Main Point
We live worthy of the gospel, by standing firm and striving together
Passage
Philippians 1:27-30 (NASB): Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or remain absent, I will hear about you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;
and in no way alarmed by your opponents—which is a sign of destruction for them, but of salvation for you, and this too, from God.
For to you it has been granted for Christ’s sake, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer on His behalf,
experiencing the same conflict which you saw in me, and now hear to be in me.
This is the word of the Lord.
Outline for Today
We are going to break down the passage today into three C’s:
The Call (v. 27)
The Courage (v. 28)
The Cost (v. 29-30)
Call (v. 27)
Verse 27 marks a shift in the letter. Chapter 1:1-26 was the introduction to the letter. 1:27 till 4:9 marks the main body of the letter, and then 4:10 till 4:23 is the conclusion.
The first line of verse 27 is basically the thesis statement for the body of the letter.
Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or remain absent, I will hear about you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;
The word only here conveys power and punch - Paul doesn’t want to keep playing Would You Rather like I forced him to last week - he wants to focus us on what is really important.
Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or remain absent, I will hear about you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;
What matters isn’t if Paul lives or dies, it’s not if he is present with them or absent from them - what matters is that that Church of Jesus lives into The Call we have received.
So what is that call?
Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or remain absent, I will hear about you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;
The greek word here for conduct yourselves in a manner is Πολιτεύομαι => to live as a citizen, to conduct oneself
If you can remember all the way back to our first message on Philippians, you’ll remember that the Philippians were Macedonians, or Greeks, who had been granted citizenship and the rights being like they were Italians by Rome.
They were outsiders, who, because of Caesar, were given the rights and privileges of being insiders.
And thus they saw themselves as Romans, and lived like citizens of Rome.
And so Paul here is saying, no matter what happens to me, no matter what happens to you, because of who Jesus is, because of what He has done, because of what He is doing, and because of what He will do, we live like citizens of His Kingdom.
You get this - you might be Greeks based on where you live, but you're Romans by citizenship.
We might be Americans based on where we live, but we are citizens of the Kingdom of Christ by citizenship.
We have been given the love of God, the forgiveness of our sins, the presence of the Holy Spirit, the privilege of prayer, the adoption into the family of God, and the promise of eternal life lived in Paradise.
The good news of Jesus creates new life.
And our heavenly citizenship (Philippians 3:20) comes with responsibilities.
Citizenship in general conveys privileges, and duties.
Right, in America, we are given rights - freedom of worship, freedom of expression, due process of law.
And we are given duties - jury duty, voting, paying taxes.
As citizens of heaven, we have been given gifts beyond words.
Paul says in Ephesians 1:3-8: 3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5 he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace 8 that he lavished on us.
But here in Philippians, Paul is calling us to remember that as Christians, our new eternal citizenship is not just about what we get, but it's also about how we live.
Our behavior matters.
Not because our behavior earns God’s favor.
Not because our behavior merits us salvation.
Not because if we are good enough we can go to heaven.
But because we are to conduct ourselves in a manner that reflects who we are in Christ.
We are ambassadors of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20), and so our conduct reflects on Him. And if we love Him, we are going to want Him to look good.
This idea of conduct worthy of the Gospel is going to play out more and more throughout the body of Philippians.
Pastor Bob has talked a lot over the years about how we learn.
One of the illustrations he gave us is dipping donuts in sugar. You dunk it once and some sticks. Dump again and more sticks. Keep going and it gets coated and covered with sugar.
It’s the same with a biblical topic. We study it once and some truth sticks. We keep studying and learning and more and more sticks.
Another idea is a learning spiral. We learned the motion of a spiral and we learned a topic. But we keep spiraling, and the spiral gets bigger and bigger and we understand that topic more and more.
That’s what we are going to be doing for weeks and weeks now - dipping donuts, drawing spirals.
Trying to Answer The Call.
