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Guidance or the gracious Savior?
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Uh 200 K uh Ji waggy BGB power.
Information.
33.
Chapter 33.
And verse 3.
Gay. He loves the people.
All his states are in thy hands, and they sat down at thy feet. Everyone shall receive of thy words.
Mm-hmm. Sands.
Love it brothers and sisters, young people, all that I hear.
With this the Lord's will, I would suggest we read if.
Philippians 2.
We favor it a lot, but exhortation? Learning.
We have a lot of bad the chapter in the beginning about our behavior, we have about Lord Jesus in his unspeakable precious person, His behavior, His love for us.
And what he did, and then again later on, we come back to our behavior then.
Let's suggest the reach from 1 towards 18 first, and then we need more later on.
Of course, if some brother has something in mind other than that, or if we had already this subject shortly before us.
Yes, somebody else suggest something?
OK.
Olympians 2. If they'll be there for any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any vows and mercies fulfill you, my joy that you be like minded, having the same love, being of 1 accord of one mind, but nothing be done through strife or Vainglory, but in loneliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.
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Look, not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.
Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God, but made himself have no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men. And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself. He became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also has highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name but at the name of Jesus.
Every knee should bow of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, the glory of God the Father.
Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always conveyed, not as in My presence only, but now much more in My absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure. Do all things without murmurings and disputings.
That you may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom he shine his lights in the world, holding forth the word of life. That I may rejoice in the day of Christ. That I have not run in vain, neither labored in vain. Yeah. And if I be offered upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I joy and rejoice with you all, for the same cause also to ye joy and rejoice with me.
Well, it's often been pointed out that the book of Philippians is the book of Christian experience. It's experience here in the wilderness, in Ephesians were seen as already seated in heavenly places in Christ positionally. But in Philippians it's more Christ in you, the hope of glory. We're here in this world and we're on our way to the glory. And Christ is set before us in this book later on.
As the object, as we pass through this world and in Philippians, we have not only the trials of the way, but we have the joys of the way because he wants us to have a happy Christian life while we pass through this world. Sometimes in prayer meeting, we perhaps wonder, as things are mentioned, is there really any joy? And the Saints are so burdened and there's physical difficulties, there's emotional problems, difficulties in the assembly.
Sometimes problems between brethren and so on, and perhaps we can get overwhelmed and burdened. But I think it's beautiful as you go through the book of Philippians and as we go through this chapter to see that there's not only the trials and difficulties of the way, but through it all there are the joys. The Lord Jesus passed through this wilderness world and he was the man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, it's true. But there were times like in Luke, where it says he rejoiced in spirit, even in difficult.
Situations where he looked around at those he'd come to blast, and he found they had.
We're rejecting him and he had to pronounce judgment on them, woe on them, and so on. But he could rejoice even in difficult circumstances as he had the Father's will before him and as he rested on in the Father's will and the Father's love. And so I believe we see this. And I just like to say before we embark on this chapter again, it's often been pointed out, but just as a little outline, you know, there's, there's often a key verse in books of the Bible or in chapters of the Bible that help give us a little outline.
As Timothy was told to hold fast the form of sound words or an outline of truth, I just enjoyed these four chapters in this way.
I'll just give you a key verse and a little phrase to sum up these four chapters. In the first chapter we have perhaps brought before us Christ as the believer's life, and the key verse to that would be the 21St verse where the apostle Paul says for me to live is Christ. You know, people live for different things. The athlete says for me to live is sports. The musician says for me to live is music. But the Christian ought to say for me to live is Christ.
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That was Paul's life. That really summed up the life of the apostle Paul.
After he was converted and turned around on the road to Damascus, his whole life was to live.
Christ just to skip over then to the third chapter. We'll come back to this one, the second chapter. But in the third chapter we might say we have Christ as the believers object because if we're passing through this world and there's the difficulties and trials as well as the joys, we need an object. Human nature is such God has made us such that we need an object. And what is the object in the Christian life? The object is always Christ. And so perhaps the key, the key verse would be verse 14.
Where Paul Speaking of himself as running a race or participating in an athletic event, he says I pressed toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. They say the prize in the Christian life is always Christ. Then in the 4th chapter we have perhaps Christ as the believer's strength. We need strength, don't we, brethren? We're there's there's a lot of difficulties. We need strength for the way and so that's why Paul says in the 13th verse of the 4th chapter.
I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. How can we go on day after day in the journey of life? Well, we have Christ as our strength. Without me you can do nothing. And the apostle Paul experienced that in a very real way. But to come back to our chapter, just to give a key verse and a little phrase to sum it up. We have Christ as the believers example in this chapter. And that's why in the fifth verse he says.
Let this mind be in you, which is also in which also in Christ Jesus. Now we often read the following verses on Lord's Day morning in connection with the remembrance of the Lord and the Lord Jesus coming from the fo the glory down into this world, going to the cross, and now his exaltation. And we read it on Lord see morning, and rightly so. But in its context here it is given as an example for you and for me.
