First Church of God in Harvey
Sunday Morning November 25th, 2012
Let us pray
Welcome......
"O Give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: because his mercy endureth for ever." (Psalm 118: 1) “Oh, thank the Lord, for he is so good! His lovingkindness is forever.”
Last Sunday we said we should praise God anyhow. We should praise God continually; we should praise God openly, and we should praise God heartily. We should praise God, “At all times,” in every situation, under all circumstances, before, in and after trials in bright days of glee, and dark nights of fear..” They call the day after Thanksgiving “Black Friday,” it is time shoppers go looking for a bargain, if we were out looking for a bargain last Friday and did not get a bargain, we should still praise the Lord. The question is, how well did we praise the Lord during the course of last week? On Thanksgiving day in our Thanksgiving service we were told to bless or praise the Lord, and that we should not forget what God has done for us. The question is, how well have we been praising God since last Thursday?
Today is a new day, and once again we are called upon to praise the Lord. As the year 2012 rapidly draws to a close, we are called upon to praise the Lord. Let our praise not be one day of praise, but be a constant time of praise. Today we will be talking about having the mind of Christ, and if we truly have the mind of Christ, we will find the time to praise the Lord.
Our scripture reading for today will be taken from Philippians 2 verses 5 through 11.
Our topic for today is, Having The Mind of Christ. We will consider the following; Number 1..He humbled himself as a servant; Number 2..He appeared a man among men and Number 3..Exaltation is the reward of humiliation.
Just supposed for awhile you were on death row; you were charged with the crime of being a Christian, and you were asked if you had any last words to say. What do you think your last words would be? Would it be a call for mercy? Would it be a call for I don’t want to die? Would it be a call demonstrating your faith in Christ? Really, what would your last words be? Maybe this will never happen, but the possibility do exist. It would be a great thing to give some words of encouragement. Words such as, trust in the Lord; be faithful unto death; don’t give up; hold on; don’t be discouraged, and have the mind of Christ.
As the apostle Paul was nearing the end of his life he said, “For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.” As Stephen was being accused and finally stoned for the crime of being a servant of God, he got a vision of heaven, and he saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God. As stones came hitting him, this man of God knelt down and prayed, “Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.” The question we might ask ourselves is, can we really forgive those who have wronged us? The answer can only be yes, if we truly have the mind of Christ.
In verse 5 of our text it says, Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus. If you and I have been called to be servants, then we must have the mind of Christ. What is Paul talking about, or what does it mean to have the mind of Christ? Christ did not try to please himself; he sought not high places of the world; he did not choose a life of ease, comfort, pleasure. He lived for others; he went about doing good; he cared for the temporal needs of the sick and the poor. He cared for the souls of all men. As Christians, as followers of our Lord, we are called to mind the things which our Lord minded; our thoughts, wishes, motives, should be thoughts, wishes, motives which filled the sacred heart of Christ our Lord.
To have the mind of Christ is to love what he loved; and to hate what he hated. Every day, we must try to imitate our Lord, reproducing His image, being more and more like him, not only in the outward, but even in the inner life. When we have the mind of Christ we just can't help ourselves, we have to show love to each other. Let's look at 1 Corinthians 13 verses 4 through 7, and read from the screen. As God's child, do you really love your brother and sister? When they hurt, do you really hurt? To have the mind of Christ is to love each other. There are so many Christians who are saying I love you, I love you, but when things get rough, you wonder what has happened to all that love. We cannot have the mind of Christ and hate our brother and sister, it just will not work.........Let me this again, we cannot…
Most of us like praise and worship songs that put a little pep in our step, we clap our hands and stomp our feet. That is good. I also like the old songs that we used to sing in the Church of God. Many of you might not know some of the old songs that we used to sing, but here is one of the old songs, number 217....I will follow thee, my Savior (read verses)
In order to follow Christ, and if we are called to be servants, we have to have the mind of Christ. So if the road be rough and thorny; if it becomes lonely, dark and dreary, we will still follow Christ, if we have the mind of Christ. So if we have to meet with tribulations, and if afflictions come our way, we will still follow Christ, if we have the mind of Christ. If that is our desire, no matter what comes our way, we should be able to say, I will follow thee, my Savior, Thou didst shed thy blood for me, And tho' all men should forsake thee, By thy grace I'll follow thee.........elaborate...I'll follow him with rejoicing (even though sometimes the way might get rough; even though sometimes my steps may falter) I'll still follow him with rejoicing; with rejoicing, rejoicing (why will I do all this?) because...I know he safely will lead me, To my eternal home................
