"The Pastor's Message"

ENCOURAGEMENT IN THE CHURCH
(Philippians 2:1-4)

Paul had founded the church at Philippi on his second missionary journey and had maintained a close relationship with them. 

He commended them for their participation in the gospel (Phil 1:5) and told them that he thanked God in all his remembrance of them (Phil 1:3). Because Paul was in prison when he wrote this letter to the church at Philippi, we notice a sense of urgency as he sends a letter of thanks to the Philippians for their support and prayers. 

Although Paul expected to be released, he was equally content with the option of being present with Christ – “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain” (Phil 1:21). The church had sent Epaphroditus to deliver a gift of money to Paul and to be a help and encouragement to him while in prison. 

However, while Epaphroditus was with Paul he became seriously ill and almost died. When he had recovered sufficiently, Paul sends this letter back with him to thank the Philippians for their gift and to strengthen the church in their ministry.

In Philippians 2:1-4 we notice Paul’s deep concern for the overall unity of the church. He presents Christ as the great encourager of the church (V1), he reminds them that harmony produces the greatest joy in the church (V2) and he paints a vivid picture of selfishness as being a great enemy of the church (V3-4).

1. Christ - the great encourager of the church (V1)

Chapter 2 begins with an important statement, “Therefore, if there is any encouragement in Christ” (NASB). The idea here is to draw our attention to the fact that there is great encouragement in Christ and that it is Christ alone who can lift us above our circumstances and give us hope and vision for the future – especially in the context of the church. Paul’s focus here in verse 1 is clearly on the Lord Jesus as the One who comes alongside to console and encourage, He is the one who brings a comforting love in our personal lives and in our relationships with others. It is through Christ that we also have a God-given “fellowship of the Spirit” as we live and serve in the church, the body of Christ! Every believer in Christ has the presence of the in-dwelling Holy Spirit and it is the presence of the Spirit that brings a genuine oneness and unity between believers. We all have the same Spirit! All this is brought about through Christ, in our relationship with Him. Paul says, there is also affection and compassion in our relationship with Jesus. This flows on to others to produce a special kind of bond and unity between believers. It is appropriate that the head of the Church is also the great encourager of the church, Jesus Himself!

2. Harmony – the greatest joy in the church (V2)

Clearly, the greatest joy in the church is knowing Christ personally, the Joy of being cleansed and forgiven, the joy of having a home in Heaven and being blessed as a child of God. However, the application of this relationship with the Lord Jesus is worked out in and through the church, the body of Christ. It is in this context that harmony and unity are so important because this allows the Gospel to be proclaimed in a fresh and vital way through the ministry of the church.

It is clear from Paul’s letter that he did have a real sense of joy in his relationship with the Philippian church. But it also seems clear that there was a degree of disunity that Paul wanted to address. In chapter 4 Euodia and Syntche are urged to “live in harmony in the Lord”, there was a problem of selfishness and some obvious tensions in the church caused by false teaching. Needless to say, if they were to work these problems out, then the joy that Paul already had in respect to the church would be fulfilled or completed! It was Paul’s desire to see genuine, lasting unity in the church, not a plastic or superficial unity but one that would glorify God. Churches today have similar problems and need this same unity in order to glorify God. 

In these verses the word of God tells us that this unity or harmony in the church can be appropriated by giving attention to the following: 

1. Having the same thoughts – Verse 2 tells us that “being of the same mind” is vital! This is not everyone in the church always thinking the same thoughts in every thing, that would produce a legalistic, mechanical church. No, this is a church where individual members are of the same mind in regard to the message of the Gospel, a church where Biblical doctrine and belief is taught and preached, a church that believes in God’s truth as revealed in the Scriptures. This is a church that is of one mind in regard to Christ and what He requires of them!  

2. Having the same love: The Bible also tells us that harmony can be achieved by “Maintaining the same love” (NASB). This is God’s type of love (Gk: agape), this is sacrificial love, not self-seeking love. This is the love that is shared between believers and the love that flows through believers. This is the love that forgives and forgets. First Corinthians 13:4-5 tells us that “Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered”(NASB). If we exercise this type of love we help maintain harmony in the body of Christ. 

3. Having the same purpose: To be “United in spirit” is also important for maintaining harmony in the church. This term used by Paul has the idea of being “one in soul”. In Paul’s thinking this was a call to believers in the church to want the same things and desire the same outcomes. This follows on clearly from the two previous principles outlined in verse 2 (Same mind, same love). This is of utmost importance because to be a church united in one spirit and intent on one purpose is to defeat Satan at his own game. As believers maintain a united purpose in ministry and service and when love and harmony is the hallmark of the church, great things happen for God. The Spirit of God has liberty and freedom to use each believer with individual gifts and abilities to build up the church, to proclaim the Gospel and to further the Kingdom of God.

1. Selfishness - replaced by Humility (V3): The church in Philippi had been commended by Paul for many good things but like any church there was the danger of rivalry and misguided ambition – this type of behaviour had the potential to destroy the unity and harmony of the church. For the church to enjoy the encouragement that comes from a close walk with the Saviour, humility had to be the common attitude and practice of individuals in the church. The term, “empty conceit” has to do with being boastful and thinking that you are better than someone else! In fact the emptiness that comes with this boasting or conceit means that it is all done in vain, even so, it still causes major problems for the church. The remedy is in the exhortation from Paul to exercise humility and to regard others as more important than ourselves. This is also demonstrated in one of the attributes of love in 1 Corinthians 13, “…love does not brag and is not arrogant” (NASB). We all need to replace selfishness with genuine humility. 

2. Self-interest replaced by meeting the needs of others (V4): There is great value in meeting the needs of others. In fact, doing things for others and putting our own needs on hold, can be a very effective therapy to overcome all sorts of personal frustrations and problems. When the word of God says, “Do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others”, it is really suggesting, in context with the first three verses of chapter 2, that this type of behaviour will maintain the unity and harmony of the body of Christ.

We are living in a time in history where unity and harmony are not necessarily desirable attributes, we are living in a time when genuine encouragement is often lacking and when the word of God is not always honoured and obeyed as it should be. 

Let's be do-ers of the word and glorify the Lord Jesus in His church.

Text Size

Larger

Smaller