“Joy
in Serving Jesus… even when it’s hard!”
Philippians 1:12-18a
Introduction: Do
you recall the famous speech of Samwise in the “The Two Towers” in the Lord of
the Rings series? When it seemed there was no hope and Frodo was ready to give
up the mission in despair, drained by the struggle and the opposition, thinking
he couldn’t complete the task, Sam offers words of hope…
I
know. It's all wrong. By rights we shouldn't even be here. But we are. It's
like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of
darkness and danger they were. And sometimes you didn't want to know the end.
Because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way
it was when so much bad had happened? But in the end, it's only a passing
thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the
sun shines it will shine out the clearer…
Sam spoke some good theology there! We
know that God, who created the universe and called it “good,” will one day
restore life as it should be in the New Heaven and the New Earth. God has appointed a Day in which He will judge
the world in righteousness. Paul has alluded to that “Day” a couple of times
already in this chapter. Until Jesus comes, we’ve been entrusted with the
mission of bringing the “Good News” to the world. We have been included in
God’s story! The Bible teaches that all of history is really about Jesus
Christ, the King of the universe, coming to provide the basis for sinners to be
reconciled to God. He is both Sovereign and Sacrifice, the slain Lamb is the
conquering King - through whom and for whom our world exists. Being a
follower of Jesus is really about knowing Him, entrusting ourselves to Him, and
finding our place in His story. He saved us on purpose, for a purpose. Even when life doesn’t make sense, even when
we are passing through hardships or people seem to be against us, looking at
the big story can give some perspective. Its all about Jesus, so we can serve Him
joyfully!
Context: “But I want you to know brothers…” Paul
has just told the Philippians that he
prays for them to grow as disciples of Christ, loving God and loving one
another, discerning what really matters, and living a life that brings glory to
God. He is confident that God will
answer that prayer, and complete His good work in and through the Philippians. That
does not mean that the Christian life is easy, that its without hardships or
opposition. Paul is modeling the truth of serving with joy that goes beyond
the circumstances of the moment as surely as he is teaching it with his words.
We can serve the Lord joyfully because He is sovereign, the Lord of History—and
because history really is His Story… nothing is going to impede His
plan. We don’t live in a chance
universe, the end is not in doubt! Psalm 2 shows a world in chaos, the nations
in rebellion against God and his anointed, but He who sits in the heavens
laughs—one day every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus
Christ is Lord. Until that day we urge men on behalf of Christ to be
reconciled to God! Let’s hear the Word of the Lord, the Scripture, Phil
1:12-18…
12 I want you to know, brothers, that
what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, 13 so that it has become known
throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is
for Christ. 14 And most of
the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much
more bold to speak the word without fear.
15 Some indeed preach
Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from good will. 16 The latter do it out of love,
knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. 17 The former proclaim Christ out
of rivalry, not sincerely but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment. 18 What then? Only that in every
way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I
rejoice.
The Maine* Idea: We
can serve God joyfully, even when we are passing through hardships or
opposition, because it’s not about us, It’s about Jesus, glory to God!
I. Trials from outside: We can serve joyfully in spite of trouble – as long
as Christ’s cause progresses, and it will!
(1:12-14).
We see here Paul in chains, but even so
the Gospel advances inside and outside of Prison. Paul, in the midst of trying circumstances, could
see God’s hand at work. I used to enjoy reading books by Tom Clancy… he was a great
story teller, weaving a complex narrative with several story lines that seem to
always managed to converge in some way at the end. God causes all things to work together for
good to those who love Him, for those who care called according to His purpose.
This we know, God is the author of this story, and he will work
everything together for our good, and for His glory. We don’t know all the details,
we may not see how they fit together, but we do know the end of the story: Jesus
wins!
We shouldn’t be surprised by trials or
hardships as we seek to follow Christ. After
all, Jesus warned his disciples in John
16:33, “In the world you have
tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world." Face it, a lot of what we have to tell the
world runs counter to popular thinking.
