Week Commencing 4th July 2021

Devotional Materials. Week Commencing Sunday 4^th July, 2021

Call to worship

‘For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich’. 2 Corinthians 8:9

‘Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you’ Colossians 3:13

We will be thinking about the well-known passage from Philippians 2 this morning, where Paul meditates on Christ’s humility- particularly as it is shown in the Incarnation and through the cross. Paul then goes on to teach this is an example for the believers, so that they act in unity towards one another.

Opening Hymn

This is our God, the Servant King,
He calls us now to follow him,
To bring our lives as a daily offering
Of worship to the Servant King.

There in the garden of tears,
My heavy load he chose to bear;
His heart with sorrow was torn,
'Yet not my will but yours,' he said.
This is our God, the Servant King…
Come, see his hands and his feet,
The scars that speak of sacrifice,
Hands that flung stars into space
To cruel nails surrendered.
 

This is our God, the Servant King…
So let us learn how to serve,
And in our lives enthrone him;
Each other's needs to prefer,
For it is Christ we're serving.
This is our God, the Servant King…
 

Graham Kendrick

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C4FtZ9XzZag

Opening prayer

Lord Jesus we marvel that you the Lord of glory should enter this world, not to be served, but to serve and give your life for us. The One who shared the glory with the Father before time itself. The One through whom we are created and who has every right to expect full submission and obedience of all people. We marvel that you should set these rights aside and intentionally so humble yourself, that you were prepared to be despised and humiliated through serving us in your atoning death on the cross.

In the very act of humiliation you were overcoming and taking our sins upon yourself. You used your greatness and power to save us. Now you are raised and ascended ‘Lord and Christ’. We see in you Lord the way of true greatness- even in the very act of your serving us: giving your very life for us. Praise you Lord! We gladly give you our worship, adoration, praise and thanks. Jesus our Saviour who reigns.

Reading. Philippians 2:1-11

2 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, ² then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. ³ Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, ⁴ not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

⁵ In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:

⁶ Who, being in very nature God,
    did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
⁷ rather, he made himself nothing
    by taking the very nature of a servant,
    being made in human likeness.
⁸ And being found in appearance as a man,
    he humbled himself
    by becoming obedient to death—
        even death on a cross!

⁹ Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
    and gave him the name that is above every name,
¹⁰ that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
    in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
¹¹ and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
    to the glory of God the Father.

Item. Song ‘Celebrate the Child’ Michael Card.

Celebrate the Child who is the Light

Now the darkness is over

No more wandering in the night

Celebrate the Child who is the Light

Know this is no fable

Godhead and manhood became one

We see He's more than able

And so we live to God the Son

Chorus

First born of creation

Lamb and Lion, God and Man

The Author of Salvation

Almighty rapped in swaddling bands

Chorus

Sermon. The Very Nature of a Servant.

What would you think if the Queen came along to your house and decided to do a spring clean? Or the Prime minister- you are unemployed- but he personally helps you to complete applications for work. He gives you the benefit of his experience and recommends you to leaders of industry known to him.

It would be amazing wouldn’t it! Houses need cleaning, people need jobs. But we don’t think of great people doing that kind of thing for us. The offices of Queen and Prime minister are the nearest many of us can think of as being majestic or great/glorious. It’s hard to think of such serving you and me.

But the majestic and glorious Lord Jesus Christ came from the glories of heaven to serve us and give himself for us. Our passage includes the famous Christ hymn in verses 5-11 which describes just how the Lord did this.

However, before we move to the hymn itself we should note the context. Why is Paul writing about Christ’s humility and service? Paul wants to address problems of personal pride: ‘selfish ambition’ and ‘vain conceit’ (3) in the congregation. While the Christ hymn leads us to worship the Lord for all He has done for us, the main reason Paul uses this hymn, is to illustrate to us how we should serve one another in the church.

