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Deffinbaugh \line Biblical Studies Press \line 2000\par \pard\b\f1\fs20\page\b0\f0\fs28 To Live Is Christ: \line A Study of the Book of Philippians\fs24\par \pard\sb100\sa100 Contents \par \pard Lesson 1: The Birth of the Church at Philippi (\cf2\ul Act_15:36\cf1\ulnone\endash 16:40)\par Lesson 2: Paul\rquote s Perspective as a Servant (\cf2\ul Php_1:1-2\cf1\ulnone )\par Lesson 3: Paul\rquote s Perspective as a Prisoner (\cf2\ul Php_1:3-11\cf1\ulnone )\par Lesson 4: Paul\rquote s Perspective on Pain and Pettiness (\cf2\ul Php_1:12-18\cf1\ulnone )\par Lesson 5: Paul\rquote s Perspective on Life and Death (\cf2\ul Php_1:18\cf1\ulnone b-26\par Lesson 6: Christian Citizenship: Living Out the Gospel (\cf2\ul Php_1:27\cf1\ulnone\endash 2:2)\par Lesson 7: The Ultimate in Humility\endash Leaving the Comfort Zone (\cf2\ul Php_2:3-11\cf1\ulnone )\par Lesson 8: Fleshing Out Your Faith (\cf2\ul Php_2:12-18\cf1\ulnone )\par Lesson 9: A Few Good Men (\cf2\ul Php_2:19-30\cf1\ulnone )\par Lesson 10: Paul\rquote s Perspective on Profit and Loss (\cf2\ul Php_3:1-11\cf1\ulnone )\par Lesson 11: Paul\rquote s Perspective on Perfectionism (\cf2\ul Php_3:12-21\cf1\ulnone )\par Lessons 12 & 13: Stand Fast, Stand Together (\cf2\ul Php_4:1-9\cf1\ulnone )\par Lessons 14 & 15: Give and Take (\cf2\ul Php_4:10-20\cf1\ulnone )\par \f1\~\par \pard\sb100\sa100\f0\fs20 Robert L. Deffinbaugh graduated from Dallas Theological Seminary with his Th.M. in 1971. Bob is a teacher and elder at Community Bible Chapel in Richardson, Texas, and has contributed many of his Bible study series for use byLVAL the Foundation. These are edited manuscripts of messages delivered by Robert L. Deffinbaugh, teacher and elder at Community Bible Chapel. Anyone is at liberty to use this edited manuscript for educational purposes only, with or without credit. The Chapel believes the material presented herein to be true to the teaching of Scripture, and desires to further, not restrict, its potential use as an aid in the study of God\rquote s Word. The publication of this material is a grace ministry of Community Bible Chapel. Copyright 2000 by Community Bible Chapel, 210 Abrams Road, Richardson, TX 75081.\par \f1 Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from \b\i The NET Bible\b0\i0 . The \i New English Translation\i0 , also known as \i The NET Bible\i0 , is a completely new translation of the Bible, not a revision or an update of a previous English version. It was completed by more than twenty biblical scholars who worked directly from the best currently available Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts. The translation project originally started as an attempt to provide an electronic version of a modern translation for electronic distribution over the Internet and on CD (compact disk). Anyone anywhere in the world with an Internet connection will be able to use and print out \i The NET Bible\i0 without cost for personal study. In addition, anyone who wants to share the Bible with others can print unlimited copies and give them away free to others. It is available on the Internet at: \cf0{\field{\*\fldinst{HYPERLINK "http://www.bible.org"}}{\fldrslt{\ul\cf3 http://www.bible.org}}}\cf1\f1\fs20 .\par \pard\sb100\sa100\qc\b\scaps\f0\fs18\~\b0\scaps0\fs20\par \b\scaps\fs18 Trademark and Copyright Information\b0\scaps0\fs20\par \pard\sb100\sa100\scaps Copyright \'a9 1995 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. and the authors. All rights reserved. For free usage information, please read the BSF Web site Copyright Statement for fair use statements. \scaps0\par \pard\sb100\sa100\qc\scaps\fs18 Electronic Access toLVAL this Material\scaps0\fs20\par \scaps This Material is available for use on the internet via an agreement with the Biblical Studies Foundation, a non-Profit Foundation at:\line\cf0\fs18{\field{\*\fldinst{HYPERLINK "www.bible.org"}}{\fldrslt{\ul\cf3 www.bible.org}}}\cf1\scaps0\f0\fs20\par \pard\sb100\sa100\scaps Biblical studies copyrighted by individual authors and the Biblical Studies Press are not shareware or public domain and may not be duplicated without permission.\scaps0\par \pard\sb100\sa100\qc\b\scaps\fs18 BSF Website Copyright Statement\b0\scaps0\fs20\par \pard\sb100\sa100\scaps From our website at \cf0{\field{\*\fldinst{HYPERLINK "www.bible.org"}}{\fldrslt{\ul\cf3 www.bible.org}}}\cf1\f0\fs20 , you may download the information and print it for yourself and others as long as it is given away and no charge is made for it. In this case, free means free. It cannot be bundled with anything sold, nor can a charge be made for shipping, handling, or anything. It is provided for personal study or for use in preparation of sermons, Sunday school classes, or other non-commercial study. This release does not apply to other media than paper printed distribution.\scaps0 \par \scaps For Free distribution of more than 100 copies, you must obtain written permission and comply with reasonable guidelines of content control and include currently valid BSP copyright and organizational acknowledgments. \scaps0\par \scaps For permission, inquire by e-mail to \ldblquote head@bible.org\rdblquote or call 800-575-2425\par \pard\scaps0\f2\fs22 Formatted for e-Sword by David Cox\par Copyright \'a92008 Biblical Studies Press, reprinted with permission from \cf0{\field{\*\fldinst{HYPERLINK "www.bible.org"}}{\fldrslt{\ul\cf3 www.bible.org}}}\cf1\f2\fs22 for free redistribution.\par \pard\sb100\sa100\kerning28\f3\par }  *X ` / i :  15 ConclusionVd4, 14-15 Give and Take 4:10-20 A4H< 12-13 Stand Fast, Stand Together 4:1-9M4^R 11 Paul's Perspective on Perfectionism 3:12-216@4nb 10 Paul's Perspective on Profit and Loss 3:1-114pd 09 A few good men 2:19-30r4D8 08 Fleshing out your Faith 2:12-18=4VJ07 Ultimate in Humility 2:3-11j4NB06 Christian Citizenship: Living Out the Gospel a4rf05 Paul's Perspective on Life and Death 1:18-26|x4pd04 Pauls Perspective on Pain and Pettiness 1:12-18r]4vj03 Paul's Perspective as Prisoner 1:3-11K4bV02 Paul's Perspective as Servant 1:1-2-4^R01 Birth of the Church at Philippi Act 15:36-16:40|4vj00 A Study Book of Philippians8.4NBLVAL4{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fswiss\fprq2\fcharset0 Arial;}{\f1\froman\fprq2\fcharset0 Times New Roman;}{\f2\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red51\green102\blue102;\red0\green128\blue0;\red0\green0\blue0;\red0\green0\blue255;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sb100\sa100\cf1\lang1033\kerning36\f0\fs36 Lesson 1: The Birth of the Church at Philippi \line (\cf2\ul Act_15:36\cf1\ulnone\endash\cf2\ul Act_16:40\cf1\ulnone )\fs48\par \kerning0\fs36 Introduction\par \cf3\fs24 When I was growing up, I had an English teacher named Clyde Riddell. Mr. Riddell had served in the army during World War II and had some very fascinating stories to tell about his part in that war. He also spoke some German. To be honest, I\rquote m not sure how much, but he certainly had some expressions he used frequently. Incidentally, years later, while I was a student at Dallas Seminary, my summer job was teaching high school classes in a Washington State Penitentiary, which was located in my home town. Mr. Riddell was teaching there as well, so I was able to relate to him as a colleague, as well as a teacher.\par One thing sticks out in my mind when I think of Clyde Riddell, something that contributed to his great skill as a teacher. Mr. Riddell could virtually change his personality in a split second. Usually, Mr. Riddell was a very jovial fellow, making jokes and taking a very lighthearted approach to teaching. But there were times when my classmates and I would get unruly, requiring Mr. Riddell to bring the class back under control. When such times occurred, Mr. Riddell\rquote s face would suddenly darken into a frown, and that look was enough to stop bad behavior in its tracks. No one wanted to take on this \ldblquote Mr. Riddell,\rdblquote not even me. But when things were once again under control in the classroom, the old \ldblquote Mr. Riddell\rdblquote emerged, much to our relief.\par I have always thought of the Apostle Paul in similar terms, except that Paul has severalLVAL \ldblquote faces\rdblquote which are evident in his epistles. For example, there is \ldblquote Paul, the theologian.\rdblquote You can see Paul\rquote s very logical reasoning in the Book of Romans, as he meticulously works his way through the doctrine of salvation. In 1 Corinthians, for example, we see \ldblquote Paul, the troubleshooter.\rdblquote As Paul writes to the Corinthians, he deals with questions they have asked him, and with the problems he has discerned through his communication with others. In 1 and 2 Timothy and Titus, we see a very \ldblquote fatherly Paul.\rdblquote Here, Paul is a mentor, giving wise counsel to younger men in ministry. In Galatians, we find a very different Paul. Let\rquote s call him \ldblquote Paul, the warrior.\rdblquote Here, Paul reminds me a great deal of Clyde Riddell in his \ldblquote mad mode.\rdblquote As we read Galatians, we see a very animated and even angry apostle, incensed by the fact that some are turning from the true gospel of salvation by grace alone and embracing another \b\ldblquote gospel,\rdblquote\b0 a gospel of works. This \ldblquote other gospel\rdblquote does not save, but condemns. Here is a Paul that we really don\rquote t want to face.\par How different is the Paul of Philippians! He is just the opposite of \ldblquote Paul, the warrior\rdblquote in Galatians. Let\rquote s call him \ldblquote Paul, the optimist.\rdblquote Paul is never more upbeat, never more joyful and triumphant than he is in the Book of Philippians. This is not because of any great success or due to the lack of difficulties in his life. Indeed, many things are quite the opposite of pleasant. Paul is not writing from the penthouse of a fancy hotel; he is writing from a prison cell. Some disagree over where this prison is located, but it seems clear that Paul is waiting for his trial, and his future is uncertain. He may even face execution. Paul is therefore not free to go about preaching the gospel and establishing churches as he once did. Some are using hiLVALs imprisonment as an opportunity to gain a following at his expense, as we shall see in chapter 1. There is also some kind of disagreement between two women, as we find in chapter 4. At the time of his writing, Paul has only one person whom he can trust to send to Philippi\emdash Timothy\emdash who will seek the Philippians\rquote best interests, rather than his own (\cf2\ul Php_2:20-21\cf3\ulnone ). In spite of these circumstances, Paul is jubilant, joyful, optimistic. \par Many of us need a good dose of whatever it is that inspires such joy in the Apostle Paul. I don\rquote t know why, but there are all too many saints in the church with long faces and sour spirits. There is a book, written by an unbelieving psychiatrist, entitled, \i Whatever Happened to Sin?\i0 The church desperately needs another book, which might be called, \i Whatever Happened to Joy?\i0 Actually, that book does exist. It is the Book of Philippians, the book we have chosen as our study for this series of messages. It is a book that, if taken to heart, can radically transform our outlook and sweeten up some sour saints, not to mention pointing others who have not yet met Him to Christ, the source of all true joy. Let us listen well to the words of Paul in Philippians, and seek to learn why \b\ldblquote to live is Christ.\rdblquote\b0\par \cf1\fs36 The Uniqueness of Philippians\par \cf3\fs24 It is my conviction that every book of the Bible has a unique contribution to make to the Bible as a whole\emdash something that no other book accomplishes or contributes. So as we commence our study of Philippians, I would ask this question: \ldblquote What is the unique contribution of Philippians to the Bible as a whole?\rdblquote Allow me to make some preliminary suggestions.\par \i First, the Philippian church is the first church to be planted in Europe.\i0 We shall see in this lesson how God providentially and more directly guided Paul and those with him to Macedonia, and specifically Philippi. Here, a number were brought to faLVALith by the preaching of the gospel. Here, the first church in Europe was planted. \par \i Second, the church at Philippi is the only church I am aware of in the New Testament that is used as a model for other churches to follow.