They say there is no absolute truth… we say Jesus is the way the truth
and the life. They say there are many
paths to God… and we say there is no other name under heaven, given among men,
by which we must be saved. They say the
world is changing, and the rules of sexuality and marriage we find in the Bible
are outdated and irrelevant. We say
God is immutable and his Word has not changed, and humans are what God created
them to be, male and female. The world
says I’ll make my own rules, I am in charge of my life and my destiny, we say,
“Jesus Christ is Lord,” and so we owe him our allegiance and obedience. That is not popular thinking. We shouldn’t be
surprised by trials and hardship. Even so, we strive to speak the truth in
love, and we urge people on behalf of Christ to be reconciled to God.
Paul
saw God’s hand working in his struggles. He could see how the news of his
imprisonment for the gospel was spreading among the unbelievers around him…
12 I
want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to
advance the gospel, 13 so
that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the
rest that my imprisonment is for Christ.
Paul wanted to encourage the Philippians
that God was working in his circumstance, that some good purpose was already
evident. The guards, and others around him knew why he was there, and evidently
they were hearing the message of Christ. The Gospel was advancing, so Paul
could rejoice despite his chains! Secondly, he could see that his circumstance
had emboldened others to proclaim the Gospel boldly…
14 And most of the brothers,
having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to
speak the word without fear.
That
reminds me of the effect of the lives of the five missionaries to Auca Indians
in Equador who were martyred in 1956… Jim Eliot and Nate Saint among them… They
knew the risks, and yet they were ready to give their lives to bring the gospel
to that remote indigenous tribe. After their deaths their wives went back to
that same tribe, and eventually and the people turned to Christ. The testimony
of those men also inspired a generation of missionaries to go out, bringing the
Gospel to unreached people groups. The modern missionary movement was inspired
by their devotion, and by their sacrifice. As Paul says later in Philippians, they
knew that whether by life or by death, Christ would be exalted (Phil 1:20).
It will not always immediately be evident
how God is working, even so, we can know that it is true. Ultimately, in
the big picture, He works everything together for our good, and for His glory. He
is weaving together strands of a story that is bigger than we can imagine. Remember
the story of the early church in the book of Acts… Chapters 4-7 shows the
church growing through testing. What fascinates me, is that the tests come
from outside, as we might expect, but then also from within. As Luke tells the
story they alternate…
External Test: 4:1-22 - the
apostles were arrested and threatened – And the church was united and continued
to grow (4:32). [Notice their prayer, vv.23-30!]
Internal
Problem: 5:1-16, Ananias and Sapphira lied about their gift, and God took
them – 5:1-11. Nevertheless, the church continued to grow, with great reverence
for our awesome God (14).
External
Test: 5:17-42, The Apostles are arrested again, threatened and this time
beaten – Yet, they rejoice, and never stop preaching the Gospel (5:41-6:1a).
Internal
Problem: 6:1-7, Division over Greek-speaking widows being neglected in the
distribution of food. Deacons are
appointed, the structure of the church is enhanced, and instead of division, growth
continued (6:7)!
External test: Acts 7, Stephen’s speech
and martyrdom… And so the church is scattered in the midst of persecution, but those
scattered continue to preach the Word, and eventually a church is planted in
Antioch (8:1,4). I detect a pattern here! Jesus is building His church.
Trials and opposition will come, trials from outside, trials from
within, but nothing is going to stop God from accomplishing His purpose.
In fact, the church can flourish in times of testing!
Paul had been a prisoner for four years,
two in Caesarea, and two more in Rome. He did not wait for things to get better
before he served – he was a faithful witness right where he was. He did not
put serving the Lord on hold! He was faithful right where he was. Is life
different for us today than it was a year ago, before any of us had even heard
of Corona Virus? In some ways, yes. But the mission continues, unchanged, even more
urgent as time passes.