And Paul starts here
At issue is how the Philippians conduct themselves, meaning live out the gospel in Philippi. Pivotal to the present appeal is that instead of the ordinary Jewish metaphor “to walk [in the ways of the Lord],” Paul uses a political metaphor, which will appear again in 3:20–21. The people of Philippi took due pride in their having been made a Roman colony by Caesar Augustus, which brought the privileges and prestige of Roman citizenship. Paul now urges them to live out their citizenship (conduct yourselves) in a manner—and the sentence begins with these emphatic words—worthy of the gospel of Christ. What is intended by this wordplay is something like “Live in the Roman colony of Philippi as worthy citizens of your heavenly homeland.” That, after all, is precisely the contrast made in 3:17–20, where “our citizenship is in heaven,” in contrast to those whose minds are set on “earthly things.”
The use of this metaphor is a brilliant stroke. Not only does it appeal to their own historic pride as Philippians, but now applied to their present setting, it urges concern both for the mission of the gospel in Philippi and especially for the welfare of the state, meaning in this case that they take seriously their “civic” responsibilities within the believing community. Their being of one mind and heart is at stake; disharmony will lead to their collective ruin.
Fee, Gordon D. Philippians. Vol. 11. Westmont, IL: IVP Academic, 1999. Print. The IVP New Testament Commentary Series.
What he said, literally, was: ‘Exercise your citizenship worthily of the gospel of Christ.’ Philippi was a Roman ‘colony’, a title seen as one of the coveted prizes of the Roman empire.1 ‘Colonial’ status meant that the people of Philippi were reckoned as Roman citizens. Their names were on the rolls at Rome; their legal position and privileges were those of Rome itself. They were a homeland in miniature. But all this is also true of them spiritually as men and women in Christ. Grace has made them citizens of a heavenly city; in their far-off land they are the heavenly homeland in miniature; heaven’s laws are their laws, and their privileges, its privileges. The life worthy of the gospel is an inescapable obligation: it is the essence of the homeland where the Lamb standing, as though it had been slain,2 forms the focal point of all life.
1 On Roman citizenship, see the Introduction, above, p. 15. The verb politeuomai makes its other New Testament appearance in Acts 23:1, ‘I have exercised my citizenship before God’, i.e. his possession of the privileges and duties of Israelite citizenship. Cf. the noun politeia, Acts 22:28 (Roman citizenship), Eph. 2:12 (Israelite citizenship).
2 Rev. 5:6.
Motyer, J. A. The Message of Philippians. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1984. Print. The Bible Speaks Today.
Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ.
Part of Growing in Faith is growing in three different areas:
Orthodoxy - Right Belief; Orthopathy - Right Passion; Orthopraxis - Right Behavior
We love the Lord with all our minds - orthodoxy
all our hearts - orthopathy
and all our strength - orthopraxy
So, our actions, our behaviors, need to be in line with who we are in Christ.
This is the third of three cords of the gospel which Paul weaves together in this chapter: there is the defence of the gospel (verse 7) for which the Philippians were notable, and the proclamation of the gospel (verses 13–18) so evident at Rome. But here is the adornment of it by worthy living (verse 27; cf. Tit. 2:10). This was where some of the Christians at Rome failed so conspicuously, and where the Philippians evidently needed a reminder.
All three responsibilities rest equally on those who love the gospel, but nowhere do they rest more heavily than where the honoured title of ‘evangelical’ is claimed. We have not succeeded wholly in any one of the three. Maybe we have been forward to defend the gospel, but we have too often marred our defence by an unloving controversy or a haughty pride. Often we have majored on proclamation and God has honoured our endeavours in ways in which we rejoice. But are we notable for living the life worthy of the gospel? Why should people believe our defence of the cause of Christ if they cannot see Christ in us, or take any notice of our offer of a saving Christ if they do not see the fruits of salvation in the beauty of holy living?
Motyer, J. A. The Message of Philippians. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1984. Print. The Bible Speaks Today.
We need to grow in right behavior - orthopraxy
We need to be good ambassadors of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20)
And so our behavior needs to match that of Jesus.
Jesus said, if you love me, you will keep my commandments ().
When we are told our job as the church, we are to make disciples of Jesus, make followers of Jesus, by teaching them to obey all He commanded. ()
Behavior matters. Living like Jesus matters.
If you are someone who thinks how you live doesn’t matter because Jesus loves you, and you have been saved by grace, and God forgives all sin no matter what, then you aren’t living worthy of the Gospel.