\i0 The Philippian church was used by Paul as an example of generosity, so as to stimulate the Corinthians to follow-through with their commitment to give to the needy saints in Judea (\cf2\ul 2Co_8:1-5\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul 2Co_9:1-5\cf3\ulnone ). Paul indicates in this letter that the Philippians were the only ones to stand behind him financially in his times of need (\cf2\ul Php_4:10-19\cf3\ulnone ). Here is a church committed to support the proclamation of the gospel. Here is a church we would do well to imitate. While Paul is a man we should all seek to imitate individually, the Philippian church is a church we should seek to imitate corporately.\par \i Third, Philippians is an epistle that gives us an entirely different standard for giving and fund-raising.\i0 The Apostle Paul seems to have written this epistle as a \ldblquote thank you\rdblquote letter in response to the gifts\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [1]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 that were sent to him in his time of need. As Dr. Haddon Robinson once remarked, this epistle does not come with a tear-out contribution card and a self-addressed, stamped envelope, with the hope of getting yet another gift from the Philippians. Elsewhere we see a fair amount of instruction concerning the giving of gifts, but in this great epistle Paul gives us a unique perspective on the receiving of gifts, one that is both rare and refreshing.\par \i Fourth, the Book of Philippians helps us to define biblical fellowship.\b \b0\i0 All too often the term \ldblquote fellowship\rdblquote is used almost synonymously with \ldblquote friendship\rdblquote or some similar term. Some think that standing around at church eating refreshments and making small talk is \ldblquote fellowship.\rdblquote This is not the case for Paul or for the other New TestaLVALment writers. True \ldblquote\i koinonia\rdblquote\i0 or fellowship will be defined in Philippians. \par \i Fifth, Philippians is a book that helps us get a proper perspective on unjust suffering, persecution, and even death.\i0 I have chosen Paul\rquote s words in chapter 1, verse 21, as the title for this series: \b\ldblquote To live is Christ.\rdblquote\b0 When this is our perspective, and we now have the right perspective toward life, we will also have a proper perspective toward adversity and even death. This is why the apostle can add, \b\ldblquote\'85and to die is gain.\rdblquote\b0 The Book of Philippians spells out just how this expression should define our perspective. And if it does, we shall never be grouchy Christians again.\par \cf1\fs36 The Birth of the Church at Philippi \par \fs28 Part I: Divinely Guided to Philippi (\cf2\ul Act_15:36\cf1\ulnone\endash\cf2\ul Act_16:12\cf1\ulnone )\par \cf3\fs24 15:36 After some days Paul said to Barnabas, \ldblquote Let\rquote s return and visit the brothers in every town where we proclaimed the word of the Lord to see how they are doing.\rdblquote 37 Barnabas wanted to bring John called Mark along with them too, 38 but Paul insisted that they should not take along this one who had left them in Pamphylia and had not accompanied them in the work. 39 They had a sharp disagreement, so that they parted company. Barnabas took along Mark and sailed away to Cyprus, 40 but Paul chose Silas and set out, commended to the grace of the Lord by the brothers and sisters. 41 He passed through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.\par 16:1 He also came to Derbe and to Lystra. A disciple named Timothy was there, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but whose father was a Greek. 2 The brothers in Lystra and Iconium spoke well of him. 3 Paul wanted Timothy to accompany him, and he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those places, for they all knew that his father was Greek. 4 As they went through the towns, they passLVALed on the decrees that had been decided on by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem for the Gentile believers to obey. 5 So the churches were being strengthened in the faith and were increasing in number every day.\par 6 They went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been prevented by the Holy Spirit from speaking the message in Asia. 7 When they came to Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them to, 8 so they passed through Mysia and went down to Troas. 9 A vision appeared to Paul during the night: a Macedonian man was standing there urging him, \ldblquote Come over to Macedonia and help us!\rdblquote 10 After Paul saw the vision, we attempted immediately to go over to Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to proclaim the good news to them. 11 We put out to sea from Troas and sailed a straight course to Samothrace, the next day to Neapolis, 12 and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of that district of Macedonia, a Roman colony. We stayed in this city for some days. \par God seldom does things the way we would expect. Amazing as it may seem, the church at Philippi began as the result of two heated arguments. The \i first\i0 debate\emdash that of Paul and Barnabas with the Judaisers\emdash was over the gospel itself. On this issue, Paul and Barnabas stood together against those who sought to require Gentile converts to Christ to become Jewish proselytes. They insisted that Gentiles must become Christians by also becoming Jews. They demanded that Gentile converts undergo circumcision, and by this symbolic act, to place themselves under the Old Testament law. \cf2\ul Act_15:1-35\cf3\ulnone describes the way the apostles and the elders of the church in Jerusalem handled this debate. They concluded that Gentile converts were not to be subjected to Judaism and laid down only minimal requirements of these converts.\par The \i second \i0 was a debate between Paul and Barnabas over their next missionary journey (\cf2\ul Act_15:36-LVAL41\cf3\ulnone ). They had completed their first missionary journey some time before, and Paul felt strongly that they should now make a return visit to the churches that they had established. Barnabas agreed, but wanted to take John Mark along with them. The problem was that Mark had deserted them on their first missionary journey (\cf2\ul Act_13:13\cf3\ulnone ). Paul was not willing to risk yet another failure, and so he refused to take Mark along with them. Barnabas wanted to salvage this young man and his ministry and insisted on taking him along. They strongly disagreed, and the result was that Barnabas took Mark along with him and went to Cyprus, while Paul chose Silas and set out from Syria and Cilicia.\par I have dealt with this matter in my exposition of the Book of Acts,\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [2]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 so I will not deal with it in detail here. I will say that I believe both Paul and Barnabas were right. Barnabas was acting consistently with his gift of encouragement (see \cf2\ul Act_4:36\cf3\ulnone ), while Paul was right in refusing to take Mark along on a mission in which he was likely to fail again. While these two men strongly disagreed, their friendship endured, and the result was that there were now two missionary teams, rather than one. Barnabas had done his work well with Paul, and it was time for the two to venture out on their own. So often today, men \ldblquote split\rdblquote ministries in a way that creates animosity and division. I do not believe this happened with Barnabas and Paul, and later history bears this out.\par What is very interesting to me is the way God providentially used the disagreement between Paul and Barnabas to prepare the way for a new and unexpected thrust of missionary activity. From what we read in \cf2\ul Act_15:36-41\cf3\ulnone , neither Paul nor Barnabas anticipated a new missionary thrust into Europe. At most, they expected merely to return to those churches they had established on their first journey. But God had much bigger things LVALin mind. The second missionary journey of Paul would be even more dangerous than the first, and therefore taking John Mark along would be ill advised. On the other hand, because Barnabas took Mark with him to Cyprus, Paul did not need to concern himself with returning there, even though it was a part of his first missionary journey. This division of labor worked out well for everyone and paved the way for a new penetration of the gospel, beyond what anyone might ask or think.\par Acts 16 begins with the arrival of Paul and Silas at Derbe and Lystra in southern Galatia. It is in Lystra that Paul first encounters Timothy. This young man had a Jewish mother and a Gentile father. Paul had him circumcised so that his ministry would be more broadly accepted. It is apparent that no one was demanding that he be circumcised, as was the case with Titus (\cf2\ul Gal_2:3-5\cf3\ulnone ), or Paul would never have circumcised him. Luke makes it very clear to the reader that Timothy was already a combat-proven disciple. If Paul would not take John Mark along because of the dangers they would face, he surely would not have taken an unproven Timothy along, either. But \cf2\ul Act_16:2\cf3\ulnone indicates that Timothy was already one who had proven his faithfulness in ministry.\par As Paul, Silas and Timothy made their way to the churches that had been previously founded, they delivered the decree of the apostles and elders in Jerusalem, which greatly encouraged the saints. Had Paul and Barnabas not separated, they would likely have retraced the steps of their first missionary journey. But that would have taken them to Cyprus. Barnabas is already there with Mark, and so Paul must now decide where to go from Galatia. They could either turn south and head back to Antioch, or he could go north to Bithynia or Asia. The Holy Spirit would not allow Paul and those with him to preach either in Asia or Bithynia. They had traveled as far to the northwest as they could, to the seaport city of Troas. Where were they to go from LVALhere? It was at this point that God guided this small missionary band by means of a vision\emdash the so-called Macedonian vision. \par The vision was given to Paul in the middle of the night. A Macedonian man appealed to Paul to \b\ldblquote come over to Macedonia and help them\rdblquote\b0 (16:9). Paul immediately told the others about it. It is interesting to note the change in our text from \b\ldblquote they\rdblquote\b0 (\cf2\ul Act_16:6\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Act_16:7\cf3\ulnone ) to \b\ldblquote we\rdblquote\b0 (\cf2\ul Act_16:10\cf3\ulnone ). From this, we conclude that Luke joined Paul and the others in Troas, and then remained on in Philippi when the others left (see \cf2\ul Act_16:40\cf3\ulnone f., where we find \b\ldblquote they\rdblquote\b0 once again). The missionary party now turns northwest, taking the gospel into Europe. They sail from Troas some 60 miles or so to the island of Samothrace, and then they sail the rest of the way across the Aegean Sea to the port city of Neapolis. It is yet another ten-mile trek from Neapolis to Philippi, where the first church in Europe is soon to be founded.\par \cf1\fs28 Part II: Two Women and a Warden (\cf2\ul Act_16:13-40\cf1\ulnone )\par \cf3\fs24 13 On the Sabbath day we went outside the city gate to the side of the river, where we thought there would be a place of prayer, and we sat down and began to speak to the women who had assembled there. 14 A woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, a God-fearing woman, listened to us. The Lord opened her heart to respond to what Paul was saying. 15 After she and her household were baptized, she urged us, \ldblquote If you consider me to be a believer in the Lord, come and stay in my house.\rdblquote And she persuaded us. 16 Now as we were going to the place of prayer, a slave girl met us who had a spirit that enabled her to foretell the future by supernatural means. She brought her owners a great profit by fortune-telling. 17 She followed behind Paul and us and kept cryLVALing out, \ldblquote These men are servants of the Most High God, who are proclaiming to you the way of salvation.\rdblquote 18 She continued to do this for many days. But Paul became greatly annoyed, and turned and said to the spirit, \ldblquote I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her!\rdblquote And it came out of her at once. 19 But when her owners saw their hope of profit was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace before the authorities. 