9.1 Key themes⤒🔗

• Because God has saved us, we must glorify God…
  - by having the attitude of Jesus.
• Jesus:
  - was equal with God the Father.
  - humbled himself to come and serve us.
  - was exalted by God to the highest place.
• The Holy Spirit works in us, to give us the same humble attitude as that of Jesus.
• Epaphroditus is an example of a man who had this humble attitude.
• If we learn to have a humble attitude, we will have contentment.

9.2 Philippians 2:1-11, 25-30←⤒🔗

^2:1 Therefore, if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort provided by love, any fellowship in the Spirit, any affection or mercy,

^2:2 complete my joy and be of the same mind, by having the same love, being united in spirit, and having one purpose.

^2:3 Instead of being motivated by selfish ambition or vanity:, each of you should, in humility, be moved to treat one another as more important than yourself.

^2:4 Each of you should be concerned not only about your own interests, but about the interests of others as well.

^2:5 You should have the same attitude toward one another that Christ Jesus had,

^2:6 who though he existed in the form of God did not regard equality with God as something to be grasped,

^2:7 but emptied himself by taking on the form of a slave, by looking like other men, and by sharing in human nature.

^2:8 He humbled himself, by becoming obedient to the point of death – even death on a cross!

^2:9 As a result God exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name,

^2:10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow – in heaven and on earth and under the earth –

^2:11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.

…

^2:25 But for now I have considered it necessary to send Epaphroditus to you. For he is my brother, coworker and fellow soldier, and your messenger and minister to me in my need.

^2:26 Indeed, he greatly missed all of you and was distressed because you heard that he had been ill.

^2:27 In fact he became so ill that he nearly died. But God showed mercy to him – and not to him only, but also to me – so that I would not have grief on top of grief.

^2:28 Therefore I am all the more eager to send him, so that when you see him again you can rejoice and I can be free from anxiety.

^2:29 So welcome him in the Lord with great joy, and honor people like him,

^2:30 since it was because of the work of Christ that he almost died. He risked his life so that he could make up for your inability to serve me.

© NET Bible

9.3 The attitude of Jesus Christ←⤒🔗

In Lesson 7 we saw that believers are in Jesus Christ. Our passage from Philippians 2 talks about this wonderful truth again. In verse 1 we read that we have “encouragement in Christ.” We have the “comfort provided by love.” We enjoy “fellowship in the Spirit.”

In Christ we have truly received everything we need! What is left for us to do? We are to thank God for his mercy, by living our lives to his glory.

Our passage tells us how God wants to be glorified in our lives. It says that, from now on, we must have the same “attitude” as that of Jesus Christ (verse 5). Jesus’ attitude is an attitude of humility.

In verses 6–11, we find a beautiful poem (or song) about the humility of Jesus. This poem tells us that:

• Jesus has always been in the highest heavens with God the Father. He was equal with God, because he is God (verse 6).
• Jesus did not hold on to this high position. He “emptied himself,” by coming down to earth and becoming a man (verse 7).
• Then Jesus died the most shameful death: death on a cross (verse 8).
• The reason why Jesus humbled himself like this, was because of his love for his Father. He was “obedient” to his Father until the end (verse 8).
• Another reason why Jesus humbled himself like this, was because of his love for us. He wanted to be our servant (“slave”– verse 7).
• Because Jesus did all these things, God the Father exalted him to the highest place. One day every knee will bow before him and every tongue will confess that he is Lord (verses 10 to 11).

9.4 Becoming humble like Jesus←⤒🔗

Many people wonder, “What is God’s plan for my life?” But if you know the Bible, you will know what God’s plan for your life is. His plan is that you will become like his Son, Jesus (Romans 8:28-29).

That is why God gave you his Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit works in every believer, to make him (or her) more like Jesus. First of all, the Holy Spirit helps you to understand the love and humility of Jesus. Through this understanding the Spirit changes your heart, so that you also become more loving and humble.

How can you know if you are growing in humility? Our passage gives us some signs of humility:

• A humble person loves his fellow believers and does not fight with them (verse 2).
• A humble person does nothing out of selfishness or for his own glory. He treats other people as more important than himself (verse 3).
• A humble person does not think only about his own interests (the things that are important to him). He also thinks about other people’s interests (verse 4).
• A humble person does not look for high positions. Like Jesus, he lowers himself to serve others (verses 5–7).

9.5 The example of Epaphroditus←⤒🔗

Epaphroditus is an example of a humble believer. His story is told in verses 25–30 of our passage.

Epaphroditus was a member of the church in Philippi. When the church wanted someone to take their gifts to Paul, he was willing to go. (Remember, Paul was far away and in prison.)

It was a long and dangerous journey to Paul. But Epaphroditus did not think about his own comfort and his own interests. He thought about Paul’s interests. He wanted to be there for Paul in this difficult time.

When he arrived at Paul’s place, he became very ill and almost died. But even then, he did not think only about himself. He thought about his fellow believers in Philippi. He did not want them to be worried about him (verse 26)!

God had mercy on Epaphroditus and healed him (verse 27). Because Epaphroditus humbled himself, Paul told the Philippians that they must honour Epaphroditus (verse 29). That is how God does things! He exalts those who humble themselves (Proverbs 15:33).

9.6 Humility and contentment←⤒🔗

To have contentment in this life, you need to make the humble attitude of Jesus your own attitude.

Is your plan for your life the same as God’s plan for your life: to become like Jesus Christ? Do you want to treat others as more important than yourself? Are you glad to serve people, even when it means suffering for you?

If you can answer “yes” to these questions, you will have contentment in this world. Even when you suffer, you will still be content, because you will know, “God is working in my suffering. He is making me more like Jesus!” (Romans 8:28-29). And when people do not honour you, you will not mind so much. You will not look for the honour that comes from people. You will rather focus on serving people, while you will look forward to the day when God will honour you.