As we pass through this world, and I'm sure we'll notice that as we come to these verses and take them up. So again, the book of Philippians is wilderness experience, the joys and the trials of the way. But through it all, we have Christ as our life, Christ as our, uh, example, Christ as our object, and Christ is our strength. And if we keep those four things in view, brethren, then we can press on amidst the difficulties until we get to the end.
The epistle was written in the circumstance of the Philippians having communicated with the apostle Paul in a very practical way in giving him a gift to help him in the work of the Lord as fellowship. And he's writing this letter of acknowledgement and of thanks. And so there's a number of reasons that that he writes the letter. First of all, as you get in the first chapter to thank them for their generosity comes back to that in chapter 4. And then secondly, uh, later in the middle of the first chapter, he gives an update on the circumstances where he was.
And give them something so they could continue to pray for him in a more intelligent way. Thirdly, at the end of the first chapter, he, uh, he writes also to encourage them in the face of adversity to stand fast. Then in the second chapter, he, another reason why he writes is to encourage them, or at least to help them with regard to the, the, uh, preservation of the assembly as far as unity and peace are concerned.
There was a little, uh, difference that he uncovers in the 4th chapter between a couple of sisters that could have festered and affected the whole health of the assembly as far as unity was concerned. And he addresses that in the second chapter, showing them how that that can be beaten, the assembly can be saved from the inroads of the enemy. In that regard, perhaps in the third chapter, he also writes to just warn them of legality, Speaking of the concision and so on. So there's a number of reasons or things that he touches on.
In writing to the Philippines in this letter of acknowledgement, our chapters more particularly, just to repeat myself, is more particularly concerned with the salvation of the assembly in a practical way, and that is done through.
The, uh, things that he lays out in the second chapter, which we're going to read.
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Beautiful to see, too, that Paul has the brethren at Philippi on his heart, even though he was in very difficult circumstances. Because sometimes when we're personally in difficult circumstances, we tend to turn inward and feel sorry for ourselves and say, well, doesn't anybody care about what I'm going through or what my family is going through or what my local assembly is going through? But you don't see that spirit with the apostle Paul. Paul might have been sat down in this prison and.
He was the prisoner of the, of the Lord, as he said, but he was really a prisoner of the Romans, of Nero and so on, although he didn't count the second cause. But be that as it may, he might have sat down and said, well, I need somebody to think of me and pray for me and care for me. He might have been grumbling and complaining and saying, well, Lord, what, what good am I doing here? I, I can't get out and preach the gospel. I can't visit these brethren that I'd like to encourage and be there with them. I'm not having the fellowship I did when I was out on the.
Circuit, uh, being able to be at various assemblies, But no, he, his thought says he's there as a prisoner turned to these dear brethren. And his concern is for their spiritual welfare, for their blessing that they might go on happily as an assembly. And brethren, if that isn't a good lesson for myself and perhaps for each one of us, do we really have others on our heart? That's Christian. That's the proper Christian spirit.
Not not that we want to be callous or indifferent to our circumstances. Paul never was, but he has the Saints of God on his heart. Just say this too in that connection again to get the setting that as we've mentioned, this epistle is the epistle of joy and rejoicing. So many times we have joy and rejoicing. You know, this had a lot of moral weight when Paul wrote to the Philippians because there had been a time previous.
When he had been in their very city with his back bleeding, his feet fast in the stalks, in a prison in Philippi, when he and Silas had prayed and sang praises at midnight, and when Paul wrote of joy and rejoicing to the Philippians, he could write with moral weight again. As you you read the 16th of Acts where this, that experience took place, I sometimes wondered what I would have been doing.
Probably grumbling and saying well Lord, I thought I'd got a vision to come over here and help somebody and what good am I doing my back bleeding, my feet are fast in the stock. I was only trying to be faithful in proclaiming the gospel in your name and and look at this situation. Paul and stylist prayed and sang praises and there was a great testimony no doubt in that chapter. You have the beginnings of the assembly that Paul is writing to here and I believe that God often place.
The writers in circumstances and situations to give import an impact and moral weight to what they wrote, and certainly we see that with Paul writing to the Philippians the way he does.
Those circumstances would have brought the Apostle Paul.
To enjoy what he's writing for the Philippians, to have the same mind in him as was in Christ Jesus. Wasn't it?
Our brother Jim mentioned that Philippians is often considered to be a wilderness book and.
I've often enjoyed in the journey from Egypt to Canaan that we have many of the epistles there in a particular order. I think it's helpful to see that it's often been mentioned in the Passover in the Red Sea. Of course we have. What we have taught in the book of Romans is the foundation of our Christian salvation. And then once they got into the wilderness, it's not Philippians right away, but it's the it's the foundations of the truth which we get.
It seems to me in First and 2nd Thessalonians and, uh, the wilderness can be divided into four parts. The first part is, uh, from the Red Sea to Sinai. And that's often been called the time of grace. Because when the people grumbled, the Lord graciously provided for their needs. When they wanted me, he gave it to him. When they needed water, he, they, they smoked the rock. When the, the waters of Mara were bitter, the tree was put in.
