As Christmas draws near, we turn our attention to Jesus and the concept of the incarnation, that is God becoming human in the person of Jesus Christ.

There has been much discussion about the idea of Christ emptying himself in this passage, and exactly what that may or may not have entailed.

But let us leave those theological discussions for another day, and focus on the wisdom conveyed through this passage.

Writing to Christians in the Greek city of Philippi, the writer warns his audience against indulging their own selfish ambitions or vanity, which only alienates us from others.

“Do nothing from selfish ambition or vain glory, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.

And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” (Philippians 2:3–8).

To build our own identities, we imitate others who we perceive as noble and honourable, and model the desires of those people.

Striving for the same, commonly desired objects brings us into conflict with our role models, as we fight to get what we want.

In this way, our desires can quickly generate rivalry and conflict, destroying relationships and communities.

Imitating desire

With this in mind, the author to the Philippians suggests an alternative approach.

Instead of hurting others in pursuit of our desired objects, the writer challenges the Christians at Philippi to place the needs of others ahead of our own pursuit of identity and “vain glory.”

To this end, the author calls the Philippians to imitate Jesus’s humility.

Being in the form of God, Christ had the ultimate identity of divine glory.

However, he did not cling to this identity, but humbly laid it aside, as he assumed human form.

As a humble servant to humanity, Jesus submits to the most horrific and humiliating death available in the Roman world.

By these means, Christ exchanges the ultimate glory for the ultimate humiliation.

The writer challenges the Philippians to imitate Christ by laying aside their pursuit of personal identity and glory.

A new identity

Later in the letter, the writer denounces his own former pursuit of identity, regarding his religious zealotry as excrement, compared to the surpassing “worth of knowing Christ” (Phil 3:4–8).

The challenge is to exchange the selfish pursuit of vain glory for a new communal identity “in Christ,” which seeks the value and welfare of others just as much as our own.

This new communal identity blurs the lines between the self and other, as everyone honours and serves the needs of everyone else.

All of a sudden a new contagion is set in motion.

Unlike the old contagion of rivalry and conflict produced through the pursuit of vain glory, this new identity generates reciprocal cycles of kindness and forgiveness.

The author urges the Philippians to lay aside their vain pursuit of identity and glory, that they too might experience this new way of life in Christ.

• Dr Simon Skidmore is a Brisbane-based biblical scholar and educator. He is the creator of The Mimetic Exegete podcast, which applies mimetic theory to biblical texts, offering unique insights and practical applications. His recent book, Capital Punishment in the Pentateuch, explores ritual killing through René Girard’s mimetic theory.