A Daily Walk

Guest (Male): Today on a daily walk from pastor John Randall.

John Randall: Today, we live in a culture that is always encouraging us to love ourselves more. And that so much of the problems perhaps in society is due to the fact that we just don't know how to love ourselves. And if we could just learn to love ourselves more than that would solve the problems in society. I disagree based on biblical text, but also in my own life. It's not loving yourself more. I feel like that's probably the problem. We love ourselves too much and we love God less and people less. So sometimes it's all about self.

It's all self this, self that, self help, self this, self care, self this, self this, self this. It's all about self and not about anybody else. That's where our problems lie.

Guest (Male): When we want a portrait of the wonderful humility of Christ, we need to read Philippians chapter two. There Paul seeks to resolve a conflict in the Philippian church and writes about our Savior's humility, a trait he wants to produce in us as well. So we will consider humility in the Lord today, one who had the supreme right to be served, but who came to serve in humility. Our study is based in Philippians chapter two. Here to continue our series To Live Is Christ on a daily walk is pastor John Randall.

John Randall: You know, when it comes to unity, Paul says this is going to fulfill my joy, just knowing that you're walking together. John said, I have no greater joy than to see that my children are walking in love and walking in truth. If you are a parent or you currently raising little children or you have teenagers or kids in the home or you have raised children, there is a joy as a parent that comes to you when you see your children actually getting along and being nice to one another. And you constantly have to stress this.

Maybe your children are perfect and they just get along so well and they never fight. Well, God bless you. But for the rest of us, the rest of us, it's more of a challenge. And you know, they they fight about this. So that's mine. He took this and and you come home and you feel like you're just you know, you're just a referee and you just blowing whistles and telling people stop that. Go over there, sit over there, take a time out. No, it's come over here. All right, go upstairs. All right, get in the back of the Okay, don't make me pull the car over.

All of these things just to create a sense of unity. But when you come into the home and you're like, uh it's kind of quiet. Like okay, the kids taking a nap or like what's going on? Just want to make sure not You know, you come in and you look and they're playing together and they're sharing and they're loving one another and you're like, oh you know, you're just so amazed. Your heart is over filled with joy like I'm glad that we have children. It's great, but this is great. They're united. They love each other.

They're being nice for 5 minutes. This is so Thank you, Lord. See, imagine how the Lord feels when he looks at his kids and they're getting along and they're loving one another and they're serving one another and they're caring for one another. Oh, how that blesses the heart of God. That's what Paul's expressing here, the heart of God. All of these exhortations are important. These four foundational facts that they were experiencing was powerful. But here's the question, how do you actually carry it out? Like how how do you do this? So wonderful we're experiencing this.

But how do we do this? I'm I'm glad you asked because it says here in the very next verse, verse three, here's the key. Here's the practical aspect. Let nothing The word underscored, nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind esteem others better than yourself. If there's anything that will quench the work of the Spirit, anything that will tarnish a relationship, hinder fellowship is right here, selfish ambition and pride. And these two go together and they feed off of one another and they grow into major division. Selfishness and pride. Deal Moody said that selfishness is tearing others down and vain conceit or pride is building ourselves up.

Another translation of the word selfishness is strife, contentiousness, extreme selfishness, a desire to put oneself forward, factious spirit, self-seeking. It's the mentality that says I want my way uh regardless of how you feel. I deserve this. I deserve that. Don't they know who I am? Are they not aware of my giftedness? Whatever your thing is, you just you know, it's all about you. Have they seen my credentials? Who do they think they are? Nobody talks to me like this. And he just he just so self inflated and our flesh kicks back. And we can strive.

But the Bible says a servant of the Lord must not strive, but be gentle to all, able to teach. Strife, selfish ambition that is unchecked and unrepented of and uncrucified gives way to pride and vain glory, a highly exaggerated self view, which is in contrast to humility that was personified in the life of Jesus. It's the opposite. Today, we live in a culture that is always encouraging us to love ourselves more. And that so much of the problems perhaps in society is due to the fact that we just don't know how to love ourselves. And if we could just learn to love ourselves more than that would solve the problems in society.

I disagree uh based on biblical text, but also in my own life. It's not loving yourself more. I feel like that's probably the problem. We love ourselves too much and we love God less and people less. So sometimes it's all about self. It 's all self this, self that, self help, self this, self care, self this, self this, self this. It's all about self and not about anybody else. That's where our problems lie. Jesus said, if you want to follow me, guess what? Die to yourself. Oh, that's pretty intense. Yeah, take up the cross daily and follow me.

