We'll be in Philippians again this hour, second chapter. As we continue our series, verse one through three, or I'm sorry, verse one through five of Philippians chapter two. We're basically just taking it one word at a time. But there's a lot in this. There's a lot in this. This is part five of our series thus far. Paul is stating that these things be in a believer. Paul is not saying, try to acquire these things. Paul saying, this is what's in you. Look at this, two through five, we'll read two through five.

Fulfill you my joy that you be like minded. Okay. The believers are like-minded when it comes to the things of Christ. Is that not true? Christ and his gospel. We heard the first hour, the salvations of the Lord. Christ is all in salvation and salvation is all of grace. We all agree on that. We're like-minded, right? Having the same love. We have the same love. It's from the Father. It's not our love.

Being of one accord. of one mind, let nothing be done through strife or vainglory, but in lowliness of mind, let each esteem other better than themselves. Look not on every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus."

So he's saying that these things are in the Lord's people. They're in the Lord's people. And the Lord is the one to say, how do I know if I have these abilities, these things that he's talking about? How do I know if I'm doing that? Well, who are you looking to? Because if you're looking to Christ, that's exactly what's going to happen.

There's no better message that motivates people to be merciful than to preach the mercy of Christ, not preach how you should be, but how he was. That's motivating, isn't it? Nothing motivates me more to love him than to know he first loved me when I was unlovable. And nothing motivates me more to love you than to know that I'm the chief sinner and you say the same thing about yourself. And so we love each other because we've been saved by the same father.

This is all him and it's all his doing and for his glory. The last part of this sums it up when he says, let this mind be in you that's in Christ. To be like-minded with Christ is to be a servant unto him and our brethren, not as part or evidence of our salvation. If we ever do anything as part or evidence of our salvation, we've made it void. We've made it void. Don't do it.

But if you do it out of love, that's the motivation, the love of Christ. That's why we do what we did. Somebody might say, well, why did you work on the church yesterday? Because I love the people here. I love the Lord's gospel. I love our savior. And the hope is he'll continue to call sheep. And as full as the church is looking this morning, I'm wondering if we should put more money into the building. Might have to get a bigger building eventually. It'll be okay.

But the love that the Lord gives his people, he says that our hearts are knit together, being comforted by what? By him, by the Lord. What the Lord has done is he said, I will love you and you will love me. And how does he do that? Well, he gives us what is required. He says, the love of God is shed abroad in your heart. The Lord gives that. So this is not something that I have acquired or attained. This is not something that I've earned or I've merited. It's that God shed forth his love into the hearts of his people.

Let's read verse one. We've already read the rest of it. there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies." That word bowels is inward affection. Inward affection. That's what I titled the message. Inward affection. What is inward affection? Well it's love isn't it? It's love. Inward affection. It also means pity or sympathy. Do you have pity or sympathy on your brethren when you hear that they are afflicted? Why? You love them. You love them. What do the Scriptures say?

We know that we have passed from death unto life because we love the brethren. We know that we have passed from death unto life because we love the brethren. But I'm not up here today going to have us examine our love because our love is so cold and indifferent sometimes.

I mean, how often do I even, you might not believe this, but me and my wife fight sometimes. It's not a perfect marriage like you think it is. It is to me. It's, you fight, you fuss. Why? Well, maybe I didn't get what I wanted. Well, that means I'm selfish. It's not love going forth, then it's pride, isn't it? That's always the root problem about me.

Well, number one, oh, the Lord, He don't want my love. He's not looking to my love. He's looking at the love that He has for His people. He's looking at the love that the Son of the Lord Jesus Christ had to the Father. That's the love that He's looking towards, because I can't love Him like I want to love Him. So what does He do? He gives me that love. He gives me that love that looks and loves Him alone.

The best way, if we are, as I said the first hour, we are striving for these things that's mentioned. We're striving, but not in a sense of working. And I want to be clear on that. We're striving by looking unto Christ. We're looking unto Him. And if we're looking unto Him, we're going to have His love shed abroad in our heart. It's just going to happen. That's just how it works. So we look to him. We don't look to seek to be, maybe I should be more loving. And if you're a rude person, be more loving. There's nothing wrong with that. But that's not what he's talking about here.

He's talking about the inward affection that he gives, not that we earn, not that we do. Because the very first thing he says is if you have consolation, he says you have consolation in Christ. It's all about Christ and that's our consolation. Well, then he talks about fellowship of the spirit. Then he talks about vows. He's saying this inward affection is something that God has to give in order for us to even have it.

