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.—Philippians 2:1–8

Introduction

Recent events in our day demonstrate that the racial divide in our nation runs deep. It is undeniable. One only has to say the word Ferguson, and the feelings come like a flood. Polls show that white people and black people on the whole interpret these events very differently. But tragically, the divide is not just in our nation—it is in our churches. The greatest need of the hour on this issue is for the church to speak with a unified voice to our fractured world. We cannot have a unified voice without a unified mind. 

Having a unified mind is not a pipe dream, dear friends. Our text today declares that Christians already have one, which Paul calls “the mind of Christ.” Look at what Paul says in verse 5: “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus.” What an amazing verse. The first half is a command (“have this mind”), but the second half is a declaration of fact (“which is yours in Christ Jesus”). The first half is a call to have something; the second is a statement saying we already have it. It sounds a little odd at first. What kind of command is saying have the mind that you already have? What does that mean?

We have to rise up and reach understanding here because this point is the high point of Paul’s whole argument. We can understand it better with a simple distinction between what we have in Christ and what we need in church. The mind we have in Christ is the mind we now need among ourselves—it needs to define our life together. Here is how I would state the main point found in verse 5: The mindset we need in church is the one we already have in Christ. First, we will start by looking at the mindset we need in church. Second, we will look at what we already have in Christ.

1. What We Need (vv. 1–5)

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 

I want you to see the context clearly. Paul ends chapter 1 with a stirring challenge for the Philippians to strive together, stand firm together, and be united together for the advance of the gospel. This unity in the gospel is necessary for the spread of the gospel even in the face of suffering. Chapter 2 builds upon that call for unity. Verses 1–4 are like a song with three stanzas: what you have, what to do, and how to do it.

The first part tells us what we have: “Therefore, if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if there is any affection and compassion . . .” (v. 1).

The second part tells use what to do: “then make my joy complete in order that you may have the same mindset, by having the same love, by being one souled, by having one mindset . . .” (v. 2). 

The third part tells us how to do it: “by not [regarding one another] out of rivalry or empty conceit, but by regarding one another with humility as more important than yourselves, by not seeking your own interests, but by [seeking] the interests of others” (vv. 3–4).

Let’s start with looking at what we have in verse 1. Let’s try to understand all the “ifs.” There are four of them, and they are all positive things believers have: encouragement in Christ, consolation of love, fellowship of the Spirit, affection and compassion. We could expound upon all of them, but the overlap is remarkable, and I want to show you that Paul is really piling things up to prove a point.

Imagine the following scenario in which a parent is talking to a child about putting their clothes away. The parent asks, “Did I make you breakfast this morning?” The child says, “Yes.” “Did I load the dishwasher?” “Yes.” “Did I wash your clothes?” “Yes.” “Did I fold all of your laundry and put it on your bed in an organized way?” “Yes.” The parent then says, “Then you can put your clothes away!”

Paul’s point is to highlight all of the shared things that the Philippians already have: encouragement, love, fellowship, affection, and compassion. But why pile all of those things up? So that what they already have moves them to make something in the church. Paul is saying, “Look, Philippians, you have all of the ingredients—eggs, sausage, peppers, cheese—so make an omelet. That would delight me so much! Complete my joy by really having one mind together.” But how do they do that?

Next, let's look at what they must do to have the mind of Christ. Here is the recipe. They are to have one mind by doing five things: having the same love,  being one souled, having one mindset, regarding one another higher than themselves, and by seeking the interests of others. There are also two things they are not to do. They must not regard one another out of envy and strife and not seek their own interests.

What are we to make of that? We could talk about any of those seven things in detail, but I want to focus on two parts of the recipe that highlight a key fact: what we think impacts what we seek. Paul tells them to regard one another more highly than themselves and to look to the interests of another.

This is how we are to have the mind of Christ. Where we set our mind determines what we seek. We can either be high-minded or low-minded. Being high-minded means putting ourselves above others in importance. Being low-minded means putting ourselves below others in importance. Where we start determines what we seek. High-minded people pursue their own interests. Low-minded people pursue the interests of others.

Let me get really practical. What would it look like for you to count others in the church more significant than yourself(v. 3) and seek their interests, not your own (v. 4)? 

