Spending Justly - Philippians 2:1-11

Sermon preached at church for the christmas sermon series "Just Christmas" Dec09

There was a little boy who told a shop assistant that he was shopping for a birthday gift for his mum and asked to see the biscuit tins. The shop assistant took him to a particular counter displaying a large selection of them, the youngster carefully lifted and replaced each lid. His face fell as he came to the last one. "Aren't there any lids that don't make a noise?" he asked.

When it comes to Christmas its difficult to get away from spending and today's title is a challenging one. What does it mean to spend justly? When it came to spending this little boy's attitude was all wrong. Yes he was out buying a gift for his mum but its an amusing story because all of a sudden we are aware of the little boy's hidden agenda. What is that hidden agenda? It's himself! If this boy had only sat down and thought about his relationship with his mum he would realise the encouragement he receives as son in a family. The love that he receives from a mum that thinks the world of him no matter what he does or gets up to. The spirit of intimacy and connection he has with a mother that birthed and raised him. And when these things did not lead to a tenderness and compassion then he would have realise that his attitude was out of place.

But let us not limit ourselves to just talking about financial spending here but a spending that includes our whole lives. So along side financial spending we are also considering emotional, physical and spiritual spending, spending with all of our lives. Paul in these verses challenges us to spend like Jesus spent! And to spend like Jesus spent we need to have the attitude of Jesus. That's what we see at the beginning of verse 5.

“Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:”

Paul challenges us in two key ways. Firstly he challenges us to an attitude of unity in love and Secondly an attitude of servant-hood in humility . Paul challenges us as a church with a unity in love that is present in the Trinity and he challenges us with a servant-hood in humility that we see in the incarnation of Jesus.

As Christians to spend our lives justly we need the attitude of Jesus. That attitude can only be drawn directly from Jesus and what he has done for us.

A child who does not grow up in a nurturing home where they are cared for and loved and instructed but instead are physically and verbally attacked their tendancey will turn round at school and do the same as a bully towards fellow classmates. Their attitude is evil.

A child who grows up in a nurturing home where they are cared for and loved and instructed will turn round and be likewise to their peers. Their attitude is loving and compassionate.

If we as Christians take our motivation from the world around us we will begin to be like the world around us selfish and proud but if we take our motivation from where we find ourselves in Jesus our attitudes will the same as Jesus.

First

Paul urges us to remember everything we have received as Christians in the body of Christ. This is the first of his challenges to the church for an attitude of unity in love.
“If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ,”
This word encouragement is the same used to describe the Holy Spirit. The counselor the comforter. Have we sat down and taken stock of the encouragement that we have now as Christians. We are born again of the Spirit, we have been united with Christ, inheritors of the kingdom. We have gone from enemies to sons and daughters.

“if any comfort from his love,”

God's love just has so many aspects wrapped up in it. His sovereignty he is over and above everything working all things together for the good of those who love him. His and justice that no evil will go overlooked. His faithfulness, never will he leave us never will he forsake us. And so much more how can we fail to be comforted by a Father who has that love for us.

“if any fellowship with the Spirit,”

This is the powerful picture of the communion we can have as Christians with God and with one another. Being one spirit with a unity that surpasses any pale reflection we see on earth. We are not a group of people supporting the same football club or that we all live in Edinburgh but that we are all citizens of heaven united by the Holy Spirit living within us.

“if any tenderness and compassion,”

This is the evidence of the heart of Christ within us. When we are born again we move from death to life, from a heart of stone to a heart of flesh and we begin to feel that tenderness and compassion for one another but particularly for the world that is hurting and in pain.
This Paul urges is the source of unity through Love that he is challenging us to have. Make my joy complete he says by being like minded, having the same love and being on in spirit and purpose.

People should be able to spot us as Christians by the radical nature of our unity in love. We are to be a church that does not gossip about one another but with gentleness and respect to support one another. We are to be a church that is wise and judges situations but does not condemn. We are to be a church works for common goal not looking to advance our own agendas.

We are called to be a church that spends justly and the first part of that is to have a unity in love that comes to us from the heavenly Father that compels us to have that same attitude of unity in love.

Second

Paul urges us to look at the person of Jesus Christ and what he has done for us. This is the second of his challenges to the church for an attitude of Servant-hood in humility.

“Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,”

It is incredibly humbling to think that Jesus whose very nature was God did not consider it necessary to come to earth in all his heavenly glory. He could have arrived on earth as he will do when he comes again in all his glory and slender to rule and to reign. Its difficult for us to catch just how incredible this attitude was we can only hint at it with our own understanding. Imagine getting a knock at the door to find when you open it the Queen standing there looking very normal. And when you look past her she has none of her usual escort, no bodyguards, or brass band, no ribbons or flags waving, no crowds of people. There was no fanfare when Jesus came to earth he arrived.

But there is more...
“(He) made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.”

When Jesus came to earth he did not become any less God but instead added humanity to his divinity and he laid aside certain aspects of his nature. Jesus laid aside his Omniscience and was therefore required to learn as we learn. Jesus laid aside his Omnipotence and felt pain. Jesus laid aside his Omnipresence and limited himself to human likeness. Jesus laid aside his ruler-ship and took on the nature of a servant. He did not become any less God but he put aside those attributes of God that were rightfully his and took on instead the nature of a servant. Like when we talk to a child we do not talk about deep philosophy or the equations of physics but we lay that aside and talk to the child on a level that will serve it. This is what Jesus did he laid it all aside to serve.

“he humbled himself and became obedient to death - even death on a cross!”

After Jesus had laid everything aside he spent everything he had. This is where both of the challenges laid down by Paul come together. Here Jesus humbled himself by laying aside his rights as God and served. But we also see the power of unity through love in the Trinity as in obedience Jesus gave up his life. Jesus spent everything for us and his spending was justified. Why? Because when he gave everything in an attitude of unity in love. Not out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. And he gave everything in an attitude of humility considering others better than himself and looking not just to his own interests but the interests of others. That is what it means to spend justly.

As we go away today let us consider what it means to have an attitude of unity in love and an attitude of a servant heart in humility in our homes and our places of work.

In our relationships what rights have we been claiming over people that we need to set aside. In our work places what jobs have we considered that are too low for us. In our church where is the hostility and resentment of others causing disunity. In our families are we doing everything we can to serve one another. Let us have the attitude of Christ to spend our lives justly on behalf of other as Jesus spent justly on our behalf.