20 When they had brought them before the magistrates, they said, \ldblquote These men are throwing our city into confusion. They are Jews 21 and are advocating customs that are not lawful for us to accept or practice, since we are Romans.\rdblquote 22 The crowd joined the attack against them, and the magistrates tore the clothes off Paul and Silas and ordered them to be beaten with rods. 23 After they had beaten them severely, they threw them into prison and commanded the jailer to guard them securely. 24 Receiving such orders, he threw them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks. \par 25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the rest of the prisoners were listening to them. 26 Suddenly a great earthquake occurred, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. Immediately all the doors flew open, and the bonds of all the prisoners came loose. 27 When the jailer woke up and saw the doors of the prison standing open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, because he assumed the prisoners had escaped. 28 But Paul called out loudly, \ldblquote Do not harm yourself, for we are all here!\rdblquote 29 Calling for lights, the jailer rushed in and fell down trembling at the feet of Paul and Silas. 30 Then he brought them outside and asked, \ldblquote Sirs, what must I do to be saved?\rdblquote 31 They replied, \ldblquote Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, you and your household.\rdblquote\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [3]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 32 LVAL Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him, along with all those who were in his house. 33 At that hour of the night he took them and washed their wounds; then he and all his family were baptized right away. 34 The jailer brought them into his house and set food before them; and he rejoiced greatly that he had come to believe in God, together with his entire household. 35 At daybreak the magistrates sent their police officers, saying, \ldblquote Release those men.\rdblquote 36 The jailer reported these words to Paul, saying, \ldblquote The magistrates have sent orders to release you. So come out now and go in peace.\rdblquote 37 But Paul said to the police officers, \ldblquote They had us beaten in public without a proper trial\emdash even though we are Roman citizens\emdash and they threw us in prison. And now they want to send us away secretly? No way! They themselves must come and escort us out!\rdblquote 38 The police officers reported these words to the magistrates. They were frightened when they heard Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, 39 and came and apologized to them. After they brought them out, they asked them repeatedly to leave the city. 40 When they came out of the prison, they entered Lydia\rquote s house; and when they saw the brothers, they encouraged them and then departed.\par We know from \cf2\ul Act_16:18\cf3\ulnone that Paul and those with him went about preaching for \ldblquote many days.\rdblquote We also know that when Paul and Silas left Philippi there were a number of \ldblquote brethren\rdblquote (16:40). It is safe to assume, then, that the three people whom Luke has chosen to include in his account in chapter 16 are but a sampling of the converts who came to faith due to Paul\rquote s preaching. And a rather unlikely bunch they are. If you or I were to hand pick those whom we would like to see saved and used as the nucleus of a new church, I doubt we would select those whom God chose.\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [4]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24\par The first convert in PhilippiLVAL! seems to be Lydia. This city was certainly different from those Paul had visited earlier, as there appears to be only a few Jews living there. Some have explained this by the fact that this was not really a great trading city, where we would expect to find many Jewish businessmen. It would seem from the text that the people of Philippi had a great deal of racial prejudice toward the Jews. This would well explain why so few Jews were to be found there, so few, in fact, that the city did not even have a synagogue. This may be why Paul had to seek a Jewish audience on the riverside, where he supposed there might be a place of prayer (16:13). No men seem to have been present when Paul and the rest came upon a small group of women who had gathered for prayer.\par Several of the women who gathered there may have come to faith, but Luke focuses his attention on one woman\emdash Lydia. She was a businesswoman who dealt in purple fabrics. Luke simply tells us that the Lord \b\ldblquote opened Lydia\rquote s heart\rdblquote\b0 to respond to the gospel which Paul proclaimed (16:14). I have always regarded this statement about Lydia\rquote s salvation as being of great significance because it indicates that the Lord is the \ldblquote first cause\rdblquote of salvation. It is God who opens the hearts of men, so that men may believe (see \cf2\ul Joh_6:37\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Joh_6:44\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Joh_6:65\cf3\ulnone ). Having said this, it had not occurred to me until now that this statement is of particular significance because it is said in reference to the one person whom we might suppose to be \ldblquote the most likely to believe.\rdblquote Think about this for a moment. If Luke had said this about the Philippian jailer, we would have expected it. Apart from the Lord opening his heart, we know that he would not believe the message Paul preached. But Lydia was a God-fearer. I would understand her to be an Old Testament saint. We might even think that for a person like her, conversion was virtually LVAL"automatic. But it is of this woman that Luke writes, \b\ldblquote the Lord opened her heart to believe\'85\rdblquote\b0 This is most significant to me. \i If God must open the heart of the one person in our text who is \ldblquote most likely to believe,\rdblquote then surely He must open the hearts of all who believe.\i0 And so He does: \ldblquote When the Gentiles heard this, they began to rejoice and praise the word of the Lord, and all who had been appointed for eternal life believed\rdblquote (\cf2\ul Act_13:48\cf3\ulnone ).\par One cannot help but wonder if this woman was not baptized then and there, since they were beside the river at the time she came to faith. We are not told about her baptism, but Luke does inform us that she immediately insisted that Paul and the rest stay at her house. You and I may have some difficulty appreciating the significance of this, but I doubt that Luke did. This past year I spent several weeks in Indonesia, where I was preaching in a local church. I cannot tell you how much easier it was for me because a Christian brother put me up in his apartment. Paul was a \ldblquote foreigner\rdblquote in Philippi, and no doubt these folks tended to be suspicious of folks like him and his friends. Having a place to stay met a very practical need for \ldblquote bed and breakfast,\rdblquote and it also provided these Jewish preachers a measure of protection. By the salvation of Lydia, God had not only given them their first convert in Macedonia, He also provided them with a place to stay.\par It was on one of their trips to the riverside place of prayer that a demonized young woman encountered Paul and his colleagues. In a manner similar to the way we see demons announcing the presence of our Lord in the Gospels (see \cf2\ul Mar_1:24\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Mar_1:34\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Luk_4:34\cf3\ulnone ), the fortuneteller served as the \ldblquote town crier,\rdblquote telling all within hearing distance who Paul and his team were. But like our Lord, Paul did not wisLVAL#h this kind of publicity. He endured this woman\rquote s announcements for some time,\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [5]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 but eventually he became so annoyed by her that he cast the demon out of her.\par This young woman was a slave girl. She was the property of her owners. The demon that possessed her really did give her great powers, and consequently she provided a good income for her owners. Paul delivered this woman from her bondage, and she may have rejoiced, but this was not true of her owners. Their whole business had just collapsed before their very eyes. While Paul\rquote s Jewish opponents were prompted by religious differences, these Gentiles were driven solely by economics. They had lost considerable wealth, and they were angry. They cared nothing for their slave, but only about their profits. Now, their business was gone, and they intended to make Paul pay for it, if not with his money, then with his body.\par As you read through the account of the arrest, beating, and imprisonment of Paul and Silas, I want you to do so with an eye to what this tells us about the attitude of the people of Philippi towards the Jews. Paul and Silas were dragged before the civil authorities and charged with: (1) being Jewish, and (2) advocating practices which were illegal for Roman citizens (\cf2\ul Act_16:20-21\cf3\ulnone ). There is no \ldblquote due process of law\rdblquote here, no inquiry into the charges, no opportunity given to Paul or Silas to speak in their own defense. And, so far as we are told, no opportunity is given Paul to assert his rights as a Roman citizen. The crowds as well as the civil magistrates were willing to believe the worst.\par Paul and Silas were summarily pronounced guilty and then beaten severely and cast into prison. I have been to a lot of prisons in my life (in prison ministry), and I have seen some pretty miserable places. I doubt that any of the worst prisons I have seen would compare to this Philippian prison. In prison jargon, we would say that Paul and SLVAL$ilas were thrown into \ldblquote the hole.\rdblquote\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [6]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 It would be in the deepest part of the prison and behind as many gates and bars as possible. From what Luke has told us, we know that Paul and Silas were being kept in \ldblquote maximum security.\rdblquote Security was so high that even though Paul and Silas were deep within the prison, their feet were still placed in stocks (\cf2\ul Act_16:24\cf3\ulnone ). Their situation must have looked bleak. How could these Jewish foreigners possibly find any forum where they could protest their arrest and treatment? They certainly had no way to escape. At that moment, it must have looked as though they might spend the rest of their lives in that terrible place.\par For the jailer and the long-term inmates of that prison, this night offered nothing new. It was a scene that had been played out countless times before. I am sure that they had become calloused to the cries of pain, and the curses which came from the lips of beaten and bloody felons. Everyone knew what to expect, but this night something different was in store for all. This was a night no one would ever forget.\par As Paul and Silas were roughly thrown into the inner chamber of that prison and their feet were secured in stocks, no angry words came from their lips. The two new inmates began to sing. These were not songs of sorrow\emdash\ldblquote Nobody knows the trouble I\rquote ve seen\'85\rdblquote\emdash these were songs of joy and of praise to God (\cf2\ul Act_16:25\cf3\ulnone ). I can almost see one of the older prisoners turning to a cellmate and asking, \ldblquote Which God are they singing about?\rdblquote The response of these two \ldblquote foreigners\rdblquote was so unusual that everyone in that prison must have strained to hear the words of each song. \par By the way, this incident gives us a fairly good test of \ldblquote good Christian music.\rdblquote This is a hotly debated topic in many churches. I would like to ask you to consiLVAL%der the impact of this night on those prisoners if certain types of contemporary Christian songs were to have been sung by Paul and Silas. Would the prisoners have learned much about God? Would they have heard about the forgiveness of sins? Would they have come to know about the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary? This would not be a bad test for any music, old or modern. \par It was not just singing that these inmates heard on this occasion. There were also prayers. Were there prayers of praise? Without a doubt! Were there prayers for the salvation of those who had beaten them, and prayers for their fellow inmates? I would expect that there were. Were there prayers of petition, asking for their release? Perhaps. The other prisoners had never seen nor heard anything like this before in their lives. They listened intently, and perhaps they wondered what would come of all this. They would know before long.