Have you ever been caught in a conversation loop? Let me explain. A conversation loop happens when there is relatively no new information being exchanged, but the parties involved keep going back to the same predictable points. It used to be called a broken record because a broken record would just keep going back and getting stuck at the same point of the song. 

I am frustrated with the conversation loops that exist in our churches over the issue of ethnicity. I will give you an example. I tried to really listen to evangelicals on both sides of the white and black divide. Here is what I saw after a short time. White people were saying sound bytes like, “If you don’t want to get hurt, don’t commit a crime” or “People abuse the race card and use it as an excuse.” On the other hand, I heard black people saying, “We know what it is like to be walking along and suddenly have our faces pushed to the concrete because we seem to fit some profile” or “You don’t know what it is like to be followed around everywhere you go in a convenience store.”

What would happen if people in the church started regarding someone else’s ethnic interests above their own? What if white evangelical Christians spoke up to represent the experience of others instead of always making their own experience the starting point? What if white evangelicals would speak up for the unfair treatment that our African American brothers and sisters experience? What if it were the black evangelical Christians who were talking about times when people use race as an excuse for wrongdoing? 

But we are missing a step. Before we can represent and seek the interests of others, we have to know them. Many Christians have almost no significant relationships with anyone who might be considered culturally different than them. You must bridge that distance before you can ever represent and seek the interests of others. But to get to know someone of a different ethnicity, you need to not seek your own interests—namely, your own comfort zone.

We will not be disciples of Christ if we do not think like Christ. We need to see what we have clearly because what we have is so compelling and life-changing.

2. What We Have (vv. 5–8)

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 takes us on our tour of the mind of Christ. The wonder of inspiration takes us into the mind of Christ before the incarnation. Here are the four facts: Jesus was in the form of God, he did not do things for his own advantage, he emptied himself (not by subtracting deity but by adding humanity) by taking on flesh as a servant, and he humbled himself by obeying even to the point of a horrible and hideous murder on a torture device called the cross.

Here is the point: If anyone could have been high-minded, it was the Son of God. He reigned supreme over everyone. His high place did not make him a high-minded person. Rather than use his position of power for his own advantage, he used it for our advantage. He sought our interests. He descended down and added the limitations of becoming human. Imagine God being in a womb and going through a birth canal and crying and needing a diaper. How humbling indeed! He learned what it was to thirst, hunger, cry, and even die the most excruciating and humiliating death devised by humanity.

He did all of this in his pursuit of our eternal interests—for the sake of our salvation. But it all becomes more stunningly beautiful when you see what drove him to do it. He did not reluctantly go through it, all the while griping with grief at the inconvenience of it all. He was not forced to do it against his will. He was all in. Why? Because he is All In All. That is the beauty of the logic here. I will never tire of triggering your memory on this point.

In the incarnation and crucifixion, we see an outlandish, over-the-top, lavish expression of the overflowing perfections of God’s character. This point is found in the participle “being in the form of God.” That participle tells us something spectacular about the main verb “count.” The ESV has chosen to translate the participle with a concessive force: “even though he was in the form of God, he did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped.” The translators focus on the contrast that despite who he was, he had a certain mindset. That is a possible translation. 

But I regard this translation as far better: “because of who he was, he had a certain mindset.” That is a causal translation. It is the very nature of God to be giving, not grabbing. God has no needs. He does not wait for people to wait on him hand and foot. What does an overflowing fountain do? It overflows! This overflowing love of Jesus perfectly reveals the heart of the Father.

From of old no one has heard
 or perceived by the ear,
       no eye has seen a God besides you,
who acts for those who wait for him.—Isaiah 64:4

The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything.—Acts 17:24–25

The fact that God is love means that the bottomless ocean of who he is as perfect love cannot run dry, but it also means that it cannot be contained. There are no banks that can keep it from overflowing. I love to picture the ocean of his love becoming a tidal wave river that reaches us. 

