Paul always wished “grace and peace” to the people receiving his letters.

And no wonder! Because whether you’re selfishly ambitious and vainly conceited in the Twenty-First Century, or selfishly ambitious and vainly conceited in the First Century, you’ll need grace and peace.

For example, when Paul wrote “[t]o all God’s holy and faithful people in Philippi, together with the overseers and [their helpers]”, he said, “Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” (Philippians 1:1-2).

Why did the people (including the leaders) in Philippi—and in Humanity today—need grace and peace? Selfish ambition and vain conceit.

The key to overcoming selfish ambition and vain conceit is sharing the grace of God in our lives, in our families, in our nations, and in our civilizations. (Philippians 1:7).

It is especially hard for those who lead and those who help those leaders to realize their need for the amazing grace of God. Such people—in the Church and in Humanity—are especially tempted to be led astray by selfish ambition and vain conceit.

What is the vaccine for the diseases of selfish ambition and vain conceit? Having the same mindset as Jesus Christ. (Philippians 2:5).

To describe the mindset we need, Paul quoted what is thought to be one of the earliest hymns of the Way of Jesus:

“[Jesus], being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.” (Philippians 2:5-7).

Paul had many reasons to be selfishly ambitious and vainly conceited.

Paul was ambitious to advance above others his age by zealously persecuting those he disagreed with. (Galatians 1:13-14; Philippians 3:6)

Paul was conceited about his elite education, his perfect piety, and his zealous nationalism. (Philippians 3:4-6).

But then Paul’s life was transformed by the amazing grace of God—the amazing gift of God. (Acts 9:1-22; Philippians 3:7-11; Galatians 1:16,22-24)

Paul received the same mindset as Jesus Christ.

Paul recognized that his personal ambitions, his elite education, his perfect piety, and his zealous nationalism were rubbish.

He considered all such selfish ambitions and vain conceits “a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus [his] lord, for whose sake [he had] lost all things.” (Philippians 3:8).

He told the Philippians to “value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.” (Philippians 2:3-4).

Instead of ambitiously persecuting those he disagreed with, Paul ambitiously preached the gospel in the palace, converting those in Caesar’s household itself! (Philippians 1:13; 4:22).

Instead of straining to press on toward the goals of selfish ambition and vain conceit, Paul shared this wisdom:

“Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:13-14).

Forgetting selfish ambitions and vain conceits is the way to peace—the peace that comes when we “[rejoice] in the Lord always.” (Philippians 4:4).

When the amazing grace of God—the amazing gift of God—transforms our lives, we receive the wisdom to “not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, [to] present [our] requests to God.” (Philippians 3:6).

Our lives, our families, our nations, and our civilizations will be transformed by this “peace of God, which transcends all understanding”, guarding our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:7).

To transform our lives, our families, our nations, and our civilizations with this peace of God, we need to think about “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable,” whatever is excellent, or whatever is praiseworthy. (Philippians 4:8).

To transform our lives, our families, our nations, and our civilizations with this peace of God, we must put into practice “whatever [we] have learned, or received or heard from [Paul], or seen in [Paul]” (Philippians 4:9).

To transform our lives, our families, our nations, and our civilizations with this peace of God, we must “learn[ ] to be content whatever the circumstances”—“in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.” (Philippians 4:11-12).

To transform our lives, our families, our nations, and our civilizations, we must follow this mindset—this wisdom—of the Way of Jesus, so that “in this ‘warped and crooked generation’ [we] will shine among them like stars in the sky, as [we] hold firmly to the word of life” (Deuteronomy 32:5; Philippians 2:14-16).

READ MORE

To learn more about grace and peace, please read my blogs “Grace and Peace—Galatians”, “Grace and Peace—Thessalonians”, “Grace and Peace—Corinthians”, “Grace and Peace—Romans”, and “Grace and Peace—Ephesians”.