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So that's the first stage of the wilderness. That's not Philippians yet. The second stage of the wilderness is from cyanide to Cadish Barnea, which is right by the Jordan River. And it seems to me that, uh, what we have there and it's been taught is we have government because not only are we under the grace of God, we're also under the government of God. And, uh, I suppose we could look, uh, at a number of books, but first and second Peter particularly come in mind to mind.
Because that speaks to the government of God. So when the people grumbled there, they came under the government of God. And so it's distinctly different. And his believers were also under the government of God, not only under the grace of God, but also under the government of God. Whatsoever man saw it, that shall he also read. The third stage of the wilderness is the longest. They refuse to enter into the land of Canaan, as we well remember. And so they were forced to wander for 38 years in the wilderness. That's the period of wandering.
And it seems to me that's perhaps what we have in First Corinthians and perhaps Galatians, where there was a regression and, uh, the flesh was evident. But then the fourth stage is the very last stage. And that's when they returned to Kate Ashburnia. The years of wandering were over. And we get this in the end of Numbers 21 to the end of the book. And that is really, I think where we get Philippians. That's the final stage of the wilderness.
It's preparation to enter into the land. As Jim said, it's not exactly Ephesians that's.
A little different thought. It's not even Colossians, which I believe we get in the Jordan River, but what we get in those, and that's the four stage of the wilderness is what we have in the book of Philippians. It is Christian maturity. It's understanding, uh, having learned many of the lessons of the wilderness and it's the, uh, the, the blessing that we get from having Christ as our object and so on. As we've been speaking, I suppose some other books that would certainly fit into this type time of the wilderness would probably be the book of Hebrews.
And 2nd Corinthians, which is an advance on 1St Corinthians. And, uh, I think, uh, that's helpful to see that. So at the end, it is a measure of Christian maturity. And it's just before they were entering into the land of Canaan, as Bruce read from Deuteronomy, That's really what correlates with this stage of the wilderness. I just make those suggestions.
It's natural to every one of us to wanna be happy. God created us with that in mind. God created us to have the joy for himself of having a creature that could know him and that He could know and have fellowship together. And so here in this second chapter, the apostle is bringing before these beloved brethren to himself.
Some aspect of that which brought joy or hindered joy in his own soul. And so he says in verse two, fulfill ye my joy. And in verse one he brings out certain things that contributed to that state that Jim has talked about as far as this book being one of joy. First thing is that the real foundation of joy.
In many respects doesn't depend on circumstances, but it does depend on the state of Seoul of individuals and our relationships with each other in this room and shared joy or shared pain often is connected with the states of our souls, not really always on the circumstances itself. And so in verse one he says, if there be therefore in consolation or comfort in Christ.
Yes, there is comfort in Christ, but that comfort in Christ is often found in our relationship with others, enjoying the comfort of Christ together. And so because there was this difficulty in Philippi, the apostle Paul's joy was affected by it. And we all know what that is, if there's somebody that we really love and really care for.
And there's a hindrance between us and them, or there's a difficulty that.
Is causing them to not have the comfort of Christ, then it it affects our joy. Otherwise we're indifferent to them and we really don't care about them. I was commenting to somebody the other day and Joseph.
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And his restoration to his brethren, he cries multiple times, I think 7 times he cries. And so the Lord Jesus and his the rest direction.
Restoration of the people of Israel, his children, spiritual children to himself. There's going to be tears in it before there's going to be the joy. And so if there's comfort in love, yes, there is comfort in love, but that comfort is connected with.
Relationships and how those relationships are enjoyed or hindered with one another and so on. And so he's saying to his brother, and he says, brother, fulfill my joy.
Let there not be anything in your relationships with each other.
And your attitude toward each other, which is going to hinder our common enjoyment of one another. Umm. And so he goes on to in to bring before them things that did hinder joy and that needed actually presents to them. Something that would correct it so that there could be that shared enjoyment.
With each other. But there's another aspect to it and I'd like to turn to it for a couple minutes, and that's found in John 15 with respect to the Lord Jesus. And this is another aspect of what we would call my joy that is also very, very important.
In John 15.
Umm and verse.
I have to find the verse I'm looking for. Verse 11. These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy, this is the Lord Jesus speaking, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might control the Lord Jesus.
Had in his own life.
A joy that He's here wants to share with his disciples, the Lord Jesus in his own life experience, the joy that he calls here, my joy that He wanted them to have as well, and He wanted to share it with them. And what is it Lord Jesus in his own personal life lived in? The verses which precede this bring it out here in John 15.
The Lord Jesus in his own life lived a dependent and obedient life in fellowship with God the Father.
And it was the joy of his life. I delight to do thy will, Oh my God, he could say. And he wanted the disciples to learn to have an experience in daily life. That same character of joy. And so, brethren, in Philippians 2, there's a joy that's connected with relationships with each other. In John 15, there is a character of joy in our relationship with God.
