The Humility of Christ

Paul had been talking about his great aim and purpose in life: “... for me to live is Christ” (1:21 CSB). This life-purpose was to cause them to “stand firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel ....” (1:27 paraphrased).

Inner Motivations (1-4) 

In chapter two, Paul laid out how the inner motivations could be lived out in loving behavior. 

This rich relationship with Jesus naturally produced in Paul and the Philippians an abundance of motivations or “encouragements.” The word “if” is probably not as good of a translation as would be the word “since.” 

Paul stated clearly that “since” they had been greatly emboldened in Christ, and since they had their pains greatly consoled by His love, and since they had experienced the Holy Spirit’s deep compassion and His overwhelming tenderness, then they should be loaded with motivation (1).

Paul encouraged them to complete his joy of being so abundantly alive in Christ by expressing four love-bonding virtues:

• Same mind: let the thoughts of Christ be at the core of their thinking

• Same love: let Yahweh’s covenant love govern their hearts

• Full accord: express the same Jesus virtues

• One mind: form a common culture by holding common opinions concerning what they would honor (2)

Paul then described humility as the inner-core virtue of Christ, which created an unbreakable bond. Paul defined humility as considering others as more significant than self and serving the interest of others before self-interests (3-4).

The Humility of Christ (5-11)

Paul then launched into describing Jesus, the example of humility. The virtue of humility was not a set of actions; it was a way of thinking. Humility was to be the way the Philippians were to think about life and living. They were especially to ponder Jesus’ own humility.

Jesus’ humility was shown in two different ways:

• First, Jesus was God, but He did not try to cling to being God’s equal. Humility, to Jesus, was divesting or emptying Himself of power, position, and privileges (5-7). 

• Second, just as Jesus did not grasp at being equal with God, He did not grasp at being equal with humans. Instead, He thought of Himself as being owned by Another. He was so deeply owned by Another that He was willing to be obedient to the point of death, in the most humiliating way, for the sake of humanity (8). 

Paul then explained how God honors humility: in Jesus’ case, God gave Him a name above all other names. He is causing all creation to be formed into a creation of resurrected, living bodies. These bodies will exist to bow and declare Jesus to be the Lord of all. On that great day, Jesus will then give all the glory of all that praise to the Father (9-11).

The Humility of Personal Responsibility (12-18)

Next, Paul identified what the virtue of humility will produce—obedience. The humility kind of obedience Paul was talking about is not dependent upon the presence of human and external motivations. This Christ-like humility Paul was referring to is the kind that takes personal responsibility for bringing to the outer life the saving work God has been doing on the inside. Paul explained to the Philippians the effect of salvation. 

God’s saving efforts on the inside of the heart create both a will and an energy to do those things that God looks upon with favor and delight (12).

Notice Paul did not say to work for your salvation but essentially work out what God is working in (13). Also, this is the kind of humility that refuses to get twisted up in the surrounding culture of grumbling and complaining. The word “do” in the verse implies they were continually complaining—the opposite of the humility virtue (14).

Their constant complaining was being noticed as a fault by those outside the church and had become a blemish to their conscience and the purity of their reputation.

What causes the church to really shine among those who take detours into lust and twist wrong into right is their non-complaining behavior (15). Instead of grumbling, Paul called the Philippians to “hold fast to the word of life,” which is the gospel (16). Grasping firmly to the word of life was Paul’s mission and the cause for which he was being poured out as an offering on the sacrificial surrender (faith) of their lives (17).

Paul considered the opportunity to pour out his life as a sacrifice a cause for joy and celebration (18).

The Humility of Christian Leaders (19-30)

Paul summed up this chapter with two other examples of Christ-like humility. Timothy and Epaphroditus demonstrated the same kind of humility as Christ, and Paul took time to describe their humble virtue.

Epaphroditus had already been sent with the letter they were reading, and Paul was going to be sending Timothy soon (23).

Paul made it clear that Timothy’s regard for the church was rare and his concern for the church genuine (19-21). Timothy possessed a remarkable humility as he became like a son to Paul and treated Paul like a father as they served the gospel of Jesus Christ (22).

As soon as Paul found out how his case was going, he would send Timothy on his way and then hopefully not too long after Timothy departed for Philippi, Paul himself would attempt a visit (24).

Then Paul brought up Epaphroditus, expressing his commitment as an equal partner in the work of gospel-spreading, as a servant to Paul's need, as a partner in longing for the church not to be anxious about his illness, and as a partner in faithfulness, to the point of risking his own life (25-26).

Paul believed Epaphroditus’s healing was a stroke of mercy. Paul was uncertain if he could have borne any additional sorrow (27-28). 

Paul's motivation in sending Epaphroditus back home was to give security to the Philippi church that their son in the faith had made a full recovery (29).

Paul reminded the church that one of their favored sons, in a time of ease, nearly died risking his life for the sake of the gospel. Epaphroditus was no slacker; he stepped up and put the interests of others first and was deemed by Paul as filled with the Jesus virtue of humility (30).

In all of this, Paul was seeking to keep this church from spiritual laxness in the middle of life, free from immediate threats and conflict. Paul was using humility as a key to keeping the heart sharp and passionate for Christ and His gospel cause.