Lent Day #16

Philippians 2:1-8 (ESV)
1 So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, 2 complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. 3 Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. 5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

THOUGHTS:
Paul writes to the Philippians to encourage unity in their community. He implores them to be "of one mind". I don't think this means we all have to think alike. He's not saying "check your mind at the door and toe the line". He's telling them that they shouldn't have rival factions among them. They should lovingly work out what they are going to do as a community so that they will be "in full accord". This reminds me of how Quaker (Society of Friends) communities traditionally do business: seeking consensus, and if they can't come to unanimous agreement, they table the issue to be decided at a later date. Then when they act, they are all "in full accord and of one mind." Is this what Paul is calling for?

Also, take another look at verses 3-4 (emphasis added): "...in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others." I find it interesting here that he's not telling them to ignore than own interests, but rather to also look to the interests of others. However, "others" aren't aren't second rate, but rather more significant.

Our society tends to value the self foremost. We always look out for #1 (ourselves), right? Sure, we value certain causes and it feels good to be charitable, so when it comes time to give, we look in our wallet, pick the medium-sized bill and give it away. It feels good & we helped someone else -- we're doing God's work...but don't we put ourselves first, rather than others? We value the new iPod we want to buy more than the food that could be bought for a family who desperately needs it. I'm not saying it is intentional, but as we talked about at the "Gospel According to the Simpsons" on Friday, we all benefit from the misfortunes of others in one way or another...

As Shane Claiborne points out in "The Irresistible Revolution": The world doesn't have enough resources for everyone to have a big house with a white picket fence and 2.3 kids driving a SUV everywhere -- but there are enough global resources to meet the basic human needs of every person on the planet. When asked why there are so many poor people whose needs aren't being met, Rob Bell told his congregation that it is because we, as the body of Christ, haven't been doing our job.

What if each of us put the needs of all the lonely and hurting people that we pass each day above our own time commitments each day? What would it look like if we led our local congregations work with other congregations and communities to prioritize caring for all the poor people in our neighborhoods above building renovations, carpet cleaning, new sound system or discussions about changing worship services? What if all Christian communities united together with "one mind" to, working with other like-minded organizations, to attempt to wipe out hunger in the world? Is it really possible for us to treat others as more significant than ourselves?

Note that I'm not saying to neglect your own needs, but to consider the implications of thinking about the needs of others as more significant. I'm not advocating starving yourself to death to feed others for a few days! What I'm asking is if we might be able to start by putting the basic needs of others before the luxuries we want? I don't know if I can do it, but I pray that God help me to try...

PRAYER:
Dear gracious God, you have given us so much. Help us to share this bounty with those who have not been so fortunate, that their struggle may be as if it were our struggle. Lead us to be the Church, uniting all of Your communities to do Your work.. Aide us in doing Your Will in all aspects of our lives. In the name of Jesus, we pray. AMEN.

NOTES:
We'll be gathering at the George Mason Statue on campus at 8:45am tomorrow (2/24/2008) morning to carpool to the Washington National Cathedral to hear bestselling author Jim Wallis speak, worship there, and return to campus by 1:00pm. RSVP by email or at http://gmu.facebook.com/event.php?eid=10421801061 appreciated, but not required.