Philippians 2:1, commentary and pictures

The verse sets four shared blessings — comfort in Christ, comfort of love, fellowship of the Spirit, and tender compassion and mercy — as the ground and motive for unity among believers. On that ground it urges them to complete joy by being like-minded, having the same love, and being of one accord and of one mind. That oneness forbids all action from strife or vainglory and requires lowliness of mind in which each esteems others better than self and looks also to the interests of others. This is having the mind of Christ, who being in the form of God and equal with God made Himself of no reputation, took the form of a servant in the likeness of men, and humbled Himself in obedience unto death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God highly exalted Him and gave Him a name above every name, to which every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father, and with that mind believers work out their salvation as God works in them, living without murmurings and disputings as blameless lights holding forth the word of life.

Blessings Grounding the Appeal

The verse sets out four shared realities — encouragement found in Christ, comfort flowing from love, fellowship of the Spirit, and tender compassion and mercy — as the grounds and motives calling believers to be united in love and purpose . Those who know these gifts are to share the same love, be of one mind and heart, reject strife and vanity, and act toward one another in humility and thoughtful care . Those who know Bible truth are to obey this appeal and live as one in Christ .

It is an urgent charge of the Holy Spirit to everyone who shares that consolation, comfort, fellowship, and mercy, to be obeyed and lived and not passed over indifferently . Christian joy is fulfilled when divisions end and believers become like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord and of one mind, doing nothing through strife or vainglory but in lowliness esteeming others better than self, looking also to the interests of others, and having the mind that was in Christ Jesus . That mind is the self-emptying of Him who, being in the form of God, made Himself of no reputation, took the form of a servant in the likeness of men, humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross . The instruction is clear and important and without excuse for walking contrary to the will of God, the best instruction for this time and especially for leading brethren, requiring earnest heed and thankful obedience, individual striving to obey, personal heart application unto perfection in life and not mere belief, doing of the words, rebuke of self rising up and of pressing other minds into the same lines of opinion, reading and study of the whole second chapter of Philippians and also the third, humble joining with fellow believers, and the unity thus urged is the condition the spiritual gifts were given to secure .

Fellowship of the Spirit is a living experience renewed each day, known in shared worship and whole-hearted seeking of God and in walking and speaking in unity as those bound with Christ in God . Faith and love must dwell in the heart and shape the character, and then believers share one love and purpose, reject strife and vainglory, esteem others above themselves, attend to the needs of others, and follow the selfless mind of Christ who humbled Himself and took the form of a servant . As that fellowship is renewed daily, holy and elevating principles are formed within, making purity, holiness, and separation from the world natural, and such united prayer, heart-searching, and confession as the disciples knew precedes the fulfillment of the promise of the Spirit and enables witness that God sent His Son to save sinners .

Unity and Humility Required

On the ground of consolation in Christ, comfort of love, fellowship of the Spirit, and tender compassion and mercy, believers are to fulfill joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord and of one mind. That oneness is meeting the mind of the Spirit of God in all things, and love in it is a power that makes unity actual rather than merely professed. It is to be taken personally as an injunction each one must individually strive to obey, rebuking self rising up and seeking to make other minds travel in the same lines of opinion and ideas. It is grounded in encouragement found in Christ, comfort of love, fellowship through the Spirit, and compassion and mercy calling believers to share one love and purpose.

That oneness forbids doing anything through strife or vainglory. It demands sharp critical self-examination and refusal to weave worldly principles of selfishness, oppression, and self-advancement into God's work. Greater light about God's character brings greater guilt if not met with love and obedience. A thorough change of character is required, with deep repentance and forsaking of what shuts away the sweet spirit of Christ.

In lowliness of mind each is to esteem others better than self and to look not only to personal interests but also to the interests of others. This means putting self out of sight and coming into right relation to God under the broad shield of Omnipotence where alone there is safety. There forbearance and kindness are manifested as a blessing to all associates. Believers are to humbly value others, care about others' concerns, and guard themselves strictly to meet this high standard of universal humility, benevolence, self-denial and self-sacrifice in good works rather than passing the instruction over indifferently.

All this is having the mind that was in Christ Jesus. Christ came to represent the Father in self-denial and sacrifice, and that life of self-denial and sacrifice is the life His followers must live as their characters are transformed. They are to remain humble and close to Christ rather than depending on self in overcoming temptation and helping others, living the Word and depending on His power. In this way they meet the mind of the Spirit of God in all things.

Christ's Mind and Exaltation

The mind of Christ is that though He was in the form of God and equal with God, He claimed nothing for Himself by right. He made Himself of no reputation, took the form of a servant in the likeness of men, humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. That humiliation from equality with God to servanthood and obedience is the mind believers are to have in meeting the mind of the Spirit of God in all things.

