AT ONE WITH CHRIST (PART 2)

Shalom,

Last Sunday’s sermon told about the Apostle Paul asking the Philippians (and us) to have the thoughts and feelings in Christ Jesus (Philippians 2: 5). But the fact is that it is very difficult to live in peace with each other because everyone has a different way of thinking. The way a husband thinks, for example, is different from what his wife has in mind. Parents and children are not always on the same page for sure. Also in friendship, different views and understanding come up. As a result, two groups or factions spring up and persistently stay separated. In fact, to enter the New Jerusalem, we only have one door available, namely, Jesus (John 10: 9).

Compared to other churches, the church at Philippi actually did not have many problems; they sacrificed a lot and actively ministered to many places, etc. Even the Apostle Paul praised and found their sacrifice  sweet-smelling and pleasing to God (Philippians 4: 14-18) but the Apostle Paul saw the invisible embryo of division within the Philippian church. This embryo of division brought about tension beyond control so that the Apostle Paul said, "I implore Euodia and I implore Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. And I urge you also Sunsugos, true companion (true companion, yoke fellow); help these women who labored with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the Book of Life" (Phil 4: 2-3).

It is noteworthy that Sunsugos is not a person's name. Rather, it refers to the attitude toward unity marked with loyalty. It takes loyalty to make unity possible. In fact, people who cannot get along with each other (they are not on the same page) do not know how to reach a compromise. They do not speak the same language and have no loyalty. Hence, they need Christ to help them to reunite since unity springs from Him and His faithfulness is everlasting.

The Apostle Paul did not preach any Gospel except the powerful Gospel of Christ and His cross (1 Corinthians 1: 17-18). For the sake of this Gospel, he was willing to suffer and go to prison. He was burdened with two women (Euodia and Sintikhe) who had joined him preaching this gospel but they were not of the same mind in God. Therefore, he asked Sunsugos to pray for the unity in the Body of Christ.

Evidently, not only the congregation but also the servants of God need prayer support for the sake of unity in the Body of Christ. Do we feel at one with Jesus, sharing one mind and one purpose?

Note that God created man with good character according to His likeness and image; obviously, the first human character did not contradict His character. That’s why when seeing the beautiful woman (Eve) in front of him, Adam unhesitatingly expressed his thoughts and feelings by saying, "This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh..." (Genesis 2:23).

However, since Adam and Eve transgressed God's command, the consequence has been prevailing –  that is to say, humans no longer share the same thoughts and feelings. Even twins have different thoughts and feelings. The fact is that, if any member of Christ's body is sick, the other members could care less; when a member of Christ's Body is put on a pedastal, the others get envious instead of rejoicing.

How could the Apostle Paul understand the thoughts and feelings of Jesus? In fact, he met Jesus only once when He in His glory came to save Saul / Paul (Acts 9: 3-6). After Paul knew Jesus, his life was totally changed – his life was no longer his but Christ lived in him (Galatians 2:20). Then, through the revelation received from God, Paul wanted the Philippians (and us) to have the feelings and thoughts of Christ to bring about unity among the members of His body.

Moreover, the Apostle Paul explained the position of Jesus and His models we should follow, namely:

• Jesus, being in the form of God, did not maintain His equality with God (Philippians 2: 6).

The condition of the world nowadays gives us the freedom to support or oppose a certain person or group. This births an iconic figure even elected as a model father or mother. However, in the church of God, He does not teach us to take the side of Paul, Cephas, Apollos, or anyone else (1 Corinthians 3: 4-5) but to focus on one person, that is, God. Unfortunately, God's church does not want it so that false teachers, false prophets, false apostles come on the scene with their mission to destroy the unity of the Body of Christ.

Ruins (marriage, household, etc.) can only be united by the cross of Christ (Ephesians 2: 14-15) because the purpose of His coming into the world through His birth is to make us one. Honestly, there is no true unity outside the Word of God because the unity of human beings with different thoughts, feelings and desires can be camouflaged while God's desire and His love never change.

Only Jesus - the Word - is the one and only perfect model for men. Many people set Jesus up as a key role model because of His high level of social awareness (healing the sick, caring for the poor and so on) and His consistent dislike of evil. Is that what His being a model is all about? Do we really know Him? Do we know the reason why He was born into the world? Before his birth, Jesus already knew His goal and mission He had to carry out. Many times parents do not understand what their children were born for. The point is that they take care of their kids and feed them nutritious food. Contrary to expectations, the kids have health problems since they do not consume the appropriate nutrients for their age.

· Jesus is God but He took the position of a Servant of His own free will. It is indeed amazing and anomalous / abnormal. He is a Master but willing to take a lesser position to be a Servant. In contrast, the attitude of His disciples is far different. Before Jesus suffered on the way to His crucifixtion, they even argued about who was the greatest of them (Luke 22:24).

   Aren’t the end-time churches competing with one another for reputation and assets? This proves that they do not have the thoughts and feelings of Christ in their hearts! Jesus has set an example how to be a leader / head. We do not have to keep our position on the top, bossing people around. Instead, we must have the courage to “go down” and take the position of a servant, working without pressure or under someone’s thumb.

• Jesus became a human being. Could you imagine how difficult the decision He must have made? He, who did not know sin, was made to be sin for us (sinners) so that in Him we might be justified by God (2 Corinthians 5:21); therefore, Jesus had to be crucified. He gave up His position as God and became a man who had to die because God cannot die but man is to die.