You are taking advantage of the Gospel. Paul says in Romans 6:15 - What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? By no means!
We need to constantly be growing in living more like Jesus.
Now, the flip side of this. If you are someone who is predisposed to despair because you aren’t perfect.
You are fearful because you want to be like Jesus, but you keep failing, and so you want to give up because you don’t want to be a hypocrite.
Let me start by telling you you are not alone. My soul constantly fears that I am not living worthy of the Gospel.
While the standard is Jesus - the perfect human - the death of Jesus is the grace that covers all our sin.
Yes, we strive to live worthy, but it is never our ability or work, it is the work of the Spirit in us that is constantly making us like Jesus.
And in our failure, His grace is greater. In our effort, His strength is greater.
It is in our small offerings that He is pleased. It is in our hearts devoted to growing in Him that He rejoices. And it is in our struggle that He meets us and loves us.
Never give in to apathy and entitlement. Never give in to despair and disillusionment.
But keep on growing in conduct befitting a citizen of heaven - a life that proves the power of the gospel.
So, let’s look at some of the ways that Paul explains what conduct that reflects the gospel looks like in this passage.
The worthy life, then, is not a ‘fugitive and cloistered virtue’. It is exposed, vulnerable. Three things follow in sequence: live worthily, stand firm, be united. The life worthy of the gospel is like a jewel in a double setting. It is encased in the opposition of a hostile world, against which it must stand firm. It is enabled to do this because of its second setting, in the unity of the church. This is a most important point in Paul’s teaching, so for clarity we will put it another way. If we may paraphrase him, Paul is saying this: ‘My objective for you is that you live worthily of the gospel. Whether present or absent, then, I look for the same news—that you are standing firm under attack. But remember this: that standing firm under attack, while it requires stern resolution on the part of each individual, is a corporate matter, an activity of the fellowship. Steadfastness requires your unity of spirit and soul, your co-operative battling for the faith you hold in common.’
Steadfastness is thus grounded in unity
Motyer, J. A. The Message of Philippians. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1984. Print. The Bible Speaks Today.
How are they to bring this off? By standing firm in the one Spirit as they contend side by side as one person for the faith of the gospel. With these words, and in typical fashion, Paul switches metaphors, this time to an athletic contest, probably used metaphorically in turn to suggest a battle. The image is of people engaged in spiritual warfare (imagery that will hardly be lost on those who live in a military colony!), standing their ground firmly by the power of the Holy Spirit, who as the one Spirit is also the source of their unity (cf. 1 Cor 12:13), thus anticipating 2:1. Despite the frequency of its appearance in English translations, this phrase can scarcely mean in one spirit (NIV), as though it meant to have a common mind about something. Such an idiom with the word spirit is unknown in all of Greek literature. Paul himself uses this phrase elsewhere to refer to the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 12:9, 13; Eph 2:18), precisely in places, as here, where Christian unity is at stake.
They are urged thus to stand firm in/by the one Spirit so as to contend together as one person for the faith of the gospel. Here we are at the heart of things: their need to have harmony within the Christian community as they live out the gospel in Philippi. The gospel is the beginning and end of everything for Paul. Thus for them to live out their (heavenly) citizenship in a manner worthy of the gospel means for them to contend for the faith of the gospel, and to do so in the unity that only the Spirit brings. All the more so now because they are facing some kind of opposition that is resulting in suffering.
Fee, Gordon D. Philippians. Vol. 11. Westmont, IL: IVP Academic, 1999. Print. The IVP New Testament Commentary Series.
The first thing we see is that a life lived worthy of the Gospel is a life lived in a unified community.
I’m about to say something that may be hard for a lot of people to hear - the Church is essential, not optional.
It is a normal thing in our day to put church as a secondary or tertiary thing.
And if all the Church is is an hour and a half piece of religious entertainment, that’s fair.
But that’s not what the Church is.
The Church of Jesus Christ is the embassy of His Kingdom, it's the family of God, it’s the Temple of the Holy Spirit, it’s the Body of Christ, it’s the training ground for heaven.
You see, it’s easy to think that all I need is me and Jesus, or me and God.
