due to illness in the family, this sermon was never preached

As we look at tonight's reading from Philippians, it's worth noting at the start that
Paul's had a warm and cordial relationship with the church at Philippi. Although he had been imprisoned on his first visit there , it was the first church founded in Europe. The initial success there was fondly recalled by Paul. The church had continued to support Paul in his missionary efforts. The warmth of the introduction to the Epistle, reflects the continuing close relationship between Paul and thenPhilippians Therefore, my brothers, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, that is how you should stand firm in the Lord, dear friends! (4:1)
However, it is clear that Paul is in perilous circumstances. Not only is the gospel that he has preached faithfully being threatened by self-serving, ambitious preachers, but he himself is in prison, facing imminent death. Yet there is no depression or gloom in this Epistle. On the contrary, joy and rejoicing are prominent . Paul faces his circumstances with a faith born not only out of God's past sustenance and provision but also out of a lively hope in the future. His hope is based on his own commitment to a set of values that so transcend earthly concerns that he can refer to things highly valued by earthly standards as rubbish!
And Paul can actually rejoice in his own dire circumstances because they have advanced the opportunity for the proclamation of Christ. This attitude is reflected in the opening line of the Epistle by a self-designation common of Paul: servant. It is significant to note that while Paul customarily establishes his authority as an apostle in writing to the churches, in this Epistle he simply calls himself (along with his coworker, Timothy) "servant."
It is this warm relationship between the Philippian church and Paul, and his portrayal of himself as the faithful bond-servant of God who suffers and rejoices because he has chosen the path of service to others, that provides, the backdrop for Paul to address the needs and concerns of the church at Philippi.

Within the context of its entirity Paul's introduction in this epistle is cordial, including a prayer  in which he emphasizes the communal nature of the gospel by the repeated use of "all of you". He also emphasizes the commonality between them. He then expresses his earnest desire to continue serving and working with them . While the whole tenor of the letter to this point has evoked images of community, close relationship, and selfless servanthood to God, the first hint of a problem emerges in 1:27, when he writes:Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Here Paul begins addressing practical concerns relating to the life of the community of faith at Philippi. The emphasis on being "steadfast in the spirit" and "struggling together with one mind" for the sake of the gospel suggests that their unity needs strengthening.

It is critical to note that the first command Paul directs to the Philippian community concerns proper Christian lifestyle. While Paul makes the same appeal to other churches, here he departs from his usual vocabulary and uses a technical word that means "to discharge one's obligation as a citizen" or "to fulfill one's obligation to the community."  The Philippians were proud of their status as Roman citizens, their city being a Roman colony, and would clearly understand Paul's call to fulfill societal obligations. But Paul is not calling them simply to be good citizens but to fulfill their obligations to the Christian community, which would result in a unity of spirit, mind, and purpose.
  This call to proper citizenship in the gospel is reinforced by the first verses of the second chapter, where the love, compassion, and sense of community that come from Christ are used as a basis for a renewed appeal for unity (the same mind-set, the same love, united in spirit, of one purpose). The problem in the Philippian community is finally revealed to be selfishness and arrogance. Internal dissension is threatening the love, unity, and fellowship of the community . While the cause is not revealed, the solution is understood by Paul to be a proper ordering of one’s life. Priorities must be made according to a set of values that places the welfare and interests of others above selfish concern for self; a humility arising from the very nature of being Christian. This would have two implications: the Philippians would fulfill their obligations to the community of faith as citizens of the heavenly kingdom, and the community itself would be built around a set of values and concerns far different from the rest of the world.

The following verses, because of their lofty verses- they have earned for themselves the title 'The Kenosis Hymn' (Kenosis merely means 'emptying) and their exalted theology have often caused them to be read in isolation. But they were written as part of Paul's argument, and the linking verse, verse 5 is the lynch-pin:
Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus (or as that in Christ Jesus- as Christians) In effect Paul has just said  "Think this (in this manner of humility) toward each other which you also think as Christians."  Therefore, being a Christian is the basis for having the attitude of humility that Paul has just shown to be necessary: on the basis of the attitude of humility that you have before Christ as Christians, you should also have the same attitude in your relationships with one another. This fits well with the context as Paul elaborates the nature of the worthy conduct that is the obligation of Christians.

