Part Three
Developing the Attitude of Christ
“Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”
John 13:35
Those who know my boys won’t have trouble guessing which one never suffered from a lack of confidence, at least not outwardly. When he was little, he would often go around saying things like “I’m smart” or “I’m excellent.” At one point, he even told us that we should have named him Eugenius. Let’s just say that humility was not one of his strong points.
In Philippians 2, Paul encourages believers to develop attitudes like Christ. He spends a large part of this chapter outlining a variety of ways we can do that.
Agree with one another
Be tender and compassionate
Love one another
Work together with one mind and purpose
Don’t be selfish
Don’t try to impress others
Be humble—thinking of others as better than yourselves
Don’t look out for your own interests; take an interest in others
Work hard to show the results of your salvation
Obey God with deep reverence and fear
Do everything without complaining and arguing
Live clean, innocent lives
Hold firmly to the word of life
This is a long list, but the gist of all these individual commands is the same. We are to love and serve others with humility and joy. I don’t know about you, but I find it convicting.
When I was a young mother, I often remarked that I had no trouble serving others; I did that every day. I served my husband and four sons continuously, whether I wanted to or not. My problem then wasn’t serving; it was serving with joy. Today, my sons are much more independent, but I find that my struggle with the commands of Philippians 3 are just as real as ever. Whether I am serving my family or serving strangers, I struggle to serve with joy and humility.
A pastor once said, “The best way to measure your servant attitude is to watch what happens when people treat you like one.”
I don’t know about you, but I don’t particularly like being treated like a servant. I don’t like feeling as if I am being stepped upon, used, abused, or taken for granted. I don’t like it when I feel like my rights are being infringed upon.
But isn’t that exactly what happened to Christ?
When Jesus came to this earth, He came with one purpose. He came to provide the atonement for our sins. He came to serve. And how was He treated?
“Though He was God…He gave up His divine privileges; He took the humble position of a slave…He humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.” Phil 2:6-8
And, so, this where I struggle, this is where I need God to help me become more like Him. God wants me to think of others more than myself. This is hard. It’s even harder to do it willingly and not begrudgingly. God wants us to live our lives as a sacrifice to Him, to be different from the world.
We are in a precarious place in American history. Things are happening in our country that we, as Americans, never thought we would face. There is division everywhere—even among believers. We are divided about race issues, political issues, mask issues, whether to gather and if so, when, where and with whom and how many, etc. etc. It seems that none of us can get along, and it is heart-breaking.
I don’t have all the answers, but obviously I have my own opinions, and like everyone else, I have my own fears. My greatest fear is that because of all this division we are losing our love for one another.
I am losing my love for others.
Many Christians, including myself, believe that what we are experiencing now is the beginning of “the end of time.” We believe this is a time when many people, especially Christians, are going to see their rights systematically stripped away until, eventually, it forces people to choose between their faith and their personal wellbeing. As Americans, up to this point in history, we have been given the privilege and responsibility of individual freedom and have been taught to protect those liberties at all costs.
I don’t claim to have all the answers. I don’t know who in this world we can actually believe, and I don’t know exactly how we need to proceed. However, I do know this. God is faithful and trustworthy, and His Word has not changed. As Christians, one of our highest commands is that we love and serve each other with humility and joy. How can we do that?
I think we can begin by agreeing to peacefully disagree. Loving one another takes many forms. But, suffice it to say, social shaming, bashing, and judging should have no place in any of our lives. Can’t we all just choose to believe the best about one another?
If, for instance, people choose to wear a mask or gloves or a hazmat suit, we can choose to either believe that they are living in fear, or we can choose to believe they are sincerely doing their best to protect themselves and those around them or that they are simply trying to be obedient to authority figures and show kindness for others.
If, however, a person chooses not to wear a mask, we can choose to believe that they are uncaring and intentionally putting others at risk, or we can choose to believe that they have an unseen issue that makes wearing a mask difficult, or that they are sincerely concerned about protecting their rights and the rights of their countrymen.
There are a lot of things in this world that we cannot choose. But we do get to choose our attitudes, our responses… basically, how we think and how we respond. We face these kinds of choices every day about multiple issues. We can look for good, even when we disagree, or we can make assumptions that are often hurtful and wrong.
God calls us to one purpose, and, ultimately, that one purpose, that one mindset has nothing to do with any of the issues that currently plague our country or our world. Our purpose is to glorify Him. The Bible tells us that the world will know that we are God’s children by our love. And the good news is this. When we choose to think, act, love, and serve each other with humility, joy will follow.
It’s got to start somewhere; Christ demands that it start with us.
I know I have been convicted. What about you? How can you put the message of Philippians into practice this week?
Circa 2016
Dear Lord,
Help me, Lord, not to be selfish. Help me not to try to impress others but to be humble and think of others as better than myself. Help me, Lord, not to look out for only my own interests but to take an interest in the lives of others as well. Give me, Lord, the same attitude that You had when You came to earth in human form and died a criminal’s death for me… Work in me, God. Give me the desire and power to do what pleases You. Help me to do everything without complaining and arguing… Help me to hold firmly to the Word of Life so that on the day of your return I can be proud that I did not run this race in vain and that my work was not useless… God help me to desire to serve more. Help my service to be an offering of love to them and worship to You.
In Your Name,
Amen
Devotional Challenge: In the coming week, read Philippians Chapter 3 every day.