\par Just as the songs of Paul and Silas provide us with the opportunity to ponder the value of our music, the prayers of Paul and Silas present us with an occasion to consider the content of our prayers. These inmates had \ldblquote seen it all,\rdblquote or so they thought, but when they witnessed the response of Paul and Silas, they listened. I wonder how the prisoners in that penitentiary would have responded if it were our prayers that were being offered up. What would they learn about God? What would they learn about the Christian\rquote s response to suffering? What would they learn about the gospel?\par I wonder if there was a growing sense of anticipation as midnight approached, and as the prayers and praises of Paul and Silas drifted throughout that prison. These inmates were about to witness an event that they would talk about for the rest of their lives. As we consider this earthquake and its aftermath, I want you to keep one thing in mind\emdash the purpose of this earthquake was not to give Paul and Silas the chance to escape, and it was not God\rquote s intent LVAL&that any of the prisoners escape. This earthquake is about salvation coming to the house of the jailer and to others deep within that prison. The release of Paul and Silas would be a legal matter, brought about by the very magistrates who had illegally confined them.\par For reasons of security, the prison would almost have to be constructed of stone. Paul and Silas are in the deepest part of that prison, so in order to release them it was necessary to \ldblquote shake up\rdblquote the entire prison. Having witnessed more than one earthquake, I can imagine what it would have been like to experience this event from deep within that ancient prison. What a terrifying experience this must have been. No doubt all the prisoners expected to be crushed under tons of falling stone. But as the walls moved about violently, the gates snapped loose, and every prison door popped open. Every chain that secured a prisoner to the wall or to the floor was broken loose (\cf2\ul Act_16:26\cf3\ulnone ). So far as we know, no one even suffered an injury.\par It is almost certain that the jailer lived in the same building, probably upstairs. (I have a friend whose father was a sheriff for many years, and he tells me that his family lived in the jail building. I think something similar was the case in this Philippian prison.) He certainly seems to have realized that the prison doors had been opened. As he quickly surveyed the damage, he assumed the worst.\par From what I know about prisons, one of two things was likely to have happened. \i First\i0 , the prisoners would have attempted to escape from their confinement. After all, if you were a prisoner on death row, living in horrid conditions, what would you do if all the prison doors popped open and your chains broke loose? In the middle of the night, in the cover of darkness, and in the midst of great confusion, it would have been relatively easy to make your escape. By the way, unless God divinely restricted this earthquake to one building, the entire city was severelLVAL'y shaken. I wonder if there was a message in this for those who had falsely accused Paul and Silas.\par The \i second\i0 thing that happens in prisons is that the prisoners may choose to use even momentary freedom to carry out violent acts toward one another. In the prison riots that have occurred in this country, at least, prisoners have murdered and maimed fellow-prisoners, venting their pent-up hatred. Just this past week in Texas, a couple of death row inmates were able to overpower a woman guard and to hold her hostage for a few agonizing hours. The article in the newspaper said that the other death row inmates called out to the two men who held this woman hostage, urging them to injure the female guard in very cruel ways. The jailer was right to assume the worst. Under normal circumstances, there would have been a great escape. His job\emdash and quite literally his neck\emdash were on the line.\par When the jailer rushed into the prison, he apparently saw no one and assumed the worst\emdash that every prisoner had already fled. We know that it was dark inside that prison, because the jailer had to call for a light (16:29). In addition to not seeing any of the prisoners, the jailer must not have heard any noise, either, or he would have known that the prisoners were still inside. I think what he found was too good to be true. Every prisoner remained in their cell, even though their cell door was open and their chains had fallen loose. And every prisoner seems to have been calm and quiet. To the jailer, all this seemed to verify his conclusion that there was no one left inside the prison. \par It was Paul who first broke the silence. He either saw the silhouette of the jailer, who was about to kill himself, or he was divinely informed of his intentions. Either way, Paul called out to the jailer, urging him not to harm himself, and informing him that all the prisoners were present and accounted for. I have often wondered what prompted the jailer\rquote s next words:\b \ldblquote What must I dLVAL(o to be saved?\rdblquote\b0 We do not know. Perhaps Paul had already witnessed to this man. Perhaps he had overheard Paul and Silas, praying and singing in their cell. Or perhaps the other inmates were gathered about Paul in the inner part of the prison, asking him what they must do to be saved. Perhaps the jailer overheard their cries for salvation and includes himself, so that the sense of his words might be, \ldblquote I hear these men asking you what they must do to be saved, and I would like to know for myself as well, what \i I\i0 must do to be saved, too.\rdblquote \par Whatever prompted the jailer\rquote s words, Paul had a ready answer: \b\ldblquote Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, you and your household\rdblquote\b0 (\cf2\ul Act_16:31\cf3\ulnone ). For a one-sentence definition of the gospel, this is probably as good as it gets. But let us not suppose that this is all that the jailer was told about salvation. He may have known something from what Paul and Silas said or sung earlier in the evening. In addition, we know that he received a more thorough definition of the gospel later that night in the jailer\rquote s home: \ldblquote Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him, along with all those who were in his house\rdblquote (\cf2\ul Act_16:32\cf3\ulnone ). The jailer and his entire household heard the good news of the gospel and came to faith in Christ. One indication of this is that they were baptized. Another is that they immediately (much like Lydia) sought to show hospitality to Paul and Silas. The jailer not only fed these two men, he also attended to their wounds. What a time of rejoicing that must have been (\cf2\ul Act_16:34\cf3\ulnone ). What a difference a day made to this man and his family. \par I am sure that the jailer wondered what he would do with his prisoners, now that he had come to faith. He had no great cause for concern, for the very next day police officers arrived, sent by the magistrates who had illegally sentenced Paul and Silas. They gave LVAL)the jailer orders to release Paul and Silas. The jailer was ecstatic. He was no longer required to incarcerate those who had brought the gospel to him. He could hardly wait to tell Paul that he and Silas were free to go. \par I suspect that Paul\rquote s response to the jailer\rquote s \ldblquote good news\rdblquote shocked him. He might have thought that Paul and Silas would leave quickly and quietly, eager to get out of town as fast as possible. But Paul would have none of this. He was not about to let these magistrates get away with their violation of the law. Paul and Silas were Roman citizens. Their rights as Roman citizens had been violated, and these magistrates were not going to be let off so easily that they would be tempted to do so again. They would have to come personally and release them. \par Luke informs us that the magistrates were shocked to learn that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens. This indicates that they had never heard Paul claim to be a Roman citizen. It tells me that they were manipulated by the slave girl\rquote s owners, who did not give them all the facts, and who had in fact brought false charges against Paul and Silas. The magistrates had been deceived, but they had also failed to carry out their job according to the law. They were willing to assume that because these men were Jews they were also criminals. They had not listened to Paul or Silas, but only to those making accusations against them. It was a lesson they would not soon forget. And because Paul could have made things very unpleasant for them, they would certainly think twice before they harmed any members of the church in Philippi. God not only established the church in Philippi, He did so in a way that insured its safety in the days to come.\par The magistrates were afraid of what Paul or Silas might do to them, since they had broken the law in the way they violated the rights of these Roman citizens. If I were Paul, I would have some pleasure in watching these magistrates \ldblquote eat humble pie\rdbLVAL*lquote (as we would say). Paul\rquote s concern was not just with his rights, but with what was right, and also for the future of this church. The magistrates begged Paul and Silas to leave their city, which Paul did, but only after he took the time to meet with the new believers. Having encouraged these new Christians, Paul and Silas moved on to Thessalonica, where they would once again be persecuted, but this time by the Jews.\par \cf1\fs36 Conclusion\par \cf3\fs24 What an amazing story this is! The church having started as it did, I have to smile when I read Paul\rquote s letter to the Philippians. They knew, of course, that Paul was in prison, and that there was the chance that he might be condemned to death. I can imagine what it was like when this letter was read aloud in church. I can see Lydia sitting there in the front row, along with others of her household who came to faith through the preaching of Paul. It is possible that the young slave girl was there as well. But the one who comes to my mind is the jailer. Can\rquote t you see him sitting there in church, beside a few of the inmates from his prison? When there is mention of Paul\rquote s imprisonment, I can almost hear one of the inmates as he punches the jailer in the side, and with eyes rolling says, \ldblquote Wow! In prison again, huh? I wonder how many of those fellows will be getting saved? Do you think God will shake them up with an earthquake, too?\rdblquote\par In a day when \ldblquote homogeneous grouping\rdblquote\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [7]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 is the watchword for churches, the church at Philippi is a refreshing contrast. We see three very different people who are impacted by Paul\rquote s ministry at Philippi: a Jewish businesswoman, a slave girl, and a jailer. I don\rquote t know for certain that the slave girl was saved and became a member of that church, but Lydia and the jailer surely did. The unity that we see in the church at Philippi is not the result of uniformity, but is the result of becoming onLVAL+e in Christ. That is the kind of unity that manifests the love and power of Jesus Christ to a lost world.