But that’s not the case.
When Jesus saves us, He brings us into the family.
And it's in the community, in the relationships, that our faith is made real.
Because I think that I’m incredibly patient. And then I interact with people and discover, nope.
I think that I am incredibly kind. And then I find out that I’m not.
I think that I don’t have anything to offer. And then I find out that what I can do is a gift to others.
It’s in the community that we learn what it means to be truly human, with all the messiness and mistakes that come with it.
It’s in the accountability that we truly learn to be more like Jesus.
It’s in the prayers and presence of others that the presence of Jesus is truly communicated to us.
And it’s in the unity of the community that God’s redemptive work is made real.
If we can love each other because of Jesus, even when other things should divide us, then Jesus is put in His proper place, and the Gospel is proven in our love.
Jesus put it this way: ___
If we look at another Christian, and can’t love them because we disagree with their hobbies, their politics, their outfits, their
When we judge each other rather than love and delight in each other, we aren’t living worthy of the Gospel.
When we put personal preference over Kingdom commitment, we aren’t living worthy of the Gospel.
Do we correct each other? Of course. Do we argue and fight? Sure. Will we hurt each other? Sadly, yes.
All of those things are true of family. But the key is that we reconcile. We forgive.
My sister and I have had our ups and downs. But one thing has always been true - we love each other.
And so we fight for each other, even when we fight with each other. And we apologize, we own the things we have done wrong to each other.
More me than her. She’s had to forgive a lot over the years.
But I’ve learned how to be a better man, by being her brother.
And I learn how to be a better Christian, by being in this community.
It’s not about being perfect. It’s about loving Jesus - and so we love each other. We love each other enough to care for each other, and to put the family of God first.
We invest the time, the energy, the care, and the love necessary to make the Church a priority in our lives.
Because it’s a priority to Jesus.
This is one of those things that was easier to teach when I was a volunteer than as a pastor. Because my conviction about the church hasn’t changed.
But now, you probably zone out a little more, or discount it a bit.
Of course the pastor says to make church a priority.
It’s like when I tell Lisa she’s beautiful and she rolls her eyes and says you have to say that.
But it doesn’t mean it’s not true.
We live worthy of the gospel when we are unified, and if we aren’t together enough to get on each other’s nerves, we aren’t really working at being unified.
If this were easy, it wouldn’t be something Jesus would have to pray for. But he did. So we have to strive for it.
Is Hard-Working (v. 27)
Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel
You see, not only do we have to struggle against the ways that we will naturally annoy and hurt each other.
Not only do we have to struggle with those of us who are doing our best and will fail.
We also have an Enemy who is out to destroy us. And that Enemy tries to destroy us from without and within.
So we have to stand firm. We have to strive for the faith.
The Greek word here for striving together conveys contending, wrestling, working hard.
We need to be unified, because the work is so great, so vast, and we need to be all going in the same direction.
I think of the canoe ride at Disneyland. I was a kid, and I was so excited to paddle, that I just put my paddle in the water and started going.
The ride operator yelled at me, NOPE!
It didn’t matter that I was passionate.
It didn’t matter that I was working hard.
Because my passion and my hard work would just make us go in circles.
If everyone does whatever is right in their own eyes in a canoe, we aren’t going anywhere.
We need a single goal that we are all going to strive for. And we have to all agree to work together for that goal.
And we all need to be working.
Because if we all follow instructions, and we all do our part, and we are all working together, then we are going to go places.
We need to work together, to strive together for the gospel.
We need to train each other that we might live lives that proclaim the good news of Jesus.
We need to train each other how we can share the good news of Jesus with others.
We need to be bold and work to point people to Jesus, no matter the cost.
We stand together, and we strive together.
When we gather here on a Sunday Morning, this is not religious entertainment.
This is a rallying cry and a reminder to put Jesus in His proper place.
We gather together to orient our lives toward living and proclaim the good news of who Jesus is, what He has done, what He is doing, and what He will do.
When we read out Bibles, this is not just a religious duty.
It’s us trying to see the face of God, to understand His Story, and to participate in it.
When we pray, this is not just about experiencing closeness with God, or about getting God to do what I want.