And with the sun, and if we walk dependent, obedient lives with the Father and the Son, regardless of circumstances, regardless of anything else, we will have the Lord's own joy in his as he had in his own life fulfilled in our lives as well. And then in Philippians 2, where we're started out there is the aspect in which the apostle Paul was dependent, really.
On his brethren and they on him to have a mutual shared joy together and he looked forward to that day when they were going to be present in the presence of the Lord Jesus and the glory and he would look at him and he'd say you're my joy. The apostle Paul could look on and and see this same collection of people in the presence of the Lord.
And anticipate and see them and say.
My joy, may it be so with us that our lives are so lived that we can look on and anticipate, in our children perhaps, or in our others in the assembly, that when we see them assembled in the presence of the Lord Jesus, our hearts say, My joy.
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The enemy was at work, as he is, with everything that is, uh, set up of God and Christianity.
And with regard to the Philippians here we have fined at the end of the first chapter that there was a two fold attack on this little assembly. One was from without, the other was from within. And the end of the first chapter we see the attack from without. This was adversaries hurling persecution against these little assembly. And he encourages them to stand fast and to take the suffering of persecution as a gift from God and treated as an honor to suffer for the Lord Jesus.
But then in the second chapter we have the other aspect of the enemy's work, and that is a an attack from within. There was an attempt of the enemy to create disunity in this assembly and to destroy it from within. The apostle was aware of this, and he gives an outline in this chapter as to how the assembly could be saved from the inroads of the enemy in this insidious way. And when he, what he's saying there in that first verse, maybe difficult to get a hold of.
If there be any consolation in Christ and comfortable love, and if any fellowship of the Spirit and any bowels of mercy, well, what are you talking about? You may say he's referring to the gift that was given by the Philippians to him. He received consolation in Christ and comfort of love and the fellowship of the Spirit in the bowels of mercy from them. And he says, now since you've been able to do that to me.
He says you should be able to do that to one another.
And so he shows them here in this opening couple of verses that if they really wanted to make Paul happy and they sent this gift and it didn't make him happy, but he said, if you really want to make me happy, treat one another like you've treated me.
Use the consolation of Christ in the comfort of love and all of this that he speaks of on one another and thus create a happy state of unity. So that's a beautiful thing because sometimes we.
See a significant, uh, believer, maybe one that laborers for the Lord. And we, we treat him with all kinds of kindness when it comes to town. And, uh, we really lay out the red carpet, so to speak for him. And we, we treat him with the grace and love and so on. But do we treat one another in the local assembly in that way? Because the measure of our love and the, and the significance of it should be toward all of the Lord's people, even those that we meet with week by week in the local setting.
So if you would be saying here, if you really wanna make me happy, if you wanna fulfill my joy.
He said treat one another like you treated me with this gift.
I wondered if that's the reason we have the bishops and deacons brought in in the first chapter Here Philippians is the only epistle that brings in the bishops and deacons. I'm not speaking now of Timothy or Titus. The epistles Paul wrote to them, they define the responsibilities of that. But here in his address, he brings the bishops or the overseers and the deacons in nothing. Why is that? Because assembly order is not the subject of Philippians. But I believe it gives us to see really what the character of oversight should be.
Now, we sometimes speak as oversight, sadly, as if it's an administrative bureaucracy, but oversight really has to do with the spiritual health and state of the assembly. If we go back to the verses, we didn't get to when we read the chapter, but verse 8, verse 19, just to bring this thought out, that's already been touched on.
What it says, uh, but I trust in the Lord Jesus to send him a Timothy shortly unto you, that I also may be of comfort when I know your state, for I have no man like mine that who will naturally care for your state or.
That could be rendered. I have no man like minded who will care what genuine feeling how you get on.
And how are we getting on spiritually is the thought I believe not how one is prospering in this world, but the spiritual state and health of the assembly. That really should be the concern of oversight in the assembly. Not that things are just done administratively correctly, but there is vibrancy of affection and freshness of spirit for Christ. That's often what's lacking. That's why assemblies deteriorate does not necessarily because of of the teaching, but the the spiritual health it it wanes. I like to read a passage in Proverbs 27 that.
I believe exemplifies the spirit of what?
Paul is writing here and the Epistle to Philippians, Proverbs 27.
00:35:04
And verse 23.
Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks, and look well to thy herds.
For riches or not forever, and thus the crown endure to every generation they appear as in the tender grass showeth itself, and herbs of the mountains are gathered. The lambs are for thy clothing, and the goats are the price of the field. Now I should have goats milk enough for thy food, for the food of thy household, and for the maintenance for thy maidens. Well, the instruction there is to look well to the state of the the herds, because psalmist's riches are not forever.
We've seen that, how material prosperity has been squandered and wasted, and it's gone.
Generation of godly parents and grandparents is the case. Might be, but that guarantees nothing for the future.
The exercise is to be diligent to know the state of thy flocks. And I believe that's the burden here that Paul is writing in Philippians is the spiritual health and state of this assembly and why there is so much commendable about them that he praises. There was a burden on his heart. His joy wasn't yet fulfilled because that little dissension that was working in the assembly. And so how important it is for us that we focus in on the spiritual state. And that's something every one of us can take up with, isn't it because.