\par The story of the birth of the church at Philippi is also a lesson to us regarding divine guidance. We should all see that it was God who divinely directed Paul and Silas and the other members of this team to Philippi. It was God who directed Paul to the riverside, where Lydia and others gathered. It was God who directed Paul to the Philippian jailer. God directed these men in a variety of ways. He directed through Paul\rquote s disagreement with Barnabas. He directed through Paul\rquote s desire to revisit the churches that had been planted earlier in his ministry. He directed also through the prohibition of the Holy Spirit (however that worked itself out on two occasions) and through the vision that Paul was given in Troas. He even directed through the evil actions of the slave girl\rquote s owners and the injustice of the magistrates. God saw to it that there was a church planted in Philippi. \par The account of the birth of the church at Philippi also instructs us regarding suffering. The legalistic Jews of Jesus\rquote day were wrong to conclude that the only reason for human suffering was sin (see \cf2\ul Joh_9:1-3\cf3\ulnone ). Sometimes men and women suffer because they are righteous. Paul and Silas suffered because they delivered a young woman from demon possession. Innocent (and righteous) suffering may, indeed, result in the salvation of others. It was our Lord\rquote s suffering and death on the cross of Calvary that provided for the forgiveness of sins. It may be through our suffering that others come to faith. Paul and Silas suffered, and because of this, the Philippian jailer and his household were saved. \par I would like to suggest to you that the way Paul and Silas suffered played a significant role in the salvation of others, including the jailer and his family. Suppose that Paul and Silas had moaned and groaned and cursed because of their pain. I doubt that anyone would LVAL,have fallen before them, asking what they must do to be saved. It was the sinless, righteous, suffering of Paul and Silas that God used to testify of His grace and saving power to all who looked on. I wonder how many would be drawn to Christ by the way we suffer? \par Often, it is suffering which prompts the unsaved to come to Christ for salvation. The self-righteous scribes and Pharisees objected that it was the sinners with whom Jesus associated. They could not understand why He did not give them the attention they thought they deserved. Jesus told them that He came to heal the sick, not to heal the well. By and large, it was those who were suffering who came to Christ for mercy and grace. Their afflictions showed them that they could not heal themselves, but that they needed someone else\emdash the Messiah\emdash to heal them. Has your suffering shown you how helpless and needy you are? I pray that your suffering may cause you to \ldblquote turn your eyes to Christ,\rdblquote who alone is able to save, who has come to seek and to save those who are helpless and lost.\par Luke\rquote s account of the birth of the church at Philippi is one of the most extensive accounts of the planting of a church in all of the New Testament. It prepares us for what we are about to read and study in the Book of Philippians. As we prepare to commence this study of Philippians, my prayer is that God will use this great book to transform your perspective, so that you and I can say with the Apostle Paul, \b\ldblquote for to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.\rdblquote\b0\par \pard\f1\fs20\page\~\f0\fs24 --------------------\par \par \pard\sb100\sa100\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [1]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 This would also seem to include the \b\ldblquote gift\rdblquote\b0 of Epaphroditus (2:25-30), who was sent to minister to Paul.\par \cf0\super\f1\fs20 [2]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 {\field{\*\fldinst{HYPERLINK "http://www.bible.org/docs/nt/books/act/deffin/toc.htm"}}{\fldrslt{\ul\cf4 http://www.bible.org/docs/nt/bookLVALs/act/deffin/toc.htm}}}\f0\fs24 \par \cf0\super\f1\fs20 [3]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 There are those who might infer from these words that if the jailer himself believed, this would suffice not only for his salvation, but also for the salvation of his entire household. The text does not teach this. Paul makes it clear that the offer of salvation is not only for the jailer, but for his entire household. Luke then informs us that Paul explained the gospel more fully, not only to the jailer, but to his entire household (16:32). \cf2\ul Act_16:32-33\cf3\ulnone indicates to the reader that both the jailer and his entire household believed in God and were baptized. It was not the jailer\rquote s faith that saved his household; each member of his household had to hear and heed the gospel message for themselves, and this they did.\par \cf0\super\f1\fs20 [4]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 I should say at this point that there are some who assume that the demon possessed fortune teller was saved, and this might be the case, but the text does not really tell us that she came to faith. We know for certain that Lydia and the jailer were saved.\par \cf0\super\f1\fs20 [5]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 Even a man as great as the Apostle Paul did not hastily take on the forces of evil. We should be no less cautious. It may have to be done, but it should not be done without due consideration. \par \cf0\super\f1\fs20 [6]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 This is the term the inmates use. The official designation is \ldblquote administrative segregation.\rdblquote\par \cf0\super\f1\fs20 [7]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 In short, it is the belief that \ldblquote birds of a feather stay together.\rdblquote Homogeneous grouping means that a church selects a certain slice of society and caters to it. Church members feel greater unity and comfort because everyone else is pretty much like them.\par \pard\f2\fs22\par } LVAL4.{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fswiss\fprq2\fcharset0 Arial;}{\f1\froman\fprq2\fcharset0 Times New Roman;}{\f2\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red51\green102\blue102;\red0\green128\blue0;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sb100\sa100\cf1\lang1033\kerning36\f0\fs36 Lesson 2: Paul\rquote s Perspective as a Servant \line (\cf2\ul Php_1:1-2\cf1\ulnone )\par \kerning0 Introduction\par \cf3\fs24 Over the nearly 30 years that I have preached the Bible, I have observed that while I am preparing my messages, God is often preparing me. This past year I traveled to Indonesia, where I taught in a church for five weeks. This trip taught me several important lessons that have enabled me to better identify with the Apostle Paul as he was writing this Epistle to the Philippians\i . First, I was able to identify with a man who was far removed from a body of believers that he loved greatly\i0 . I was far away from home and could not be in personal (eye-to-eye) contact with friends and fellow-believers back home. It was during this time away that I learned one of my brothers in the Lord in our home church had been diagnosed with a very serious form of cancer. I felt helpless and removed, and there seemed little that I could do from so far away. \par \i Second, I was the beneficiary of a generous and sacrificial gift from Christian brothers and sisters who wanted to participate in my ministry to Indonesia\i0 . For a long time I have been associated with a wonderful organization that seeks to plant churches in the urban centers of the United States.\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [8]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 Many of the staff and board of this fine organization are African Americans, some of whom I have known and served with for many years. My wife and I have gladly supported this ministry for years. When the time for me to leave for Indonesia drew near, one of my dear Christian brothers, the pastor of a predominantly African American church, took me aside and presentedLVAL/ me with a gift from his church to help me on my way. This generous gift, graciously given by a church with needs of its own, helped me to identify with Paul, and the deep bond which he felt with the Philippians, because of their tangible participation with him as he went about preaching the gospel.\par \i Third, it was this trip to Asia that gave me a deeper insight into the mindset of a servant.\i0 The home where I stayed in Jakarta had a maid. In biblical terms, this woman was a servant. I must confess that I felt very uneasy being constantly served by someone. She made coffee and tea whenever I wanted it. She brought my food to me and cleaned up after me. She washed and ironed my clothes. I felt guilty, not doing any of these things for myself, and so I attempted to help by clearing the dishes from the table and taking them to the kitchen. And yet when I did so, I realized it distressed her. She was uncomfortable when I prevented her from serving me, more uncomfortable than she was serving me. In her mind, and in her culture, serving was \ldblquote her place,\rdblquote and I struggled to accept that. I was amazed by her attitude toward her service. It was not just her \i place\i0 to serve, it was her \i honor\i0 to do so. \par I finally realized that for me to refuse or circumvent this woman\rquote s service was depriving her of her honor. I was uneasy with the appearance of being on a higher level than she, and she was most uneasy being treated as though she were on the same level. I still have not worked out this matter of social structure to my own satisfaction and comfort, but thanks to this very lovely older woman I have come to understand the \ldblquote servant spirit\rdblquote much better. It is the \ldblquote servant spirit\rdblquote Paul emphasizes and exemplifies in his Epistle to the Philippians. \par As we approach the first two verses of Philippians, it will be helpful for us to consider the structure of the entire epistle. As this brief outline suggests, the conclusion of PhLVAL0ilippians is very closely related to the introduction. Both reveal Paul\rquote s personal perspective on his present circumstances and on his relationship with the Philippian saints. What is not as evident from this brief outline is the way that verses 1-11 introduce the major themes that Paul will develop much more fully in this brief letter. In very general terms, we may outline the structure of Philippians as follows:\par \cf1\fs36 Overview of the Structure of Philippians\par \trowd\trgaph10\trleft-118\trpaddl10\trpaddr10\trpaddfl3\trpaddfr3 \cellx1250\cellx8738\pard\intbl\sb100\sa100\cf3\f1\fs20 1:1-2\lang3082\cell\lang1033 Paul\rquote s Greeting\lang3082\cell\row\trowd\trgaph10\trleft-108\trpaddl10\trpaddr10\trpaddfl3\trpaddfr3 \cellx1260\cellx8748\pard\intbl\sb100\sa100\lang1033 1:3-26 \lang3082\cell\lang1033 Paul\rquote s perspective as he commences this epistle\cell\row\trowd\trgaph10\trleft-108\trpaddl10\trpaddr10\trpaddfl3\trpaddfr3 \cellx1260\cellx8748\pard\intbl\sb100\sa100 1:27-4:9\lang3082\cell\lang1033 The Body of Paul\rquote s Epistle to the Philippians\cell\row\trowd\trgaph10\trleft-108\trpaddl10\trpaddr10\trpaddfl3\trpaddfr3 \cellx1260\cellx8748\pard\intbl\sb100\sa100 4:10-20 \lang3082\cell\lang1033 Paul\rquote s perspective as he closes this epistle\cell\row\trowd\trgaph10\trleft-108\trpaddl10\trpaddr10\trpaddfl3\trpaddfr3 \cellx1260\cellx8748\pard\intbl\sb100\sa100 4:21-23 \lang3082\cell\lang1033 Paul\rquote s Farewell\lang3082\cell\row\pard\sb100\sa100\lang1033\f0\fs24 The Book of Philippians deals with some of the greatest doctrines of the faith. These doctrines are not introduced so that the Philippians may write them down in their notebooks or merely arrange them in their heads. These doctrines are introduced so that throughout the history of the church the saints who read them may be transformed in terms of their perspective and their practice. Throughout this epistle, the reader is challenged to know Christ more fully, and then to live Christ. This happens when one hasLVAL1 the same perspective, the same priorities, and the same practices of the Master. In Paul\rquote s words, \b\ldblquote For to me, to live is Christ\rdblquote\b0 (\cf2\ul Php_1:21\cf3\ulnone ). This is why he writes, \ldblquote You should have the same attitude toward one another that Christ Jesus had\rdblquote (\cf2\ul Php_2:5\cf3\ulnone ).\par For Paul, life is the opportunity to live out, to incarnate, so to speak, Christ in our own lives, in our attitudes and our actions. The perspective which Paul seeks to promote in this epistle is not just his own, but it is also\emdash and most importantly\emdash that of his Master, Jesus Christ. It is this perspective that we are to embrace as our own and to live out in our lives so that for us, as well as Paul, \b\ldblquote to live is Christ.