08/20/23 Philippians - Part 4 “United we Stand”

Philippians – Part 4 “United we Stand”

Philippians 1:27 – 2:4

There’s a scene in one of those Marvel ‘Avengers’ movies where the main characters assemble in a circle as they begin to fight off evil aliens coming into New York City through some space portal high above the city.

Captain America is whipping his Vibranium shield around, The Incredible Hulk is chucking aliens into nearby buildings, Thor is swinging his hammer, Iron Man is flying around, Hawkeye and Black Widow are doing their thing.

This exciting scene is memorable because it is one of those rare instances when all of the heroes fight together in one spot, for a unified purpose….they battle as a team…they stand united.

Our passage for this morning from Philippians has a similar militaristic quality, doesn’t it?

Paul uses terms like “Stand firm in one Spirit”, “Contending…for the faith”, “Without being frightened”, “They will be destroyed”, “United in Christ”, “Fellowship with the Spirit”, “Like-Minded”, One in Spirit and purpose”, “Look…to the interests of others.”

All of these phrases carry the imagery of a battle – a battle where we are fighting together as one unified team, or army.

Unlike the Avengers, however, our battle is not a physical one – we are not shooting down ill-tempered aliens from outer space.

Our battle is a spiritual battle – but it is no less real than any physical form of conflict. In fact, the battle in which we engage as Christians is waged upon an ancient foe the Bible calls Satan who works in an unseen realm and yet we clearly see the effects of his influence on our world.

Some of you have seen the recent movie “Sound of Freedom” about child trafficking…this evil atrocity is just one of the ways in which our spiritual enemy, the Devil, physically manifests his agenda upon humanity.

 Ephesians 6:12 reminds us that our battle is not waged in the physical realm, but that of the spiritual. It says: “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”

Spiritual warfare is a central theme of the Christian life – if you are a follower of Jesus Christ, you are fighting a spiritual battle. You are waging a war against sin & Satan individually, as well as corporately – as part of the church.

Spiritual warfare was the theme of our Vacation Bible School this summer and it will be the main topic in our Sunday night Bible study resuming next month. Knowing the battle plan and tactics of the enemy will make you a stronger and smarter soldier for Christ!

Paul’s words in our passage for today remind us of this battle, they also remind us that in order to successfully fight this war, we desperately need to be unified – and we need to have a biblical view of how to treat each other, our fellow soldiers in Christ.

In verse 27, Paul encourages us to conduct ourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ.

The word “Conduct” here is derived from a Greek word that emphasized the idea of being a good citizen. In other words, Paul is saying that, as Christians, we ought to represent our Heavenly citizenship in a way that is honorable to our King – Jesus Christ.

We are to live our lives with integrity, with uprightness, with the measure of reverence to God that accurately reflects the measure of mercy, love, and grace that he has shown to us through His Son, Jesus Christ.

Has anyone ever seen the 1998 movie “Saving Private Ryan”? Its about a group of WWII soldiers who go behind enemy lines to save a fellow American soldier who had already lost his three brothers in combat –  he was the only sibling still alive.

In one of the most intense moments of the film, Tom Hanks’ character (Captain Miller) is fatally wounded and with his dying breath looks into Private Ryan’s eyes and says to him “James, earn this...earn it.”

In other words, Captain Miller was telling this young man to live the rest of his life in such a way as to properly reflect the sacrifice that was made for him on that battlefield.

Likewise, when we look at the cross, we should want to live our lives in such a way as to represent the sacrifice that our savior made for us!

We don’t “earn” our salvation through any of our works or deeds, but we can earn the respect of those around us (Even our enemies) by displaying godly attributes, such as integrity, honesty, kindness, fairness, etc. –  these actions will point others toward Christ.

1 John 1:6 -7 reminds us that, as believers, our lives must give proof of the gospel.

“If we claim to have fellowship with him(God) yet walk in darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his son, purifies us from all sin.”

Our practice must match our proclamation….Our walk must be consistent with our talk…..We must bear good fruit in our lives.

Verse 28 (Philippians 1:28) reminds us that, as servants of the most-high God, we need not fear anyone or anything.

Remember that slogan from back in the 90’s “No Fear” that seemed to appear on clothing everywhere?