Best way to strive to have inner affection is not to look at ourself. Don't look at your love. And if we have no takeaways from this message, I hope that that's a takeaway. Don't look at your love and think that God loves you because of your love. He loves you because of the love of Christ. He loves you because of the love of the Father and the love of the Spirit. Look to the Lord Jesus Christ. Look to God's love.

Everything here must be done. It must be accomplished with eyes on Christ. Not on self, not on circumstance, not on what we do or what we don't do. We don't need to examine self. Look to Christ. That's the solution. The problem is that I can't unless he enables me. That's why we come here. We're hoping we can see him. Lord, cause me to see you. Cause me to seek your face. Allow me to see your face one more time. As David said, restoring to me the joy of thy salvation.

If we don't do this with eyes on Christ, it's void. We've made it, it's in vain. Any believer that you ask, if you say, I'm talking about the elect of God, the true believer, not what society calls believers or Christians. That title's been thrown around a lot.

But if you ask them, are you hoping in your love towards God. No, I'm hoping in his love towards me. I'm hoping in his love towards me, because if I loved him the way I wanted to, I would be looking to him more often. I wouldn't forget to read scripture as often as I do, or I wouldn't forget I'd make time for him if I loved him the way I wanted to. I wouldn't forget to pray as I do sometimes. I would be more fervent. I would love him perfectly if I could love him.

And that's the inward man that does love him that way, but there's the warfare with the flesh and the new man we know about. And that's the problem. It's not my love I hope in, it's the love of God, the inward affection of God towards his people. This is the things that the Lord possesses. This is the things God is love, the scripture says. This is the things the Lord possesses and he gives to his people by grace alone, by grace alone.

He said, I've loved thee with an everlasting love, therefore, What's the therefore therefore? Well, he said, I've loved you with an everlasting love. That's why it's there. I have drawn thee. I have drawn thee with loving kindness, loving kindness have I drawn thee. Which brings us to our first point. God loved his people. He's always loved his people, first of all. Everlasting love, that's what, never had a beginning, never had an end.

God loved his people in election, in choosing to save them, in making a covenant of grace that he might be redeemed, that he might redeem his people. He loved them in election. He does not love everybody, as so many men foolishly describe, declare. He loves his bride. He loves his people. He loves whom he chose, whom he gave to Christ before time ever began. Those who are in Christ, that's who he loves. Here in his love, not that we love God, but that he loved us and sent forth Christ to be the propitiation of our sins. That's love. No greater love hath any man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. And that's what Christ did for his people, didn't he?

Most people look at their love towards God and they think, I chose him, I made a good choice, I love him. That's irrelevant. If he didn't choose me, I have no hope of salvation. Salvation's a choice, but it's God's choice, not man's. The Lord has to choose, to elect, and he did so. Who did he elect? Those whom he has always loved and always will love.

If I'm trusting in my love, or if there's somebody here this morning that's trusting in your love towards God, listen to this, God's requirement, listen to God's requirement. Jesus said into the hymn, Matthew 22, 37, thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. That's the requirement, perfectly. You have to love him perfectly. I'm not capable of doing that. My heart's deceitful above all things and desperately wicked.

I get worried when you're listening to a, anybody ever been listening to a message going down the road and the Lord's revealing things to you and you're just rejoicing and somebody might cut you off or something. And I use car example a lot. I'm not a road rage driver or nothing, but they're easy examples because we all experience it. And all of a sudden that joy is gone and I can't concentrate anymore.

But if I loved him the way I wanted to love him, then I wouldn't do that. I would still concentrate on him and not worry about this person that he's purposed to begin with to cut me off. Our love's not, no, we don't look to our love. We look to Him. Our love can't be perfect. It's God's love. God's let see our love as cold.

I said I fought with my spouse. Who else has ever fought with your spouse? You know what I mean? We do put our, we try to put our spouses first, but at the end of the day, I mean, we, our flesh is selfish. It's prideful. We'll fight over the silliest things.

Oh, if I loved her the way I wanted to, I wouldn't do that. The Lord doesn't want my love. How about this, how often do we murmur and complain on the providence of God? Well if I loved Him the way I wanted to I wouldn't murmur and complain. How impatient are we with our circumstances forgetting that He's the one that sent the circumstances. He's the reason for it, the first cause of all things.

Well if I loved Him the way I wanted to I would understand and accept that information immediately and say, thank you Lord for this circumstance regardless of what it is. Flesh can't do that. He doesn't want my love. No, love's not impatient. Love is patient. Love is kind.

Turn with me to 1 Corinthians 13. The word charity here is the same word as love in translation. 1 Corinthians 13 says, though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels and have not charity, I am become as a sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy to understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith so that I could remove mountains and have not charity, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. Charity suffereth long and is kind. Charity envieth not. Charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up.