\rdblquote\b0\par \cf1\fs36 Paul\rquote s Greeting \line (1:1-2)\par \cf3\fs24 1 From Paul and Timothy, slaves of Christ Jesus, to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, with the overseers and deacons. \b 2\b0 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!\par I don\rquote t know how many \ldblquote mail merge letters\rdblquote my wife and I have received in recent years, but there have been many. Such letters appear to be personal, but we know they are not. My experience with computers over the years has taught me how such letters are written. One general letter is written, which will be sent to a large number of people. But there is a special technique used to make the letter appear as though it were written just to you. At certain points in the letter, such as the place for the recipient\rquote s name, blank spaces or \ldblquote fields\rdblquote are left open. From a list supplied to it, the computer then fills in these blanks, so that the letter that comes to our house begins, \ldblquote Dear Bob and Jeannette.\rdblquote Thus, the letter looks personal, but it is really a mass mailing. (I confess, I always look at the postage on the envelope, and I usually find that my \ldLVAL2blquote personal letter\rdblquote was sent bulk mail.) \par Paul\rquote s letters followed the standard format of his day, but they were by no means \ldblquote bulk mail,\rdblquote and they most certainly were not \ldblquote mail merge\rdblquote correspondence. Students of the correspondence of Paul\rquote s day recognize that Paul\rquote s greeting to the Philippians is expressed in the standard form for that day, but his content is far from standard fare. In this lesson, I would like to give special attention to Paul\rquote s greeting, and to particularly focus on those elements that are unique, both in his day and our own. In addition to calling attention to those ways in which Paul\rquote s greeting stands apart from the greetings of other ancients, I would also like to stress the ways in which this introduction differs from the introductions of Paul\rquote s other epistles.\par \i Paul\rquote s greeting here is unique in referring to \ldblquote the overseers and deacons.\b\i0\rdblquote\b0 In no other New Testament epistle does Paul or any other apostle begin his greeting with a reference to the elders (or overseers) and the deacons of that church. I should add the further observation that neither here in Philippians, nor anywhere else in the New Testament epistles, does anyone ever refer to a person as \ldblquote the pastor\rdblquote of the church.\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [9]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 I know it is quite common for commentators and preachers to say things like: \ldblquote Paul wrote 1 Timothy to Timothy, who was the pastor of the church at Ephesus.\rdblquote When anyone says this, they are inferring something that has no basis in Paul\rquote s own words. No one man is ever addressed as the \ldblquote head\rdblquote of the church, for this is the proper domain of our Lord Himself. Pastoring or shepherding is the responsibility of all the elders of the church, and the function of certain individuals gifted in this way (\cf2\ul Eph_4:11\cf3\ulnone ). In the New Testament church, pasLVAL3toring is a function, not an office, and so no one is ever addressed as \ldblquote the pastor\rdblquote in any New Testament book.\par When we combine the observation that no one is ever referred to as \ldblquote the pastor\rdblquote of a New Testament church with the fact that Paul here addresses the \ldblquote elders and deacons\rdblquote of the church in Philippi, we see how the New Testament churches were led. They were led by a group (note the plural, \b\ldblquote overseers,\rdblquote \ldblquote deacons\rdblquote\b0 ) of overseers and deacons. The elders were responsible for leading the flock and were assisted by the deacons. It would also seem that the churches in New Testament times had several men who were gifted at teaching and shepherding the flock. They were men gifted as pastors and teachers (or, as some would have it, \ldblquote pastor-teachers\rdblquote ). \par \i Paul\rquote s greeting to the Philippians is unique in that it addresses the church corporately, rather than the saints individually\i0 .\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [10]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 Letters are frequently addressed to individuals, but not this letter to the Philippians. While Paul\rquote s reference to \ldblquote the overseers and deacons\rdblquote is valuable to us as an insight into the structure of the New Testament churches, I don\rquote t believe that this was his primary reason for including these church leaders in verse 1. Why did Paul feel it was necessary to specifically mention the \ldblquote overseers and deacons\rdblquote of the church at Philippi, when he never did so when writing to any other church? What was Paul saying to the Philippians by this reference to their leaders?\par To begin with, by specifically including the church\rquote s leaders in his greeting, Paul was endorsing their leadership. In his final words to the Ephesian elders, Paul warned that some of them would go astray and seek to lead others into error:\par 28 Watch out for yourselves and for all the flock of which the Holy Spirit hLVAL4as made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God that he obtained with the blood of his own Son. 29 I know that after I am gone fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. 30 \b Even from among your own group men will arise, teaching perversions of the truth to draw the disciples away after them\b0 . 31 Therefore be alert, remembering that night and day for three years I did not stop warning each one of you with tears. 32 And now I entrust you to God and to the message of his grace. This message is able to build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified (\cf2\ul Act_20:28-32\cf3\ulnone , emphasis mine).\par When Paul corresponds with the church at Corinth, one gets the impression that some of its leaders are corrupt. This is not so at Philippi. The leaders are acknowledged by Paul, an indication of his approval and support of their leadership. If Paul were to be found guilty and were to be executed, this church at Philippi would be in good hands, those of their leaders, and most important of all, the hands of God (\cf2\ul Php_1:6\cf3\ulnone ).\par Beyond this, I believe that throughout Paul\rquote s introduction in verses 1-11 (and indeed throughout the entire epistle), the apostle is seeking to underscore the unity of the church as a body of believers. We know that by the time Paul writes this Epistle to the Philippians he has already written both 1 and 2 Corinthians. The church at Corinth was plagued with various factions (see \cf2\ul 1Co_1:11\cf3\ulnone ff.) and had a serious problem with unity. They were even taking one another to court (\cf2\ul 1Co_6:1-8\cf3\ulnone ). Paul seems to have written Ephesians just before Philippians, and here he spends considerable time on the matter of maintaining Christian unity (see \cf2\ul Eph_4:1\cf3\ulnone ff.). \par If you stop to think about it, the saints at Philippi were a very diverse group. There was at least one Jewish woman in the church (Lydia), and probably others. It is possible that there were at leLVAL5ast a few Jewish men who had also come to faith in Philippi. Then there were the Gentile saints, folks like the jailer, and perhaps some of the inmates who may have come to faith when Paul and Silas were imprisoned. In Philippi, as elsewhere, it was important for Paul to underscore and undergird the unity of the church, the body of believers in a particular place. Later in this epistle, Paul will deal with Euodia and Syntyche, between whom there was some kind of rift (\cf2\ul Php_4:2-3\cf3\ulnone ). So at the very outset of this epistle Paul makes it clear that he is writing to \i all\i0 of the saints, which includes the overseers and the deacons. No one is omitted. This is a letter for the whole church, with no exceptions.\par I want to pause here for just a moment and share something to preachers, from a preacher. Years ago, a good friend gave me this advice: \ldblquote Bob, be very careful not to preach to the elders.\rdblquote What he meant was that there was a danger that I might work so hard to win the approval of the elders that I would preach over the heads of everyone else. The opposite danger\emdash which I think is just as real\emdash is to overlook the elders and leaders, often times out of fear that in preaching to them you might make them mad. I have known of men who were great preachers, but who would tense up when a great preacher came into the room and sat down to listen. I must confess that this is one thing that has not troubled me greatly. I believe that the Word of God speaks to everyone, including great leaders and preachers. And so when I preach, I look those who are better preachers than I in the eye, as if to say, \ldblquote Listen up! You need this as much as anyone else.\rdblquote I believe this is what Paul was doing in his greeting. He was letting everyone know that he was speaking to them all, without exception.\par I fear that we fail to appreciate the \ldblquote corporate emphasis\rdblquote that prevails in Paul\rquote s epistles, not to mention the rest of the NeLVAL6w Testament. I think I can understand why most Americans would be inclined to miss this corporate aspect of the truth. I came to grips with this in my recent trip to Indonesia this past year. A fellow believer was my host for a week, and he shared this insight with me about the Asian culture of Indonesia. He said that in the United States, you often see people jogging alone. This never happens in Indonesia, he informed me; when people jog there, they jog in groups. In fact, they do almost everything in groups. \par My friend explained the \ldblquote corporate dimension\rdblquote of Indonesian culture in yet another way. He used the analogy of a number of nails that have been pounded into a board. If the head of one nail is not pounded into the board as deeply as the others, so that it sticks up above the others, the people of that culture feel obliged to \ldblquote pound it down,\rdblquote so that it conforms with all the other nails. \par How different that is from our highly individualistic culture. In America, competition is much more the norm, rather than cooperation. Everyone seems to feel compelled to stand out from the rest, to be different. It is almost humorous to watch this in the youth culture, where the youth all attempt to stand out (from the adults), but in so doing, they all act alike (conforming to their peers). This is apparent in pierced body parts, in rings protruding from all sorts of places, in various tattoos, in certain styles of clothing, in hairstyles, and (sigh) in music.\par I believe there is a time to \ldblquote stand alone\rdblquote and to refuse to succumb to peer pressure. Is this not what the Bible speaks about when it warns us about \ldblquote loving the world\rdblquote and being conformed to it (\cf2\ul 1Jo_2:15\cf3\ulnone )? But there can also be too much independence\emdash to the point that there is no corporate identity, no sense or expression of community. This not only happens in the unbelieving world, it happens in the church. We individualize everythinLVAL7g, from our teaching and our fellowship to our worship. We make it possible for people to practice \ldblquote drive-in worship,\rdblquote where our individual needs are supposedly met, but divorced from any true corporate expression. We have classes for certain ages, and for certain interests, and even certain conditions (single, widowed, divorced, etc.). I\rquote m not saying that this is bad, necessarily, but we have become so individualized that we often think only in terms of those in our categories. \par Have you noticed how many different kinds of Bibles there are today? I am not saying that there are many different \i translations\i0 of the Bible, though there are. I am saying that rather than finding one kind of Bible in the bookstores, there are more and more types, each aimed at a specific market niche. I decided to do a search on the Internet, to see how many different \ldblquote individualized\rdblquote Bibles I could find. These are among the titles I discovered:\par Kid\rquote s Application Bible\line African-American Devotional Bible\line Woman\rquote s Study Bible\line New Believers Bible for Evangelism\line Praise and Worship Study Bible\line Self Help Bible\line Jewish Bible\line Jewish New Testament\line The Teacher\rquote s Bible\line Teen Study Bible\line Extreme Teen Bible\line Living the Spirit Filled Life Bible\line Living the Spirit Filled Life Revised Genuine Bible\line The Forgiving Heart Bible\line Prophecy Study Bible\line Dreamsicles Bible\line Woman Thou Art Loosed Bible\par People in some parts of the world are willing to risk death or imprisonment to obtain even a fragment of the \ldblquote Holy Bible,\rdblquote but folks in our part of the world have their bookshelves lined with numerous \ldblquote individualized\rdblquote Bibles. I am not saying that all these Bibles are a bad thing, in and of themselves. My point is that everyone wants the Bible \i tailored to their felt needs, to their specific situation in life\i0 . We have become so accustomed to \ldblquoLVAL8te having it our way,\rdblquote of having everything tailored to us individually. If a sermon that is preached does not have an application which is immediately relevant to my situation, I consider it merely an intellectual exercise, a second-class sermon. We see the same individualism in Bible studies. \ldblquote What does this passage mean \i to you\i0 ?