  His sacrifice is a model for married lives, families and congregations so that people can witness the true Christian attitudes – they like to give in; they do not behave with an air of authority despite their high-ranking positions; instead, they give others a hand with their work. Do not worry about losing your respect just because you give up your right as a master to become a servant!

 In His position as a man, Jesus was willing to humble Himself. This attitude should be an example for husbands, wives, parents and children, particularly celebrated pastors. Humanly speaking, the higher the position of a person, the more difficult it is for him to be humble.

 As a human being, Jesus not only humbled Himself but obeyed till the end of His earthly days. Honestly, aren’t men afraid of death even though they are destined to die for having transgressed God's command (Genesis 2:17, 3:19)? Be vigilant; do not despise the Word of truth out of ignorance about it like what Adam and Eve did, let alone try to twist it to suit our sin-tainted hearts!

 

  Although Jesus was rejected by His people (John 1:11), He came into the world - the Word became flesh (John 1:14). Let’s not celebrate Christmas just for the sake of a joyous feast.    We must also be willing to accept rejection and verbal abuse as experienced by Him. Do not  accept Jesus who performed many miracles but reject His death, because the plan of salvation had been proclaimed by God thousands of years before it was manifested through the death of Jesus crucified on the cross. 

  Let’s unite together with our hearts to imitate Jesus until we reach the point of zero – total submission and surrender without any rebellion whatsoever. Remember, whoever believes in the Son (Jesus) has eternal life but whoever does not obey the Son will not see life, but God's wrath remains on him (John 3:36).

  When Jesus came into the world, He knew that not everyone would accept Him. He knew that many would despise, reject and even crucify Him to death. The Apostle Paul who  experienced a total life transformation understood that he was sent to preach the gospel of the cross of Christ which is foolishness to those who will perish, but it is the power of God to us who are saved (1 Corinthians 1: 17-18).

  Please note this: Do not gospelize /preach about Jesus without the cross because the audience will perish. In fact, many 'evangelism' ministries, seminars and missions are based on secular philosophy which excludes personal repentance. They do so with the aim of increasing the number of church members; indeed, they are afraid to bear the agony of persecution when proclaiming the crucified Jesus. Believe the fact that God has made            the  crucified Jesus Lord and Christ (Acts 2:36)!

• On the cross, Jesus bore the curse of God. As a matter of fact,  He never sinned, let alone deserved the death penalty on a pole (Deuteronomy 21: 22-23) and yet He was treated like two robbers crucified on His right and left.

  We should have deserved God's curse for our sins and taken His cup of curse, but Jesus took our place and endured His Father’s curse. Should we then forget His suffering (for our sake) and  take pleasure in the fruits of His agony? The sufferings of Jesus on the deadly cross were horrifying beyond words. On top of that, all the disciples walked out on Him and even His Father left Him in the lurch (Mt 27:46).

  Jesus has endured our curse. So, let’s learn not to get offended and hurt easily when others mock or 'curse' us. Are we willing to take the blame for the wrongs we have not done? The crucified Jesus set an example for us how to keep a cool head when coping with mockery.

   Jesus was born to be the Savior and the cross reconciled sinful man with a holy God. The first person to be rescued was the robber crucified next to Jesus because he confessed his sins and believed that Jesus would come back as King (Luke 23: 41-43).

  What did Jesus have in mind? His mind only focused on forgiving sinners and saving them instead of judging them (John 12: 47^b). That’s why the first remark that came out of His mouth when He was crucified was, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do" (Luke 23:34). And before He took his last breath, He uttered, "It is finished" (John 19:30) because He believed that He had accomplished the mission of salvation.

  We must also have the feelings and thoughts to always be at peace with God and men. Admittedly, it is not easy for a husband to make peace with his wife because of their different backgrounds (cultures, education, financial status, ethnic groups, etc.) unless we receive Heavenly upbringing from God and His Word.

   After Jesus laid down His life on the cross, the veil of the Temple was torn in two from top to bottom (Mark 15:38) and made a way for us to enter the Most Holiest Place. Obviously, if Jesus sanctifies a person with His blood, he becomes holy and we have no right to decide whether or not he is worthy of being a priest. 

 Let’s not easily judge and classify a person’s spiritual level. For example, So-and-so  is in the Court while we are already in the Holy Place and so on. This act is the same as underestimating the sacrifice of Christ with which He has torn apart the dividing curtain between man and God.

  What has Jesus accomplished? Through His death, He has exterminated the Devil holding the power of death and also freed those held by a lifetime fear of death (Heb 2: 9-15).

  Since Adam and Eve disobeyed God's command by eating the forbidden fruit, man has been mortal, meaning that man has lost the relationship with God. This death can either happen physically or bring about fear that holds one all his life. For example, isn’t the shadow of death threatening a mother who is about to deliver her baby? And the sick are afraid of death, aren’t they? For that reason, Jesus came to give life but He Himself had to lose His life.

If we are at one with Jesus Christ, we will live in peace with God and men. We will stay humble and free from the fear of death because His cross provides us with life and triumph. Amen.



By Pastor Paulus Budiono
Sunday, Lemah Putro, December 10, 2017

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