Philippians 2:1-13 (J. B. Phillips)
World Communion Sunday
Today is the day when most Christians celebrate World Communion Sunday. I always like to think that, for twenty-four hours, Holy Communion is being celebrated somewhere in the world. It is a day that reminds us that we have much in common, that we worship the same God and believe in the same Jesus Christ and are filled with the same Holy Spirit.
But it is also a day when I am reminded of how much Christians differ from each other, by denomination or other type of organization, even – maybe especially – in how we celebrate Communion. For example, for some Christians, including United Methodists, Communion is a sacrament, a means of grace. That is, a person receives grace simply by the act of partaking of Communion. For others, Communion is an ordinance, a means of remembering the Last Supper that Jesus ate with his disciples before his arrest and crucifixion. Some Christians receive Holy Communion once a week or more, others once a month, still others once a quarter. Some churches pass the elements of Communion through the pews and participants serve one another, emphasizing the priesthood of all believers. In other churches, participants come to the altar and are served by the minister and/or lay assistants. In some traditions, bread and wine are used; in others, grape juice may be substituted for wine and wafers for bread.
But no matter how Christians may observe Holy Communion, all of us ought to prepare ourselves appropriately to receive Communion. That is more than the persons responsible for making sure we have bread and juice ready on the altar. That means that every person who attends the service should be prepared for the experience. How do you prepare yourselves? Paul wrote to the church in Corinth, “Whoever … eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be answerable for the body and blood of the Lord. Examine yourselves, and only then eat of the bread and drink of the cup.” (1 Corinthians 11:27-28, NRSV)
To examine ourselves as we prepare to come to the table of Jesus Christ, we might consider holding up as a model of a proper mindset the passage I read from Philippians chapter 2. Paul speaks of things that are important for Christians to do, ways that we are to think and to practice as we live together as a community of faith. Let’s consider a few of his main points.
First, we are to live together in harmony and love. That might seem easy at times. Church members all get along with each other, there are no serious disagreements among them, no one is causing trouble. But there is more to living in love than simply not being in conflict. Paul said that we are to live as though we had only one mind and one spirit between us. That doesn’t mean that we never disagree or that we always have the same opinion; it means that we find ways to live in harmony while we disagree. We can disagree without being disagreeable! And we can learn to compromise if we are unable to reach a consensus on specific issues.
I remember a church that I pastored in Columbia, South Carolina a number of years ago. Those folks could never agree on anything. Our church board meetings were an exercise in patience and perseverance. Members literally sat on opposite sides of the center aisle of the sanctuary on Sunday mornings. But those folks had the most fun together, working on projects, hosting meals, enjoying fellowship times. They had learned that they could disagree on some things and still love each other.
Second, Paul said that we are to think of the needs of others ahead of our own needs. That seems to me to be another way of stating the Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would have others do unto you. If we are more aware of meeting the needs of others, of taking care of their feelings and attending to their requirements, than we are of protecting our own self-interests, then we can live more in harmony with each other. Love means putting the other person ahead of yourself. A parent will always put the needs of their child above their own. A spouse should do the same. Even a good friend will do that. But as Christians, we are to practice that kind of love with everyone.
My Grandmother Smith was a great example of this. She not only talked the talk, she walked the walk. She never seemed to complain or even pay much attention to her own problems. She was legally blind for the last fifteen years of her life, but she continued to teach Sunday School by using the Bible on tape to review the scriptures for the lesson. She often made homemade chicken soup for other seniors in her apartment building when they were sick. She attended church every Sunday, no matter what. And she always looked for ways that she could do something for someone else. I remember her making the comment that she got tired of all those old people in her apartment building complaining about their aches and pains; at the time, she was the oldest resident! She always wanted to contribute to family meals, whether it was preparing something in advance to bring with her, or cooking something once she arrived at our house. And even when she was dying of leukemia, the first thing she would say to me when I visited her was, “How is your mama doing?”, because my mother was sick with cancer herself. My grandmother was just the kind of person who thought of others first.
Third, Paul spoke of the kind of humility that we need to embody. We should have the same attitude that Jesus had. He humbled himself by giving up his privileges as the Son of God – as God himself – in order to become a human being, a servant to others. He lived a life of total obedience to the will of God, even to the point of death on a cross. Crucifixion was a means of execution reserved for only the worst of the convicted criminals because it was so brutal and so humiliating. Those put to death were usually tied to a cross and left there, naked, at the mercy of the elements, until they died of thirst or hunger or exposure. Jesus was nailed to the cross after a horrendous beating and died only six hours later. But it was still a death that was meant to humiliate and break him.
Humility is not a virtue that seems to be much in evidence today. Think about the sports heroes, the movie stars, the business moguls, the political heavyweights. They do not seem to embody humility or consider it to be an admirable character trait. And yet, I think of the exceptions to that rule. The athletes who give a great deal of their time visiting children’s hospitals or getting involved in their communities. The movie stars who also work with the UN in third world countries. The business tycoons who give away millions – even billions – of dollars to help others. And usually these folks aren’t out there tooting their own horns to make sure people see what they’re doing. It is done quietly and behind the scenes.
Paul closed this section of his remarks by encouraging the Christians in Philippi to complete the salvation that God had given them with a proper sense of awe and responsibility. We sometimes think of salvation as a one-time thing that happens when we are baptized or confirmed. But salvation is also a process that continues over our lifetimes. We call that sanctifying grace in United Methodism; the grace of God that continues to be at work in us all of our lives. And it is God who is at work in us, giving us the will and the power to achieve his purposes.
Consider how you are coming to the table of Christ this morning. Have you examined yourselves? Are you coming in a worthy manner? Let us join the feast!
