Ver. 4.-Selfishness. I. SELFIBRNESB IS THE ROOT OF BIN. Selfishness is living in and for ourselves. It manifests itself in various aspects. 1. In thought. Self becomes the largest figure in a. man's conception of the universe. The shadow of self lies across everything else. 'l'he merits of self are magnified in pride. Vanity craves the admira- tion of others for one's self. Self-worship makes a man prejudiced in holding to his own opinions and bigoted in rejecting those of other men. 2. In feeling. Self-love fills a selfish man's heart. He has no grief at another's trouble and no pleasure in another's joy. Inatead of feeling as a member of a great body moved by the common pulse of a common life, he is like a solitary cell detached and self-concentrated. 3. In action. Self-will becomes the predominating energy and self-seeking the prevailing motive. In its extreme development this becomes positive cruelty-a pursuit of one's own pleasure through the pain of others. Now, all this is sinful in the si~ht of God and man, and frightfully injurious to society. War, crime, intemperance, etc., all spring from some form of selfishuess. II. CHRISTIANITY REQUIRES THE ERADICATION OF SELFISHNESS. So long as a man thinks only of himself he has not learnt what the gospel means. He may be seeking what he calls his spiritual welfare-escape from bell, 11 happy future, or peace here. But all this is selfish. Selfishness in every respect must be uprooted in order that the true Christian life may bo established. 1. In thought. This is essential to repentance. Humility and confession of sin are necessary before we can even enter the kingdom of heaven. 2. In feeling. Love to Christ, not the saving of our own souls, is the great motive that should inspire us. Love to our fellow-men, not personal comfort, is the spirit that should pervade our lives. We are only Christian in so far as wo follow Christ. And Christ denied himselr ond "went about doing good." All pretensions of saintly devotion count just for nothing, or for worse than nothing, for hypocrisy, so long as the self sits en throned in our hearts. 3. Jn action. Faith pre- 108 THE EPISTLE TO THE PHILIPPIANS. [OH, ll, 1-30,
t1upposes ~elf-Abnegation; it is the 11Urrender of ourselves to another. It tl\kes two forms-(1~ ~ubmission of our _souls to the w~ll of God in reliance upon his grace in Christ as our Saviour; and (2) oherhcnce of our hves to the will of God in loyal service to Christ as our Master.-W. F. A.
Vars. 6-11.-The mind that was in Christ Jum. The experience of Christ is the ~npreme example of his doctrine that "he that humhletb himself shall he exalted." It is here described as an incentive to our duty of unselfish humility. But as the apostle narrates the wonderful facts, and enumerates the details with evident delight on their own account, we may find in them an inexhaustible subject for meditation and while not forgetting the object of drawing a practical lesson from them, we may be p.:epared to receive that lesson more fully by realizing more thoroughly the great example with which it is enforced. I. THE HUlifBLING OF CHRIST. 1. It W&S roluntary. The example of Christ is very different from that of Job. Job suffered from misfortunes that ea.me upon him unsought; but Christ freely chose his own humiliation. 'l'herefore the mind that 'l'l"as in Christ w1,s not simply like Job's, a mind of patience and faithfulness; it was a mind of self-abnegation. 2. It was great in e:ctent. We roeasure a fall, not by the absolute level reached, but by comparison with the altitude left. To fall from a steeple to the common earth on which most men walk, is to make a tremendous descent. In becoming man Christ humbled himself. As a man he humbled himself further than ever man did before, in submitting to shame and death. 3. It was perfect in quality. Look at some of the particulars. (1) The abdication of lawful rights. Though of Divine form, Christ sought not Divine rank. (2) The surrender of natural powers. "He emptied himself." He cast away possessions and influences and faculties, till he reduced him- self to the capacity of a babe. Most of us would be more ready to sacrifice our external honours than to abandon &DY internal superiority of gifts and powers. Christ did both. (3) The submission to servitude. "Taking the form of a bond-servant." There is a humility that, only helping others in its own way, is consistent with much pride of i;elr-wi!L It is harder to obey than to condescend. Christ did both. (4) The descent to shame and de.ath. '!'his is humiliation in a man. What is it in One who is naturally "in the form of God"? IL THE EXAI.TATION OF CHRIST. The story of Christ does not end with Calvary. The sequel is as glorions in the experience as the first part is in the chll.I"acter of Christ. L The exaltation is God's act. Christ bumbled himself, but Christ never sought his own glory, not even after his humiliation. "God highly exalted him." Neither on earth nor in heaven, neither now nor ever, neither when ill deserved nor when well deserved, does the highest glory come to those who seek it for themselves. It is always conferred unsought on the self-for11:etful 2. The exaltation is a. consequence of the humbling of Christ. .. Wherefore," etc. Christ is not simply reinstated in his old dignity. He receives new honours in direct recognition of his self-sacrifice. It is not merely as a compensation for the suffering, but rather as a reward for the disposition and will of self-abne~tion, that the hio-her glory is accordE"-d to Christ. The spirit in which he suffered, th~ "will " that san~tifies us, the "mind" that was in him, receive the reward. 3. The exaltation is perfect. (1) Honour. All knees bow. For shame there is glory. (i) Power. He is confessed to be Lord, i.e. King and Master. (3) Universal supremacy. Heaven, earth, and hell are ultimately to confess Ch1ist's au,hority. What a victory I Nothing short of voluntary submission could ever please JesUB as he was known on earth and as he is changeless in character through eternity. In his glowing yiJ!ion of the future, St. Paul sees all evil conquered and all beings in the uIJi \'erse turned from their rebellion to the acceptance of Christ as their Lord. UL THE EXAMPLE. This sublime picture is not simply drawn to excite our admira- tion, nor merely to move our gratitude, but directly to rouse us to imitation. Unlike onr modern selfish use of the experience of Christ when we too commonly dwell upon it simply that we may" appropriate the fruits" of it, the apostles almost always refer w it Ly way of illu..-otra.tion to ur"e us to show the same spirit. Indeed, our enjoy- a:.el.lt of tl:.1: rc:su:ts of Chri~t•s bumblins: of himself for u~ is closely connected with thi:; u;;1: of hu. expcricnc;t,; for we i,rvfit Ly them when we follow him (1 Pet, iii. 17, 18),--· W.F.A. CU, II, 1-30.] THE EPISTLI!: TO THE PHILIPPIANS.