When I began seeing that phrase, I always thought to myself that it would make a great slogan for the church….If any people group ought to be fearless, it should be us, right?

I love how Isaiah 41:10 reminds us of this timeless truth: “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

Psalm 27:1 reads “The Lord is my light and my salvation – whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life – of whom shall I be afraid?”

Deuteronomy 31:6 says (Moses speaking) “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you.”

Many of you may recall the words of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. in a speech entitled “I’ve been to the Mountaintop” delivered on April 3rd, 1968.

His speech ended with these words: “Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I’m not concerned about that now. I just want to do God’s will. And He’s allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I’ve looked over. And I’ve seen the promised land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land. And I’m happy tonight, I’m not worried about anything. I’m not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.”

The very next day, on April 4th, 1968 – he was assassinated.

Can we say the same thing about fearlessness in our lives?

Can we honestly say that we are happy in the Lord and anxiety-free this morning?

If you aren’t – you can be!

Jesus says in Matthew 11:28-30 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

You CAN live with no fear…it IS possible…IF you are IN CHRIST!

God has given you the strength to stand up against the swift current of modern day culture.

Does anyone recognize the name Telemachus?

Back around 400 AD Thousands of Romans would gather in the mighty Coliseum to watch a fight to the death between two people, or between a human and an animal.

This was, unfortunately, a favorite form of entertainment in Rome at the time.

Well, one day a small statured Syrian Monk by the name of Telemachus couldn’t stand it any longer so he made his way down onto the coliseum floor and shouted to the authorities to stop this evil behavior at once.

What happened next? Well Telemachus was swiftly put to death (Some historians say he was stoned, others say his death came by the sword)

Either way, he lost his life for standing up to the evil that was occurring there on the floor of the Coliseum.

One would assume that this would have been the end of the story…but it wasn’t.

Over the next few months, attendance at the Coliseum began to dwindle until eventually, people no longer came to watch the blood sport that they had previously enjoyed.

Because one man was fearless and stood up to evil, people’s hearts were changed.

It reminds me of this quote “If you can bow before God, you can stand before anyone.”…..How true that is!

In Luke 12:4-5 Jesus says “I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into Hell. Yes, I tell you, fear Him.”

We mustn’t fear men, rather, we must live our lives in reverence toward our Heavenly Father.

Verse 29 & 30 (Philippians 1:29-30) reminds all believers that we will endure suffering and persecution on account of our faith.

Belief guarantees suffering.

This is generally not something that we advertise to those whom we are introducing to the faith, right?

“Come to Jesus and suffer!” 😊

For some perspective, look at the word “Granted” in verse 29.

Paul is telling us that it is a privilege to suffer for the name of Jesus…that we can actually find a great deal of comfort through persecution.

Why? Because persecution is a sign of our own salvation.

If you are being persecuted for standing up for the gospel, consider it pure joy…as James would say. God has accepted you into His family through the shed blood of His son.

Remember when the Apostles were flogged by the Religious leaders in Jerusalem for preaching in the name of Jesus?

Scripture says the apostles were “Rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the name.” (Acts 5:41)

Suffering well is a privilege – a gift….it meant they were saved!

Be like Popcorn. Most grains shrivel up when the heat is on, but not popcorn. When you heat popcorn, there is a gas emitted on the inside of the kernel that pushes out the hard exterior of the seed, becoming enlarged and useful. It becomes a blessing, a delight to people.

The more we endure persecution for our faith, the more resilient we become.

When I was a kid, I had one of those air-filled puppets that stood about 3 feet tall and it was weighted at the bottom so if it got tipped over, it would always come back up to vertical.

This was Paul. He was repeatedly beaten and incarcerated for his faith (Tipped over, if you will) but he always came right back up.

This can be you as well. When the world tips you over – when you loose friends because of your convictions, when your co-worker is constantly making fun of your faith, when your neighbor calls you a bigot because you spoke out against the woke agenda at the last school board meeting – when the world tips you over, dust yourself off and come right back up!

The first two verses of Philippians chapter 2 circle back to the importance of unity within the church.

Disunity is a potential danger in every church – no church is immune to it…including ours.

The church in Philippi was a very healthy church – Paul did not have any words of correction for them in terms of their doctrine, ministries, or benevolence.