The actual Hymn can be divided into three parts: verse 6, introduced by the pronoun "who" referring to "Christ Jesus," which focuses on the privileged status of Christ; verses 7-8, introduced by  "but," contrasting with verse 6, which focuses on the self-abasement of Christ; and verses 9-11, introduced by "therefore also", implying that the last part is a necessary result of the preceding, which focus on the activity of God exalting Jesus. Thus, there is a movement of the status of Christ within the hymn. He first appears on a level of equality with God. Then, by his own choice, he lays aside that equality and takes on the role of a servant. Finally, he is exalted by God to a status equal with God .

The Kenosis Hymn wasn't just for 1st century Phlippi. It functions as an ethical example, an illustration of what Christian citizenship means. Unity comes in serving God through service to each other. There is danger of selfishly looking out for one's own interests at the expense of others, or of arrogance born of pride in one's status, birth, or achievements, as Paul makes clear in chapter 3. The solution to problems in relationships is an attitude of humble commitment to others. A spirit of self-sacrifice is an expression to others of the love exemplified in Christ, love that was "obedient unto death, even a cross-death!" True servanthood empties self. Paul uses Christ to illustrate this. He had every right not to choose the path of servanthood rather than claim His rightful status. And Paul bears witness that he himself is walking the path of servanthood, perhaps to his own cross. And he calls the Philippians to follow!
There is no room for triumphalism here! There is no room for a feel-good religion that does not take its servant role seriously. There is no room for a victory that does not first know the "fellowship of His sufferings" in behalf of others; no room for piety that does not pour out, yes, even totally empty, oneself for the interests of others.
But there is hope here. It is found in the last part of the Kenosis Hymn. God eventually exalted the Servant-Christ. His humility became glory. And Paul strongly points to an exaltation as well, affirming that God will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body(3:21).

Jesus said to the religious people of His day: The greatest among you shall be your servant. And whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted . But for Jesus, the path to that glory led through an emptying of himself, through servanthood that led to a cross. For Paul, the path to that glory led through a prison cell, through a poured-out life that caused him to say, To die is gain (1:21).
There is joy here, too, not a superficial joy that evaporates at the first adversity, but a joy that goes hand in hand with servanthood and sings in the face of death itself! To take seriously this sort of servanthood disallows any sense of exaltation as reward or motivation, or as a formula for spiritual success.

So how do we earth all this?
The Church needs the unity of mind and purpose to which Paul is calling the Philippians. It needs a unity built around servanthood, a servanthood illustrated by the emptied Christ and the poured-out Paul. Perhaps the Church needs to see itself in a new light. Maybe it needs to see itself less as the proclaimer and defender of divine truth, and more as the servant of humanity, the footwasher who expresses his love by humble service. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the German theologian who poured out his own life at the hands of the Nazis because he refused to allow the church to be the tool of oppression, wrote:
The church is the church only when it exists for others. . . . The church must share in the secular problems of ordinary human life, not dominating, but helping and serving. . . . It must not underestimate the importance of human example which has its origin in the humanity of Jesus.
We who profess holiness need the unity of mind and purpose to which Paul is calling the Philippians. We need to see ourselves in terms of our obligations to the community of those "in Christ" of which we claim to be a part. Maybe we need to see ourselves less in terms of "those who never sin" and more in terms of "those who serve," those to whom Jesus commanded, Take up [your] cross, and follow Me. Maybe we need to see ourselves in terms of the Servant-Christ, the "man for others" who bends himself to struggle for the wholeness and healing of a wounded world." Maybe we need to reexamine our own values that have been so subtly shaped by the success-oriented society around us. We need to see if we are acting in a manner worthy of the heavenly citizenship we claim. For Paul, to claim that citizenship meant to have a mind-set different from others. It meant a commitment to servanthood, a life poured out in service to others, totally emptied of self.
We live in a society dominated by rights-activism, permeated with the philosophy of "me first," and molded by the corporate ideals of efficiency and success. The Church must be called to remember that demanding one's rights and privileges may be popular, even necessary in some cases, but if it does so at the expense of Christian unity and love, it is not Christian! The Body of Christ must be called upon to refocus on Christian humility, unity, and fellowship. We must make service to others, perfect love in action, our primary responsibility. An attitude of Christlike humility does not demand rights or protect its own interests; it seeks servanthood.

In just over 24 hours we enter a New Year. New Years resolutions notoriously fail. Maybe we should ask God to keep before us and help us with this one: to live our lives with the attitude of Christ; the attitude of self-emptying.