Profound Humilty
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Welcome and Announcements:
Welcome and Announcements:
Blessed to have Abi, Joseph Hodges, and Thomas with us today.
Mark Coffey is here and will be preaching on Wednesday night.
Bible Reading:
Bible Reading:
Philippians 2:5-11
Sermon Introduction:
Sermon Introduction:
Writing subject lines for emails can sometimes be challenging, but I always include a standard closing. Do you have a standard closing you use for emails or letters?
Examples:
One lady signed her emails with, “If you have any questions, don’t. Hesitate to reach out to me.” Punctuation matters! (slide)
Mark Coffey’s closing: “Here to serve.” A wonderful way to live, but Paul reminds us that serving isn’t always easy.
In Philippians 2:20, Paul acknowledges the rarity of finding someone who genuinely cares for others. Timothy stands as an example of such a servant-hearted individual.
The Challenges of Humility
The Challenges of Humility
Humility in Ministry:
A minister once claimed he had a “perfect” sermon on humility but was waiting for a large crowd to preach it.
Harry Ironside, feeling convicted about pride, once walked through town wearing a sign quoting Scripture, publicly humbling himself.
Humility in Christmas Carols:
Hark! The Herald Angels Sing: "Mild He lays His glory by."
Away in a Manger: "The little Lord Jesus, no crying He makes."
What Child Is This?: "Why lies He in such mean estate, where ox and ass are feeding?"
How Many Kings: "How many kings stepped down from their thrones?"
Even with these songs as the soundtrack of Christmas we still have found a way to make it about ourselves.
The Paradox of the Season:
The humility of the stable vs. the commercialism of Christmas.
The quietness of Silent Night contrasted with the season’s busyness.
Cheap, disposable gifts paired with celebrating God’s eternal presence.
Introduction to Philippians:
Introduction to Philippians:
Philippians 2:5 “5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:”
Chapter 1: Living out the Gospel in the church.
Chapter 2: Taking on the mind of Christ.
Chapter 3: Forgetting past failures and focusing on the future.
Chapter 4: Resolving disputes and fostering unity.
Central theme: Unity in Christ lived out in our relationships—marriage, family, and church, require we think as He would have to think.
In Christ, you can surrender everything because, in Him, you have all you need.
In Christ, you can surrender everything because, in Him, you have all you need.
Contextual Reading of Scripture:
To understand a passage, study the verses before and after, and see how they fit into the larger biblical narrative.
Example: Philippians 2:1-2 emphasizes the gifts believers have in Christ—consolation, comfort, fellowship, mercy—as a foundation for humility.
These gifts are not hypothetical; they are real, experienced realities for Christians.
Four rhetorical but significant questions
Four rhetorical but significant questions
Philippians 2:1 “1 If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies,”
If there be!
If there be!
It is extremely difficult to give the force of these expression.
Paul wrote here about realities, not questionable things
“You know we have these things in common in our lives!”
Consolation in Christ:
Jesus is referred to as the "Consolation of Israel" (Luke 2:25).
Paul in 2 Corinthians 1:5: "Our consolation abounds in Christ."
2 Thessalonians 2:16: Jesus has given us everlasting consolation through grace.
Comfort of Love:
God is the "God of all comfort" (2 Corinthians 1:3).
This comfort is intimate, akin to a person’s presence during hardship.
Fellowship of the Spirit:
The Holy Spirit fosters unity and shared experiences among believers.
Bowels and Mercies:
Expression denoting deep-seated compassion and mercy.
Believers experience this both through the Spirit and their community.
There isn’t any doubt that these are real gifts that Christians to really experience. Let me reread these questions and I’ll pause so you can answer with “there certainly is.”
Illustration: Refugee Camps During WWII
Children in camps couldn’t sleep for fear of hunger, so caregivers gave them pieces of bread to hold as reassurance.
Likewise, we must hold onto the Bread of Life, Jesus, to find joy and humility in a world filled with hunger for temporal satisfaction.
Transition: You cannot relinquish your own desires until you realize that in Christ, you already possess everything you need. You will not be anymore happy in life than you are grateful!
Transition: You cannot relinquish your own desires until you realize that in Christ, you already possess everything you need. You will not be anymore happy in life than you are grateful!
Our unrenewed mind is characterized by selfishness.
