Philippians 2:1-13
with Tony W. Cartledge Sept. 25, 2011
Live Mindfully I am a member of a minority group — the 10 percent or so of the population who are incurably left-handed. We southpaws take some comfort in the knowledge that, since the body’s motor controls are generally controlled by the opposite side of the brain, left-handed folk can claim to be the only ones who are in their “right minds.” In his very personal letter to the Christians in Philippi, Paul had a lot to say about being right-minded, though in a very different context. What does it mean to have the right mind for following Christ?
Have one mind … (vv. 1-4) Today’s text demonstrates Paul’s rhetorical and persuasive skill. In poetic, perhaps even hymnic language, the apostle pleads with the Philippians to overcome apparent divisions among them by uniting with a common mind, namely, the mind of Christ. In vv. 1-4, Paul carefully constructs an appeal for harmony, putting together three sets of thoughts, each containing four units. The first of these, v. 1, consists of four clauses that appear to be conditional, but only to make Paul’s appeal more forceful. Paul piles up reminders that Christ has blessed the believers with the “encouragement of Christ,” the “consolation of love,” the “fellowship of the spirit” and its outworking in compassion and affection. He then speaks of four ways the Philippians should respond to these realities: he calls them to “be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.” The first and last responses both relate to the way we think, using the verb phroneo–, one of Paul’s favorite words. The opening “be of the same mind” could Additional background information online where you see the “Digging Deeper” icon
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literally be translated “think the same,” and the closing “of one mind” means “the same thinking.” Paul is not suggesting that church members become mental clones of each other and agree on every point, but that they orient their thinking toward harmonious service to Christ. It is not so much that they agree on all the same ideas, but that they share the same cooperative attitude. Believers can unite their thinking in common cause because they share the same love and are united in spirit: “being in full accord” translates sumpsuchoi, which combines “with” (sum) and “soul” (psuche) to mean something like “fellowsouled” or “united in spirit.” A common love and a common spirit give rise to a common purpose, a common way of thinking. Paul now pleads with them to demonstrate their loving attitude through mutual service and humility (vv. 3-4). Again, his appeal has four components: the first and third say what they should not do (act from selfish ambition or conceit, focus on their own interests), while the second and fourth explain what they should do (humbly regard others as better than themselves, look out for the interests of others). Readers may be troubled by Paul’s admonition to “regard others as better than yourselves” (v. 3b), but Paul’s concern is not with a qualitative assessment of competency or maturity, but a measure of importance. The word translated “better than” is the participle of a verb formed by combining “above” or “higher” (huper) and the verb of being (echo). To regard others as “being above” us is not to make a value judgment about their character or competency, but to consider their needs as more important than our own. Even that nuance does not make the advice any easier to follow. We live in a culture largely defined by the mantra “Looking out for Number One.” If we have learned what it is to live in community as followers of Christ, however, we have heard Jesus’ insistence that those who would be great must learn to be servants, unselfishly loving others as he loved us.
What are some practical ways we might see this attitude being worked out (1) within the fellowship of a church and (2) as a church relates to its larger community? How are we acting now to “not look after our own interests, but after the interests of others”? What are some ways we could do that more faithfully?
The mind of Christ … (vv. 5-11) Having called for harmonious love and self-giving humility, Paul grounds his appeal on the example of Christ as a model for emulation. Reverting again to a form of phronein, Paul calls the Philippians to think as Christ thought, to have the same selfless disposition toward others that Jesus modeled and instructed his disciples to follow. What follows in vv. 6-11 is so artfully arranged and worded that scholars typically refer to it as a hymn, though without agreement as to whether Paul quoted it or wrote it. Arranging the text into symmetrical verses requires deleting a few phrases as later additions, however, and even then scholars disagree on how the text should be arranged. The text moves into two stages. In the opening section (vv. 6-8) Christ acts to empty himself, take on human form, and live as a servant so obedient that he was willing to die a humiliating death on a cross. In the second part (vv. 9-11) God acts to exalt Jesus and give him the highest name of all. Interpreters and theologians have long debated the precise meaning of these verses, but we need not worry about every nuance. In some way, we are to understand that Christ was pre-existent and on equal standing with God, but he did not consider this position something to be grasped or held onto. Rather, Christ was willing to “empty himself.” Does this mean he stopped being divine? That he gave up divine attributes and powers? That he surrendered divine prerogatives? We cannot claim to understand every shade of meaning, but the end LESSON FOR SEPTEMBER 25, 2011