That's pride. Doth not behave itself unseemingly, seeking not her own. Well, we do that a lot, don't we? Seeking our own. is not easily provoked. Thinking no evil, rejoice that's not an iniquity, but rejoiceth in truth. Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endeareth all things. That's not like the love that you have in the flesh. No, no, that's the love that God has to give to us. This is a description of it.

Charity never faileth, but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail. Whether there be tongues, they shall cease. Whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away. When I was a child, I spake as a child. I understood as a child. I thought as a child. But when I became a man, I put away childish things.

For now we see through a glass darkly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then shall I know, even also I am known. And now about a faith, hope, and charity, these three, but the greatest of these is charity." The greatest of these is charity. You notice what he says there. Verse 12, I know in part, but then shall I know even as also I am known.

I've had a lot of people talk to me about that before. Wanted to know what that means. Well, how are we known right now? How are we known right now? We're known in Christ. When we're there, we'll be known because we're in Christ. That's how we're known.

And it all started with the love that the father had for his people in election. This is where it all started. Very beginning, before time ever began, he chose to elect a people. This is the love that God displayed. This is his love towards his people. This is the gift that he gives by grace alone. He chose to show mercy and bestow grace by his election.

His predestination is evidence of that. He predetermined my destination. Predetermined, I like that. It's already determined where I'm going to be. I love that. That means I can't do anything to change it. He's God. He's absolutely sovereign. I understand brethren, and we do in part, but God is all powerful. Nothing can change him. He's unchangeable. He's immutable. Nothing can be negative towards him.

Meaning I can't say something and hurt his feelings. It doesn't work that way. He already knew and purposed all things. And he, being God, being completely sovereign, chose to love a people. Chose to elect a people. He had inward affection for his bride, for his church.

If I told you God loves you and you knew that that was true, wouldn't that be a comfort to know that you know that you know he loves me? Because if you see yourself as a great sinner, you feel unlovable really, truly you do. But the good news is, is you see Christ and you say, when I look at myself, I can't see how God could love a creature like me. But when I look at Christ and what he did for me, I can't see how he couldn't. Because Christ accomplished everything for me to be lovable. for being you, in Christ, to be lovable.

He chose to make his, there's what I was gonna say, he chose to make his pride, possessions, creatures of dust, dust bunnies, that was where that came from, first hour. You say, well, we're not that bad, what about David? The girls were... In class today, they were going over David whenever he numbered the men. Go out there and number the people. Do you know what the same thing Nebuchadnezzar did? Look at great Babylon that I've created. That's what David was doing. He said, go number the people. I want to see how big my army is. I want to see what I've done.

And what happened? 70,000, was that not the number of men that died? What was the number? 70? Yeah, okay. My daughter helped me. 70,000 men died because of that unbelief. It was unbelief for him to do that. And yet he's a man after God's own heart. That's love. God loved him. And he loved God, but now he's numbering the people because he wants to know how big his army is. That's how our love works, isn't it? That's how our love works. He said, Jacob, have I loved Esau? Have I hated?

The only reason that he would love any of us is because we're in Christ. That's the only reason he doesn't love me because I'm this tall. He doesn't love me because I'm this smart. It doesn't learn this dumb. How are you going to say it doesn't love me for me.

He loves me because of Christ being in Christ. He made me and you lovable, lovable. Why would he love Jacob? Not because anything Jacob did. Jacob was a trickster, a supplanter, a liar, a thief. But why did he love Jacob? It says that in the scripture multiple times, Jacob have I loved for his own namesake, for God's own namesake, for his own glory, for his own purpose. Why would he elect any of us? Why would he redeem any of us? Why would he regenerate any of us? For his own glory, for his own purpose.

Now let's go back to our text in Philippians chapter two. If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the spirit, if any bowels and mercies. Inward affection. Inward affection. That's true love. This is how Christ loved the church and gave himself for it. That's what the scripture says. He loved the church and gave himself for it. Which brings us to our second point. He loved his people, first off, in election, and he loved his people in redemption. Loved his people in redemption. Salvation is not something that is earned, not something that can be merited, not something that can be chosen. It must be given freely by grace. It's God's salvation.

When David had sinned with Bathsheba, and Nathan the prophet came to him, the Lord gave him repentance that day. And he wrote Psalm 51. And it says, restore unto me the joy of thy, T-H-Y, your salvation, not my salvation. It doesn't belong to me. It belongs to him. He freely bestows it. by His grace. Do we possess His salvation now? Because He freely bestowed it, but not because it was ours to begin with. It's His all along.

