Therefore
if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love,
if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, make
my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in
spirit, intent on one purpose. Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit but
with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do
not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests
of others. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus.
Philippians
2:1-5
In this passage, it ends with the most important phrase - 'Have this attitude in yourself which was also in Christ Jesus.' This attitude is in the above. Ready to read about it?
Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose.
We are to be of the same mind, maintaining the same love; we are to be united in spirit and intent on one purpose. There IS encouragement in Christ, there IS consolation of love, there IS fellowship of the Spirit, and there IS affection and compassion. Paul wanted to see the Philippians being united in Christ, united through their fellowship of their Spirit and serving God wholeheartedly, and serving one another.
Paul's words apply to us today as well! First of all, we should encourage one another in Christ, and build up one another. As the passage from Romans 12 says, "Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep." Consoling one another in love is such an encouraging part of being in God's family! That leads to the next phrase, to which we ought to have fellowship of the Spirit. Fellowship with God and man. How are we to be consoled and encouraged if we don't have fellowship? The last of the 'ifs' connects all of them - affection and compassion. When you're in fellowship with anyone, affection and compassion are a major part!
Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves;
Nothing from selfishness or empty conceit. Wow. Selfishness and conceit are mentioned so many times in the Bible! I've gone over this topic before, sometime last week, and there are a LOT of verses about it. Our worldly and fleshly nature is to only be concerned about ourselves. The world tries to tell us that we're the only ones that matter, so whatever makes us happy is good. Conceit is petty too. We look down on other people because we think we're better than them. But we're instructed to have humility of mind (and spirit!) and to regard/think of one another as more important than ourselves. That often includes giving up our wants to the preference of others. That is HARD!
do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.
Some people have the wonderful gift of looking out for the interests of others... yeah... I don't think I do. But today I think I'll work on that! It's automatic to only be concerned about our personal interests and not to think of the other person. But that doesn't mean it's right (or, as Cinderella says, "Just because it's done doesn't mean it should be done."). God wants us to be servants of one another and humble ourselves in His presence.
~ Light4theLord
To God Be the Glory
Forever and ever..
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