Christian Humility; Christain Service | Phil. 2-:19-30
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Intro
Hey Y’all, how’s it going.
So I’m about to do things out of sequence, so y’all get ready.
If you have your bible, go ahead and open to Phil 2:19, if you don’t have a bible throw a hand up and we will get one to you. Who needs a bible?
Cool Cool. Phil. 2:19 we are going to start there.
But before we do that, let’s pray for our time in the word.
pray
Okay let’s get in to it.
I’m going to tell you two stories really quick, and they are going to sound cold and heartless, but they are going to get a bigger point that this text talks about.
So around thanksgiving last year, our neighbor across the way from us, didn’t wake up one morning. He was an older gentleman, heart attack in his sleep. Didn’t wake up. He was a nice guy, veteran. He rented the house. but over Christmas and the new year, We watched as his family came over and went through his stuff, sold most of his stuff, and cleared the house.
and by about mid January, the house had been fully cleaned, new windows put in, fresh pine straw and then probably just after ski trip, New neighbors started moving stuff in. and now we have some new neighbors. We haven’t had a chance to meet them yet.
But took about 3-4ish month, boom, like it never even happened. New people.
Second story, while I was in Israel last year around May, FBC Statesboro reached out to me, they were looking at hiring a student pastor, they had an opening,
—don’t worry, I’m still here. I listened but told them I’d need to hear an audible voice from God if I was leaving here at that moment to go to Statesboro—
But I did hear them out, did some research on the church, found the previous Student Pastor was there for 11 years. Which is ancient in youth pastor terms. The average time a Youth Pastor stays at one church is about 3-4 years. If you’re doing math in your head, don’t worry, we aren’t leaving. We aren’t looking to leave anytime soon.
So in my research of the church, I found that the former Student Pastor there had passed away of cancer. Brutal. That is tough on a church. I knew that I wasn’t going there, but after finding that out, I def knew we weren’t moving, cause that’s a no win situation, to follow the beloved youth pastor of 11 years who passed away while pastoring.
But as of a couple months ago, I believe, they have filled that position. Which is great. For those of y’all headed to Statesboro in the fall, check out FBC Statesboro, they were really nice on the phone.
But the reason I want to tell you those two stories was not to remind you that you are gonna die one day, you are but that’s besides the point.
But I want you to see that you are replaceable.
And in the society we live in, we don’t like to think that. We are individuals, we are unique, we are what ever adjective you want to put in there.
But think about this in the kingdom of God, the upside down kingdom. We are replaceable.
We need to understand that, and adopt that posture in our lives. One day way in the future, I’m not going to be in here. Someone else is going to be here, and that’s okay. We want to create something that out lasts us in this world. That is what it means to truly do kingdom work.
So this is the essence of the passage we are about to read.
So let’s get in to this.
Phil 2:19-30, everyone still there?
Cool, read this with me.
19 I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be cheered by news of you. 20 For I have no one like him, who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare. 21 For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. 22 But you know Timothy’s proven worth, how as a son with a father he has served with me in the gospel. 23 I hope therefore to send him just as soon as I see how it will go with me, 24 and I trust in the Lord that shortly I myself will come also.
25 I have thought it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus my brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier, and your messenger and minister to my need, 26 for he has been longing for you all and has been distressed because you heard that he was ill. 27 Indeed he was ill, near to death. But God had mercy on him, and not only on him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow. 28 I am the more eager to send him, therefore, that you may rejoice at seeing him again, and that I may be less anxious. 29 So receive him in the Lord with all joy, and honor such men, 30 for he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was lacking in your service to me.
Context
Okay so, where are we in this text?
Last week we talked about the need for spiritual formation. That following Jesus means we have to actually pick up our feet and walk.
So where are here?
At first glance, this feels like some filler verses, purely logistical in his writing.
We are in between major themes in the book. Last week, light of the world, next week, Christ is greater than all, this week, travel itinerary.
So what do we do?
First off, it is some travel plans, this is not one of the glamorous passages, no t-shirt verse in this passage.
but these are not wasted words.
When you come to place in the bible that seems like filler, its not, the Lord can speak more through mundane travel plans than any of us pastors can preach John 3:16. Don’t discount the mundane parts of scripture.
So let’s look at what this is.
Paul is encouraging the Philippians that he is sending Timothy to them, to help them. This is the same Timothy from the letter, 1&2 Timothy.
Paul says he cares for them as much as Paul does.
Remember Paul is in prison writing this, so Timothy is going to go in Paul’s place.
So that is Timothy.
Then, you have Epaphroditus, now he is interesting, the text doesn’t really speak to who he is, but most of the commentaries that I read said he was actually one of the pastors at the church in Philippi. They had sent him out with Paul to carry the gospel. He got sick, in taking the gospel and almost died.
So these two guys, Paul starts talking about.
SO here is why.
This passage that one commentary literally called, the travelogue, is coming at the end of this broad thought.
It is the last bit of the thought. Paul started this section talking about The advance of the Gospel, then the humiliation of Christ, That all we do is for the gospel. Our live are geared toward spreading the gospel.
Practical advice, be light in the world. Be ready to suffer, make sure you are formed to be like Christ.
All of these things, and then Paul says, and to help you do all of these things, I’m sending you two examples to follow.
You want to know what it looks like? These two are living it.
Paul is saying, I can’t come, but these are just as good. It doesn’t matter that I can’t come, these two are examples you can follow.
These two want to advance the gospel, they’ll die for the gospel, Epaphroditus almost died. Thes two are humble, these two are the example of a servant.
So let’s see what the implications are
P1 - In Community we cary the mission of the Gospel.
First thing, and I may sound like a broken record, this is a call for community.
Church family, church community.
All of church life is going to happen in community.
