In Your Right Mind from Philippians 2:1-18

Today I am commenting on Philippians Chapter 2. 

When we handle important issues, it is vital that our minds be clear, and that we are in our right minds.  That’s why the labels on many medicine bottles warn people not to take those pills and drive or operate heavy machinery.

I found this to be true in my own life.

Once, when I was in the Army, I became so violently ill that I got dehydrated.  I had to go to the hospital for IV fluids and nausea medicine.  I had also pulled a muscle in my back, so they gave me some muscle relaxers to take for a few days until it quit hurting.

Then, they told me to report for duty the next day. I discovered that this wasn’t a very good idea. My head was fuzzy all day long, and I spent most of the day sitting sideways at my desk staring at the wall. Most of the day, that is, except for the time when my boss came boiling out of his office to ask me a question.

My boss was a short, hyper-active, bachelor major.  I was a junior lieutenant at the time and he really didn’t like me very much. He was a handful on a good day, but that day I have no idea what he asked me!

He spent several minutes quizzing me on some issue; to this day I know not what!  I also don’t have a clue what I told him!  It must have satisfied him because he turned on his heel and scurried back off to his office.

That experience frightened me so much I have never again taken muscle relaxers!

Paul taught the Philippians that the Gospel is so important that we must be in our right minds as we deal with it.  Let us look at what that means to us as we read our text for today.

For the Christians, A Right Mind is a Unified Mind: 

Verses 1-4 read:

Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

Sadly, Christianity is rife with division. We are divided in large groups like Protestants and Catholics and Orthodox. Each believes they have the total truth, and they serve God in their own distinctive ways. The Orthodox Church even has their own church calendar by which they celebrate Christmas and Easter at different times than does the rest of Christendom.

In Protestantism we have divisions as well: Evangelical vs Main Line vs Pentecostal, etc. Even Baptists have divisions; if you ask five Baptists the same question, you’ll probably get six or seven answers, and not only does conflict exist at the denominational level, intra-church conflict was a pandemic long before the world ever hear of COVID-19.

These divisions cause the church much trouble because it damages our reputation in the community. Dr Bob White identified this as a serious problem in his book Healthy Kingdom Churches. He documented that a church’s reputation is a vital part of its potential for growth and effective ministry.

Of course, division also damages our relationships with each other.

Paul taught that we must be unified in The Gospel:

• Because of the work of Christ.
• Because of the fellowship of the Holy Spirit.
• Because of the love and mercy of God in our lives.

He also gave some very practical tips about how to do that: 

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

For the Christians, A Right Mind is a Humble Mind:  

Verses 5-11 read:

In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Jesus is not only Our Savior and Lord, but He is also Our Example. We are to follow His lead and live His kind of life.  We are to have His kind of mind.

This was the genesis behind the book In His Steps, which later spawned the “WWJD” bracelets that ask us to consider, “What would Jesus do?” This is what Paul tried to do. It is also what he wanted the Philippians to do and what we need to do also.

What we find in this passage is that the mind of Christ was a humble mind. Jesus was and is God, and yet He put that aside to come to Earth to save us from our sins. He put away His rights as God to live as a lowly man. Can we ever imagine the extent of that sacrifice? The closest thing I can come to such humility is the missionary families who choose to live in villages in the developing nations of the world. Missions is sacrificial cross-cultural ministry and in coming to live with us, Jesus demonstrated the concept of incarnational missions!

We need to bow in awe of such humility. We need to put aside our petty pride and jealousies and to bow down in submission to our God who saved us. We need to make Him the true God of our lives. True worship and adoration is the first priority of a Christian.

For the Christians, A Right Mind is a Respectful Mind:

Verses 12-16 read:

Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose. Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the word of life. And then I will be able to boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain.

We all need to work out our own salvation. While we don’t work for our salvation, we must, however, work to grow in Christ after our salvation. Like getting married, or having a baby, getting saved by God’s grace is only the beginning! A significant portion of having a mature mind is learning to have a proper fear of the Lord.

Christians must remember Who God Is! He is the preexistent creator that created all things and the One who has given us everything. He flung the stars into space and knows them all by name! When we think of this, it hard to escape the thought God must be amused by our efforts to explore space.

God not only knows the details of all the worlds across the heavens, He also knows our hearts as well. Our attitude ought to be like that of the Apostle Thomas. When he had seen Jesus face to face, he proclaimed, “My Lord and my God!”

Again, Paul gave some practical guidance. He told us to quit whining and complaining and fussing. He said we should be blameless and harmless and without fault so we can be an example to a sinful generation. He also told us to hold fast to the Word of God, not in part, but in whole!

For the Christians, A Right Mind is a Sacrificial Mind: 

Verses 17 and 18 say;

But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you. So you too should be glad and rejoice with me.

From a human perspective, no one desires to be a sacrifice. As my seminary professor ruefully commented, “The problem with living sacrifices is that they tend to crawl off of the altar.” 

Self-preservation is a powerful force as is our pride is also a powerful force. We like to honor sacrifice, but not be a sacrifice. For example, in World War II, the Vice President of the Philippines burst into tears when asked to stay behind to work with the invading Japanese to protect the citizens of the islands.  He believed he would be known forever as a collaborator and traitor.

Yet, Paul said we need to have the same mind as Christ. If He was willing to be a sacrifice, so should we. If He was willing to die young and unmarried for God, so should we. If He was willing to be executed between two thieves so that righteousness would prevail, so should we.

Conclusion:

Paul told the church at Roman that we must be transformed by the renewal of our minds. He expanded on that thought in our focal passage for today. He taught the Philippians just what that it meant to have renewed minds.  

As Christians, we ought to have minds that are united and humble and respectful. We ought to have the mindset that is willing to sacrifice for the sake of Christ. 

What is your state of mind today? Are you willing to have it transformed for the cause of Christ? 

Every blessing,

Dr. Otis Corbitt