O the deep, deep love of Jesus, vast unmeasured, boundless, free
Rolling as a mighty ocean, in its fullness over me
Underneath me, all around me, is the current of Thy love
Leading onward, leading homeward to Thy glorious rest above

The river of his love that has swept us up is taking us upward to the ocean of his love. I have to be so careful here because when I get excited I get loud. And if I get to loud, I can blow you away with my volume—like the big bad wolf. But sometimes I just can’t contain my excitement any more. I am blown away. This is how we are loved. Jesus never changes. The way we see we are loved in this passage is how we are still loved. It is how we will be loved. We will understand it more as we are swimming in the ocean of it forevermore in ever-increasing ways. How can anyone just sit on his or her hands and be quiet about this? The winds of his love are as strong as a hurricane, but they don’t hurt you—they heal you. Has hurricane Jesus blown over your soul? Are you saved? Have you received all that he has done for you? Can it be said of you “which is yours in Christ Jesus”?

Application

How Then Shall We Think?

First,we need to call to mind what Christ has done for us. We have this mind. We don’t have to work to get it. We have it. You just have to stop for a moment and think about what Christ has done for you. It is your story. He intervened in your life. He came and rescued you. Recall it to mind. But when you think about the gospel, don’t just think of what Christ did for you in the past. He has never stopped pursuing your eternal interests. Look what he is doing for you in keeping you and interceding for you so that know one can snatch you away. Look at what he is doing for you in preparing a place so that you can be with him and he can be with you forever. Look at what he will do—he will return for you. He is still pursuing your eternal interests with just as much almighty energy as ever. If he will take care of all your interests so thoroughly for all eternity, then you are free to spend the rest of your life on earth pursuing the interests of others. 

Second, we need to see conversion as the creation of servant–minded people.Can you see what a difference this could make among us? This way of thinking became ours at conversion. Conversion is the creation of servants like Christ. Here is why: An old proverb says that the tree bends as the wind blows. The fact that the hurricane of Jesus broke over our souls so hard with such healing power bends our souls towards serving. Christians must have a servant-hearted, servant-minded bent. We become low-minded people who put the interests of others higher than our own interests. We want to use whatever power we have for the advantage of others, not for our own advantage.

Third, we need to examine our idea of a Christian nation by coming to grips with slavery. Slavery is exactly the antithesis of the mind of Christ—what the majority culture in this country did with African–Americans is the shameful opposite of Christlike thinking. Our so–called Christian nation did not have the mind of Christ when it came to African–Americans. The history of slavery in our country is the shameful opposite of the mind of Christ. 

Feel the offense of claiming that America has been a Christian nation. We had a mind that was set on our own interests and our own advancement. The very idea of advancement says that in order to get ahead, we need to do it on the backs of others. We do whatever it takes to get ahead, even if we have to do it at the expense of others. This mindset said that people exist to serve us. That was slavery. White people looked at black people and said, “These people exist to serve us.” I do not view Mount Rushmore as a Christian shrine. There are parts of our national history that call for healing.

If you are a Christian from the majority culture, have you ever wept over that? Does it shake you to the core? I repent every time I recall that past and it comes to mind. It hurts me. It is the kind of thing that would have made the prophets of the Old Testament tear their clothes and put ashes on their heads. We could benefit from sitting for a while with sackcloth and ashes when we remember the history of our country. 

Think of how slavery goes against the thinking that led to our saving. In our series in 2 Corinthians, you may recall that I said it was fairly common in the ancient world for a master have his name tattooed on his servants. One scholar said, “Generally it was the owner’s name that was incised on the right hand.” It was true of hands, and it was even true of jar handles. “Hundreds of jar handles have been found in Israel from the Iron Age that are inscribed l’mlk, “belonging to the king” (The IVP Bible Background Commentary: Old Testament (Is 44:5). Downers Grove: IVP, 2000.)

But it is at this very point that the gospel comes with the power to blow away all of our expectations. Five chapters later, God reassures his people that they are not forgotten and not forsaken. What is the proof of his love and commitment?

Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands.—Isaiah 49:16

This is shockingly unheard of! Never, ever, ever in the ancient world would one see the name of a servant tattooed on the master’s hands. That would put the master in the role of the servant! Who could imagine a Master devoting His life to serve?  

Fourth, we need to come to grips with white privilege today. People say I can’t go back and change all that happened in the past, though I wish I could. The solution is still servanthood. The majority class is often oblivious to the power and privilege they have. This has been called “white privilege.” Do we understand it? Looking to Jesus is so helpful here. The Son of God was very aware of his power and privilege and position. Power and privilege are not the problem. The problem is what we do with them. Do we use power and privilege to serve ourselves or to serve those who don’t have them?

