Sermon Notes: Christlikeness Series

Humble Like Jesus

Sermon Notes

“Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
‭‭Philippians‬ ‭2‬:‭5‬-‭11‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ 

WHAT IS HUMILITY?

• Make yourself less than you are.  Humility does not deny gifting; it refuses to exalt self above others.
• Refuse to think more highly of yourself than you ought.

“For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith” (Romans 12:3, NKJV)

• An accurate reflection of yourself.  He who thinks he is a somebody when he is a nobody deceives himself.

“For if anyone thinks himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself” (Galatians 6:3, NKJV)

  JESUS' HUMILITY WAS DISPLAYED

• Submitted to the will of the Father.

“Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done” (Luke 22:42, NKJV)

• Submitted to earthly authority — His mother and father.

“Then He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them” (Luke 2:51, NKJV)

• Submitted to the ordinance of baptism.

“Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness” (Matthew 3:15, NKJV)

• Submitted to the Father through prayer.

“Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed” (Mark 1:35, NKJV)

Humble yourself under the mighty hand of God, and He will lift you up. 

“Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time” (1 Peter 5:6, NKJV)

  WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE HUMBLE? (PHILIPPIANS 2:5–8)

• “Thought it not” — humility starts with thoughts.

You reject thoughts of equality as something to grasp or hold on to. Humility begins in the thought-life. Jesus would ask, “Why do these thoughts arise in your heart?”  (Luke 24:38, NKJV)

“Who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God” (Philippians 2:6, NKJV)

• “Made Himself of no reputation” — make yourself nothing.

Don't chase positions, titles, or status. Tell yourself, “I am nothing without Him.”  As a father, make yourself a child — apologise to your children. Wife, you might be smarter, but follow the lead of your husband.

“but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men” (Philippians 2:7, NKJV)

• Obedience — Jesus was obedient.  Humble people listen to instructions.

“And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross” (Philippians 2:8, NKJV)

  EXAMPLES OF PRIDE THAT LED TO DESTRUCTION

• Nebuchadnezzar

“The king spoke, saying, ‘Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for a royal dwelling by my mighty power and for the honor of my majesty?’ While the word was still in the king's mouth, a voice fell from heaven: ‘King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: the kingdom has departed from you!’” (Daniel 4:30–31, NKJV)

• Saul

“So Samuel said, ‘When you were little in your own eyes, were you not head of the tribes of Israel? And did not the LORD anoint you king over Israel?’” (1 Samuel 15:17, NKJV)

  CONCLUSION

“Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we're going to go to this or that city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make money.” You don't even know what's going to happen tomorrow. What is your life? You're a mist that appears for a little while and then disappears. Instead, you should say, “If it's the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that.” As it is, you're bragging about plans that you've made in your pride. That kind of bragging is wrong” (James 4:13–16, RAD)

Walk humbly. Trust the Lord with your plans, and your future — and He will exalt you in due time.