To Know Him and Make Him Known
Sermon Summary: Living in a completely selfless and others-centered way is impossible unless we learn to think the way that Jesus thought. But if we come to Jesus in desperate faith, he can help us to think differently about ourselves and others, which will enable us to live the way that Jesus lived.
Paul expects us to make sure we understand that our lifestyle (the values, goals, and choices that we live by) is “in sync” with the good news about Jesus. To help us judge how we’re doing, he gives us four benchmarks in this passage to help us measure how closely our own personal lifestyle matches…
We only have so much “life” and how we choose to spend it is crucial. Right-side up thinking, according to Paul, means that we will spend our lives honoring Jesus and not ourselves. Death, while not pleasant or desirable, is not to be feared or avoided, because it ushers me into the arms of the…
Paul was in prison, which was a significant setback to his plan to share the good news of Jesus with the world. Instead of pouting or getting angry, though, he chose to see his situation from God’s perspective and discovered that God’s plan was better, which enabled him to make courageous and faith-filled choices.
Paul loved the Philippians enough to warn them they would one day answer to Jesus for the opportunities he gave them to serve him. He wanted them to be prepared. The only way to be prepared, though, is to radically change the way that they think so that they can make better decisions in life…