Our unrenewed mind is characterized by selfishness.
Philippians 2:3–4 “3 Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. 4 Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.”
The human tendency is toward selfish ambition and vain conceit.
That is why often there was not peace on earth and good will toward men in our lives.
None of you struggle with being selfish or seeking your own glory. Listen will good so you can help those you meet who do.
Human Tendencies: Seeking Our Own Interests
Human Tendencies: Seeking Our Own Interests
The disciples often exemplify our natural human tendencies to seek our own interests. Matthew 20:20–21 “20 Then came to him the mother of Zebedee’s children with her sons, worshipping him, and desiring a certain thing of him. 21 And he said unto her, What wilt thou? She saith unto him, Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the other on the left, in thy kingdom.”
While James and John's mother plays chess, the rest are still playing checkers.
Disciples get angry. Why? All are focused on elevating themselves, believing they are better than one another.
Lewis Smedes Quote:
In Mere Morality, Lewis Smedes explains this universal human tendency:
"Every time you meet a new person, you are unconsciously wondering, ‘How can this person contribute to my need to prove that I count?’”
Pause for Reflection:
Tonight, we’ll have a brief intermission later, but perhaps we need one right now.
Let’s pause and consider how often we hunger for honor, respect, and assurance.We long to matter. This desire for validation infiltrates almost everything we do, often pointing back to ourselves.
Illustrations
Illustrations
Cecily’s Snack Bar: Cecily opens a snack bar, takes one look at it, and says, “Boy, these are small. Mom, do you want some?”Even in moments of generosity, there’s a subtle thread of self-awareness.
FCA Speech: At an FCA event, an inspiring speech summarized a unified vision:
"One love. One purpose. One mind. Can’t lose." The camaraderie of sharing the same name, sport, and position is a powerful bond.
Christmas is God’s response to our pride.
Christmas is God’s response to our pride.
Church that gave out a “You are the reason for the season” stickers. You could stick it on your trouble-making family members. They will think you are saying something nice about them, but you are reminding them that there sin is the reason that Jesus came to this earth.
Remember in Genesis 11 and God looked down upon upon the Tower of Babel. Genesis 11:5 “5 And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded.”
Whenever God looks down He finds a people needing saving from themselves, their sin, our pride.
While human nature drives us toward self-interest, we have received something far greater that unites us. Philippians 2:2 “2 Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.”
Like with the Tower of Babel, God looks down and sees people tolling to building themsleves instead experiencing the joy found in humility.
Transition:
Transition:
The Mind of Christ Leads to Humility:
The Mind of Christ Leads to Humility:
Philippians 2:5 “5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:”
1. Jesus Set Aside His Privileges
1. Jesus Set Aside His Privileges
What were the realities of Christ before Christmas?
What were the realities of Christ before Christmas?
Before Christmas, Jesus had an eternal heavenly home with an intimate relationship in equal God-ness with the God the Father and God the Holy Spirit with perfect peace and joy.
Before Christmas, Jesus had no need of anything material. No need for sleep, food, water, anything, he had the multitudes of angels at his disposal. He never experienced pain.
Before Christmas, Jesus received all the glory and honor that was due to Him as God.
Before Christmas, Jesus exercised all the rights of might, power, and sovereignty that are His as God.
He emptied Himself in at least these 5 ways.
He emptied Himself in at least these 5 ways.
Glory: John 17:4–5 “4 I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do. 5 And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.”
Honor: Isaiah 53:3 “3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.”
Riches: 2 Corinthians 8:9 “9 For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.”
Independent will: John 6:38 “38 For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.”
Fellowship with the Father: Mark 15:34 “34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”
Pastor H.B. Charles captures some of the wonder:
Pastor H.B. Charles captures some of the wonder:
• He could have declared that his GLORY was too precious to disrobe for sinners.
• He could have declared that his POSITION was too high to condescend to sinners.
• He could have declared that his POWER was too great to lay aside for sinners.
• He could have declared that his HEAVENLY POSSESSIONS were too valuable to part with for sinners.
• He could have declared that his BLOOD was too good to shed for sinners. • He could have declared that his HANDS were too holy to be pierced for sinners.
• He could have declared that his LIFE was too sacred for him to surrender for sinners.
