Philippians Chapter 2

Philippians 2:3-4 ~ What it Means to Be Like Minded Part 2

Jesus is the illustration of this. Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus. The frame of mind. What was His attitude when he came? He did not come to get ministered to but to minister to others. Jesus took on the form of the servant, a slave. He submitted Himself voluntarily to the death of the cross in order to satisfy the punishment and penalty for our sins. That is called taking the low road. He became poor that we might become rich, not materially, but spiritually.

It is the perfect example of Deny yourself, take your up your cross daily, and follow God the Father. That was His motive and philosophy when He came. Jesus Christ had the attitude and the frame of mind that we are to have. And how can we have that? Because we have the Spirit of Christ living inside of us. These are things that that God's Spirit through God's word forms in us.

Philippians 2:19-24 ~ The Importance of the Occupation of the Attention of the Mind Part 1

includes Matthew 6:24-34

"The Bible says As a person thinks so is he. I am influenced by what I watch on TV, the electronic games we play, the people we are around, the literature we read. It is all influencing our thoughts, who we are, and how we respond to life. It is a very precious thing that we have, and we have to watch out that we are not taken away and distracted from the things of Christ."

Philippians 2:19-24 ~ The Importance of the Occupation of the Attention of the Mind Part 2

includes Luke 8:4-15

"Remaining under the trials cultivates the soil and causes the effectiveness of God's Word to bring forth fruit. God's Word is there implanted within me for God's Spirit to transform my mind and renew my mind. So Satan says, 'Let us get occupied all week long with the things of this life, the things of yourself. Let us put the effectiveness of the Word aside. You don't want to meditate on that."

Philippians 2:19-24 ~ The Importance of the Occupation of the Attention of the Mind Part 3

includes Luke 10:38-42

"We are not talking about going to a Bible study because God's Spirit could not be in it; it could not be a ministry of God's Spirit to people's hearts and minds; it could not be changing and transforming and healing people in their minds. We can be involved in a setting where we are studying the Bible like it is a textbook.  If God's Spirit is not in it, if God's Spirit is not making it alive, if God's Spirit is not speaking to us, then it is a vain, empty, activity.  Period.  There is only one thing necessary, sitting at the feet of Jesus and hearing His Word."

Philippians 2:19-24 ~ The Importance of the Occupation of the Attention of the Mind Part 4

includes I Corinthians 7:29-35

"Now Christianity is not psychology. It is not the power of positive thinking. It is not practicing certain psychological principles. But a relationship with the Lord so personal that we have interaction with Him in our minds. Paul taught once I have received Christ all of life takes place in the arena of my psyche (ψυχή, psuchē)."

Philippians 2:19-24 ~ The Importance of the Occupation of the Attention of the Mind Part 5

includes I Peter 5:5-9

"This is not psychology.  This is pointing out that once Christ dwells in your spirit, the ψυχή (psuchē) is now the arena. All of life is taking place in the arena. And the battle is for the attention of the mind. Do I choose to get obsessed with this thing that is knocking on my door? Or do I choose to entrust it to the Lord and let Him take care of it. I must keep my arena clean and clear so that I can seek and receive and interact with the things of Christ."

Philippians 2:19-24 ~ The Importance of the Occupation of the Attention of the Mind Part 6

includes Philippians 4:1-7

"Paul is appealing for them to think the same thing in the Lord. That does not mean think same thoughts. It means that the frame of mind must be the same. To have the frame of mind of wanting whatever the Lord wants. So, if we are satisfied in Him, then we are not going to have divisions. We will have differences of opinions but not divisions because we are willing to give up whatever our opinion is, whatever our feeling is, for the sake of Christ and whatever He wants."

Philippians 2:19-24 ~ The Importance of the Occupation of the Attention of the Mind Part 7

includes Philippians 4:8

"There is a basic principle in Scripture that we have to understand, As a person thinks so is he. If in his mind he is thinking, "I am doing all of this to entrap you," then what you are seeing is not the truth. What they are thinking is who they really are. And you might be getting a different version, the sales presentation of who a person really is."