The way up is down

The way up is down. Philippians 2:1-18. Rev Marius Kruger

In the book written by Lewis Carroll, “Through the Looking Glass”, Alice steps through the mirror in the living room to find a world on the opposite side where everything is backwards: Alice wants to go forward, but every time she moves, she ends up back where she started; she tries to go left and ends up right; up is down and fast is slow.

To be a follower of Christ is a bit like that –

To be blessed, be a blessing to others.
To receive love, give love.
To be honoured, first be humble.
To truly live, die to yourself.
To gain the unseen, let go of the seen.
To receive, first give.
To save your life, lose it.
To lead, be a servant.
To be first, be last.

In Philippians 2:5-11 , Paul will explain that the way up is down. That’s right: Down is up, up is down.

The way to be great is to go lower. The way up is down.

So when we talk about discipleship or when we try to figure out how to live as children of God we need to understand this concept.

I think this is a key if not the key to being a disciple of Christ.

We need to become less in order to become more.  We need to give up before we expect.

A couple of weeks ago I started to talk about Philippians – and what it means to be a disciple: we looked at Philippians 1

True disciples have their confidence in God

True disciples grow in their understanding of God

True Disciples are fruitful

We also read:  God will finish what he started in you, we are always growing and learning.

So today in Philippians he tells us:  To be a disciple we need to imitate Christ.

In these verses, Paul issues two commitments to living an upside-down life. 

1. Imitate Christ’s model of humility ( Philippians 2:5-8 ).

Mark Twain once said

“Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example.”

The way that you can imitate Christ’s example is by giving up your “rights.” Paul begins this section with a command to “Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus.”

We need to rethink our attitude

When you believed in Christ, God implanted His mind into yours and you become a new creation ( 2 Corinthians 5:17 ).

We suddenly challenge our own behaviour and not the behaviour of others. We suddenly look at ourselves and ask the question: do I look like Christ, do I act like Christ?

Jesus left the glory and splendour of heaven and came to dwell on earth to serve others. He understood the way up is down.

He chooses the more specific term doulos, which means “slave” or “bond-servant.” In other words, Jesus became a particular kind of man, a slave, the lowest position a person could become in the Roman world.

2. Realizing who God is…His greatness! ( Philippians 2:9-11 ).

True biblical humility occurs when one recognizes the greatness of Jesus Christ. Paul explains: “For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that37 at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” ( Philippians 2:9-11 ).

Conclusion

What area of your life have you excluded Jesus from (e.g., your marriage, family, work, church, personal life)? Today, will you invite Him to take over this area of your life because He is Lord and God?

The good news of this passage is that God will exalt believers who humble themselves.

The way up is down !