What do you think would happen, if we here at the First Church of God in Harvey all had the mind of Christ? "If we had the mind of Christ, humility rather than pride would be seen in our service to one another and God."
Let's look at verse 6 of our text (read) This verse goes back to the time when the Word was with God. Jesus Christ possessed all the fullness of the Godhead; all the splendour, the glory, all the essential attributes of Deity. Thus he was in the form of God, on an equality with God. Christ did not cling to the glory of the Divine majesty. He did not regard equality with God as a thing to be grasped, a prize to be tenaciously retained. Even though Christ our Lord was equal with God, because of his love for man he humbled himself. If we are called to be servants we have to humble ourselves...elaborate.... It seems to me, that nobody wants to humble themselves. It seems it is better to have it our way, than to humble ourselves, but to have the mind of Christ we must humble ourselves.
In verse 7 of our text we find that Christ was willing to leave his glory. He was willing to empty himself. He was willing to lay aside his splendor. He was willing to take upon himself the form of a servant, the form of a slave, and to take on human nature, and become as one of us, becoming God in the flesh.
It is said that Jesus left heaven, a place without sin and sorrow, holy, eternal joy, peace...to come to earth. ....He was born of a woman.....He lived in a wicked world....He worked and sweated in a carpenter shop. Here was God's son working in a carpenter shop. It is quite possible he heard the cursings in the carpenter shop. He saw wicked men. even though he worked in a carpenter's shop, he owned no home, he had no where to lay his head.
Some of us live in nice homes, but we still complain, but when Jesus was born there was no room for him in the inn, he was with the donkeys and the sheep. It is this Jesus, that Paul says we must be like. This Jesus, took upon himself the form of a servant., he humbled himself, the questions is, are we willing to do this?
Many of us like to hold on to things, having it our way. We like to "consider our standing before others something to be held on to " If the truth be told, many of us like to have some type of a title. Give some people a title, and they are satisfied doing nothing. We like to feel important. We like to know that we know somebody that is important, and we will talk about it. Have you ever heard people talking like this. I know Mary Sue who is a cousin of John Doe, who is a distant cousin of President Obama. That person feels important because he know someone who is a cousin of someone, who is a distant cousin of our president. If we have the mind of Christ, if we are truly called to be servants, we will not operate from selfish ambition. It is time for us as people of God to put aside our personal agendas for the call of Christ. So often people are hurt in the church, "because folks are too busy being selfish.. "How many times do we get offended because we did not receive the recognition that we feel we deserve? How many times are we offended because someone hurt our feelings?" In our text we find God's son, sacrificing the glory of heaven, he made himself of no reputation; he took upon him the form of a servant, and he was made in the likeness of men.
God's son, my Lord and my Master, he emptied himself, he deprived himself of the glory he had with the father, he took on the form of a servant, and he came as a man. He knew what it was to feel pain; he knew what it was to be tempted; he knew what it was to feel sleepy; he was God in the flesh, God incarnate. So, when we are going through our tests and trials, let us remember that Jesus knows exactly what we are going through, and he knows just how much we can bear.
