More than once, Paul asks his children in the faith to imitate him. That isn’t easy, but it does sound nice when he says, “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another.” And who doesn’t wish to have the Fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.

When he says, “be imitators of me, as I am of Christ,” what do you imagine this encompasses? He tells the Philippians to have the same mind as that of Christ Jesus and then elaborates. Jesus made himself nothing, took the form of a servant, humbled himself, and was obedient to the point of death on the cross.