Prayer is us gathering before the throne of our King, longing to see His Kingdom come, His will be done on Earth as in Heaven.
We can’t live worthy of the gospel alone. We need each other.
And we need God.
It is the Holy Spirit, who indwells and empowers us.
It is Jesus, our Lord and Savior, who died for us and rescued us.
It is the Father, who adopted us and welcomed us, and restored us to being truly human.
Ephesians 4:1-6 says the same thing even more forcefully: Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, being diligent to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you also were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all.
This Call, to live worthy of the gospel, means that we will reflect our God.
CLICK
Our God is one (Deuteronomy 6:4), and thus we are supposed to be united and One.
This is something that Jesus prayed for on the night he was betrayed:
CLICKJohn 17:20-21: 20 “I am not asking on behalf of these alone, but also for those who believe in Me through their word,21 that they may all be one; just as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.
Question #1: Are you standing firm in the Spirit?
Are you rooted in the Spirit?
Are you digging deep in the person, and character of God?
Are you putting in the effort to know and love and be with Jesus?
Let me give you a piece of pastoral advice - nothing replaces a personal, daily discipline of rooting ourselves in God.
Coming to worship is necessary, it's a weekly point of recharge, of offering God the praise He deserves with the people of God.
And without the Church, we can’t truly live into The Call.
But we need personal, daily devotion as well.
Every minute of every day, the powers of darkness seek to deceive and destroy us. Every minute of every day our culture seeks to shape us. Every minute of every day our sinful nature tries to draw us from God.
One of my favorite hymns, Come Thou Fount, puts it perfectly:Prone to wander, Lord I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love.
Here’s my heart, Lord, take and seal,
Seal it for thy courts above.
I am prone to wander. There is no substitute for daily rooting myself in God through prayer, through Scripture, through obedience.
Because otherwise, I will wander, I will drift away.
I’ll be like a boogie board caught in the currents of the ocean.
I’m not saying you need to have an hour long quiet time. I know life is crazy.
Rooting yourself in God is going to look different in different seasons.
There is wisdom and there is grace and there are adjustments. The devotional life of a young mother of 2 is going to be vastly different than that of a retired school teacher.
What matters isn’t the amount, it’s the heart, and the consistency.
Life is hard. We need to root ourselves in the Spirit, so we can stand firm in the Spirit.
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Question #2: Are you striving for the gospel of Jesus Christ?
In this last year, I have listened to a lot of people.
It's the privilege of a pastor to meet with people in their pain.
And I have noticed people are busy, people are worried, and people are striving. And people are soul-weary.
People are busy - crazy busy. Feeling like I have no time, no margin, no way to commit to something else.
People are worried. Worried about making the wrong choices, about making a living, about their kids, about the future, about the world.
People are striving - striving to find meaning, striving to raise their families, striving to be healthy, striving to find rest or joy or fun, striving to do the right thing.
That passion and that effort is beautiful.
But it will burn you out, because the only thing that truly fulfills is the life of Jesus made manifest in us through the Holy Spirit.
Are you striving for the gospel?Put Jesus in His proper place. Strive to live the good news, to proclaim the good news, to share the good news.
Because everything else is striving after the wind. And it will never fulfill, and when things go wrong, you’ll find yourself confused, hurting, and broken.
Other things are good - and we can spend time and effort and passion on them - but they cannot be primary.
We have to strive after the gospel, it can’t be a secondary thing, and it can’t be something we think we are doing on autopilot.
We need to allow the gospel to frame and define all our other passions.
The Call is to conduct ourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel.
So we stand together in the Spirit, and we strive together for the Gospel.
If you are a Christian, and the questions convicted at all, today is the day of grace, mercy, love, and forgiveness.
Today is the day that God is putting his hand on your shoulder and saying I love you, get up, and get to work. I’ve got you.
Take up The Call
Courage (v. 28)
without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved—and that by God.
without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved—and that by God.
As always God is both the first and the last word. Salvation is at his initiative; it comes from him. Thus it is the first word. But in this sentence, in light of the Philippians’ need for reassurance, it is the last word as well. Everything is from God; the Philippians can rest assured. Which is also a necessary word in light of the theological explanation of suffering that Paul is about to offer.
