Getting Your Mind Right
(Philippians 2: 1-16)
I know I’ve mentioned this before, but one of my favorite movies is Cool Hand Luke starring Paul Newman as Luke. Luke is a petty criminal, and not a very good one, as he got caught cutting the heads of parking meters in order to steal the loose change. That landed him in a southern work farm overseen my Strother Martin as the Captain. Luke was cocky and charming, and you got the sense that he felt he was better and smarter than everyone else in the work camp. It wasn’t long before he became well-liked and a favorite amongst the other inmates but that wasn’t enough for him, so he escaped which was a threat to the strict order of how the camp was to be run and was soon captured. The Captain, in addressing the other assembled inmates, says he draws no pleasure in punishing Luke but that he doesn’t have the proper attitude so he has no choice but to order Luke to spend thirty days in the box so that he can get his mind right. Unfortunately, Luke doesn’t get his mind right and is not humbled by his experience and grows more defiant as he continues to only think of himself, which ultimately costs him his life, and for what? Foolish pride?
And that’s what the Apostle Paul is writing about in our scripture reading for this morning. He’s writing to the church in Philippi encouraging them to be humble, not thinking of themselves, but to focus on what is better for others, having the attitude of Christ.
We fast forward from what we learned in last Sunday’s sermon where Paul had written a letter to the church in Rome around 57 A.D. to him now being in prison four years later in Rome while Nero is still the emperor. Fortunately for Paul, who had planted the church in Philippi during his second missionary journey, he had plenty of supporters in Philippi who were supporting him and sending him gifts to make his time in prison more tolerable.
To show his appreciation he tells them that he thanks God every time he mentions them in his prayers, that he is thankful for all of them every time he prays and it’s always a prayer full of joy. He tells them that he is glad because of the way they have been his partners in the ministry of the gospel from the time they first believed. He says: I’m sure about this: the one who started a good work in you will stay with you to complete the job by the day of Christ Jesus. He then stresses the importance that we all live together in a manner worthy of Christ’s gospel.
We pick up in the second chapter where he says: Therefore, if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort in love, any sharing in the Spirit, any sympathy, complete my joy by thinking the same way, having the same love, being united, and agreeing with each other. He’s reflecting back upon the bond that was created during his time with them and reminding his brothers and sisters in Christ that they need to be all on the same page, especially now with tensions rising. I think Paul may be concerned about the pressure being put on Christians from Rome as Philippi was a Roman military outpost with many Roman citizens assimilating into the population. As if it really needs saying he pleads with them writing: Don’t do anything for selfish purposes, but with humility think of others as better than yourselves. Instead of each person watching out for their own good, watch out for what is better for others. Paul knows that if a difference is going to be made within the empire it’s going to have to come from the Followers of the Way of Jesus Christ leading the way by example.
He tells them to adopt the attitude that was in Christ Jesus, an attitude that though Jesus was in the form of God while among them he did not consider himself equal with God which was something he could exploit for his own benefit had he wanted to. He reminds his readers that Christ emptied himself, gave up everything taking the form of a lowly slave and becoming like them. And when he found himself in the form of a human, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death on a cross, refusing to save himself, still thinking of others. And he says: Therefore, God highly honored him and gave him a name above all names, so that at the name of Jesus everyone in heaven, on earth, and under the earth might bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Paul is reminding them, and us, of what God did for us by taking human form, coming to us, living among us, and humbly showing us how we must live as human beings even to the point where he gave up his earthly life for us. You know, I get that because there have been too many times when I’ve been so wrapped up in myself and taking care of number one that I forget who is really number one and I pray that I haven’t done anything to tarnish the image of he who is number one in our lives.
I think Paul knows that and he may be concerned that those in Philippi might get too wrapped up in what’s going on in their lives and all around them that they lose focus on what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ. I think this because of what he says next after reminding them of Christ’s sacrifice. He continues by saying: Therefore, my loved ones, just as you always obey me, not just when I am present but now even more while I am away, carry out your own salvation with fear and trembling. He reminds them that God is the one who enables them both to want and to actually live out his good purposes, that they can’t do it alone, nor are they expected to. And, he says to do everything without grumbling and arguing so that you may be blameless and pure, innocent children of God surrounded by people who are crooked and corrupt. Paul really seems to know us when he cautions us that when we do what we are expected to do, not do it with moaning and groaning because we feel put out and grousing that nobody ever did anything for us. Thanks for the reminder. And he points out that among these crooked and corrupt people we will shine like stars in the world because we hold on to the word of life. And to underscore how he feels about them, he bestows upon them the honor of being his legacy when he says that the life they live in Christ will allow him to say on the day he meets Christ that he hasn’t run for nothing or worked for nothing. In the end, it has all been worth it because they have gotten their minds right and adopted the attitude of Christ.
And that’s the point Paul is trying to make. In taking the form of a slave to serve others’ interests rather than his own, Christ emptied himself of everything but love. It was all he had left to give. This mind of Christ, this new attitude towards others, does not remain individually focused but is other-centered, striving for unity, what is best for all. It means that our often-rigid mind-sets about others and the way things should be need the softness of Christ’s mind. Our confident minds need Christ’s humility to leave behind what is holding us back so that we can and will serve others with gladness and joy. This transformed mind, this adjusted attitude, is what confesses to the world that Jesus Christ is Lord.
As God’s people we must be willing to release our attachment to our rights, privileges, and status as “Roman” citizens in favor of a new citizenship centered on the gospel that finds its highest value in Jesus’ death on the cross. And, as citizens worthy of Christ, we do not use privilege and status to advance ourselves. We renounce status as a means of advancing others and by so doing we unselfishly advance the just and right cause of Christ. And when we think it is too hard, or we have nothing to show for it, we must remember what Jesus said in Matthew 23: 11-12: But the one who is greatest among you will be your servant. All who lift themselves up will be brought low. But all who make themselves low will be lifted up. For the impatient among us, we wonder when it will be that we will be lifted up if we make ourselves low. It doesn’t matter and I imagine the day of our lifting up will be when we finally meet Jesus in person and he says: “well done good and faithful servant, enter into your rest”.
The confession “Jesus is Lord” is good news for all people. It boldly challenges the oppressive and suffocating status quo of “Roman rule” and its honor and shame system, one that still applies today. If we’re going to make the world right, we’re going to have to get our minds right in Christ.
Let us pray.
We were once shackled by a heavy burden, neath a load of guilt and shape, and then the hand of Jesus touched us, and now we are no longer the same. Yes, God, how grateful we are to have Jesus in our lives taking our burdens upon himself and relieving us from the guilt and shame we experience in our lives when we think only of ourselves. We are grateful that we now know what it is like to have the mind of Christ, an attitude that makes us different from the rest of the world, and that we are no longer the same. Move us by your Spirit to continually work upon developing that mind of Christ so that we can make a difference in the world, a difference that moves us closer to the restoration of your creation. In Jesus’ name, we pray, Amen.
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9/27/26
Getting Your Mind Right
Our confident minds see Christ’s humility to leave behind what is holding us back so that we can and will serve others with gladness and joy.