Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus,
To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and deacons:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. (ESV)
To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and deacons:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. (ESV)
If you are new to this reading plan, follow the instructions on the right side of this page or click here to read the "Why Just One Letter" introduction article.
Throughout
each month, we will post short articles to give some depth of
understanding regarding our text. Today we will discuss...
Why Servants of Christ Jesus?
In our world today, it seems that we often won't read anything from an author until we know what degree(s) they have and where they got them - or what experience they have in their given field.
As we will see in our study of Paul in August (Chapter 3:1-11) he had an impressive "spiritual resume" in which he could have started off this letter. And Timothy was no slouch as to Christian accomplishments and learning.
But what Paul wants to stress here is that there is a more important aspect to their identity than what they have done, what they have learned or where they have been - Paul and Timothy's identity is, first and foremost, centered on Jesus.
See, when Jesus gave us our marching orders in Matthew 28, he instructed disciples to be baptized into the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. This is more than simply saying a list of words for a religious ritual. This is an establishment of a new identity that will shape the disciple's life from that point onward.
We all had an overriding identity before we came to Christ.
Your identity may have been formed around your job, or your role in your family. It may have been based on where you went to school or even your favorite sports team. Some of us were unfortunately best known for a particular sin that we habitually fell into ("Oh, he's an addict." "She's a drunk." ...or promiscuous ...or violent, etc...).
But as Paul explains when he talks about our baptism in Romans 6:3-4:
"...all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death. We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life."
In other words, that person you were before you were saved by faith in Christ is gone. That person is dead and buried. You are now a new creation.
As disciples baptized into the name of Jesus, we take from His name our new relationship to Him. Jesus is our Savior, yes, so part of our new identity is that of grace recipients - we'll talk about that at another time. But along with His saving work - God the Father also established Jesus as our King. And that's where this Servant identity comes from in Philippians 1:1.
Paul makes it clear that he is a servant to Christ before he can be anything to the church.
Two quick points to make about this identity.
1) To be a good leader, you have to be a good follower.
As a church member, it is critical for you to only follow leaders as they follow Christ. If a pastor/elder or a deacon begins to follow a worldly system, or selfish ambition, or even if they become too careful because of fear of man issues - that will need to be remedied IF you are still going to follow them.
2) If you are a Christian, YOU are a servant too.
Jesus told us that no servant is greater than his master (John 13:12-17) and that as the Father sent Jesus, He is also sending us (John 20:21). So, how did the Father send the Son? Jesus tells us in Mark 10:45
"...the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve...”
So, just as Jesus came to be a servant, and just as Paul and Timothy came as servants, we are to live in this world as servants to the King.
So, how can you serve Jesus?
Our servant identity plays out in two ways: 1) Humble, loving obedience and 2) Helping the "least of these".
1) Humble, loving obedience is what Paul would also call living a life "worthy of the Gospel" (Phil 1:27). Or as Jesus says, "If you love me, you will obey my commands" (John 14:15). Serving Jesus begins with a heart of repentance from sin and a life submitted to Jesus' good rule.
2) Helping the "least of these" is the other element in our Christian Servant Identity. Remember, we are servants to the King. In Matthew's Gospel, Jesus says:
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me." (Matthew 25:31-40)
Paul and Timothy could have touted a lot of worldly pomp unto themselves as they are introduced in this letter, instead they bowed low in order to lift up the name of Christ. As you walk among the lost and the found in your part of the world this week, remember to live with a servant heart - fleeing from sin and running to help those in need.