However, Philippians 2:6–7“6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: 7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:”
2. Jesus Took on the Role of a Servant:
2. Jesus Took on the Role of a Servant:
Philippians 2:7 “7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:”
Incarnation is addition, not subtraction—Jesus retained His deity while adding humanity.
Emptying of the form, is not destroying the nature.
Philippians 2 refers to the fact that Christ emptied Himself of the *use* of His divine attributes, not the *possession* of them
Jesus added to himself a second nature, namely a human nature consisting of a human body and soul.
Example: Booker T. Washington chopping wood for a woman who did not recognize him. His response reflected humility and service.
3. His humility expressed itself in obedience with no reserve.
3. His humility expressed itself in obedience with no reserve.
Philippians 2:8: "Became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross."
The Incarnation was an act of unparalleled humility
The Incarnation was an act of unparalleled humility
No one can come from any place higher than the glories of Heaven nor can anyone go any lower than the agony of the cross.
The incarnation represents a level of humility the world has never seen. 1 Peter 1:12 “12 Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.”
Angels erupted in praise the night of Christ’s birth, singing:
"Glory to God in the Highest!"
Did the angels think, “Surely this is humiliation enough”?Did they expect Jesus to quickly rise to kingly dignity, as David's heir?
The Humble Life of Christ
The Humble Life of Christ
Trained as a carpenter by Joseph, despite being the Creator of the Universe.Sitting as a Student:
Listened to others teach God’s Word—His own words.F
Facing Human Challenges: Experienced hunger, fatigue, pain, and sorrow.
The Last Hours before His Death
The Last Hours before His Death
Kneels to wash the feet of His disciples, exemplifying His humble service.
Submitting to Injustice: Endured unjust political systems and a humiliating execution.
Obedience to Death: His humility extended to a death on the cross—a shameful, excruciating form of execution.
Abandoned and Buried: Abandoned by followers, bore the curse of sin, and buried in a borrowed tomb.
The Public Humiliation of Crucifixion
The Public Humiliation of Crucifixion
Theologian Fleming Rutledge describes the crucifixion as:
"Debasement resulting from public agony... a form of advertisement or public announcement—this person is the scum of the earth, not fit to live, more like an insect than a human being. The crucified wretch was pinned up like a specimen."
The true test of humility is how far you’re willing to obey.
The true test of humility is how far you’re willing to obey.
Christmas shows us the extent of Christ’s obedience.
Notice that verse 8 mentions death twice. The first time refers to Jesus’ obedience to the Father. The second time refers to his sacrifice for us. Philippians 2:8“8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”
Humility is first obedience to God, then it is an expression of love for others.
Many of you might be able to admit that you are like me. You are very willing to spend and be spent for people. However, it is on our own terms and timeline. When we go with a man or woman a mile then are compelled to go the second mile is the test of our humility. Jesus went all the way to the cross.
Conclusion
Conclusion
Believers, imagine how radically different this world and our lives would look if we lived like this.
Believers, imagine how radically different this world and our lives would look if we lived like this.
Christmas is a time where men want to elevate our lives so we can live as gods, when it is the celebration of the fact that God set aside His glory to become man.
What if we made a commitment to live radically different, right now?
What if we made a commitment to live radically different, right now?
Let’s review. Philippians 2:1 “1 If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies,”
It would add to the joy of our lives. Philippians 2:2 “2 Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.”
We would follow Jesus example and live a life of humility.
We would set aside the privilege that belong to Him to serve others.
Take on the role of a servant.
Express humility in obedience with no reserve.
Paul gives a great word picture of this later in the chapter. Philippians 2:17 “17 Yea, and if I be offered upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I joy, and rejoice with you all.”
Christian joy is joy at the prospect of dying to bring other people to faith. / “offered upon” means to be “poured out” - giving his life with them.
Paul believes there is a season of living with them before dying. Philippians 1:25“25 And having this confidence, I know that I shall abide and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith;”
This is the joy created by the mission of being poured out.
Allow me a moment to look upon the interests of others for a moment.
Allow me a moment to look upon the interests of others for a moment.
So, in the humble spirit of Christmas, I invite you to humble yourselves before God and believe this message of Good News.
Above all you could ever need or want - you need forgiveness of sins.
I cannot offer it to you.
The only one who could, has. He left Heaven, humbled Himself, to be born in a manager and die on the cross.
How can you not have a humble response to Him today?