Fee, Gordon D. Philippians. Vol. 11. Westmont, IL: IVP Academic, 1999. Print. The IVP New Testament Commentary Series.
When we truly embrace The Call, when we have the perspective from last week that to live is Christ, and to die is gain (Philippians 1:21)
Then there is Courage that comes that allows us to face the struggles of life.
Alright, let’s quickly look at verse 28. and in no way alarmed by your opponents—which is a sign of destruction for them, but of salvation for you, and this too, from God.
This week in a ministry team meeting, we did a devotional comparing Joshua 1 and Philippians 1.
And one of the insights that came from that discussion was that courage was promised, but obedience was commanded.
Courage didn’t lead to obedience, obedience breeds courage.
We trust that God will rescue and save. We rest in the fact that God will judge and vindicate.
And so we rally together and we care for one another.
We rally together, and take heart to face the week.
We rally together, and call each other to be who we were made to be, and to remind each other of the love and grace of our God.
We heed The Call. We stand in the spirit, we strive for the gospel.
We orient our lives so that our behavior is worthy of the Gospel. We obey our King.
We trust that obedience will breed the Courage we need to live out of love and gratitude for the salvation Christ has won for us.
For the sake of the Call, trusting God for Courage, we embrace The Cost.
Cost (v. 29-30)
For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him, since you are going through the same struggle you saw I had, and now hear that I still have.
The God who saves you, who has thus granted to you (literally “graced you”!) on behalf of Christ … to believe on him, is the same God who has also graced you to suffer for him. So who needs such “gracing”? one might ask.
The clue again lies in the christocentric nature of Paul’s understanding of everything. Literally he says, “To you has been graciously given on behalf of Christ … to suffer on his behalf.” This emphasis must be understood in light of the Christ narrative to which Paul will appeal in 2:5–11. A crucified Lord produces disciples who themselves take up a cross as they follow him. We are thus to live on behalf of Christ in the same way Christ himself lived—and died—on behalf of this fallen, broken world. That is why salvation includes suffering on behalf of Christ, since those who oppose the Philippian believers as they proclaim the gospel of Christ are of a kind with those who crucified their Lord in the first place. And for believers, as for our Lord, the path to glorification leads through the suffering of the cross (= living “cruciform” [see note on 1:11]).
Fee, Gordon D. Philippians. Vol. 11. Westmont, IL: IVP Academic, 1999. Print. The IVP New Testament Commentary Series.
And so he reminds them that their present suffering is precisely of a kind with his current Roman imprisonment. They are partners in suffering for the gospel as well as in proclaiming it; and that reality—and resource—is what he will draw on as he now returns to the appeal that they stand firm in the one Spirit, contending side by side for the gospel (2:1–4).
Although our particulars differ considerably, the theological concerns that emerge in this paragraph are greatly needed in the church today, both in the Western church where the struggle in a post-Christian, postmodern world is immense, though the suffering is less so, and in churches in the emerging world, where suffering is often more prevalent but where sectarian strife all too often hampers the cause of the gospel.
One of the reasons most of us in the West do not know more about the content of verses 29–30 is that we have so poorly heeded the threefold exhortation that precedes: (1) to stand firm in the one Spirit (overall our pneumatology is especially weak); (2) to contend for the faith of the gospel as one person (the faith of the gospel has been watered down on all sides, by the blatant materialism that erodes the evangelical church as well as by a banal “liberalism,” neither of which is worth contending for; and our sectarianism has more often resulted in in-house furor than in contending for the gospel in the face of pagan opposition); and (3) to do so without being intimidated in any way by the opposition (who tend to focus on our many weaknesses, so as to continually deflect our contending for the gospel of our crucified Savior per se).
The net result is that the content of Paul’s explanation is something contemporary Christians hear reluctantly, either out of guilt that so many of us look so little like this or out of fear that it might someday really be true for us. The key is to return to Paul’s emphasis, “for the sake of Christ.” Our tendency is to focus on the suffering. What is needed is a radical paradigm shift toward Christ—and his apostle—as God’s ultimate paradigm for us. Through “death on a cross” he not only “saved us” but modeled for us God’s way of dealing with the opposition—loving them to death.
