Guest Speaker Liam Wyatt | Christ’s Example of Humility | Philippians 2

Good evening.

It is a blessing to be with the church family tonight and to be worshiping our Father in the way we have this evening.

We'll go ahead and turn to Philippians chapter 2 and we'll be uh taking some thoughts from there about Christ's example of humility.

Philippians 2 · chapter mention

See that on the screen.

Humility is that that's what we want to talk about tonight.

Biblical humility specifically.

And biblical humility is much like most other biblical things in the fact that it's different than the worldly version of it.

The way Jesus shows and gives his example of humility is different and deeper and more valuable than the kind of humility that we'll find if we look around at the world around us today.

The humility taught in the Bible.

So humility we find in the Bible is not a feeling, and it's not an action, it is a heart posture.

Our heart posture is an eternal attitude or an inner disposition.

A heart posture governs our thoughts and actions and our everyday interactions throughout our entire life.

Now, biblical humility is the heart posture shown by Jesus throughout his entire life on the earth.

So let's read Philippians chapter 2, starting in verse 1 to see what that looks like.

Philippians 2 · chapter mention

It says, So if there's any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation of the Spirit, any uh any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord, and of one mind.

Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.

Let each of you also not look up, let each of you not look not only to his own interests, but to the interests of others.

And have this mind among yourselves, which is yours, Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God did not count equality with God, a thing to even be grasped, but he emptied himself by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men, and being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Therefore, God has highly exalted him and bestowed on them a name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.

Now, Jesus shows three aspects of humility that we want to look at tonight.

He shows first humility towards God by recognizing and honoring God as the Lord and King over the universe.

Second, Jesus shows humility to the other people around him by recognizing and honoring those very people as valuable image-bearers made uniquely by God.

And third, Jesus drowns all of this humility in his love.

Humility towards God.

We can find that in verses 5 through 8 of Philippians 2, where it says, Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing that you grasped.

But he emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men, and being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on the cross.

Now, Jesus not counting himself equal to God, that's that's that's strange, that's incredible.

Maybe not me not counting myself equal to God is not something incredible at all.

In fact, if Liam White counted himself equal to God, we'd be having some serious problems right now, and we'd have to have some hard conversations.

But Jesus?

Jesus is God.

Jesus does not count himself as not equal to God because he's somehow less of a God than the Father is, or that he's some off-branded or great value God.

No, not at all.

Look with me in Colossians.

Colossians chapter 1.

Colossians 1 · chapter mention

It should be just a page, page or two over, starting in verse 15.

This gives us a good description of Jesus.

In verse 15, it says, He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.

For by him all things were created, whether visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers and authorities, all things were created and for him.

And he is before all things, and in him all things fold together.

And he is the head of the body, the church.

He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be created.

Jesus is God, the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, the Godhead.

He is a part of that.

He is God, He is all powerful, He has all authority on heaven and on earth.

Yet, what does He do?

He empties himself, takes the form of a servant, He becomes obedient.

In Matthew chapter 26, we find this attitude when Jesus is at one of the lowest points in his life on earth.

Matthew 26 · chapter mention

He's about to be crucified.

He's about to go through some of the worst pain any human can experience.

And he's preparing himself for that thing by praying to God.

In Matthew 26, verse 39, it says, and going a little farther, he fell on his face.

Matthew 26:39

He fell on his face.

That takes humility.

He fell on his face and prayed, saying, My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me.

Nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.

Later in verse 42, it says, Again, for the second time, he went away and he prayed, My Father, if it cannot pass, lest I drink it, your will be done.

Jesus, the King of the universe, submits himself to the Father.

He submits himself to God.

How much more should we, as his creation, humans who sin against him all the time, submit ourselves to God.

If Jesus, preeminent over all things, is humble before his father, we must do the same.

The second thing, Jesus shows humility towards others.

His humility towards God is just the first step.

He keeps going in verses 3 and 4 of Philippians 2.

Look at that again.

It says, Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.

Let each of you not look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

Counting others more significant than ourselves, looking to the interests of others.

Now this might be pretty easy if we're talking about our best friend who we can get along with all the time, and he's the kind of person, he or she is the kind of person that just builds us up whenever we're around.

Sure, I can put their interests before mine because they put mine before theirs.

I can count them as more significant than myself.

But what about when it's the coworker or the person at school who doesn't get along with anybody?

Or maybe it's the sibling that you're constantly fighting with.

Or maybe it's that one person in your life who always just makes a point that's reaching for it.

We still need to show humility.

We need to recognize that we are not better than everyone else around us.

When we begin to think that way, that means that pride, the opposite of humility, is entering our hearts and turning us away from who we need to be in Christ.

God has created us all in his image.

Genesis chapter 1, verses 26 and 27 said, Then God said, Let us make man in our image after our likeness, and let him have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over the livestock, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.

Genesis 1:26

So God created man in his own image.

In the image of God, he created him, male and female.

He created them.