It's a death to self. It's a death to selfishness. And And you might say, I don't I don't I you know, pastor, I don't I don't think I'm that selfish, really. I'm uh Are you married? If you're not and you do, you one of the major lessons you will discover in like the first week is that uh you you are selfish. And if you don't think you are, just ask your spouse. They'll tell you you are lovingly, but it's true. It's just a fact. We just we we're so I don't think I'm that way. Actually, I am that way.

And there are things that come out of me that are not representative of the spirit of God because self wants to rule. Self wants to reign. Self wants to be supreme. And Jesus said, listen, die to yourself. Paul is calling the church to have no vain glory, not to do things through selfish ambition or conceit. The The word vain glory means an excessive or ostentatious pride, especially in one's own achievements. But instead, he calls for a Notice this, a lowliness of mind which means humility. The opposite, the antithesis of this arrogant, proud, ostentatious look at me.

It's this humility that says look at Jesus. What a contrast. Pride is the soil in which division grows, but humility is the soil in which unity grows. What a contrast. The The quality of unpretentious behavior, a a humility, a modesty, unassuming in the estimation of one's own ability. Humility, it's not overrated by the way, humility. In classical Greek language, they didn't really have a word for humility. Isn't that interesting? They thought humility was something bad. If you're humble, that's not a good thing. You need to be proud. You need to put yourself out there. You put yourself forward.

You know, just be You know, humility was not something that that was to be modeled or followed rather, where Jesus shows up and says, come and learn of me. I am meek and lowly in heart. I am humble. And Jesus demonstrated humility. And in fact, he taught that everyone who exalts himself will be humbled and he who humbles himself will be exalted. God resists the proud, but he gives grace to the humble. The person who walks in pride, blatant pride is a person who does not know God because to know him, to truly know him and know that your breath is held in his hand, that you are existing and alive because of the grace of God, it should bring you to this sense of humility.

It should humble you. Walk humbly with your God, the Bible says. Not walking in pride. The devil walks in pride. When I am humble before the Lord, walking humbly with God, knowing who I am in Christ, I can have unity with my brothers and sisters. Oh, Paul said in writing to the Romans, I I say in chapter 12, I say through the grace given to me, everyone who is among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly. As God has dealt to each one a measure of faith, in fact, in Romans 12:16 something similar, he said, be of the same mind toward one another.

Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble and don't be wise in your own opinion. I mean just just be humble. Walk in humility. Now it's also important to understand that humility is not thinking poorly of yourself or thinking too highly of yourself. It's just really thinking less of yourself because false humility is also pride when you think about it. And there are people who are filled with false humility, but it's actually pride. I shall explain. I shall illustrate. I'm really not a good preacher. Oh, pastor John, come on. Don't be so hard on yourself.

You do pretty good. I actually don't think I'm that good. I know a lot of people that are better. You know, that's true, but you don't need to to be about You know, don't feel bad about yourself, you know. Come on. This Well, well, what do you mean by that? What I mean is you know what I'm saying? This is false humility, trying to get somebody to pump you up. It's false. You have to be aware of that. Here's a way. Paul says this, rather than operate in self and nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but listen to this, but in lowliness of mind, here's something, let each esteem others better than himself.

Better than himself. This is how unity is promoted, not me just always putting myself first, but actually putting others first, esteeming others better than yourself. You know a great way to to understand this? Everybody in this room next to you, in back of you, in front of you, outside, over here, in there, wherever everybody in this room Listen, don't get all prideful, but listen, everybody in this room is better than you at something. I don't know about that. Like what do you mean? Like let's let's go through the list. I mean I just said you know Really, I don't think so.

Well, that's cuz you're proud, but you know but everybody in this room is better than you at something. And therefore, I appreciate that. I look around this room and I know many of you and your testimonies and you are better than me at several things, many things. And I'm not saying that as like this. I'm just saying it's a fact. It's a fact. And because of that, I I appreciate that. I I esteem that. I think that is a blessing. I I I want to think highly of you and I And I appreciate you. Imagine if all of us were esteeming one another in that way.