\rdblquote we are asked, as though the interpretation of a given passage of the Bible should be individualized, too.\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [11]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 Paul will have none of this rugged individualism. When he writes to the Philippian saints, he writes one message to the whole church, including its leaders. \par \i To most Christians in America, Paul\rquote s greeting is unique because it speaks of only one church in Philippi.\i0 Our church is located in the Dallas Metroplex, where there are literally hundreds of churches, many of which are good churches that preach Christ. Due to physical distance, language, and other factors, it is not possible for all the saints in this large city to worship together in one place. I am not suggesting that we should. But I would point out that \ldblquote the church\rdblquote in Dallas is bigger than Community Bible Chapel, bigger than any one church, bigger than the churches of any one denomination. Just as we tend to think individually as Christians, we also tend to think narrowly as a church. Our church may not be the only church in town, but we may think it surely is the best church. We tend to ignore the fact that the \ldblquote church in Dallas\rdblquote encompasses all true believers in our Lord in this Metroplex. If we are to view the church in our city as Paul would, then we must think of the church in terms of all the believers in the place where we are, or with which we are corresponding. \par \i While there is nothing unique to the expression \ldblquote grace and peace\rdblquote in Paul\rquote s greetings in his epistles, Paul\rquote s meaning here may be unique to us as we read the wLVAL9ords of his greeting\i0 . I have already indicated that Americans are individualistic. I would now suggest that most of us read Paul\rquote s greeting to the church at Philippi in an individualistic way. What comes to your mind when you read the words, \b\ldblquote Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!\rdblquote ?\b0 I must confess that I tend to read these words this way:\par \ldblquote May each of you who has personally experienced God\rquote s grace through trusting in the saving work of Christ continue to experience His grace in many other ways in your life. And, may you continue to experience a deep inner peace in your life, a peace that commenced with your salvation, and continues throughout the rest of your days.\rdblquote\par This is an individualistic reading of Paul\rquote s words. I do not wish to negate this meaning, but I fear that this paraphrase, with its individualistic perspective, does not capture the primary thrust of Paul\rquote s intended meaning. If you were to grant the premise that Paul is addressing the church corporately, then how would you read verse 2 in a corporate way? I would suggest that Paul\rquote s meaning might be paraphrased something like this:\par \ldblquote May you, a group of saints who have experienced the grace of God in salvation, now experience and express that grace toward one another in a corporate way. May you be gracious in your dealings with one another, especially when you disagree. May your words and actions bring grace to the rest of the church. And may the peace that you have come to experience in a personal way (through faith in Jesus Christ) now work itself out in the church corporately. May dissention and strife not be found among you, and may you be at peace, one with the other.\rdblquote\par I believe that this general benediction will soon be focused on a specific area of contention between Euodia and Syntyche in \cf2\ul Php_4:2-3\cf3\ulnone . What a wonderful truth the doctrine of \ldblquote grace\rdblquoLVAL:te is, but the sad fact is that some Christians seem more zealous to fight about the doctrines of grace than to practice the reality of grace. I think this is why Paul has written these words.\par \i Paul\rquote s greeting is unique in that he speaks of himself and Timothy as slaves or bondservants of Christ.\i0 It is not uncommon to find an apostle referring to himself as a slave of Christ in the New Testament. Paul did so (\cf2\ul Rom_1:1\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Gal_1:10\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Php_1:1\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Tit_1:1\cf3\ulnone ), as did James (\cf2\ul Jas_1:1\cf3\ulnone ), Peter (\cf2\ul 2Pe_1:1\cf3\ulnone ), Jude (\cf2\ul Jdg_1:1\cf3\ulnone ), and John (\cf2\ul Rev_1:1\cf3\ulnone ). But to actually possess the mindset and the perspective of a servant is truly unique. \par In Paul\rquote s culture, slavery was not desirable; slaves were eager to change their status (cf. \cf2\ul 1Co_7:21-22\cf3\ulnone ), so much so that some ran away from their masters (\cf2\ul Phm_1:8-20\cf3\ulnone ). But in contemporary American culture, slavery is considered an out-and-out evil. It is not difficult to see why this would be the case. The evils associated with slavery and slave trade in our history are such that few would dare to try to justify any of it. \par It was my recent trip to Indonesia that provided me with significant insight into the \b\ldblquote bondservant\rdblquote\b0 mindset of the apostles. In that part of the world there are many \ldblquote servants.\rdblquote As mentioned in my introduction to this sermon, the Indonesian servants I encountered seemed to perceive that \b\ldblquote servanthood\rdblquote\b0 was their place, their lot in life, and thus something that could not and should not be changed. After some time, it began to dawn upon me that they also looked upon their role as a servant as a place of honor. Americans find this almost impossible to fathom. We think in terms of entitlement. We assume that we deserve certain things: a particular standard of living, a certain levelLVAL; of education, happiness, and so on. A servant, on the other hand, thinks in terms of his duties. A servant is a debtor, so to speak, to his master; we Americans (and many others) think of ourselves as masters. No wonder Paul\rquote s words to us in these verses are so foreign to us.\par Because \ldblquote servanthood\rdblquote is such a fundamental element in our relationship to Jesus Christ and to His church, I want to devote the remainder of this lesson to this subject of slavery in the Old and New Testaments. I will attempt to demonstrate how the servant spirit should impact our lives in very practical ways. Consider the following biblical texts and their instruction concerning servanthood:\par \cf1\fs36 A Slave Thinks in Terms of Stewardship, Not Ownership \line (\cf2\ul Gen_39:4-10\cf1\ulnone )\par \cf3\fs24 4 So Joseph found favor in his sight and became his servant; and Potiphar appointed him over his household, and all that he had he put in his care. 5 From the time he appointed him over his household and over everything that he had, the LORD blessed the household of the Egyptian on account of Joseph. And the blessing of the LORD was on everything that he had, both in the house and in the field. 6 So he left everything he had in the care of Joseph; and he did not take charge of anything except the food he ate. Joseph was very handsome, a fine figure of a man. 7 And soon after these things the wife of his master cast her eyes on Joseph, and she said, \ldblquote Lie with me.\rdblquote 8 But he refused, saying to his master\rquote s wife, \ldblquote Look, my master does not take charge of his household with me here, and everything that he has he has put into my care. 9 There is no one greater in this household than I, and he has withheld nothing from me\emdash except you, because you are his wife. So how can I do this great evil and sin against God?\rdblquote 10 And even though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he did not respond to her to lie beside her or to be with her (\cf2\ul Gen_39:LVAL<4-10\cf3\ulnone ). \par The term \ldblquote steward\rdblquote is closely associated with the term \ldblquote slave.\rdblquote A steward is a slave. A steward does not own possessions; he is entrusted with the care of his master\rquote s possessions. When Potiphar\rquote s wife sought to seduce Joseph, she offered him the opportunity to \ldblquote possess\rdblquote her. He responded by reminding his master\rquote s wife that he was a slave. He did not own what belonged to his master; he was entrusted with his master\rquote s things. The one thing that was not entrusted to him was Mrs. Potiphar. For him to \ldblquote possess\rdblquote Mrs. Potiphar would have been to sin against God and to violate his role as his master\rquote s slave. Joseph acted righteously by acting like the slave that he was. He did not seek to own that which was not his.\par It is a common temptation for slaves to wish to \ldblquote possess\rdblquote those things that belong to their master. This can be illustrated by Satan\rquote s fall (see \cf2\ul Isa_14:12\cf3\ulnone ff.; \cf2\ul Eze_28:12\cf3\ulnone ff.). Lucifer was not content to \ldblquote serve\rdblquote his Master; he wanted to be the master. I believe that this is what he was seeking to tempt our Lord to do at the temptation, but in so doing, our Lord would have submitted to a new \b\ldblquote master\rdblquote\b0 (\cf2\ul Mat_4:8-10\cf3\ulnone ). Satan successfully tempted Adam and Eve to possess something\emdash the only thing\emdash that was not theirs to possess, the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (\cf2\ul Gen_2:16-17\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Gen_3:1-7\cf3\ulnone ). The wicked slaves of \cf2\ul Mat_21:33-46\cf3\ulnone were not content to serve their master. They wanted to own what was his. Likewise, the temptation for some church planters is to assume that because they have planted a church in a particular place, they own it. This is not true. It is His church, and not man\rquote s. A slave does not think in terms of what he owns, but in teLVAL=rms of what belongs to his master. At best, he is a steward of his master\rquote s possessions. Slaves should not think in terms of ownership, but in terms of stewardship.\par \cf1\fs36 Slaves Do Not Expect to Be Served, But to Serve \line (\cf2\ul Luk_17:3-10\cf1\ulnone )\par \cf3\fs24 3 Watch yourselves! If your brother sins, rebuke him. If he repents, forgive him. 4 Even if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times returns to you saying, \lquote I repent,\rquote you must forgive him.\rdblquote \b 5\b0 The apostles said to the Lord, \ldblquote Increase our faith!\rdblquote\b 6 \b0 So the Lord replied, \ldblquote If you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this black mulberry tree, \lquote Be pulled out by the roots and planted in the sea,\rquote and it would obey you. \b 7\b0 \ldblquote Would any one of you say to your slave who comes in from the field after plowing or shepherding sheep, \lquote Come at once and sit down for a meal\rquote ?\b 8\b0 Won\rquote t the master instead say to him, \lquote Get my dinner ready, and make yourself ready to serve me while I eat and drink; and then you may eat and drink\rquote ?\b 9\b0 He won\rquote t thank the slave because he did what he was told, will he? \b 10\b0 So you too, when you have done everything you were commanded to do, should say, \lquote We are slaves undeserving of special praise; we have only done what was our duty.