Being The Church 12

Philippians 2.8ff
It says in Verse 8 that Jesus was ‘found in human form’. And that is where we all must find him. We learn about the character, the work and the purpose of the Son of God when we meet him in human form. This is the gospel. The gospel is found in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John’s accounts of Jesus’ mission in flesh. If you are struggling to ‘find’ Jesus, go to the gospel accounts and meet him in the flesh. And what you meet there is Jesus humbling himself for the sake of his people. The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many. He did not receive any honours from men and women when he came in flesh; on the contrary they ended up calling out for him to be crucified. He was despised and rejected; a man of sorrows and familiar with suffering. That humiliation of Jesus is most stunningly exposed when you see him at the point of death – even death on a cross. It was humiliating because he didn’t need to die for himself. He suffered and died FOR us and BECAUSE of sins – ours!

For US to have the same attitude as Christ means that your Christian brothers and sisters need to meet Christ in YOUR flesh. We won’t be aloof from people, but right next to them – up close – in empathy. We won’t be looking for status or special honours or respect, we will be diligently looking for ways to minister to our brothers and sisters. We will endure misunderstandings and even personal attacks – just as Jesus did – not because we are defeated martyrs trying to earn God’s respect – rather, because we want to be examples of the depth to which Christ’s love stoops so that forgiveness can flow.

2 Peter 4:1-4. Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same way of thinking, for whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, so as to live for the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human passions but for the will of God. For the time that is past suffices for doing what the Gentiles want to do, living in sensuality, passions, drunkenness, orgies, drinking parties, and lawless idolatry. With respect to this they are surprised when you do not join them in the same flood of debauchery, and they mock you. Your willingness to suffer in doing good to others is evidence that you are done with sin – ENOUGH! SICK OF IT! – committed to now living for the will of God – even though others mock you for it. You have joined the fight against sin and will use up your life to keep yourself free of it and rescue as many as possible from it as you go along.

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