There was, however, one problem. There were two women in the church (Euodia and Syntyche) who simply did not get along. We’ll learn a bit more about them in chapter 4 (If we ever get there, right?....we will 😊)

They were both born-again believers who had previously assisted Paul in his ministry, but their personal feud was something that threatened the health of the church.

These women both made the decision to place their feud ahead of the health of the church. They cared more about being right than living righteously.

They had allowed pride to eclipse humility – and by doing so, the church was not experiencing complete unity.

Now, Unity does not necessarily mean unanimity – where everyone thinks the same….and unity does not mean uniformity – where everyone acts the same.

Even in this church, we will never all agree completely on some of the finer points of doctrine and best style of worship, etc.

BUT….that doesn’t mean that we cannot still have a healthy level of unity.

Many people believe that the 2014 San Antonio Spurs were one of the least talented teams to win an NBA Championship. How did they do it? They put their individual egos aside and played as a unified team.

In many ways, church is like a team sport. We are in a battle against an adversary, and without unity, we will not play to our potential.

Unity does not mean complete agreement on everything – but it does mean that there will be harmony.

I appreciate that old axiom from the Reformation that expresses unity this way: “In essentials, unity. In non-essentials, liberty. In all things, charity.”

We will be playing like an efficient and effective athletic team if we keep this statement in mind.

This is what Paul has in mind in verse 2 when he uses terms such as “Like-minded” and “Being one in spirit and purpose.”

In verse 3 of Philippians chapter 2, Paul draws the distinction between selfishness and humility.

Paul knew that humanity was naturally selfish – this is why he preaches so often against it….we need a constant reminder of this truth.

There was a recent Newsweek poll that asked people what it would look like if their wildest dreams came true. 38% said that it would be winning the lottery. Only 1% replied with world peace.

This is our selfish nature on display….what’s in it for me?

You know what a “selfie” is, right? – It’s when someone takes a picture of themselves and uploads it to social media. Young men like to strike a ‘flexing’ pose while young ladies will, for some strange reason, suck in their cheeks and extend their lips….I call it the “Donald Duck” look.

93 million….93 million selfies are taken every day worldwide.

Humans really, really, like to advertise themselves. This is a direct result of the selfishness that we are all born with.

When we become a follower of Jesus, it needs to become all about him – and no longer all about us….pray that God will grant you the ability to do this.

Lastly, verse 4 (Philippians 2:4) gives us a directive that is one of the most un-natural commands in all of scripture.

Paul says “In Humility, consider others better than yourselves” , and that we should “…look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.”

Consider others better than myself? Really, God? … did you mean to say this?

Romans 12:3 echoes the same sentiment when it says “…Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you.”

It all comes back to being humble.

The famous conductor and songwriter Leonard Bernstein was once asked “What is the hardest instrument to play?”…..any guesses?

His answer: “Second Fiddle”

Finding people to play first violin with enthusiasm was easy (The first part gets to play the melody and solos) whereas finding people to play second violin with enthusiasm was much more difficult because it required them to be humble….they had to put their pride away.

So how do we really do this? How do we really consider others better than ourselves.

I think of it like this: when we engage with someone (Face-to-face, on the phone, on social media, etc.) we are much humbler when we are being mindful of our own faults and shortcomings.

I believe that this is what Paul is referring to in Romans 12:3 when he tells us to think of ourselves with ‘sober judgment.’

Humility doesn’t mean thinking badly or poorly about ourselves, humility is simply not thinking about ourselves – It means thinking of others before we think about ourselves.

Here’s a quick example of selfishness vs self-lessness: When you walk into a room, are you thinking “Well folks, here I am”… or are you thinking “Oh, there you are.”

Catch the difference?

Person #1 is fixated on themselves while person #2 is fixated on someone else.

In conclusion, brothers & sisters – we are engaged in a battle, both individually and corporately as the church body.

Our adversary, Satan, wants nothing more than to see us fall into sin and ineffectiveness – both individually and corporately.

The more we determine to be united with each other in bravery and humbly care for each other’s needs, the more the Devil recoils in pain.

And folks, we are playing to win – because we know that, in the end, our Savior wins!

Let’s Pray.