Whether a believer or an unbeliever, whether they're your best friend, or they're the person that just makes you mad every time you talk to them.

They are made in God's image.

Now, Jesus doesn't just say this and leave you to figure it out.

He gives an example.

He actually gives tons of examples.

Throughout his ministry on the earth, he shows so many examples of humility towards others, but one that is very fitting for this woman, I think, is John chapter 13, where he washed the feet of his disciples.

John 13 · chapter mention

John chapter 13, if you want to turn over there.

John 13 · chapter mention

We'll start in verse 1.

Now before the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who are in the world, he loved them to the end.

During supper, when the devil had already put into the heart of Judasyriot, Simon's son, for betraying, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given him all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, he rose from supper.

He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, he tied it around his waist.

Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet, and wiped them with the towel that was wrapped around them.

He then came to Simon Peter, who said to him, Lord, do you wash my feet?

Jesus answered him, what I am doing now, you do not yet understand.

But afterward you will understand.

Peter said to him, You shall never wash my feet.

Jesus answered him, If I do not wash you, you have no share with me.

Simon Peter said to him, Well then, Lord, not my feet only, but also my head and my hands.

Jesus said, The one who is bathed does not need to wash except for his feet, but is completely clean.

And you are clean, but not every one of you.

For he knew who was about to penetrate him.

And that is why he said, Not all of you are clean.

That has to be one of the oddest scenes in the Bible.

Jesus, Son of God, Lord of the universe, sitting down and scrubbing on the feet of some smelling Galilean fisherman.

Who wants to have a hold of someone's feet like that?

Especially the kind of person who wears sandals everywhere they go.

I don't want any part of that.

And I'm sure Jesus really didn't either.

But that's the point.

Jesus shows his humility to them by doing the kind of service that only the lowest servants in the house were assigned to.

And verse 12 says, Jesus says to his disciples, Do you understand what I have done to you?

You call me teacher and lord, and you were right, for so I am.

But if then your Lord and teacher have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet.

For I have given you an example that you should do just as I have done to you.

It takes a lot of humility to wash someone's feet.

That kind of humility would be difficult for me to even show my own family, let alone someone I don't know or someone I don't particularly like at all.

But that's exactly the kind of humility that Jesus expects us to show to everyone about us, not just our best friends.

Jesus even washed the feet of Judas, who he knew was about to betray him in just a few hours.

That is the depth of his humility.

It's pretty difficult to think of yourself as all high and mighty and way better than the person you're washing their feet and scrubbing in between their toes.

It just doesn't work very well at all.

God has created us all equal in his image, and we need to have the humility to serve others the way that Jesus did.

Now, lastly, Jesus shows his humility, and really, this is a very important part because he shows all of his humility and love.

All of his humility is based and grounded in love.

Turn with me to 1 Corinthians 13.

We'll look there at 1 Corinthians chapter 13, starting in verse 1.

1 Corinthians 13 · chapter mention

It says, If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clinging symbol.

And if I have prophetic powers and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.

If I give away all that I have, and I deliver up my body to burn, but have not love, I gain nothing.

I would dismiss you that if I have all the humility in the world, and I put everyone's needs above my own, but have not love, it's not worth anything.

Our humility must be grounded in love.

If it's not grounded in love, it's not authentic, and it's not worthwhile to anyone in the long run, let alone ourselves.

All of Jesus' humility was grounded in his great love.

For us and for his father.

Jesus washed the disciples' feet, yes, to show an example, but because he loved them.

Jesus lived on the earth, suffered constantly, he was hungry, tired, and wandered without a home because he loved us.

Jesus showed the ultimate example of humility, his death and sacrifice on the cross, and it was based and grounded in his love for us.

There's multitudes of passages in Scripture that speak about God's love for us, and we all know John 3 16, for God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life.

Ephesians 2, verses 4 and 5.

Ephesians 2:4

But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive in Christ, even when we are dead in our transgressions.

But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.

Jesus' humility is so powerful because it is based in love.

Without love, our humility is worthless, but with love, humility can change lives.

And Jesus calls us to humility.

He calls us to follow his example.

Now, we have our we have all of his examples, and we have all the ways that he's shown how to have humility in the Bible right here, but now it's up to us to apply it individually in our own lines.

We have to choose humility.

It's not going to come around accidentally.

We have to be individual.

Now, this week, whether you're working on submitting to God and it's planned for you, something that's struggled, or like me, you're struggling with getting along with somebody in your life that's hard.

I encourage you to have humility.

Think about using example.

Jesus' example and find ways to introduce humility into all of your everyday community.

And importantly, you better remember to ground it all in love.

1 John 4, verse 19 says, We love because you first loved us.

1 John 4:19

Now, if you are here tonight and you need prayers or struggles in your life, whether they're about humility or not, you can come forward now and we will pray for you in your life.

And if you are here and you have not yet made Jesus the center of your life, you want to be a part of the blessings that come from a life of serving the Lord, you can come forward now.

You can find someone to study with.