Unity through humility Philippians 2 1 4 1

Unity through humility Philippians 2: 1 - 4 1

Unity through humility Context of the letter • Paul and Timothy are in prison in Rome • The Philippian church was the first established in Europe by Paul (Acts 16: 12) 2

Unity through humility If. . . • Note that in the original Greek the word translated “if” did not convey doubt. It was used for emphasis “since” 3

Unity through humility Benefits of being in God’s family (1) • • • Consolation in Christ – we are saved forever Comfort of love – God’s love shown to us Fellowship of (with) the Spirit Affection, tenderness Mercy, compassion 4

Unity through humility Unity (2) • • Maintaining unity Thoughts Attitudes Love Purpose Words Actions 5

Unity through humility Living unselfishly (3, 4) • In the Church there is: No room for selfish ambition No room for conceit and pride • The challenge is to esteem others before self • Put other people’s interests before our own 6

Unity through humility What about us? • • • “Faith without deeds is dead” (James 2: 26) Our unity with Christ means we need to maintain our unity in love with one another Having benefited from our union with Jesus we live a life of humble service and love to God and His people 7

Unity through humility “The greatest men are those who are humble before God. The tallest men are those who bend before God” Richard C. Halverson 8