"If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with 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 purpose. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became 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 confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." - Philippians 2:1-11 Philippians 2 is one of the greatest and most studied chapters in the Bible. Volumes of books have been written about verses 5-11 alone. Here the Scripture points to Christ and on'es relationship to Him as foundational for both thinking and behavior. Christ is everything and your relationship to Him has undeniable and essential implications. Here are 4 simple yet vital applications to cultivate our life with Christ, a life of one love, one spirit, one mind, and one purpose.
[One Love]
Recognize the power of salvation. Ever thought about how powerful God is? How he himself created the world? Now apply that power to the act he performed on the cross through His Son Jesus Christ. How great, how awesome, and how marvelous it is to think of such power in the cleansing of our sins; that He died so we might live IN Him. I struggle everyday to make time to spend with my maker. If I would only think about how much Christ sacrificed me, would I be more inspired and motivated to spend time everyday in the Word? The answer lies in the above verse. "If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with 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 purpose." If we truly have been saved by this awe-inspiring display of power, how much more is it going to take for us to "make our joy complete" by spending time with Christ every day?
[One Spirit]
Recognize the importance of unity. We are all joined together, bound in the fact that we have all been washed in the blood of Christ. So why do we let the things of the world define us? Why do we go around living our lives as one big attempt to "fit in" or "go with the flow" or be "accepted"? Shouldn't we be more concerned with what God's plan for our lives are, not simply what we want to do? I've heard many people say that they just "wanna have fun". Of course, there's nothing wrong with "having fun", for there is a time and place to "just have fun". It's when "having fun" gets in the way of our overall purpose - to glorify God and seek His will for our lives. When I hear this specific phrase, most people interpret it as, "ahh, I just want to live life to the fullest!". But how can we live life to the fullest if we are not living IN Christ? Anyone can "live life to the fullest" by engulfing themselves in the things of this world (i.e. boyfriends, girlfriends, material substances, etc.) and truly miss living life not pursing the world, but pursuing Christ. Jim Elliot once wrote, "God, I pray, light these idle sticks of my life and may I burn for Thee . . . for I seek not a long life but a full one like yours, Lord Jesus." Remember that we as Christians are bound together in one spirit.
In the next post, I will address the next half, being of one mind and one purpose. Stay strong, keep the faith, and encourage others in devotion, perseverance, and excellence pursing God's will and not our own.
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