Philippians
is one of the warmest and friendliest of Paul’s letters in the
Bible. The church in Philippi seems to have been quite healthy and a
source of joy for Paul. But it was not perfect. No church is. As we
read along in Philippians, we see hints and whispers that Paul knows
a few unhappy and unhealthy things about this congregation. There are
some cracks in their unity, some struggles with pride.
In
Philippians 2, Paul begins to address this. And he lays it on pretty
thick. “If you are even remotely Christian,” Paul says, in
effect, “then make me even more joyful by embracing humility.”
Many
theologians teach that humility is the core Christian virtue, the
characteristic that makes us most like Jesus. Humility helps us
realize that even though we all have gifts and talents to do many
things, that does not make us better than anyone else. Instead, we
try to see life as a level playing field on which each person does
her or his part. And at the end of the day, we pay more attention to
others than to ourselves. Let someone else compliment you for your
work while you focus on building up others.
We
all need each other. Each of us needs to be thankful for the next
person. This is, as Paul explains next (in verses 5-8), the pattern
established by Jesus—so this is the pattern to follow.