The best way to address that is in prayer on our knees.
I'm too late. Consolation also speaks of encouragement.
And the encouragement should be in Christ here if somebody new comes into the assembly and we say to them, oh, it's, it's very nice to see you here and we are glad that you're coming. And we got nothing else to tell them when the the meeting is over and and I'm not capable of.
Starting a conversation with them and that is in Christ we we really have not encouraged that person to come back because they think, well, I didn't get anymore in that in that meeting. Then I get in the church where I'm at where I'm come from because there's nothing of Christ well.
You have to be sure that when we talk to people, when they come in, we encourage them in the Lord Jesus Christ.
And strike up a conversation with him about this and make them feel to come back. And that's not only for new ones. That's for those who are in the assembly. If there's a person there who is lonely. And then we just say, well, how are you? How are you doing? And of course you will say fine. And that's about the end of our encouragement. That's not much encouragement.
We've got to be able to talk about circumstances with our brothers and sisters to encourage them in their life. We ourselves like to be encouraged and then we should feel the same way about others. They all like to be encouraged and especially if they have a problem.
And that is, that would be and then in the comfort of love.
They feel love. We got to make people to feel love. We invite them to our homes. Not everybody can do that, but those who can and we talk about the Lord Jesus.
And then they feel love in Christ. We do that because Christ of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of Christ constrains us. That is, I think that and that's what I see in this verse. It ends up then in fellowship.
And not just fellowship in eating and drinking. That's not the most important thing. Fellowship.
In the Spirit.
Fellowship and the Spirit of loving the Lord Jesus and being happy in Him and being capable of others to do the same thing.
Every time in the past when we were able to invite people, they always said, well, well, we enjoyed the reading with you.
00:40:05
We are glad you read with us. It's very important, isn't it, that fellowship?
Sometimes when there's a problem.
Umm, we may not say it out loud, but in our minds we're thinking, well, if you'd only see it the way I see it, we'd see it together. In other words, our point of reference is the way we see it.
And consequently, we rather expect someone else to come to the same mind as we are because of course we've come to the right mind. That's the human side of us. Well, here's the difficulty. And the apostle in verse two says, have fulfilling my joy, be like minded or be of the same mind. The end of that verse, be of one mind. How does that happen? How do we resolve things?
When of course I'm right and you need to change your mind to be like me.
Is is the natural tendency well, and we see a secret of it here. The apostle Paul didn't say you need my mind, but he pointed them. He said is what you need is in verse five. Let this mind be in you, which is in Christ. That's the proper point of reference. The like mindedness comes from sharing together in his mind, not our own and the Lord Jesus brought that out again in John 15 that has some parallel thoughts to this chapter.
He said to his disciples, I have given you my words. Where did he get them? He got them from the Father. And so the Father gave him the words. He shared the words with the disciples, which brought them into common mindedness with himself and his Father. And if we take in the thoughts of the Lord and the Spirit of the Lord in those thoughts.
They will be the thoughts of God and that will, if it's your experience and it's my experience, the end result is we will be like minded because we will share in that same mind. And as we go on and see the details of the mind of Christ, we find how very humbling it really is to enter into His mind and things. But often times, brethren, when we try to resolve difficulties as there were in this assembly and make ourselves and our own thoughts the point of reference.
It's not going to work, but if the thoughts of the Father and the Son are the thoughts that we each embrace, then we will come to that common mindedness. I appreciate it's not exactly the thought, but it's well worth, I think, repeating a brother that used to say this at conferences like this, he said read the word of God.
Until your thoughts are formed by it, we need the pure source of thought.
That can only be found in the Word on her lap and it's the thought of God, not man's thoughts. Or we will come to many diverse thoughts and opinions about most everything.
So practical piece in the assembly and getting along is never to be on the basis of compromise or arbitration that may work in business. And I say that because I think sometimes we tend, without even realizing it, to introduce principles that we use in the business world to survive in the everyday.
Work a day situations we find ourselves and we subconsciously bring them into the assembly. When I was in business, often we were trying to keep different elements happy. You try to keep the salesman happy with the customer and the warehouse staff happy with the office staff. And to do that you often have to bring two parties together, sit them down and find a common denominator. But it usually necessitates some compromise. And I think what Don says is a good word for us. We never come to a common agreement.
Or think we're being like minded on the basis of con, the compromise of truth. Just want to read a verse in second Timothy that I think is helpful in this regard.
Paul says to Timothy in second Timothy chapter two, he says in verse 22, flee also youthful lusts. And then this is what I want to notice, but follow righteousness, faith, love, peace.
00:45:00
I want you to notice those four things in the order in which Paul by inspiration, lists them. If I had been listing this, I might have put peace and love at the beginning of the list. And that is often the spirit in among, even amongst Christians. Well, we've got to have peace, we've got to have love, we've got to go on in practical unity in spite of our differences. But that's not the instruction that Timothy was given for the last days. In Second Timothy there was an undermining of the truth, a subverting of the souls of the Saints.