Therefore God highly exalted Him and gave Him a name above every name. At the name of Jesus every knee shall bow in heaven and in earth and under the earth, and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

With that mind believers work out their own salvation with fear and trembling while God works in them to will and to do of His good pleasure. They do all things without murmurings and disputings so as to be blameless and harmless, the sons of God without rebuke in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, shining as lights in the world. They hold forth the word of life in words sanctified by the Spirit of God and in accordance with gospel principles, guarding themselves strictly to meet this high standard of universal humility, benevolence, self-denial and self-sacrifice in good works rather than passing the instruction over indifferently.

It is lived out in putting on tender mercy, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering, forbearance, and forgiving one another even as Christ forgave. Above all is put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness. The peace of God is let to rule in the heart with thankfulness, and the word of Christ is let to dwell richly in teaching and admonishing one another and in singing with grace.

Church Life Made One

The appeal calls for a thorough change of character, thorough repentance and conversion, with deep confession and forsaking of the sins that shut away the sweet spirit of Christ from the church. The heart is to be cleansed from spiritual defilement and life brought into accordance with given light, such as the light on Sabbath observance, in order to be signally blessed. United to Christ, believers worship with subdued hearts and reverence, treat the house of God as sacred and not as a place for unholy feelings, malice, faultfinding and bitterness of spirit, and preserve order in the house of God. When the heart welcomes Jesus to abide there, love and tenderness and compassion appear, bitterness and evil speaking are put away, many fall upon the Rock and are broken, and believers take a decided position on the Lord's side, with powers illuminated, inspired and sanctified to form a complete whole in answer to Christ's prayer. The blessings named — consolation in Christ, comfort of love, fellowship of the Spirit, and tender mercy — are to be proved by such unity in God's work, with servants counseling together and working in oneness, for strength is in unity.

When human beings are under the control of the Spirit, all difficulties are easily settled and all wrongs easily righted. Barriers between believers are to be removed by confessing wrongs, putting away bitter feelings and evil speaking, and restoring fellowship. Fellowship is expressed by avoiding whatever causes alienation or strife and by showing charity through kindness, compassion, forbearance and forgiveness, which becomes a blessing to all associates. These shared blessings connect with confession, mutual care, and worship marked by gratitude and praise, with Christians bound together by Christ's life and love, standing side by side and refusing to create needless trials, divisions and disrespect.

No one should claim the right to carry out his own ideas and plans without interruption, or insist that his own course, words and reasoning are right without modification, nor should any worker's judgment be deferred to without question. Every movement is to pass under strict self-examination and every principle of action compared with the principles of God's Word, with sharp critical self-examination and refusal to weave worldly principles of selfishness, oppression and self-advancement into God's work. God's servants are to counsel together and work in oneness, held together with faithful order and plain dealing with wrong. Criticism, fault-finding, and opposition to God's guided management like the rebellion of Korah, Dathan and Abiram must give place to changed thoughts and attitude in every way toward unity and harmony, instead of remaining unconverted.

Experienced preachers carrying truth from place to place and meeting to meeting must speak truth in all its force while shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace, presenting it in love and tenderness and compassion rather than in a way that arouses the worst feelings of the human heart. The whole church and younger and less experienced workers must plainly respect and honor aged workers of long faithful service. Believers are to draw near to fellow believers, love them sincerely, and encourage them to carry their responsibilities faithfully in the fear of God. This calls for Christlike interest in neglected suffering fields instead of false representations, cruel criticisms, sharp words and retarding plans, for allowing God to be Helper so the work is adjusted to His glory, for loving generous regard to those who have taxed endurance almost at sacrifice of life, for constant prayer for grace and guidance, and for becoming meek and lowly and humble, partakers of loving-kindness and unselfish regard, never hurting Christ's purchased possession. Fellowship of the Spirit was experienced in shared worship and whole-hearted seeking of God, and supports working together with one mind and heart, cherishing reciprocal dependence instead of separating from organization and from brethren, since discord robs families of happiness and the church of usefulness and hinders reformation.

The mercy named is the Lord's sweet voice still pleading with the sinner to hear and repent, as part of God's complete provision showing how to obtain the crown of life and enter the joy of the Lord. The worker is to look to God and seek wisdom in most earnest prayer to learn the way of the Lord as no human voice can teach, to see that transgression of the law cost the blood of the Son of the infinite God, to hate the sins that wounded Jesus, and to keep a contrite heart while viewing Jesus as a compassionate tender High Priest. Consolation in Christ is a comfort received to be revealed in word and deed to the afflicted and suffering, with Scripture supplying the comfort and hope needed for the work. Fellowship with the Spirit is deepened by whole-hearted liberality, which brings mind, soul and heart into closer fellowship with the Spirit, and the appeal is to live the Word, remain humble and close to Christ, join with brethren rather than separate from them, and put truth into practice in words, spirit and action in dependence on His power rather than self.