Paul had to address a problem. Two women couldn’t agree on something. We don’t know what it was, but the disagreement was so big it was threatening the church’s unity at the very time when they needed it most. Instead of standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel (1:27), they were bickering and fighting. Paul urged them to stop. And without taking sides in the disagreement, he marshaled the rest of the church to help these women come together in the Lord because whatever their disagreement was, it was not bigger than the wrap-around reality of their salvation in Christ and his mission for them in this dying world.

Earlier in chapter 2, Paul presented Jesus as an example of humility and sacrifice. Verses 19-30 read like a travelogue. It feels different. But if we look deeper, we’ll see the connection: two men who exemplify the Christ-like qualities he spoke of earlier. The Lord is our model; and Timothy and Epaphroditus are model Christians.

So much demands our attention and calls us away from Jesus alone. And when opposition and persecution and suffering confront us, as it did the Philippians, it takes courage to keep the gospel central. A gospel-centered church needs gospel-centered courage.

What might God do if we learned to pray this prayer? What kind of people might he make us? What kind of church might he make us? What abounding love would we have? What radiant beauty? What purity of heart and blamelessness in Christ? What fruit of righteousness?

If you understand what Jesus was thinking that first Christmas, you understand the true meaning of Christmas. And if you understand the true meaning of Christmas, you understand the true intentions of God. And if you understand the true intentions of God, you understand everything else that matters most, and you’ll never be the same.