The opening verses remind the Philippians of God’s love in quite general terms and how they benefit from this love: their encouragement from being united with Christ, the comfort of his love, the fellowship with the Spirit (1). Paul is saying the believers have received such love, now they are to show this same love to one another- If you have really received this love, then show it in your relationships. So in verse 2 he says to them ‘Be like minded’

On one level, this means that we have a common body of truth to which we are all committed as Christians. These doctrines are found in church creeds and statements of faith. They are truths that we all must adhere to if we profess to be Christians. Truths that touch on what we are to think and how we are to live, truths about doctrines and ethics. We are not at liberty to change these since they have been revealed to us from the Bible. The FIEC statement of faith says ‘God has revealed himself in the Bible, which consists of the Old and New Testaments alone. Every word was inspired by God through human authors, so that the Bible as originally given is in its entirety the Word of God, without error and fully reliable in fact and doctrine. The Bible alone speaks with the final authority and is always sufficient for all matters of belief and practise’. This is why Bible teaching, expository preaching, close attention to the Bible is so important. This is how God shows us truth by the Holy Spirit who illuminates the Word. These truths are to be obeyed and applied to our lives. This is how the church grows in purity. Like mindedness includes common adherence to the truth.

But Paul also uses ‘like mindedness’ here in the promotion of unity. The idea here is of ‘powerful tensions being held together by overmastering loyalty to each other’. So it’s a root attitude- a way of dealing with difference. The other phrases Paul uses here: having ‘the same love’ and ‘being one in spirit and purpose’ are also aimed at unity.  Paul is not advocating rigid uniformity, rather there is to be an attitude of mind that strives for unity. An older saying popularised by Richard Baxter and John Wesley is worth remembering here ‘In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity’

Disunity, however, is really where selfish ambition or vain conceit (3) have taken root. Paul identifies these as the real threat to unity. Selfish ambition is a wrong desire for what you do not have. A person who is covetous of your position/calling or responsibilities for example. Vain conceit is a wrong pride in what you do have. This is illustrated by a man full of self-importance who was irritated by what he considered to be incompetent service from the new steward at his club. ‘Do you know who I am?’ he thundered. ‘No Sir’ was the reply, ‘but I will make inquiries and then come back and let you know!’

Ambitious or conceited people are wilful people, and by sheer weight of personality (sometimes bullying), undermine and try to impose what they want on others. First of all who are they to mould someone else in the fellowship into their own image- when we all belong to Christ. And even if they have a point or are gifted in some way- they should not think themselves above others since the Lord is the one who is the giver of every gift. And He has given gifts to every member of His body.

Vain conceit and selfish ambition are divisive and destructive of unity in the church.

In stark contrast Paul says ‘in humility consider others better than yourself’ True humility is totally lacking in self -consciousness and self- interest. It looks to the interests of others. It serves.

Up to this point Paul has been writing about the need for unity, for each to love the other as God loves us and to serve with humility. How can he best illustrate these truths? In a word- Christ.

‘Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus’ (5)

Then follows the Christ hymn in verses 6-11. A hymn that brilliantly investigates the person and work of Christ, but is also used by Paul to illustrate what humility and serving one another in the church should look like in practise. Paul says our attitude must be His attitude.

The Christ Hymn.

(Christ) ‘Who being in very nature God but did not consider equality with God ‘something to be grasped’ (5). Christ was in a position of splendour and glory with the Father from the beginning- ‘In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God’- but Christ did not ‘grasp’ or hold on to or retain His existing status. Instead He ‘made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant.’ That is humility. What a height to what a depth!

Consider those heights. The Lord Jesus came from the glory of heaven. The Lord in the Old Testament gave glimpses of heaven to the prophets. They strained to find the right words to describe the magnificence of what they saw. They can only say ‘it was like this’. Listen to Ezekiel’s vision of the glories of heaven: “above the expanse over their heads was what looked like a throne of sapphire, and high above on the throne was a figure like a man. I saw that from what appeared to be his waist up he looked like glowing metal, as if full of fire, and that from there down he looked like fire, and brilliant light surrounded him. Like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the radiance around him. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord”

I believe that is a vision of the Lord Jesus Christ. Pre- existent, sharing the glory of the Father which he shared with him from the beginning.

Scripture says he didn’t grasp or retain or hold on to the glory he had by right being equal with God. But He let it go. Rather He made himself nothing- ‘taking the very nature of a servant’ (literally a slave) to the point of ‘being made in human likeness and being found in appearance as a man’

The Lord of glory came down from heaven. He relinquished that glory and became a human baby: In the poem ‘Christmas’. George Herbert wrote: ‘O Thou, whose glorious, yet contacted light/Wrapt in night’s mantle, stole into a manger’

God the Son, the Pre –existent glorious one, stooped to become a slave. He came into our world. Born in a straw manger, cold and dirty stable. He took the place of the outcast. He came willing to face/ bear its sufferings. He was prepared to face the opposition of sinful men and women. Indeed, He met opposition from the very beginning: the envy of Herod, the temptations from the devil, the jumped up pride of the Pharisees out to trap him- asking him questions about the temple, not realising that One greater than the Temple was among them.