In the fullness of time, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law to redeem them that were under the law." That was Galatians 4 that we read the first hour. But He also sent Him in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin condemned sin in the flesh. Listen to Romans 8, for what the law could not do in that it was weak to the flesh, God sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin condemned sin in the flesh.

Understand the significance of Him doing that in the flesh. Because what our flesh is What is impossible for our flesh to do is be perfect. What's impossible for our flesh to do is produce holiness. What's impossible for our flesh to do, our flesh can't do anything to please God. The Scripture says the flesh is enmity, hostile against God.

So it's amazing He's born the God-man, Jesus Christ, 100% man, 100% God. And He does, so what was impossible for us to do, it was not possible for Him to fail because of who He was. It was impossible for us, but it was not possible for Him to fail. Possible for us to do it, impossible for him to fail. All we do is sin. All he did was righteousness. All we do is murmur and complain. All he did was believe. Believe that looked to the Father. He lived perfectly in the place of his people. He lived perfectly sinless and holy his entire life. And you and I being in Him before the foundation of the world, the Father looks at us and sees His life as our record, as our history.

That's good news. My record, my history, your record, your history, if you're in Christ, and I'm in Christ, it's been completely blotted out and rewritten. And at the top it no longer says my name, but it says Jehovah Sitkin You, the Lord our righteousness. That's glorious, isn't it? It's not my record, it's His.

But He gave it to me. He loved his people in redemption, in redemption. Why did the Lord do this? Why did he become the same? I don't wanna sound, I don't wanna say this wrong. He wasn't the same creature as dust. He was in the likeness of sinful flesh. I'll say it that way. But he was still, man, this flesh is dust. That's where it comes from. So why did he do that?

Well, his love. for his father and his love for his bride, the church. He loved us so much that he lived the life we could not live. He lived the life I could not live. I think a lot of times we, at least me, I try to, I'm sure everybody else will agree with this, all the men anyways, you work for your wife and you're trying to provide everything that you can and you want to give her more and you want to give her more and you want to give her better.

He was God. So whatever he wanted to give, he gave it. Whatever he wants us to have, he'll give it. Nothing could stop him. Nothing could stop him. He lived the life we could not, then he died in our place. He drank the cup, the cup of our sin, the cup of the wrath of God, the cup of judgment. took, he says, he who knew no sin became sin, that I might be made the righteousness of God in him.

Describe another act of love greater than that. You can't. It's the greatest act of love that's ever going to be because of the condescension that our savior had to do, becoming from the highest heavens, the throne of glory, the presence of his father, all the way down here to become a man, to dwell among men. become in the likeness of the flesh that he was dwelling around. That's condescension.

Why did he do that? It's his love for his people and his love for his father. He took our punishment, all the bad we are, all the bad we do. You know, he took the punishment for our selfish love. He did. Everything that is negative about his people, he made it positive by taking it, nailing it to his cross and washing it with his blood. He took the wrath that was due you and I, the judgment for my sin and for your sin, and he put the sin away with a sacrifice of himself. Why?

Because he loves his bride and he loves his father. He was the only one that could and the only one that did satisfy the justice of God so that he might be both just and the justifier. If the Lord was, if the Lord were to save us in our lost state that wouldn't be just. Because sin has to be, if we are guilty of sin and it hadn't been atoned for and the Lord saved us it was an impossibility because it would contradict His justice. His justice had to be satisfied. Think of a court of law. You go and see a judge and the judge says that you're guilty.

He's not going to look at you and say, but you can walk free. It's just fine. Never going to happen. Um, at least not to my knowledge, but we're talking capital crime. No, no, you're there's a consequence. There's a penalty, right? Same thing with God. He's not going to quit the guilty. He's perfect. He's holy. He's just that's his name. That's his name.

Christ alone satisfied the justice of God that he might be just and the justifier. He couldn't just justify us wrongfully because it would contradict his character, his person. He by himself purged our sin. He ascended back to glory and seated as our intercessor, our substitute surety. It's finished. It's finished. There's no further requirement. No further requirement. Lastly, or first, he loved his people in election. Loves his bride in redemption.

He loves his people in regeneration. God must choose to come to an elect child of God and say, live or will remain dead in trespasses and in sin. God must choose to send his spirit in power and say, live. And with the same power that raised Jesus from the dead is the same power whereby he raises a sinner from the dead. He breathed life into them. He says he has to breathe the breath of life into them.

God chose to ordain the means of this as what men call foolishness, the preaching of the gospel. But Paul said, I'm not ashamed of the gospel for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.