A compromise and a giving up on every hand.
And Paul told Timothy to follow, first of all, righteousness and faith because righteousness and truth must be maintained. We cannot have peace and love at the expense of righteousness and truth because that's compromise. And the word of God never justifies or gives us a precedent to justify compromise amongst the people of God. But as Dawn said, I think it's very beautiful when there is a bowing to the truth of God and a leading of the Spirit of God, we are going to find ourselves what like minded. We're going to find ourselves in unity.
If you're taught as a spirit at all times and I'm part of the Spirit at all times, we're gonna agree on everything. Now, sad to say, that isn't the reality. We're still here. And the enemies that work in the flesh comes in, and only by pride comes contention and so on. But if that were practically true, if I say again, if you were taught of the Spirit and I was taught of the Spirit on all things at all times, there would be beautiful unity. And you often see it in the book of the Acts in the early days.
Problems arose in the 15th chapter. A problem arose. A serious doctrinal error was introduced into the early church. The Jews thought that they had to make Jews out of the Gentiles so they could go on together in the Church of God. And they take up the matter. And at the end of the chapter, isn't it beautiful? There's complete agreement. They recognize the work of the Spirit of God. The truth of God has presented there to them, and there's perfect unity.
And there would be that rather than in the assemblies today, if there was that bowing to the Word of God, the leading of the Spirit of God, the setting aside of our own thoughts and our own will. If there was that practically with each one of us, there would be that unity that God desires and that the Apostle Paul desired and prayed for for these Philippians Saints.
In the third chapter, we have some thoughts there in connection with that.
In the 15th verse.
Philippians 3 and 15 last. Therefore as many as be perfect, be dust minded, and if anything ye be otherwise minded, God shall feel, even listen to you.
Nevertheless, whereto we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us mind the same thing, rather than be followers together with me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an example for many walk, of whom I have told you often, and I'll tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ.
Are we in the same mind as being?
Friends of the Cross of Christ.
Appreciators of the Cross of Christ.
Those that benefit from the cross of Christ falls centered on that, isn't it? And so there are many secondary things.
That are not related directly to the Person of the Lord and His work on the cross and the results of it.
And then when we use the word truth.
Perhaps my understanding of truth is different than yours.
But I would suggest to my soul that my brother's understanding of the truth he has received in the Spirit of God, and it's different than mine, and I believe I've received mine from the Spirit of God also.
But as I consider the cross of the Lord Jesus, I'm going to bow my head and wait for the Lord to make us of one mind. And if it's going to happen only in glory, I can still walk with my brother in the shadow of the cross of Christ. Just like to make a comment on the first verse of chapter 2 because we have two words there.
Which are constellation and Comfort.
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And perhaps we understand them to mean pretty much the same thing.
The relief of love.
Somebody's carrying a heavy load and I can sympathize with him and I can say keep on brother, and read verses to him and pray with him, and that's all good. And that's comfort, that's consolation.
But if I say, let me have a part of that, let me carry this for you, Let me do this for you. I believe this is a thought in the comfort of love. Love is not words. Love is action. And so we see others bearing heavy burdens in the measure that God gives us. May we have grace to help them carry it. Not just pray for them. It's good to pray for them. We should pray for them. But in the measure given to us, let's try and carry part of it with them.
The next verse gives another aspect of this matter of the mind. Verse three it says loneliness.
Of mine.
Getting along together and having mutual joy in the Lord is not just agreeing that certain things are the mind of God and truth, but there is a spirit, there is an attitude of mind that goes along with the way in which we see things. And what Paul could see here is that there is the natural tendency within us.
To make important.
What gives honor to us?
Even in our spiritual exercise of gifts.
To, as he says here in the next verse, a steam that which is in another greater than in oneself, to see the expression of Christ and what he has given to another. A lonely mind is able to esteem it more than that which God has given to oneself. But it's a real challenge because the natural heart doesn't do that. The world operates on the basis of.
That which is important is that which gives honor and glory to me. And yet we see the perfect example. Paul doesn't use himself as an example of this. He uses the Lord Jesus and he says look at his mind.
Was he lowly in mind?
We see them, we trace his life, and we marvel. We marvel at that man which could do anything in miracles and so on. But as he could say in Matthew 11, come unto me, all either labor and our heavy legend, and I sometimes want to add into that verse, come down unto me, come down into that lowly spirit. That was His spirit.
That we're feet, peace and rest are found when there's a burden in the soul and we do find there are souls that others are attracted to because of the loneliness of mind that is they exhibit in their lives. It encourages others to, as it were, share of like mindedness with that person and find not putting aside truth.
But then we see how the the and the verses which follow, we will see how the Lord Jesus exhibited a loneliness of mind in his own life, and what he put aside from His Godhead deity and the emptying of Himself and so on. That exhibited incredible loneliness of mind and that promotes the result that is necessary for one mindedness that is of God. So it is, let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.
Sometime some time ago, my son was.
Visiting with me.