Here is where the conversation loop becomes a broken record. People from the majority culture sometimes respond, “Well, people make their own bed, so they should sleep in it.” There is a strong sense of justice there and almost no trace of mercy, but the real problem is that does not resemble the mind of Christ. Look at what Christ did! He had all power and all privilege, and he used all of it to serve us. We had none of it and deserved none of it. We made our bed in hell and deserved to sleep there. We were hell-bent spiritual beggars, and God gave us Christ! 

Even here I feel the need to remind you not so much to work harder, but to rest and recline more in Christ so that you will realize who you are and what you have. What you have in Christ, have that among each other. This is the nature of the Christian life. The Christian is united to Christ so that now “in him we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28). We don’t live for an identity—we live from an identity. We don’t live a certain way in order to belong to Christ—we live a certain way because we belong to Christ. In the manuscript I wrote first, I included many examples of what Paul says we do “in Christ”: boast (Philippians 1:26; 3:3), hope (Philippians 2:19, 24), receive others in the Lord (Philippians 3:1; 4:4, 10), stand firm (Philippians 4:2), live in harmony (Philippians 4:3) 

If we live from our Christian identity instead of from our ethnic identity, then ethnic identities can actually enrich our church. There are cultural riches that don’t need to create rivalries. But the majority culture needs to be willing to listen. So many people just want to move on without owning our shameful history of slavery, oppression, and injustice. Is there any wonder that trust is so low, given that track record? The majority culture can fail to listen well to the voices of the minority culture. It is far too easy to dismiss experiences that do not match our own. But that is the very point—minority cultures experience life in America from a very different vantage point. Their voices are valuable and must be heard.

Don’t reduce this to relations between white people and black people. That is why I keep referring to majority culture and minority culture. Think about our Hispanic ministry. Do you see them and welcome them as brothers and sisters? Have you thought about immigration issues and some of the things that impact them daily? What about Somalis? Are they our neighbors?

What happens in your heart when you see someone different than you? We tend to use ourselves as a starting point, and so different means “different from me.” Do you stop and remember that you are both are equal in terms of the image of God? You are not more, and they are not less.

What about the songs we sing and the food we eat? Does someone need to convert to Christ and Midwestern Minnesotan to belong at Bethlehem? This is where the majority culture needs to feel the spotlight. Will we seek the interests of others outside our comfort zone? We tend to approach worship music with a single criteria: either we like it (it fits our interests) or we don’t (it doesn’t fit our interests). What if we sing songs that don’t fit the musical interests of the ethnic majority or are not in our heart language? Can we seek the interests of others by saying, “That song is not my heart language, but I rejoice that someone else here is singing something in their heart language”?

God’s word is a light for our feet. We will seek the interests of powerless people like widows, orphans, victims of sex trafficking, and—perhaps the most powerless of all—the unborn, but it must also apply to powerless peoples like ethnic groups that make up the minority culture. This is the mind of Christ. 

I have to say a word hear about marriage. Christ used his power to rescue and serve his bride. Spousal abuse has to be the most egregious anti-christ mindset you could have in marriage. If you are threatening, intimidating, shaming, verbally assaulting or laying a finger of physical abuse on your wife, you need to repent! Christ’s headship is healing for his bride, not abusive. This church is not going to stand for that type of behavior. Not at all.

 

Sermon Discussion Questions

Outline

1. What We Need (vv. 1–5)
2. What We Have (vv. 5–8)

Main Point: The mindset we need in the church is the one we already have in Christ.

Discussion Questions

1. What is the mind of Christ? How can Paul say that we already have it? 
2. How does Jesus perfectly reveal the heart and character of God?
3. “The history of slavery in our country is the shameful opposite of the mind of Christ.” Discuss the meaning of this statement in the sermon. Do you agree? 

Application Questions

1. Have you witnessed the conversation loop in our country and in our church? What can you do about it? What will you do about it?
2. “We have the mind of Christ, and we call it to mind whenever we stop and think about what Christ did for us.” What steps can you take to stop and reflect and rest in this reality more often?

Prayer Focus 

Pray that God will open your eyes to see people you can pursue as you put their interests above your own.