Others were encouraged to serve boldly,
seeing Paul’s ministry in chains. Paul
is a prisoner and was being used by God, they may have though, surely we can be
available as well! Aren’t you blessed when you see someone witnessing
from a hospital bed, or a shut in who can no longer drive or get out
encouraging you when you come to
visit? Haven’t you seen families who had
a peace that passes understanding in the midst of a crisis they were
experiencing? Doesn’t that encourage you
to want to be faithful where you are, whatever the circumstance? We can serve
God joyfully, even when we are passing through hardships or opposition, Jesus
is Lord, He is building His church, to God be the glory! But Paul had only external,
worldly, opposition, right? No. He also faced…
II. Trials from within: We can be joyful in spite of trials – as long as
Christ’s name is proclaimed (1:15-18a). The Gospel Advances outside
Prison – despite ill will.
15
Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from good
will. 16 The latter do it out
of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. 17 The former proclaim Christ out
of rivalry, not sincerely but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment. 18 What then? Only that in every
way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I
rejoice.
First of all, we should not be surprised
by opposition and criticism! Nehemiah was called of God to rebuild the walls of
Jerusalem, yet he experienced mocking, criticism, and opposition! Jesus warned
His disciples in the Upper Room that they should expect opposition from the
world. He said in John 15:18-19,
“If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me
first. 19 If you belonged to
the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the
world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.”
But
that is talking about the world, about this world system that is blinded by the
devil, and unwittingly serving him! Paul is experiencing that
from unbelievers, but from other Christians? It ought not to happen. But
are those who “preach Christ from envy and rivalry” among the emboldened
“brothers” in v.14? In the context, I think so. I don’t believe Paul is talking
about false teachers or heretical doctrine. He is not shy about rebuking
such in other letters. He is talking about some teachers and preachers who
perhaps didn’t embrace aspects of Paul’s preaching, or maybe still questioned
his authority since he was not one of the original twelve apostles. Do you
think there is ever envy or rivalry between genuine Christians? If you have
been a Christian for more than five minutes, I think you know the answer to
that!
Obviously, Paul was rejoicing
over some who were preaching with boldness because they are encouraged
by Paul’s faithfulness in the midst of his imprisonment. Let’s face it, we all want to be loved and
accepted. And Paul had to be encouraged
by those who loved Christ and also loved him, and preached knowing that Paul
had been chosen by Jesus for a special mission, that he was “appointed for
the defense of the Gospel.”
Others, however, are preaching with
wrong motives, with envy and strife, with selfish ambition, apparently hoping
to somehow make Paul’s situation even worse.
Rather than getting defensive, or angry about the motives of his
detractors, Paul basically says, “It doesn’t matter. It is not about me, it’s
all about Jesus.” As long as they preach
the Gospel, and point people to Him, He can use them, and He will be
glorified. Remember the story of Joseph
in Genesis? Rejected, lied about, forgotten… but he could see God’s hand at work, and they were still his brothers! Instead of seeking revenge when they came before him, he said, “As for
you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about
that many people should be kept alive, as they are today…” (Gen 50:20).
Are trials and opposition something God
can use in our lives? It can be that God allows hardships and opposition to
teach us. Peter said in I Peter 1:6-8,
6 In this you greatly
rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been
distressed by various trials, 7
so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is
perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and
glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ; 8 and though you… have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now,
but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of
glory…”
God may allow hardships or opposition to teach us, to
build our faith. James wrote, “Count
it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of
your faith produces steadfastness…” (James 1:2,3).
What is God saying to me in this passage? We
can serve God joyfully, even when we are passing through hardships or
opposition, because God’s design will come to pass. Nothing can impede the plan of God. To God be
the glory!
What would God have me to do in response to
this passage? Remember the enemy would
want to discourage and divide. Let’s seek to walk in the Spirit, to let the
fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness,
self-control… Let that fruit testify to the world that God is real, He is
present, and He is working in us. We are part of a bigger story, and a new day is
coming! AMEN.
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