He had been in the meeting until he was 24 years old and then he went away.
All kinds of hard times. And now it's 47. Now he confesses to be safe, but he goes someplace else. So I asked him, how come you've never invited me to go with you to the place where you are going?
And he said, I know you wouldn't like it there.
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That's why I haven't been. That's why I have not invited you to come with me to the place.
So he knows my mind.
So we are to be able to read each other's mind. Now that's very hard to do.
We have to have wisdom.
To read somebody's mind, we really have to be, ha, we really have to have the mind of Christ.
And then compared with my mind, my mind is with the other person's mind in Christ.
And we have to get together on that.
Thinking in the history of man's view of uh.
Their view was that the earth was central to everything and the everything revolved around the earth. But as they became more mature in their understanding, they reserved. They found out that the earth is pretty old, small and the whole system of things.
I'm afraid that it's a, it's a hard thing for soul to come into that same realization that they're not the center of the universe, that they realize that they are values. The earth is an object of God's affection, uh, because he has us on that, that little sphere, that little pixel, the vast universe. But what I was thinking about was.
This verse 3.
Of our chapter.
And lowliness of mind let each esteem other than themselves.
Multitudes that are objects of God's affection. And as we are talking and my brother mentioned, when someone comes into the assembly, how do we treat them? One of the tendencies we have, uh, is to point out, uh, have you noticed brother so and so or brother sister so and so and what they are like.
Let me see other better than themselves. I was thinking of Proverbs 19. It says that the glory, it's the glory of a man to pass over. Trans Gregory, you know, in this little assembly in Philippi, no doubt hurt many when these two sisters were at loggerheads.
But can we look in, perhaps in our own heart?
And see perhaps that we've been offended by the by some little things throughout the big thing, but when we look at it in this whole sphere, can't we let it go?
Can't we give it to him?
The fibre system is a good example for us and and Second Samuel 19.
When it came to the point of having Diver having his plate and the Fibbage of having his portion, what is the pivot should say let him take off?
Why, seeing that my Lord has come into your place, if we really love Christ, if we really love Christ, we're going to have affection for his owner, aren't we? And we're going to be willing to let those transcriptions, I'm not talking about them that needs to be brought forth and judged, but I'm talking about those things that kind of injured my spirit because I have taken a place of esteeming myself, rubbed better.
Than the other.
So isn't there some practical exhortations in these things for us?
I'd like to just follow that up, but rather, uh, George has said with a verse in Romans 12, but before I read that we won't turn to it, but in the 9th chapter of Mark we find an example when the disciples were traveling along with the the Lord Jesus that they disputed along the way. And when they got to Capernaum, the Lord Jesus asked them what they were disputing about. He knew, of course, but he asked them and they refused to answer him because the scripture records they had disputed.
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Who would be who amongst them was the greatest? And the Lord brought two principles before them in that chapter in connection with humility. And who was the greatest? One is to be the servant. A servant is great. If you're going to be great in the Kingdom, you've got to serve. And then he brings before them the, uh, concept of a little child, as he often did. But having said that, I'd like to just in connection with what our brother George said at the beginning of his comments, read the second verse.
Of Romans chapter 12 and be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Now when we read this verse, we often apply it to many outward practical things, and certainly it has this application. But I really believe in its context, brethren, that it applies to just what brother George was saying. And that is that the thought event of the natural man is that he draws a circle, puts himself in the center of that circle.
And everything revolves around himself. That's the thinking of the natural man. But what the apostle Paul was bringing out in Romans was that after we're saved, there's a new center in our lives, and that is Christ. And as a result of having Christ as our center, then his interests are first. And so he says, don't be conformed to the world. Don't put yourself as the center of the world. Don't do everything for yourself.
But do it for others. You know, it's John. When John wrote, he spoke of the love of God. He said, and this was manifest, the love of God, and that he laid down his life for us. And then he says, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. Do we really know what it is to put the Lord's people, to put our local brethren, the local assembly as the center of our thoughts and desires for blessing? Sometimes I find when I visit assembly and there are those who are not coming out to the meetings and you perhaps visit them or you hear about them and they said, or they say, well, nobody cares about me.
Nobody does anything for me and I, I, I and this and that, but that. If we look within, if we put ourselves at the center, we're gonna get discouraged. But when we have Christ as the center, then it's going to well up that love, Christian love and affection in our hearts so that even without thinking about it, we have others.
As Christ is the center and others as our main interest and when we do that.
Not only are our brethren going to receive a blessing, but we're going to receive a blessing too. He that watered is watered also himself. And this is what Paul really desired. For the Philippians, it's been said this little wedge was coming in to spoil their joy, to spoil their fellowship and communion one with another. That's what the enemy wants to do. If there's an assembly on the face of the earth that's going on happily, that's an assembly that needs more prayer than any other assembly because.
The enemy knows that an assembly that God knows that an assembly that's going to be, that's going on well and happily together, the enemy's gonna be right there. And Paul saw it, An assembly where there was joy and rejoicing, a testimony in the gospel, and their testimony had gone out to other assemblies. They'd heard about it. Oh, Paul says, I'm gonna pray for you because the enemy's already coming in with a wedge.
