Which way is Up?

Read Philippians 2.

Motivational speaker Zig Ziglar was known for saying, "Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude."

Jesus said, "You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles (unbelievers) lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them"  Then, in contrast He said, "For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve..." (Mark 10:42,45)

The Apostle Paul wrote that followers of Jesus are to "have this mind among yourselves which is yours in Christ Jesus."  He went on to explain what that means.

In this sin-warped world, success is most often measured by standards that are "crooked and twisted" (v.15).  Our natural attitudes are filled with "selfish ambition or conceit" (v.3).   Life becomes about what we can get and gain for ourselves.   Personal goals are marked by position, possessions and/or power.  Those three things comprise the entirety of human achievement.  Without Christ, that is all there is.

But, then came the example of Jesus.  He was God in the flesh.  He has position as King of kings and Lord of lords (Revelation 19).  He claims possession of everything there is.  "The earth is the LORD's and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein." (Psalm 24:1)  And, on top of those, "All authority in heaven and earth has been given to me" (Matthew 28:18).  Indeed, Jesus is the Supreme Being.

Yet, for our sakes, He voluntarily laid aside all of those things for a time in order to meet our greatest need.  "He humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross." (v.8)  "Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow." (vv.9-10)  Since no one could ever come close to the humiliation of Christ, no one but Jesus could ever be so exalted.

Truly, the way up is down.  This, then, is the manner in which we are to serve.  "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." (vv.3-4)