In Community we carry the mission of the gospel.
Look at what Paul is saying here.
the church at Philippi sent Epaphroditus out with Paul. Out to learn. The grow. Paul has partnered with the church at Philippi to help them do these thing.
Paul is saying, Epaphroditus is ready now. He has gone across the world, he has come to know what it means to suffer for the gospel. He almost died for the gospel. He is a changed man.
The pastor you sent out is ready to come back and lead you to the feet of Jesus.
This is an encouragement to the church at Philippi. You invested in him to send him, now he’s coming back to lead you. he is fully mature, ready to continue the work of the gospel in Philippi.
What is cool about my position in the church is we get to send out a lot of people. It’s cool and the hardest part.
Kids ministry the goal is create young disciples in the church. Randy’s goal is to shepherd the flock here, and lead the church, Matthew leads the flock in discipleship by singing, we believe what we sing and he leads us to worship. Our goal coensides with those goals, but at the end of it, we have a different end game.
What we do in here, is to disciple you to exist in the world, apart from us, to send you out as missionaries. To prepare you to follow Jesus through college and to equip you to be ready to follow Jesus after college. So when you graduate, you don’t just leave us, we send you. Where ever you are going, you are being sent.
and it is cool to watch the students that we have sent out grow in their faith go off to do awesome things for the gospel.
We won’t know if we did our job well when we send out a class, but we will in a couple years.
But the coolest part of sending is getting to see former students come back and see how they have grown.
I can’t name all of the kids, but one that comes to mind is Cassidy Hulsey, some of y’all may know her, seniors y’all were 8th grade when she graduated. But when we get to catch up with her when shes back from Nola, we know she’s not the same person we sent out, she grew, she grew up. She became mature in the faith,
That is what is going on in Philippi now, Epaphroditus is coming back not a rookie, but a veteran. Dude is coming back a changed person. Willing to die for the gospel and to bring that same energy back.
That is the goal. Like we talked about last week, Spiritual Formation requires you to play a role in formation. In being changed.
You have to pick up your feet and walk.
Epaphroditus picked up his feet, he went and learned, he went and did. Now he’s coming back to teach, to lead. To be the example.
P2 - Humility is the way forward
And so what is the example? Remember this is at the end of the long thought.
That the way to lead is through humility. Humility is the way forward for the church.
You want to lead? Come and die.
That is the example set to us by Christ. I’m sending these to you, so that they can lead by example and serve.
We are called to serve one another, that should be the posture of our lives.
Imagine what the church would be like if everyone thought of themselves as just servants, that no one was better than another?
Paul is sending them as an example and this is a warning for us, saying, if you don’t serve, if you don’t adopt the posture of a servant, then how are we going to be salt, how are we going to be light?
How are we going to be different from the world?
Look at every other job, organization, corporation. You get ahead by being the best and letting people know it. Not in the kingdom, you get ahead by not getting ahead. You lead by serving, the church leads by starting with humility.
Humility starts at the feet of Jesus.
Paul is completing the thought he started back in the beginning of Chapter 2, Phil 2:4 in verse 21,
4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.
21 For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.
Humility starts by looking at the ultimate example of a servant found in Christ.
Spurgeon once said
Humility is to make a right estimate of oneself.
Charles Spurgeon
That is Paul’s ask, know who you are and where you stand.
We are all just beggars showing other beggars where to get bread.
If we are going to be salt and light in this world, then this is where we start by being a servant. By being a place that looks for ways to serve, that looks for needs, and serves and meets needs. That is how the gospel is spread.
That what how the early church made an impact, it saw a physical need, met it and through that, was able to meet a spiritual need.
Humility is the way forward.
P3 - Next One Up
So here is the question? What do we do? In grain this in your head.
When I was in New Orleans I was a part of a small church plant. And it was super cool, our community was tight, I’m always going to advise when you leave here, find church plant, they always need servants, and you can quickly find some community in a small plant.
But here is what it taught me, like the stories I told you at the very beginning, you are replaceable.
It taught me to see that in the church, everyone can be replaced, and that is a good thing. I remember the first time our small little church sent out someone who was a big part of what we did, they were an integral part of church life, and I remember asking our pastor, “what are we going to do?” and this was what he told me, “the church always raises up a new leader.” and he was right. That church i was a part of sent leaders all over the place, and sent them out all the time. And every time, we sent, the Lord raised up someone new.
There is someone currently doing what I used to do there. That is how the church works, you don’t create anything based off a person or a personality, you base it off of the call of Jesus to follow Him.
That is the posture we need to adopt, this mentality of next one up. Because if we all have the posture of a servant, then we know who is actually doing the work, the Lord is the one who gets things done, we just get to tag along.
I know it is only March, but look at this senior class, it’s huge, id being lying to you if i told you i hadn’t thought of the impact of sending out 24 something kids.
But also, I’m not worried. The Lord raises up new leaders.
If we adopt the posture of a servant, then we will not run out of leaders.
P2Christ
So here is the invite, who’s up next? Who is going to serve?
I want to invite you in to a community that serves, a community that sees one another as family, that works together to serve. To grow. To follow Jesus in all that we do. And to bring others in to follow Jesus.
If you are a follower of jesus, take a look at your pride. Your pride left unchecked will run yourself right out of a church, because pride says, I can do it, I’m the best, I know better, and we are not called to live like that because the Gospel calls us to see that we tried to do it ourselves, we broke the world and we need a savior. Christ is the only way forward.
If you are not a follower of Jesus, then the invite is to follow him, to see that His way is better than ours, to see the Christ is the only way to joy ever lasting. That this world is broken and Christ offers restoration. I want to invite you to follow Jesus. To know him as lord, to know him as savior.
Jesus is calling you.
Come see Christ as Lord, come see Christ as King.