This gospel is what we have to, that's our only hope. It's our only hope. And it's the means by which the Lord calls his people out of darkness into light. God's gospel is the when, the how, and the why he saved his people. The when, the how, and the why he saved his people. I can't think of a better example than Mephibosheth on everything that we're talking about this morning with election, the covenant.

David said, is there any left of the house of Saul that I may show him kindness for Jonathan's sake? Jonathan and David made a covenant. And that covenant was, I'll look after your family after you're gone. You look after my family after I'm gone. That's just plain and simple. I mean, their hearts were knit together. So there is a lot more said but that's basically the sum of it.

And so he remembers his promise in 2 Samuel chapter 9 and he says, is there any left of the house of Saul that I may show him kindness for Jonathan's sake? And Ziba who was one of Saul's servants when Saul was alive said there is one his name is Mephibosheth. But he is laying on both of his feet he is down in Lodabar, my car in Lodabar and he says, go fetch him. So first of all, you have the covenant that was made between Jonathan and David. You can call that election. That's just fine. Then you have the sending of the Holy Spirit. When David said, go fetch him, that's the Lord that's, uh, by his power says, go fetch one of my sheep, go fetch him.

And the Ziba goes down and gets Mephibosheth brings him back. And what is, what is, uh, Mephibosheth do, he falls on his face and he did reverence and he says, well, first of all, everything that was required, David had already accomplished before he had ever even got to the palace. I knew there was something else I was missing, I was going to say. Everything that Mephibosheth needed, everything that Mephibosheth required, David had already provided it through the means of David.

That's our Lord, that's our Savior, that's what he did. He comes into the palace and he thinks, he's got to be thinking, I'm a dead man because I'm a threat to the throne. As Saul's only living relative, only living male relative, he had a right to the throne. And he probably thought, oh no, David's found me. It's going to be the end for me.

Turn over there with me to 2 Samuel 9. Look at verse 6, Now when Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, was coming to David, he fell on his face and did reference. And David said, Mephibosheth, and he answered, Behold thy servant. And David said unto him, Fear not, for I will surely show thee kindness for Jonathan thy father's sake, and will restore thee all the land of Saul thy father, and thou shalt eat bread at my table continually. And he bowed himself and said, What is thy servant, that thou shouldest look upon such a dead dog as I am? David doesn't respond to that because the reason he loved Mephibosheth was because of Jonathan.

See the Lord, that's how he loves his people is through Christ alone. He says next, then the king called to Ziba, Saul's servant, and said unto him, I have given unto thy master's son all that pertain to Saul and to all his house. Now I want you to look at verse 13. So Mephibosheth dwelt in Jerusalem, for he did eat continually at the king's table and was lame on both of his feet. Everything required for Mephibosheth was already provided by David. And it was already provided by Jonathan through a covenant. It was provided for David fetching him.

And it was also provided for him having new life being given to him where he was down in a place of no bread. He now has plenty of bread. He has the king's table. I know I've said this before, but I love this thought. Every time that he sat at that table, it covered his infirmity. They had table covers back then too. So nobody could see that he was lame on both of his feet. Well, that's the blood that covers the Lord's people. So the Lord loved his people in election. He loved them in regeneration. He loved them in redemption and he loves them in regeneration. And that's what that story represents.

Everything about God's love, and I'll say this in closing, everything about God's love, and this is so important because people don't believe this or don't know it or don't want to know it, God's love is conditional. It's not conditional on you and I. It's conditional based entirely upon the work and person of Christ. The work and person of Christ. His love is conditional. If I am not in Christ, he does not love me. But if I'm in Christ, there's no way he cannot not love me. Everything about God's love is conditional.

It's based entirely upon his election, his redemption, his regeneration, even his keeping. It's all based upon him completely. That's good news if you find yourself a sinner that's powerless and helpless and it says the Lord's done it all. Well, I can rest. I can rest in that salvation. It's conditioned upon His covenant, His blood, and His ability to perform it. It's not our ability. The Lord ain't demanding our blood. He's got the blood that satisfied Him forever. He was the only one with the ability. It's all dependent upon Him. This salvation can only be given by grace alone. And what is His motivation? What is his motivation?

He said, I have loved thee with an everlasting love. He said, when I passed by thee, he says, no one stopped to help thee, no one swaddled thee, no one washed thee, but I did. I spread my skirt over thee, it was a time of love, I gave you a ring and a robe. It's Ezekiel, in the book of Ezekiel he talks about that.

The Lord did it all. The Lord did it all and gets all the glory. That's why he did it, for his love, for his glory, for his love and glory. Let's pray. Father, we ask that you would take this and bless it for your glory. Allow us to understand, allow us to meditate on these things, and allow us to rejoice in your finished salvation. In Christ's name, amen.