Verse of the Day - Philippians 2:1-2

By

"If then there is any encouragement in Christ, any consolation from love, any sharing in the Spirit, any compassion and sympathy, make my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind."
Philippians 2:1-2, NRSV

Having one mind prompts the question, "Who's mind?" People who are familiar with this passage and some others in the New Testament might say, "The mind of Christ." I think that's a good answer. Unfortunately, what we say with our lips doesn't always match what we live with our lives.

"Whose mind" is often modeled as "my mind." When people disagree with us, we get uncomfortable, angry, defensive, or condescending. Paul says his joy will be complete if the Philippians have one mind, and not just any mind. It's only the mind of Christ that unifies Christians, because Christ is the head of the body. The climax of Christ's earthly ministry is found in the cross and the resurrection, and any attempt to articulate the mind of Christ that isn't consistent with the cross is just another attempt to replace Christ's mind with our own.

Be of the same mind, having the same love...

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Abraham, the Slave Owner

By
Image
Abraham, one of Israel’s forefathers in the Old Testament, was a slave owner, as were (probably) many, if not all, of the patriarchs in Israelite history. I’m not a historian, but I’d guess that most cultures in the ancient Middle East, Europe, and Africa practiced slavery. That certainly seems to be true of every nation/tribe mentioned in both the Old and New Testaments. So, let’s talk about it. Why does it matter that Abraham owned slaves? The legal "end" of slavery is a relatively recent event in history, and the civil rights movement in America was, obviously, even more recent. Probably everyone who’s present on social media or glances through the news has noticed we’re nowhere near the end of systemic racism, and slavery is a prominent part of that conversation. In many ways, we’re at another crossroads in American history; how we, as a nation, respond to discussions about slavery and racism is being globally televised. It will impact the entire world. This is alread
Read more

The Gospel of Mark: Unclean Spirits and Demons

By
Image
Just about everyone who has heard about Christianity and Jesus, whether or not they're Christians, has heard about Jesus casting out demons or healing the demon-possessed. In fact, demons in general are one of the most popular themes from Christianity. This is probably due in part to the fact that scripture doesn't say much about them. Like with the heavenly messengers and other creatures described in visions throughout scripture, there's a lot of room for imagination when it comes to demons. That makes them perfect for pop-culture references and fantasy lore, and the fact that scripture talks about demons possessing people and making them do things sparks a world of possibilities and unanswered questions, but how are demons really presented in scripture? Well, we don't have time to explore all of scripture here, but since I've been studying Mark, let's consider how demons are presented in the gospel of Mark, as a case study. What does Mark have to say abou
Read more

Breaking Bread Theology

By
Breaking Bread Theology is a blog dedicated to honest, safe-space conversations about Christianity, theology, and philosophy. This isn’t an instructional blog or a persuasive blog. I’m not writing to convince you of anything or to correct your thinking; I want you to feel welcome here, regardless of what you believe. While my hope is that this project will help others in some way, it’s as much for me as for anyone else. I know how hard it can be to find places to, and people with whom we can, share our faith without judgement. I hope that Breaking Bread can be that place for us. Why "Breaking Bread" Theology? Breaking Bread was one of the suggestions while I was brainstorming names for this blog. While the cultural reference made me laugh, the Biblical allusion also resonated with me. In the Bible, breaking bread often refers to sharing meals, and in the New Testament, it also has the added meaning of sharing the Lord’s Supper (a.k.a. Communion or Eucharist). I think
Read more