Love: A New Commandment - a Journey in PhilippiansНамуна

Behold

For many people loving and thinking don’t go together. In this letter, we’ve seen the opposite. “Think, be of the same mind, regard”, are just some of the words that have led us to this point in the letter. And now we get to the heart of the matter - the mind of Christ. What is thinking like in the King? The answer to this question is also the answer to our quest to know what love really is.

And for this we need art.

Starting with the word “who” Paul writes a carefully crafted poem. It doesn’t look like that in our translations, but in the original language, it is a poem that divides into two halves. Almost like the letter “V” there’s a “downward line”, and an “upward line”. But the climax in the poem is also the lowest point: the sentence in the middle “even death on a cross.”

We don’t know whether Paul wrote this poem or whether he is quoting an existing poem, but in prison, he is joyfully writing down art. How is that even possible? Paul’s answer would be Jesus, whom this poem is about.

Jesus did not think being God is something to use to his advantage. He didn’t think about himself but became a servant. The climax of Jesus’ life, and the poem, is his death on the cross. In a world where people use power to their own advantage, Jesus thinks differently precisely because he is God. The difference between the mind of the world and the mind of Christ is what we see on the cross: the love of power vs. the power of love.

And who won? What is said here about the Name of Jesus, is said about God in the Old Testament (Isaiah 45:23). When we look at Jesus, we see God. Art is meant to be beheld, not explained. Some explanation can help, but the purpose is to behold. In the beholding, the beholder is changed. So, behold the beauty of God’s glory in Jesus’ self-giving sacrifice on the cross. Take this poem and worship Jesus. And let the mind of Christ forever change the way you think.

Reflection Question

What am I thinking as I behold Jesus on the cross?

Prayer:

Jesus Christ, you are Lord. I worship you.