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... then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. ~ Philippians 2:2
Relationships take a lot of work. And every person in this world is incompatible with every other person. Enough time together reveals this truth. Every friendship, marriage, family, and organization has relational challenges. This is due to the fact that we are defined by our flesh more so than we are by God. This is why the Apostle Paul mentions the four truths in Philippians 2:1.
Most of our problems in life come from our interaction with people resulting in our joy being disrupted. People can rob us of our joy. And the book of Philippians is dubbed the epistle of joy. Paul uses a joyful tone throughout the entire book, even though he's in prison. He reminds us that our circumstances cannot rob us of our joy.
Whereas in Philippians 1, our prisons are our joy-stealers, in Philippians 2, people are the next biggest challenge to our joy. Having said that, we must also quickly turn the page and realize that we're part of the problem. Because we're people too.
According to v.2 our joy is made complete by: "being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind." The unifying force for all of these is the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. And, if we are experiencing His "encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion," for ourselves, we will be united for the cause of the gospel.
In Philippians 2:1, the Apostle gives us four identifying truths which come out of our personal relationship with Jesus Christ. In addition, in Philippians 2:2, the Apostle gives us four essentials of unity which precede the experience of joy. And these four essentials of unity are preceded by us being defined by God through the four truths in v.1. Also, the four essentials providing unity among us precedes our joy being made complete.
The first essential toward unity is: “being like-minded.” The Greek verb phrone is used here which means “to think the same way.” The first key to unity is thinking alike. Of course, this is why the Lord has given us His word. And, when God is clear, when He is black and white, we are black and white. And, when He is gray, when He doesn't spell it out clearly, we are gray. In other words, we think God's way. Unity is evidenced among us when we are controlled by a deep knowledge of the Word of God that is energized in us by the power of the Holy Spirit.
The second essential toward unity is: "having the same love." It serves to reason that if we are of the same mind we will experience the same love. The Lord has told us, "Have no other gods before me." He knows that due to the fact that we are fallen, we will have other gods. But, we must not have any gods before Him. What we give our heart to is what we love. And, when His love is defining us, we will love others as we ought. Love acts on behalf of someone else's need. “God so loved the world that He gave," He gave what we so desperately needed. Unity is evidenced among us when we love each other, when we don't hold grudges, and we're not bitter toward one another.
The third essential toward unity is: “being one in spirit .” This Greek word, transliterated “being one in spirit,” is used only one time in the whole New Testament. It means “one-souled.” It means to be knit deeply down in the harmony of the soul. This is talking about passion and desire. If we all have the same passions and desires, we're going to be “one in spirit.” Note that this word spirit doesn't come with a capitalized "S." It is speaking of our spirit which is one third of our being. The other two parts are our soul and our body. And, our souls are made up of three parts; our mind, our wills, and our emotions.
The fourth essential toward unity is: "of one mind." Here, Paul uses a participle when translated reads “being of the same mind.” Literally this means “minding one thing.” The one thing that we mind is the gospel which is the magnet which holds all of this together.
Finally, the Lord's way of thinking leads us to His way of living which leads to soul connection among His people which leads to being focused on one thing: the advancement of His Gospel in this world. The greatest part of the gospel is not forgiveness, justification, or eternal life. The greatest part of the gospel is God Himself, enjoyed by His redeemed people. The gospel is the good news that God bought for our everlasting enjoyment of God.
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