Philippians. 2:3-4 – Don’t Be Selfish, Don’t Try to Impress Others
Selfishness, pride, and envy are attributes of the world. They are things that you would never normally associate with a Christian. But the Apostle Paul points out that these qualities can creep into our lives and affect our relationship with others if we’re not careful. They can also negatively impact our walk with Christ and the way that others see us as followers of Jesus. So how can you avoid being selfish, prideful, or envious? The Bible has some excellent advice for all of us in Philippians 2:3-4: Don’t be self-centered and don’t try to impress others. Instead, focus on the interests of one another, not just your own. Let’s take a look at what these verses mean and how they can help us avoid negative behaviors in our relationships with others…
Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.
Philippians 2:3–4
What Does Philippians 2:3-4 Mean?
The first step to avoiding being selfish, prideful, and envious is making sure that you understand what these verses mean and how they apply to your life. So what are Philippians 2:3-4 saying? The first thing to notice is that these verses don’t come from a list of commandments; they aren’t saying, “Thou shalt not be selfish” or anything like that. Instead, they are coming from the heart of the Apostle Paul and his relationship with the readers of this letter. The Apostle Paul was writing to a church made up of primarily non-Jews who had recently converted to Christianity. He was reminding them that they needed to be sensitive to the culture and backgrounds of their non-Jewish neighbors as they began to build their community as Christians. So Paul was saying, “Don’t put others down by trying to prove that you are better than them because you are Jewish and they are not. Instead, try to build them up and be sensitive to their feelings because you are all brothers and sisters in Christ.”
Don’t Be Selfish, Don’t Try to Impress Others
Now that we understand the meaning behind these verses let’s look at how we can avoid being selfish, prideful, and envious in our relationships with others. First, don’t be selfish. This is the first step towards avoiding these negative qualities within your relationships with others. It’s easy to be selfish if you are not careful. In fact, it’s human nature to be selfish. So it takes a great deal of self-control and self-discipline to avoid being selfish and putting your own interests and desires first. So what does it mean to be selfless? It means putting the interests and needs of others before your own. It means focusing on the needs and interests of others, not just your own. For example, let’s say that you are talking with a friend, and they mention that their car is having problems. You are tempted to say, “I’ll take a look at it for you.” If you’re being selfless, then you’re not thinking about yourself or how much time it will take you to fix their car. You’re thinking about your friend and their need for their vehicle to be repaired. You’re putting their needs first and not being selfish.
Being Selfish Makes It Hard to Love Others
Another negative result of being selfish is that it makes it difficult to love others. Selfishness is a barrier to love. It is not possible to truly love others when you are being selfish. As we saw above, selflessness means putting the interests and needs of others first. It means not being greedy or stingy with your time and resources. It means putting others’ interests above your own. Love does precisely this. So if you are being selfish, it’s definitely going to make it difficult for you to love others. It’s going to make it difficult for you to put the needs of others above your own. You can’t love others if your life is all about you and what you want out of life. If you’re selfish, you’re not going to be able to love others as Christ loved us.
Focus on the Interests of One Another
The next negative result of being selfish is that it prevents us from focusing on the interests of one another. This verse in Philippians 2 is telling us that when we’re being selfish, we’re focusing on our own interests and desires. But when we’re not being selfish, we have the ability to focus on the interests and needs of others. This is a critical component of healthy relationships. Let’s say you’re having a conversation with a close friend or family member. You are able to put their feelings and interests first and focus on what they are saying. Or let’s say that you are at work and are able to focus on the needs of your boss or coworkers even though you may not agree with them. This is what it means to focus on the interests of one another.
Look to the Interests of One Another
The next negative result of being selfish is that it makes us look at our own interests instead of those of one another. This is a subtle difference between focusing on the interests of one another and looking at our own interests. When we’re being selfish, we’re not looking at the interests of others. We’re only focused on our own interests. When we’re not being selfish, we have the ability to look at the interests of others. And this is important because relationships are all about give and take.
Be Kind and Helpful
The next negative result of being selfish is that it makes it difficult for us to be kind and helpful to others. This is because when we’re being selfish, we focus only on our desires, needs, and interests. We have very little time and energy to help others. And this is important because when we’re being selfish, it’s very difficult to show love and care to others. We don’t have the energy, time, or motivation to help those around us. But when we’re not being selfish, we have the ability to be kind and helpful to others.
Bottom line
The bottom line is that being selfish makes it difficult for us to have positive, healthy relationships with others. Instead, it makes it difficult for us to love others, it makes it difficult for us to be kind, helpful, and generous to others, and it makes it difficult for us to focus on the interests of others. Being selfish makes it difficult to have a vibrant relationship with God and others. But when we’re not being selfish, our relationships with God and others can flourish.