Not only did Christ humbled himself as a servant, but in verse 8 of our text he appeared as a man among men. The words "being found," in our text refers to the time of his earthly life when he appeared as a man. In outward appearance he was a man, but he was more than a man, he was God. As a man Christ humbled himself, and became obedient to one of the most shameful and cruel death, the death of the cross, a death reserved by the Romans for slaves. We who have been called to be servants, we have to show obedience. Let's ask ourselves a few questions, how obedient am I to the cause of Christ? "Do I consider myself more important than others, and consider that distinction something to be preserved at all costs?" Do I consider my standing before others something to be held on to no matter who gets hurt in the process?
If we have been called to be servants, we will wait on God to do the exalting and not man. Let's look at verse 9 of our text (read) Exaltation is the reward of humiliation. Because Jesus demonstrated humility and obedience God highly exalted him. It is sad to say, but there are too many church folks who are trying to exalt themselves, rather than exalting or lifting up the name of Jesus. There are too many who are trying to build a name for themselves. The Bible says in Matthew 23 verse 12, And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted. If we desire to be true servants of Christ,, it is time to start exalting the name of Jesus. Christ was highly exalted by God, and he was given a name which is above every name. When we hear the name Kennedy, and the name Bill Gates, we think about being wealthy, these names are good, but the name of Jesus is far better. When you are in spiritual trouble, calling Bill Gates will not help you; calling the president will not help you, but calling the name of Jesus will bring help.
Because Jesus' name is far better than man's name look what happens in verse 10 of our text (read verse 10) At the mention of the name of Jesus, every knee shall bow. All creation in heaven and in earth and under the earth bows the knee to him in adoration. It seems Bro. Dudley Washington had a dream, and in his dream he said, I thought when I saw my dear Savior, there seated on His throne, Oh, the wonder that he would love me, and call me his very own. I bowed down and worship this Savior, my friend of Calvary and I wanted to praise him forever for saving one like me.......Then I fell on my knees and cried Holy....Holy....Holy...I fell at his feet and sang glory....glory to the Son of God. It is alright to fall on your knees and cry holy ..............
Not only will every knee bow at the mention at the name of Jesus, but verse 11 of our text says that every tongue is going to confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the father. Every tongue, in every mouth, everywhere, it does not matter who you are, will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. The Whites, the Blacks, the Chinese, the Hispanics it does not matter who you are shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.
If one desires having the mind of Christ, God must be on the agenda. It can no longer be business as usual. Our focus must be on Christ at all times. As God’s child, there will be something to do for the Lord every day of the week. So often we are busy doing our own work, that we just cannot find the time to do the Lord’s work. Always tired; always sleepy, no time to do this, no time to do that. We must make time for the Lord, and stop saying I can’t find the time. Time is not lost, it is available to you and to me, so let’s use the time wisely.
As we close, let's think for awhile, Is Jesus Christ truly Lord of our lives? Are we obedient, and is willing to follow the Lord all the way? If God's church is going to be healthy, then we who have accepted Christ as Lord of our lives, "must be transformed by the renewing of our minds." "Our minds must be renewed to reflect the mind of Christ? When we are immersed, when we are absorbed into Christ, having the mind of Christ then we are a new creature. Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature.......................................(2 Corinthians 5: 17)
Jesus Christ, the King of kings, and Lord of lords, he washed the dirty feet of men. He washed the feet of Judas the one who was to betray him. As Christians today, we are called to serve our brethren and our enemies. In Matthew 20 we find the mother of James and John was trying to look for positions for her sons. When the ten disciples heard it they were mad. I believe Peter since he was close to James and John must have been very upset. In verses 26 and 27 Jesus said, But it shall not be so among you; but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister. And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant.
As Christians we are called to be servants. The one who is our leader, he humbled himself as a servant; he appeared as a man among men, and as a result there was exaltation, as a reward of humiliation. Do you have the mind of Christ? Is Jesus Christ first in your life? Are you willing to follow the Lord all the way? Can the Lord depend on you? What will you answer be?
Let us stand
Call to discipleship
Closing song/prayer