 According to his position/status he had no need to face all he did. But he did it out of love for you and me.

If this descent weren’t enough to illustrate Christ’s humility and servanthood, Paul describes how Christ descended further: ‘and being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death- even death on a cross!’ The Lord Jesus took the very worst of men’s sin and evil when they crucified him. Betrayed by a friend, reviled, insulted, and unjustly treated. The cowardice of Pilate, the envy of the religious leaders, the fickleness of the crowds.

He was obedient to death. But it was the will of God that He suffer for us. Even as they were doing their very worst to him, he was hanging there to save us. On the cross Jesus bore all our sins on himself. He died for us, instead of us. He did it out of love. He did not want us to have to pay the penalty for all the wrong things we have done because of sin. None of us are good enough to break sin’s rule. Our best deeds are as ‘filthy rags’ and cannot put us right with God.

But Jesus was able to bring us forgiveness of sins. He was the only one able to do it. The only one who was perfect. Sin had no entrance into his life. The sinless Son of God who was able to die in our place and be the perfect sacrifice for our sins: “when the kindness and love of God our Saviour appeared He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy spirit whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Saviour” (Titus 3:6).

Having descended, Christ was exalted to the highest place (9).

First, the Father raised the Son from the grave. To show to all that His atoning work on the cross was ratified by the Father. To show everyone that Jesus has conquered death. And then Jesus is exalted again: ‘God exalted him to the highest place’ Jesus Ascension. He didn’t just rise from the tomb, but he rose higher again ‘He was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God’ (Mark 16:19). He ascended from the very depths to the very heights. Here is a marvellous picture of Christ raised, ascended and glorified!

Notice the Lord Jesus did not exalt himself. He just humbled himself. It was God who did the exalting.

God has exalted him to the place where his name is above every name. Christ is Lord. He is Lord now. But at the end of time that Lordship will be clearly seen for what it is. All will bow the knee to him. Whether through gratitude and delight or through weeping and regret. All will acknowledge His supreme Lordship that day: ‘At the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father’ (11).

So here In the Christ hymn, Paul vividly depicts how Christ has served us. He became a slave for our sakes to bring us salvation.

Applications:

In Christ we see the example of service and humility. Remember Paul means it to be the example of how we should treat each other in the church. The very opposite of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Christ shows us the way: By rights he could have had legions of angels rescue him and punish those who did this, however the Bible tells us ‘when they hurled their insults he did not retaliate, when he suffered he made no threats. Instead he entrusted himself to him who judges justly’ (1 Peter 2:23, 24). So too when we face unjust suffering because we stand for what is right, we are not to get into battles with others. Rather Christ’s example teaches us we surrender ourselves and our Cause to God. We forgive, we do good to the other, we turn the other cheek, we go the extra mile. We do nothing to hurt Christ’s Church. And ultimately we must give up our own interests for the sake of His Church if so called to do. This is how each is to work for unity in the Church.

The Church has been so struck by the humility and servanthood of God in Christ, She knows genuine Christian character must always reflect it;

The Early church leaders: Paul, Peter, Jude (the brother of Jesus), and John all describe themselves in their letters as servants of Jesus Christ.

The call to love one another is always with Christ like sacrifice and humility:

E.g. The Bible teaches that Christians are not to take each other to Court. Better to be wronged than smear the name of Christ in such a way.

E.g. Husbands are to ‘love their wives as Christ loved the Church and gave himself up for her’

E.g. whenever gifts and ministries are exercised in the church, there the Bible teaches the fruit of the Spirit must also be exercised- the fruit of patience, kindness and perseverance for example (1 Cor. 12 and 14 describes gifts, Chapter 13 describes the love by which these gifts are exercised). The fruit of the Spirit contain this self- sacrificing/generous quality that others may benefit, such as giving space for others to use their gifts and patience when others fail.

A final application is to see that Christ’s example here must inform Christian mission of all kinds: (Jean Vanier)

“The poor and the weak have revealed to me

The great secret of Jesus

If you wish to follow him

You must not try to climb the ladder of success and power,

Becoming more and more important

Instead you must walk down the ladder,

To meet and walk with people in pain

The light is there shining in the darkness

In the darkness of their poverty.

