the Lord Jesus, who, as He himself said, came
not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for
many. Make no mistake about it: Jesus is our example. While it is
wrong to limit Jesus’ earthly ministry to saying He came to be an
example for humankind, ignoring the primary work of Christ—to save
lost humanity, it would be equally wrong to leave out the truth that
Jesus lived His life conscious that He was leaving us an example.
After washing the disciples’ feet He said He had given them
an example, that they should do as He had done. Whether that is to
you a literal service to be rendered or symbolic of all manner of
servitude to brothers in Christ, the point is clear: Follow my
example by loving and serving one another.
Read text of
Philippians 2:5-11 Our Lessons from
Philippians 2:5-11
Verse five gives us our bearings in discovering what we are to learn
and obey from the Word before us. Paul exhorts his readers, both first
and twenty-first century, with these very direct words: Your attitude
should be the same as that of Christ Jesus . . . We must let this
command govern our coverage of the Christ Hymn, even though we are
appropriately tempted to lose ourselves in the loftiness and grandeur of
this greatest of all Christian hymns.
We do well to remember that
verses 5-11 are illustrative of the point of selfless service, to
which we are called. Three things stand out to me in
Philippians 2, especially
verse five: 1. We are called to be conformed to
Christ. As impossible as it seems, we are called by
God to conform to the image of Christ—to become like Him. Ridiculous,
you say? Right. Just about as ridiculous as the living God, Creator of
all things, deciding to reduce himself to the form and nature of one of
His creatures. And all to save those creatures who had willfully spurned
his commandment and his love, rejected him outright at every turn. And
He, the almighty, the exalted, the King, deigns to humble himself (is
humble a strong enough word?), empty himself, degrade himself to mere
mortality so he could run after them and redeem them?
Of course
it’s ridiculous! The whole idea of salvation of undeserving humankind is
ridiculous! Now, the question: is He who is willing and able to
incarnate in our insipid nature, also willing to help us to conform to
the image of the incarnated one? 2. We are enabled
to be conformed to Christ. There it is. You see, we
are not called to do the impossible with just our meager resources!
That’s . . . impossible! When God calls you to grow in His grace, He
always gives you His grace with which to grow. Every believer is endowed
by God’s own Spirit to enable them to grow into Jesus’ image. In fact,
you are predestined to just that (see
Romans 8:29, et al).
And here is how it works: Understand
what God wants you to do, and then step out and do it, believing His
power will help you. 3. We have an example to help
us conform to Christ. Finally—and this is what Paul
is getting at as He uses this great hymn to illustrate—Jesus Christ is
our example. In other words, God has given us an example to follow. In
order to know how to become what He wants you to be, look to Jesus.
Jesus did not love power and authority so much as to be tempted to cling
to it
Jesus willingly obeyed the Father, even though he had to empty
himself of all his privilege
Jesus lovingly saw others, who were way
beneath himself, as worthy of his sacrifice – and such a sacrifice!
Practical Exhortations for God’s People This is a
good place to try to bring down to a practical level what exactly the
apostle Paul is exhorting us to DO. May I encourage you to make a few
notes here. You don’t need a pencil to write them on your hearts. First
this observation: more than another list of behaviors, you need an
attitude like Jesus’. That’s what
verse five said way back at the beginning.
So we want to get
the attitude of Christ in us. How do we get the attitude of Christ? By
obedience, like we said earlier.
Hebrews 5:7-10. During the days of Jesus'
life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and
tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because
of his reverent submission. Although he was a son, he learned obedience
from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of
eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designated by God to be
high priest in the order of Melchizedek.
Come to
understand what God wants you to be like and step out in faith and do
it, trusting his power to get it done. So, here we go: things to do
today and tomorrow in your humble, obedient, servant-hearted efforts to
follow the example of the One who loved you like this:
- Meditate on God’s Word about your attitude and calling
- Compare yourself
to no one but Jesus Christ
- Practice volunteering
- Maintain a vision
of Jesus as your example and your power.
- Consider your reward
THEREFORE
GOD HIGHLY EXALTED HIM…
Conclusion – Whatever the cost
October 2, 2006, was a dark day for the Amish community of Nickel Mines,
Pennsylvania. That morning, a local milkman named Charles Carl Roberts
barricaded himself inside the West Nickel Mine Amish School. He was
armed with three guns, knives, and over 600 rounds of ammunition. When
police attempted to intervene less than half an hour later, Roberts
opened fire on 11 girls—all less than 14-years-old—killing 5. After
these brutal acts, he turned his weapon on himself and committed
suicide.
It was a dark hour, but as more news became available in
the days that followed, a new story began to emerge—one full of courage,
faith, and love. According to two of the survivors, when 13-year-old
Marie Fisher began to understand what Charles Carl Roberts intended to
do, she made a request. "Shoot me first," she said, "and leave the other
ones loose." As the oldest child in the group, she hoped that her death
might somehow spare the other children or provide more time for their
rescue.
Immediately after this request, Marie's younger sister
Barbie added one more. "Shoot me second," she said.
News of the
girls' bravery and sacrificial love impacted millions of people across
the country after the story broke. But according to Rita Rhoads, a local
midwife close to the family of the two girls, their faith also affected
their attacker. "He asked them to pray for him," Rhoads said. "I think
that's amazing. He recognized they had something he didn't."
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