Fee, Gordon D. Philippians. Vol. 11. Westmont, IL: IVP Academic, 1999. Print. The IVP New Testament Commentary Series.
The old hymn It Is Well sums this up well:
When peace like a river attendeth my way
When sorrows like sea billows roll
Whatever my lot
Thou hast taught me to say
It is well, it is well, with my soul
As I read this passage this week, I kept trying to write about some of the cool things that were in the commentaries I read.
Some of the word play or the parallelism, or the cross references in the Bible.
But instead, I felt compelled to speak to some of the hurt I have heard over the last year. The confusion and soul-weary cries that have asked, Why am I suffering? What have I done wrong? When will it end?
Now, I can’t say definitely for everyone this is why you are suffering. There are a lot of reasons for suffering, we talked a lot about it in James. I encourage you to go on our YouTube and watch some of those sermons.
But for many of us, I think there is a word we need to hear.
The Greek word for has been granted is the same word used for forgiveness and gracious gifts and giving.
The Cost of following Jesus - the taking up of our crosses and following Him, The Cost of conducting life as Christ’s ambassadors, The Cost of standing in the Spirit and striving for the gospel, isn’t really a cost at all.
Instead, it can be a gracious gift of God, that we may be allowed to suffer on behalf of the Lord.
That’s a word no one wants to hear, no one wants to say, and no one really wants to actually believe.
When life is a mess, when circumstances break our hearts, when our pain is crippling, and our grief shatters us, when our worries and cares burden us, when injustice deprives us of hope, no one thinks of it as a gift.
We ask ourselves what have I done to deserve this? What have I done that God is punishing me for? We ask, what lesson is God trying to teach me, so I can learn it and get this over with.
We ask where is God? Why is He not delivering me? Why? Why? Why?
And sadly, why is not the question to ask.
Sometimes there is discipline for sin. Sometimes we suffer because suffering is the natural consequence of the evil we perpetrate.
But even more often, especially for those of us who are following Jesus and seeking to imitate Christ, suffering is just part of the mission.
Jesus said: These things I have spoken to you so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world. (John 16:33)
We are promised suffering. The world is broken.
1 Peter 4:12:12 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though something strange were happening to you;
Peter tells us not to be surprised when we suffer.
By all means, he warns us not to suffer because we have done evil.
But he shows us that if we are really trying to be like Jesus, then we will suffer.
Jesus did nothing wrong. But he suffered.
He suffered because of our sin. He suffered because there is an Enemy. He suffered because the religious and political powers were out of step with God and His Kingdom.
There is evil in this world. Christ suffered. If you are genuinely trying to imitate Christ you will suffer.
We have brothers and sisters in Nigeria who have demonstrated this to us. One report I read said just this month 350 Christians were killed, some burned alive in the church or in their homes.
The fiery trial comes - the world does its worst - but Christ has overcome the world. And for our brothers and sisters, death is gain. We rejoice that they have overcome, and that they are in the presence of our Lord.
And we should be inspired by them. We should learn from them.
When suffering comes, don’t be surprised, stand firm in the Spirit. Strive for the gospel.
Take courage, find peace, because you are suffering as the Lord suffered.
And in that suffering, He is with you.
He is with you.
He offers you His peace. Take courage, He has overcome - there is hope and life on the other side.
Pray with me.
Benediction
Hebrews 13:20-21: 20 Now may the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, 21 equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Resources Used
Cohick, Lynn H. The Story of God Bible Commentary: Philippians. Edited by McKnight. Scot, Zondervan, 2013.
Edwards, Mark J., and Thomas C. Oden, editors. Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians. InterVarsity Press, 2005.
Fee, Gordon D. Philippians. IVP Academic, 1999.
Freedman, David Noel, et al., editors. The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary, Doubleday, 1992.
Guthrie, George H. Philippians. Zondervan Academic, 2023.
Motyer, J. A. The Message of Philippians. InterVarsity Press, 1984.
Wright, Nicholas Thomas. Paul for Everyone: The Prison Letters : Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians and Philemon. SPCK, 2004.