We had a a mutual respect for one another because we know there's there's something about you that God has gifted you in some way that is a I mean that that's how we should see each other with that kind of love, with that kind of attitude. Sometimes the natural bent is to discover where you're better at somebody else than than what they're good at and then just kind of one up them. Somebody says, yeah, you know, this last week I was uh Really, that's really cool. You know, we went last year to You just one up them and they're like, you know, that just that that kind of a thing.

Yeah, I knew I was better than you at that. Next, you know, you just go through the It's not how it's supposed to be. Esteem one another better than yourself. And when you do that, you you live in one accord rather than so discord. You esteem others better than you. And then you are also It says in verse four, look out for not only your own interests, but what about the interests of others? Well, I'm not really interested in that. Yeah, but she might be interested in that. I'm not really interested in this. I know, but he's probably He's definitely interested in that.

Like be aware of that. A key to unity and harmony in in the body of Christ is esteeming others better than ourselves and looking out not just for us, but for others. The small Listen, somebody said the smaller we become, the more room God has to work. Lord, just less of me. You I'll decrease, you increase, all that Christ might be magnified in my life. Are you a person who is only into your own interests, your deal, your thing? Or do you look into the interests of others? Do you simply look on people or into people?

Having pleaded with the Philippians, reminding them of what they were experiencing at the present time in the congregation, Paul finally moves to the pattern they are to follow. This is how you to are implement it. You You don't just think of yourself. It's not just selfish ambition. You're putting others first. You're loving one another. You're serving one another. But then he says, if you're looking for a pattern to follow, if you're looking for a model to emulate, look no further than Jesus. Here's our example, church. It says in verse five, let this mind, this mentality be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.

What did that look like? Who being in the form of God, absolute deity, didn't consider it robbery to be equal with God. That is to hold on to his divine privileges, but instead, he makes himself of no reputation, taking the form of a servant, a bond servant, and coming in the likeness of men. Let this mind be in you. You have to make a conscious decision whether or not you're going to the mentality, the mindset of Jesus to be the way that I think. And how do I learn the mentality and the mindset of Jesus where it is revealed in scripture?

This is the mind of Christ revealed. And therefore, as I meditate in the scriptures and read the scriptures, suddenly my perspective, my mind is being renewed day by day and I'm seeing things differently. I see you differently. I see the world differently. I see my life differently, what it's about, what it's meant to be because of the perspective, the mindset of Christ. As I let that mind be in me and then Paul says, let me let me give you an example of what this looked like. Jesus being fully God leaves glory, comes to the earth in his incarnation.

The The word means that the word became flesh, John said, and dwelt among us and we beheld his glory. The glory is of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. The incarnation of Christ, the humility and the condescension of Christ to leave absolute glory and honor and praise that was given to him alone as the center of everything leaves that and comes to be like one of us, clothes himself in humanity, although completely divine, sets aside that is the access to his divine privileges so that he could identify with us. Jesus never stopped being God.

That is why the Pharisees, the religious leaders sought to put him to death because he repeatedly affirmed his deity, that he was God, not just the son of God, folks, but God. The Bible tells us very clearly concerning Jesus Christ in Hebrews chapter one and verse three. Don't be confused about this, who being in the brightness of his glory, the express image, the exact replica of his person upholding all things by the word of his power. That's a description of Christ. He is God. He is the exact replica that he is God in other words.

The brightness of his glory, although he restricted the manifestation of that glory, it didn't mean he stopped being who he was, God. Furthermore, Colossians chapter one verse 15 says that Jesus is the image There it is again of the invisible God, the firstborn over creation, the preeminent one over all things. If someone says to you, hey, what does God look like? All you have to say is he looks like Jesus. That's who he looks like because Jesus has revealed the glory of the Father in his life. That's what God looks like. He looks like Jesus because Jesus is God.

Obviously, Jesus said in his ministry, before most assuredly I say to you, before Abraham was, John 8:58, I am. The I am of Exodus three when God revealed himself to Moses there at the burning bush and said when Moses said, well, who do I tell them sent me? Tell them I am has sent you. Jesus takes that title reserved for deity and says, I am. He's God. When Philip said, Lord, show us the Father in John chapter 14, Jesus said at Philip, have I been with you so long and you've not seen the Father? If you've seen me, you've seen the Father.

He went on to say, I and the Father are we're one. We're one. So Jesus is God. And yet being God, having all of the divine privileges at his access, the glories of heaven surrounding him, he sets his things aside, these privileges, and comes and takes the place of a servant. Jesus said to his disciples, I did not come to be served, but to serve and to give my life a ransom for many. In the upper room, Jesus took a towel and girded himself and took a basin of water and went around to each one of the disciples' feet and he washed their feet.

