April 26 - Philippians 2:1-2
“If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose.”
Spiritual unity. In Philippians 1:27, Paul told his readers that he hoped they would strive for this. Now he gives them four qualities that will direct them down that path: encouragement from being united with Christ, comfort from his love, fellowship with the Spirit, tenderness and compassion.
Encouragement from being united with Christ. This is the first step. Once we have accepted Christ’s work in our lives, we begin the process of becoming a part of His kingdom.
Comfort from His love. How can we not become one with each other if we are filled with God’s love and express that love to everyone around us. This is one of those things that gets really difficult, though. We forget what it is to truly love. Each of us carries a different definition of what love looks like. So many of us don’t even know how to love or be loved. True love comes from God. True expressions of love come from expressing God’s love, not our own.
Fellowship with the Spirit. Once we know and express God’s love, we can also understand the relationship that we have with the Spirit. The Spirit came to dwell within us, to guide us, to teach us. There are plenty of people that I don’t trust to teach me or to guide me. The Spirit, however, is given permission to take me anywhere … even places I don’t want to go and to teach me things I don’t necessarily want to learn.
Tenderness and Compassion. These are external signs of what is going on within us. Through Christ’s work in our lives, God’s love in our hearts and the fellowship of the Spirit, we are freed to reach out with tenderness and compassion to those around us. It’s not easy, but Paul tells the Philippians that these things will bring unity within the body … they will be like-minded, being one in spirit and purpose.
“If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose.”
Spiritual unity. In Philippians 1:27, Paul told his readers that he hoped they would strive for this. Now he gives them four qualities that will direct them down that path: encouragement from being united with Christ, comfort from his love, fellowship with the Spirit, tenderness and compassion.
Encouragement from being united with Christ. This is the first step. Once we have accepted Christ’s work in our lives, we begin the process of becoming a part of His kingdom.
Comfort from His love. How can we not become one with each other if we are filled with God’s love and express that love to everyone around us. This is one of those things that gets really difficult, though. We forget what it is to truly love. Each of us carries a different definition of what love looks like. So many of us don’t even know how to love or be loved. True love comes from God. True expressions of love come from expressing God’s love, not our own.
Fellowship with the Spirit. Once we know and express God’s love, we can also understand the relationship that we have with the Spirit. The Spirit came to dwell within us, to guide us, to teach us. There are plenty of people that I don’t trust to teach me or to guide me. The Spirit, however, is given permission to take me anywhere … even places I don’t want to go and to teach me things I don’t necessarily want to learn.
Tenderness and Compassion. These are external signs of what is going on within us. Through Christ’s work in our lives, God’s love in our hearts and the fellowship of the Spirit, we are freed to reach out with tenderness and compassion to those around us. It’s not easy, but Paul tells the Philippians that these things will bring unity within the body … they will be like-minded, being one in spirit and purpose.
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