Philippians 2:1-11

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.

 

The church in Philippi was a special church.  It was faithful to support Paul and cooperate with him in the advancement of the Gospel.  It was not a church that had fallen into immorality or false teachings.  However, Satan has many ways to derail the effectiveness of a church and in Philippi his strategy seems to have been division.  This text gives us the basic truths we need to know about unity.

 

REASONS FOR UNITY: There are many reasons that unity is important, but Paul urges the church in Philippi to strive for unity based on four truths.  The first is the encouragement from Christ.  We have been bought with His blood and are called both His body and his bride.  If both our Head and our Husband is encouraging us to be unified, it seems like a “no brainer.”  The second is the comfort from the love of the Father.  There is no logical explanation for the love the father has lavished on us by making us His children.  However, it should be a huge comfort for us to know that our position in the family is not based on our merits but are because of His great love for us.  The third reason is the participation of the Spirit.  Part of the indwelling and empowering work of the Spirit of God is to bring us together as a body of believers.  Any division is certainly not coming from Him.  Finally, the fourth argument is because of Paul’s joy.  Paul had made great sacrifices to take the Gospel to them and he certainly did not what to see them become unproductive in the ministry due to fighting.  If each member of the Trinity and the Apostle Paul are calling for unity, it seems like a pretty important subject.

 

REALITY OF UNITY:  Paul’s definition of unity is surprisingly comprehensive.  He is not calling for some sort of false or contrived unity, but one that is deep and all encompassing.  Paul has three aspects to his definition of unity.  First, having the same mind.  We are called to think the same things.  We have a clear doctrine and a clear mission around which we can all be unified.  Second, having the same love.  We are called to love God, one another, the lost, and even our enemies.  Those who love the same things and the way that the Lord loves, will walk in unity.  Finally, we are to be of full accord with one spirit.  The unity Paul calls for goes to the deepest levels of our being.  

 

REQUIREMENTS FOR UNITY: The requirements for unity are simply to put off selfishness and to put on the humility of Christ.  We are naturally selfish and tend to think of ourselves higher than we ought.  This self-centeredness or even tendency to focus on ourselves as opposed to making others a priority in our lives will sabotage any efforts to walk in unity.  Instead of being egocentric, God calls us to imitate the humility of Christ.  Humility is not to think less of ourselves or put ourselves down.  Humility is simply to think of ourselves less and more of others.  One of the best ways to develop the habit of lifting others up.  We are to put the needs of others above our own.  Not surprisingly, the perfect example of this kind of humility is Jesus.  He didn’t go around putting himself down, rather, He was constantly lifting others up.  He sacrificed His very life in order to save us.  If anyone had the right to be proud of Himself, it was Jesus.  Instead, He walked in perfect and sacrificial humility.  It is exactly this king of humility that is required for the body of Christ to achieve unity.

 

RESULTS OF UNITY: The result of unity in our lives is that we will all be bowed down before the Lord in worship.  As a result of Jesus’s humility, He has been highly exalted by the Father.  We may think that self-promotion is the “way up” but we are mistaken.  The way to be exalted by God is through humility.  None of us should be striving to get our own way or convince others of our own mind or way of thinking.  Instead, we should all be working together to discover the mind of Christ.  When we disagree with one another, it is because one, or both of us are not in line with the mind of Christ.  Unity will always result in us worshiping the exalted Christ.

 

APPLICATION: Understand how important unity is to the Trinity and those who God has placed in authority over us.  Don’t be satisfied with a false or superficial unity.  Work hard to think, love, and be unified in our deepest being.  Stop focusing on ourselves and look for ways to encourage and serve others.  Worship our Lord with others on a regular basis.