And when he was completed, he said, do you know what I have done for you? I have left you an example. Blessed are you if you do these things. Not just see them, not just observe them, but you actually put these into practice and you also take the form of a bond servant. Paul was calling the church to be like Christ, to serve one another, to follow his example, to emulate him. And also it says that Jesus made himself of no reputation. I mean you think about the way that Jesus came born in some obscure place there in Bethlehem where nobody really knew about except for a few shepherds and his parents and and the angels and I mean just how he could have come.

And yet he comes in lowliness and humility and and no one really knows where he is and who he is and he grows up in a town where nobody knows about Nazareth and then he's just taking this humble position and he models it throughout his ministry, no reputation. Jesus emptied himself, took a step from sovereign to servant. The The actually the word is kenosis in the Greek. And there Jesus emptied himself, that is. He came to the earth and enrobed himself in human flesh for fallen humanity, laid aside certain rights that he had as God, the eternal son, but he never laid aside his deity.

In that sense, he never ceased to be God. Why Why is this so important for us to understand? Why would Paul emphasize this? Because Jesus became like us. He was dependent on the spirit, the same way you and I have to be dependent on the spirit. He relied on the Father and he took the form of a servant. And here we have Paul saying, in light of the example of Jesus being found in the appearance as a man, he humbled himself. And notice how far he went to humble himself. He became obedient to the point of death, even the death on the cross.

Therefore, verse nine, God has also highly exalted him and given him the name which is above every name that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow of those in heaven, those on earth, and those under the earth. And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. So here's our example. He lays aside his divine rights and privileges to be clothed in humanity, to serve humanity. And when he takes his humble position, what is the end result of Jesus taking this humble position? Exalted, glorified. Every knee bowing, every tongue confessing that Jesus Christ is Lord.

And therefore, what Paul is suggesting to the believers here is if Christ was willing to do all of that, to lay it all aside, the reputation, all of the all of these things, divine privileges and rights to come and serve. How can we not do that here among ourselves? As Jesus took the place of humility, he was exalted. We take the place of humility. He who humbles himself will be exalted, the Bible says.

Guest (Male): We've been encouraged to walk humbly before the Lord today on a daily walk. As pastor John Randall pointed out, humility is a key to unity in the body. We'll share more in a moment. You can hear the program again at adailywalk.org and then share the content with friends and family. You can also hear John's messages through our free app. This is a great way to listen to current and past teachings from pastor John. Search for Calvary South OC. Has this ministry blessed and encouraged you in your daily walk? If it has, we'd like to know.

You can email us at adailywalk atgmail.com. Pastor John would be so encouraged by what you have to say. So tell him which station you listen to as well. That's adailywalk atgmail.com. Here in the month of June, we picked out a resource from R. Kent Hughes. It's called Disciples of a Godly Man. If your desire is to be a Godly Man, then this is a must read. You'll be encouraged to grow in godliness through disciplines like purity, devotion, prayer, and leadership. It's available for the cost of $11. Ordering is really easy online at adailywalk.org or just call 877 242 0828.

And please remember us in your prayers and your giving to the Lord. We want to help as many people as possible in their daily walk through the teaching of God's word. And you can help to make that possible through either a one-time gift or ongoing monthly support. Donations can be made online at adailywalk.org or call 877 242 0828. And now with these final reflections from Philippians chapter two, here again is pastor John.

John Randall: Is it possible to have unity? It is. How? Well, we experience the fellowship, the consolation, the mercy of God in our own lives, and we distribute that to one another. We're not just looking out for what what I want, but I'm looking out for the benefit of the entire body of believers. We are one. We are united. I'm esteeming others better than myself. And I am setting aside perhaps what I want for the sake of serving others in the process. Imagine if we all did that. What what kind of culture would we have in the congregation if that if this were the things that we were applying, if if these things were happening, it'd be it'd be amazing.

And this is something that we have to make a conscious decision to pursue. And here's the great news. Whatever the Lord asks us to do, he also provides us with the ability through the spirit of God to do it. This is actually possible to have this kind of culture and environment within a congregation if we will do these things.

Guest (Male): Get ready for a spiritual workout on the next daily walk as pastor John Randall digs a little deeper into Philippians chapter two.

Guest (Male): This program is brought to you by Calvary South OC and made possible through your generosity.