NASHVILLE (BP) – This weekly Bible study appears in Baptist Press in a partnership with Lifeway Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention. Through its Leadership and Adult Publishing team, Lifeway publishes Sunday School curricula and additional resources for all age groups.
This week’s Bible study is adapted from the Bible Studies For Life curriculum.
Bible Passage: Philippians 2:1-11
Discussion Questions:
- When have you been reminded that pride comes before a fall?
Food for Thought by Brett Selby:*
Benedict Arnold was perhaps the best general America had during the Revolutionary War. He could organize men. He was good at strategy. He was fearless. His march on Quebec, his capture of Fort Ticonderoga and his planning for the Battle of Saratoga remain textbook cases of great military leadership.
Arnold was a good leader, and he knew it. He had an ego. He was impetuous. When the Continental Congress promoted five men to major general, Arnold was not one of them. They looked to military men who could also be team players. Benedict Arnold was good, but he was in it for himself. He changed sides all because of pride.
Who knows, perhaps the Revolutionary War would’ve ended sooner with fewer casualties had Arnold humbled himself and stayed with the patriots. He certainly wouldn’t have been disdained and maligned for 240-plus years. And he would likely have stayed in good standing and not died destitute in London.
Regardless of how good you are at a task, humility is needed. It’s critical. Our study in Philippians 2 will show us why.
While not without problems, the congregation of believers at Philippi was one of the healthier churches addressed in the New Testament. Paul was encouraged by the spiritual work that God had initiated in them (Philippians 1:6). As a result, Paul assumed some things about them that are true of all true believers. These commonalities provide the basis for instruction about relationships with one another.
This passage begins with the word “if” (2:1). Such a small word might seem unimportant to us. We might assume that “if” expresses some doubt in the mind of Paul. But in the Greek, this word can be translated as “since.” This would be the preferable translation, to think of it along the lines of “since,” because these are statements of reality that are assumed to be true.
We often use the word if in this same way. A parent says to a child, “If you don’t want to be grounded, then get your homework done!” Well, of course, no child wants to be grounded. One spouse might say to the other, “If you want to eat dinner tonight, then we need to have the oven fixed.” We’ve all grown accustomed to enjoying a meal, no matter who is doing the cooking that evening.
Here are the four things Paul assumes are true about these followers of Jesus:
- Encouragement in Christ. What does encouragement look like? It often looks like exhorting people to overcome challenges. Because of His death on the cross, Christ’s emboldening of us becomes incredibly real.
- Consolation of love. There’s an incentive that comes from knowing you’re loved. The persistent and constant love of God for each one of us can and should bring humility to our hearts.
- Fellowship with the Spirit. While this fellowship (Philippians 1:5) that Paul envisions can be both vertical (with God) and horizontal (with other people), there’s an established order in the New Testament. God comes first.
- Affection and mercy. This characteristic could be subjective or objective. Paul might be describing the attitudes that these believers have toward one another. He might also have in view the heart of God towards His people. You might think of it as a wonderful, glorious circle of kindness. Sometimes the mercy extended by a friend opens us up to receive the mercy and kindness of God.
Of course, in the rest of this passage of Scripture, Jesus is demonstrated to be our ultimate model of humility. Jesus humbled Himself and then God highly exalted Him. Practicing humility in the world probably won’t bring you any fame. But remind yourself that your humility matters to God. He exalted Jesus because of His humble sacrifice. When we follow that example, God is pleased. And that should matter most to us.
*Brett Selby is Central Regional ministry partner with the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma.
Bible Studies for Life
Bible Studies for Life connects the Bible to life for adults, students, and kids. Bible Studies for Life helps individuals and groups know God’s Word through trustworthy content, creates biblical community through engaging and conversational group studies, and helps people engage the culture missionally by unpacking what the Bible says about real-life issues. More information can be found at Lifeway.com/biblestudiesforlife.
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