And so, brethren, we need to get ourselves our the focus of ourselves. I know the world teaches our young people that we're number one. Do everything for for yourself. Make sure you look out for number one. But that is not that's being conformed to the world. That is not Christianity. Christianity is to get the focus completely off myself on Christ. And as a result, there will be blessing collectively for the people of God. I think we get this illustrated again if we go back to the wilderness.
In The Brazen Serpent, that's at the beginning of, uh, Numbers 21, where we have what's illustrated in these chapters. Again, the triumphing of the wilderness. We are in the wilderness, but there's also triumphing in the wilderness.
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And that's what we have in Philippians. But in that brazen serpent we have the new generation. Now the old generation had died off in the wilderness. The new generation was now responsible. First thing they did was they murmured and the Lord sent serpents. This is at the end of the wilderness. So what's the teaching there? Well, I think what we've been taught over the years is that the the flesh and the believer is incorrigible and it needs to be set aside. We have, I think, the teaching of the brazen serpent in verse 21 of chapter one.
For me to live is Christ. And also in Galatians 220 they were not living that way in Galatia. But he says this is the way of blessing. I am crucified with Christ. Nevertheless I live and the life which I now live. I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me and has given himself for me. That's the secret to these things, isn't it? Is to realize that even as believers our flesh is incorrigible and to set it aside.
And do, uh, say what? The apostle Paul for me to live as Christ. And then we see later on in that 21St chapter of Numbers, a few verses later, they came to the place called Beer where there was, uh, water springing up. That is the new life and the believer rising up to that, uh, eternal life that God has for us. Uh, Mr. uh, Walston says that in those chapters we get the teaching that we have in John 3:00 and 4:00.
And John three, we have the brazen serpent brought in. And in John four we remember we have the woman at the well.
And the Lord speaks about they that worship the Father must worship in spirit and truth. And so that's the, uh, basis of these things. These things don't come naturally to the old man. The old man can't do these things at all. The old man needs to be set aside. I'm crucified with Christ. Nevertheless, I live but the life which I now live. I live by the faith of the Son of God who loves me and gave himself from me. And then we can walk in the good of it.
The verb in the third verse there is to esteem.
It's not thinking of others, it's assuming others.
Assuming others is putting value on others.
And the example that we have before us is the Lord Jesus.
So what value did the Lord Jesus put on you and put on me? And if we have that as our example, we will value others.
More than revalue shops.
Sometimes I think that.
We have twice because we think we need to judge the matter rightly and we need to straighten our situation out. And there's a person in Genesis 2018 which has been a help to me. Genesis 18, verse 25. Very early in the Bible, Abraham said, shall not judge of all the earth be right, You know, to have perfect confidence in our Lord and our God that we can leave it.
With him in prayer.
Us by ourselves, knowing him, having a relationship with him, knowing him.
1:00 and 1:00.
Whatever that is, shower closet in your car on the way to work or whatever that is. And then the pressure is not on me. I've let that burden and I've put it on the board and I can just trust him that he will do the right thing.
And sometimes, Brother Ted, it's a the matter of wanting to vindicate ourselves too. And I was thinking of that in connection with, again, the example of the Lord Jesus, because there was another occasion where they accused the Lord of two things. They said thou art a Samaritan and hath the devil. And as far as having a devil, he did answer that charge because as we said earlier, he never compromised when it came to the truth. And that had to do with his deity and the glory of God.
And he did answer that, but he never answered the charge of being a Samaritan. That was a slur on his manhood. The Samaritans have, the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans. The woman at the well said. And so he never answered that as the perfect example. And sometimes their strife caused amongst the people of God. Because we want to vindicate not so much the truth. Always we need to stand for the truth, but we want to justify and vindicate ourselves. When Mary, when all you know, not only did Judah speak up against Mary, when she poured out her ointment at the feet of the Lord, but all the disciples spoke up against her. I think it's so beautiful. You never read of Mary trying to vindicate herself. She never says one word. What does she do? She lets the Lord do it. The Lord said that she had done a good work. He was the one that spoke in her defense.
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Let him vindicate it in his own way, and it may not be this side of heaven, it may not be till the judgment seat of Christ. You know the Lord has never been vindicated on this planet earth, yet publicly he's waited 2000 years plus. You know he will be. And if he can wait that long, brethren, who when he was reviled, reviled not again when he suffered, he threatened not Why you say, how could he do it?
He committed himself to him that judgeth righteously like Mary you God had the record down properly and the Lord is waiting for his vindication. Are you and I willing to leave those things just to waste his time and wait till perhaps even the judgment seat of Christ? Paul said, I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I've committed unto him against that day. Paul was misunderstood. He said I leave those things, although there was perhaps no servant of God apart from the Lord Jesus who was more faithful.
In standing for the truth itself.
169, 100 and 60 9.
Nsnoise.
Yeah, I received no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.
No, no, no.