The poor with whom you are called to share your life

Are perhaps the sick and the old

People out of work

Young people caught up in the world of drugs

People angry because they were terribly hurt

When they were young

People with disabilities or sick with AIDS,

Or just out of prison:

People in slums or ghettos

People in far off lands

Where there is much hunger and suffering

People who are oppressed

Because of the colour of their skin

People who are lonely in overcrowded cities

People in pain

So, in this well-known passage, we see the Lord has served us in our need of salvation and we give Him all the glory for it. But we also learn He calls each member of his church –each one of us gathered here-to uphold unity and to act in humble service within this expression of His Body the Church here.

Will you do that? Your attitude, as Paul teaches, must be the same as Christ Jesus. The Lord himself put it like this: “Whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant- just as the  Son of Man did not come to serve, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mt 20:26-28)

Prayer ‘Lord, my Saviour- you have served me in my need so wonderfully, help me by your grace, not to seek to be served but to serve’ Amen

………………………………………………

Hymn

Make me a channel of your peace

Where there is hatred let me bring your love

Where there is injury, your pardon Lord

And where there is doubt true faith in You

Make me a channel of your peace

Where there is despair in life let me bring hope

Where there is darkness only light

And where there's sadness ever joy

Oh, Master grant that I may never seek

So much to be consoled as to console

To be understood as to understand

To be loved as to love with all my soul

Make me a channel of your peace

It is in pardoning that we are pardoned

It is in giving to all man that we receive

And in dying that we are born to eternal life

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=daGWdbrSGBM

Prayers

Paul shows us the humility/sacrifice of Christ in Philippians 2. He then goes on to teach this is an example for believers; that we show his humility and love towards each other and towards others:

Matthew 25: 37, 40 challenges us to show such love: ‘The righteous will ask, Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty, or a stranger or needing clothes, or sick, or in prison? And the King will say, ’As you did it for one of the least of these, you did it for me’ (Matthew 25:37, 40). The challenge to show such love is in a prayer I would like us to use as a basis for our intercessions this morning:

Read whole of prayer first:

‘O God, enlarge my heart that it may be big enough to receive the greatness of your love.

Stretch my heart that it may take into it all those who with me around the world believe in Jesus Christ.

Stretch it that it may take into it all those who do not know Him, but who are my responsibility because I know him.

And stretch it that it may take in all those who are not lovely in my eyes, and whose hands, I do not want to touch; through Jesus Christ, my Saviour.’

I will now repeat phrases from that prayer and allow space for us to pray quietly around each phrase:

‘Stretch my heart that it may take into it all those who with me around the world believe in Jesus Christ’

This phrase reminds us we pray in fellowship with other believers in this church but also with believers throughout the world. Pray for brothers and sisters in this fellowship- the needs of those who are sick/facing trial. Pray also for believers who suffer for their faith in other parts of the world. Give thanks for your brothers and sisters in Christ and commit them to the Lord.

‘Stretch it that it may take into it all those who do not know Him, but who are my responsibility because I know him.’

This phrase reminds us of our responsibilities towards those who do not know the Lord. Those who are not Christians in our families and those who are our unbelieving friends. Pray for them now and pray for opportunities to share about your faith.

‘And stretch it that it may take in all those who are not lovely in my eyes, and whose hands’

This phrase reminds us that we must forgive others as we ourselves have been forgiven our sins by the Lord. Are there people in your life you are tempted to resent? Overbearing, proud, who have sinned against you in some way. Forgive as you have been forgiven.

Final Hymn

1 Here is love, vast as the ocean,
loving-kindness as the flood,
when the Prince of Life, our Ransom,
shed for us His precious blood.
Who His love will not remember?

Who can cease to sing His praise?
He can never be forgotten
throughout heaven's eternal days.

2 On the mount of crucifixion
fountains opened deep and wide;
through the floodgates of God's mercy
flowed a vast and gracious tide.
Grace and love, like mighty rivers,
poured incessant from above,
and heaven's peace and perfect justice
kissed a guilty world in love.

3 In Thy truth Thou dost direct me
by Thy Spirit through Thy Word;
and Thy grace my need is meeting
as I trust in Thee, my Lord.
Of Thy fullness Thou art pouring
Thy great love and power on me
without measure, full and boundless,
drawing out my heart to Thee.