Colossians
2:2-3
2
My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in
love, so that they may have the full riches of complete
understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God,
namely, Christ, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and
knowledge. While unity is not the
ultimate goal of the church, it is essential for the church to
accomplish its mission of proclaiming the gospel to the world. Unity
and solidarity create strength. A person left alone, with no support,
is much more vulnerable than a cohesive unit.
In
Matthew 16 Christ Jesus promises that He will build His church (Matt.
16:18). He said this nearly 2,000 years ago, and the church continues
to grow and advance today. However, in John 17 Christ Jesus prayed,
"Holy Father, keep them
in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as
we are one" (John 17:11). He promised church growth
but prayed for church unity. The book of Acts illustrates these two
points. The church advanced numerically wherever they proclaimed the
gospel. Yet disunity, disagreements, and divisions quickly sprang up
among the believers.
What
should we make of this? At the least we should understand that
reaching non-Christians with the gospel and growing numerically is
only half the battle. Unifying them under the banner of Christ Jesus is the other half.
In
Philippians 2 we see a beautiful picture of unity. We see the
practice of unity, the power for unity, and the purpose of unity.
Phil
2:1-4
2:1
If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any
comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any
tenderness and compassion, 2 then make my joy complete by being
like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. 3
Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility
consider others better than yourselves. 4 Each of you should look not
only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.
I.
The practice of unity (vv.1-4)
Paul
began his discussion on unity by asserting that if they were in
communion with the Trinity they should pursue unity. If they had any
encouragement in Christ (God the Son), any comfort from love (likely
God the Father's love), and any participation in the Spirit (God the
Spirit), unity should be present (vv.1-2). Then he explained how they
should practice this. They would have the same mind and love, and
remain in full accord and one mind. Essentially, they would love the
same things, think the same things, and share a common purpose.
Then in
verses 3-4 Paul attacked the greatest enemy of unity: pride.
Believers were to be other-centered in all things, humbly counting
others more significant than themselves. Humility is the glue that
holds a church together. The more humble Christians are, the more
unified the church can be. C. S. Lewis remarked that pride is by
nature competitive: "Pride gets no pleasure out of having
something, only out of having more of it than the next man. We say
that people are proud of being rich, or clever, or good-looking, but
they are not. They are proud of being richer, or cleverer, or
better-looking than others" (Mere Christianity, 122). Pride
destroys unity.
How
does pride rob your love and compassion for others? How might you
consider others more important than yourself?
Phil
2:5-9
5
Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
6
Who, being in very nature God,
did
not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
7
but made himself nothing,
taking
the very nature of a servant,
being
made in human likeness.
8
And being found in appearance as a man,
he
humbled himself
and
became obedient to death-
even
death on a cross!
9
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and
gave him the name that is above every name,
II.
The power for unity (vv.5-9)
To
eradicate pride and disunity in the church, Paul goes straight to the
heart of the gospel. He quotes what appears to be an early confession
about the person and work of Christ Jesus, who displayed the ultimate
example of humility and other-centeredness. Despite having all power
and authority and being equal with God, He poured Himself out on the
cross. Paul wants this truth to motivate the church to remain humble
and unified.
In J. R.
R. Tolkien's The Return of the King, the men of Rohan fight against
the evil forces of Mordor. Eowyn, the king's niece, though forbidden
from battle, enters the fight secretly. She faces a Nazgul - one of
the deadliest foes of Mordor. With her is the hobbit Merry who is
mortified at the mere thought of this creature. But when he
recognizes that it is Eowyn fighting with him, Tolkien writes, "Pity
filled his heart and great wonder, and suddenly the slow-kindled
courage of his face awoke. He clenched his hand. She should not die,
so fair, so desperate! At least she should not die alone, unaided."
Merry then goes to her aid and helps her defeat the deadly creature.
One so beautiful and fair should not be fighting in a war. Her
presence moved Merry to action.
Christ
Jesus, the righteous One, did not deserve the cross. We deserved what
He received. But He willingly laid down His life. Our meditation on
this should humble us and move us to the same way of thinking (v. 5).
The
sufferings and sacrifice of Christ Jesus should move us to humility.
What is your motivation toward humility? Will you look at Christ
hanging there, offering Himself for you? Will you let that image
humble and empower you to offer yourself to others?
Phil
2:10-11
10
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in
heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11
and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to
the glory of God the Father.
III.
The purpose of unity (vs.10-11)
The
sufferings of Christ Jesus prepared the way for the exaltation of Him
over all things. His humiliation led to His vindication. Now all
creation must submit to His Lordship and authority. Paul wrote in
Colossians, "He is the
head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from
the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent"
(Col. 1:18). Christ Jesus died and rose to be supreme over all
things.
The
glory of Christ Jesus is the reason the church should be unified. A
unified and humble church is best prepared to recognize and proclaim
the beauty and value of Christ Jesus over all things. A church full
of it's self and dissension cannot devote itself to Christ Jesus and
His glory.
The
church does not exist for itself, but to magnify Christ Jesus. What
can you do to stay focused on the glory of Christ Jesus? Will you
push aside your preferences for the church and pursue this vision?
Conclusion:
A man
walked into a jewelry store in Australia and purchased the store's
most expensive diamond. As he checked out, the computer at the
register froze. The embarrassed clerk apologized as she searched for
a solution. The man gently leaned over, tapped a few keys, and the
computer unlocked. The woman responded, "You must know
computers." He said, "Yeah. A little." He signed the
ticket, thanked her, and walked out. The signature on the receipt
read: "Bill Gates". Greatness need not be prideful. Because
Christ Jesus humbled Himself, we must humble ourselves, lay down our
lives for one another, and be the unified church that magnifies the
Savior.
No comments:
Post a Comment