\rquote\rdblquote\par Jesus is speaking to His disciples about dealing with a brother who sins. He tells them that even if their brother sins against them seven times a day and repents seven times a day, they must forgive the brother each time. The disciples\rquote response is, \b\ldblquote Lord, increase our faith!\rdblquote\b0 It is as though they have said, \ldblquote Lord, what you are asking is virtually impossible. It would take a miracle for anyone to be able to forgive his brother seven times a day. Nevertheless, if this is your command, then we will seek to obey, but youLVAL> will have to give us greater faith than what we now have to do this.\rdblquote Jesus first responds to the request for increased faith in verse 6. He tells them that if they did have greater faith, they could do seemingly impossible things. In other words, Jesus does not rebuke them for asking Him to increase their faith. He encourages them.\par But our Lord\rquote s answer does not end at verse 6. I believe that verses 7-10 are our Lord\rquote s follow-up to the matter of forgiveness. The disciples certainly grasped the fact that forgiveness comes hard, but they did not seem to understand why this is so. I believe that verses 7-10 explain why we have such difficulty forgiving others. We believe that others are to serve us, to meet our needs.\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [12]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 And so when someone sins against us we feel offended because we expect to be served, not sinned against. Jesus tells His disciples that if they had a \ldblquote servant\rquote s spirit\rdblquote they would not expect to be served, but to serve. If they had a \ldblquote servant\rquote s spirit\rdblquote toward their sinning brother, they would be eager to forgive. One of the ways we serve others is by forgiving them. Slaves do not expect to be served, but to serve. Slaves eagerly forgive, because they do not expect to be served, but to serve.\par \cf1\fs36 Slaves Don\rquote t Pass Judgment On Fellow-Slaves \line (\cf2\ul Rom_14:1-4\cf1\ulnone )\par \cf3\fs24 1 Now receive the one who is weak in the faith, and do not have disputes over differing opinions. \b 2\b0 One person believes in eating everything, but the weak person eats only vegetables. \b 3\b0 The one who eats everything must not despise the one who does not, and the one who abstains must not judge the one who eats everything, for God has accepted him. \b 4\b0 Who are you to pass judgment on another\rquote s servant? Before his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand. \par There were those in Rome anLVAL?d elsewhere who were seeking to impose their personal convictions on other Christians. They were passing judgment on those who did not live according to their convictions. (We should remember that in the context of Romans 14 and 1 Corinthians 8-10, a conviction is really a matter of freedom; it is not something the Bible either commands or condemns. For example, someone might choose to be a vegetarian. This would be a conviction because the Bible tells us that all meats are now clean\emdash\cf2\ul Mar_7:19\cf3\ulnone ; Acts 10, and 11. The vegetarian should not condemn the meat-eater, nor should the meat-eater condemn the vegetarian.) Paul rebukes those who were condemning each other in matters of conviction and reminds them that it is not the business of one slave to judge another slave. It is the master who judges his slaves, not fellow-slaves. Once again, the temptation for the slave is to think and act like a master, rather than as a slave. Slaves do not judge their brethren in matters of conviction.\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [13]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24\par \cf1\fs36 Slaves Should Not Expect \line To Be Treated Better Than Their Master \line (\cf2\ul Joh_15:20-21\cf1\ulnone )\par \cf3\fs24 20\b \b0 Remember what I told you, \lquote A slave is not greater than his master.\rquote If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they obeyed my word, they will obey yours too. \b 21\b0 But they will do all these things to you on account of my name, because they do not know the one who sent me.\rdblquote\par Jesus made it clear to His disciples that He would suffer greatly at the hands of men. He would be rejected by the Jewish religious leaders, be killed by them, and then He would rise from the dead (\cf2\ul Mar_9:31\cf3\ulnone ). Our Lord\rquote s disciples persistently clung to the hope that Jesus would immediately establish His kingdom on the earth. In their minds, this meant places of honor, power, and glory for themselves. They even argued about who of their number would be the most importanLVAL@t. Jesus taught them that if they were truly His servants, they would be treated no better than their Master. This is why Peter will later write that Christians should not be surprised at their sufferings for identifying with Christ (1 Peter 4). Peter even employed the Lord\rquote s righteous suffering as an example for the saints, His servants (\cf2\ul 1Pe_2:18-25\cf3\ulnone ).\par Today, as in the past, there are those who continue to cling to the false assumption that trusting in Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of their sins is also a guarantee that they will immediately enter into the unrestricted blessings of God. Such folks tend to believe that they need not experience sickness or suffering in this life. They believe that God wants them to be prosperous\emdash to enter into heaven\rquote s blessings\emdash here and now. They fail to understand that those who trust in Christ become His servants, and as His servants, they will enter into His rejection and suffering at the hands of unbelieving men. Servants should not expect to be treated better than their master. \par \cf1\fs36 A Good Slave Seeks and Finds Delight \line in His Master\rquote s Success \line (\cf2\ul Mat_25:20-30\cf1\ulnone )\par \cf3\fs24 20 The one who had received the five talents came and brought five more, saying, \lquote Master, you entrusted me with five talents. See, I have gained five more.\rquote 21 His master answered, \lquote Well done, good and faithful slave! You have been faithful in a few things. I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master.\rquote 22 The one with the two talents also came, saying, \lquote Master, you entrusted two talents to me. See, I have gained two more.\rquote 23 His master answered, \lquote Well done, good and faithful slave! You have been faithful with a few things. I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master.\rquote 24 Then the one who had received the one talent came, saying, \lquote Master, I knew that you were a hard man,LVALA harvesting where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed, 25 so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. See, you have what is yours.\rquote 26 But his master answered, Evil and lazy slave! So you knew that I harvest where I didn\rquote t sow and gather where I didn\rquote t scatter? 27 Then you should have deposited my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received my money back with interest!\b \b0 28 Therefore take the talent from him and give it to the one who has the ten talents. 29\b \b0 For the one who has will be given more, and he will have more than enough. But the one who does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. 30 And throw that worthless slave into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth\rquote\rdblquote (\cf2\ul Mat_25:20-30\cf3\ulnone ).\par This parable in Matthew 25 is most interesting. I have always felt I understood one part of the parable, but not necessarily all of it. The \ldblquote slave perspective\rdblquote of our lesson now helps me to better understand this parable. It is not difficult to see from this parable that heavenly rewards are distributed in relationship to one\rquote s earthly stewardship. But I never quite understood the last slave, who refused to \ldblquote invest\rdblquote his master\rquote s money, and who simply buried it. I think it is safe to say that this slave is the one that receives the most attention in this parable. His master calls him \b\ldblquote evil and lazy\rdblquote\b0 (verse 26), as contrasted with the other slaves, whom he calls \b\ldblquote good and faithful\rdblquote\b0 (verses 21, 23). He rebukes this one slave for not investing his money (verse 27), and then takes away what was entrusted to him and casts him into outer darkness (verses 28-30). \par My attention was drawn to the slave\rquote s attitude toward his master. He told his master that he was \b\ldblquote a hard man,\rdblquote\b0 who was very demanding. This was the slaLVALBve\rquote s excuse for doing nothing. One would have thought that it should have provided strong motivation for the slave to work hard at investing his master\rquote s money. This slave did not love his master, and he found no pleasure or joy in contributing to his master\rquote s success. Consequently, he did nothing with the resources his master had placed in his care. \par A \b\ldblquote good and faithful\rdblquote\b0 slave is one who loves his master and delights in his success. The reward for these slaves was for them to \b\ldblquote enter into the joy of their master\rdblquote\b0 (verse 23). The wicked slave could not do this because he had not identified with his master, in his purposes and pleasures. When I think of \ldblquote slaves\rdblquote like Joseph, who served the Pharaoh of Egypt, I see a man who genuinely cared for his master and was committed to his success. In his master\rquote s absence, the wicked slave does little or nothing (\cf2\ul Mat_24:32-51\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Mat_25:25\cf3\ulnone ), but the faithful slave continues to serve his master, even though he is absent. It was in Potiphar\rquote s absence that Mrs. Potiphar sought to tempt Joseph to do wrong, but it was here that Joseph\rquote s faithfulness to his master was most evident.\par I am reminded of Daniel and his service as a slave to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon. When this king described his dream to Daniel, this godly servant was horrified because the dream revealed a time when the king of Babylon would experience God\rquote s discipline. Daniel was horrified when he understood the king\rquote s dream:\par 19 Then Daniel, whose name is also Belteshazzar, was appalled momentarily; his thoughts were alarming him. The king said, \ldblquote Belteshazzar, don\rquote t let the dream and its interpretation alarm you.\rdblquote But Belteshazzar replied, \ldblquote Sir, if only the dream were for your enemies and its interpretation applied to your adversaries!\'85 27 Therefore, O king, may my words be pleasing to yoLVALCu. Break away from you sins in acts of righteousness, and from your iniquities by showing mercy to the poor. Perhaps there will be a prolonging of your prosperity.\rdblquote (\cf2\ul Dan_4:19\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Dan_4:27\cf3\ulnone ).\par The Babylonians had devastated Daniel\rquote s nation. The Babylonians had torn him away from his family. How easy it would have been for Daniel to find pleasure in the king\rquote s adversity. But Daniel was a \b\ldblquote good and faithful\rdblquote\b0 servant to his master. He sought his master\rquote s best interests, even at his own expense. He wanted, if at all possible, to spare his master from the disciplining hand of God.\par In the New Testament, I find the \ldblquote servant spirit\rdblquote beautifully demonstrated by John the Baptist, who finds both his fulfillment and his joy in the \ldblquote success\rdblquote of his Master, Jesus Christ:\par 22 After this, Jesus and his disciples came into Judean territory, and there he spent time with them and was baptizing. 23 John was also baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because water was plentiful there, and people were coming and being baptized. 24 (For John had not yet been thrown into prison.) 25 Now a dispute came about between some of John\rquote s disciples and a Jew concerning ceremonial washing. 26 So they came to John and said to him, \ldblquote Rabbi, the one who was with you on the other side of the Jordan River, about whom you testified\emdash see, he is baptizing, and everyone is flocking to him!\rdblquote 27 John replied, \ldblquote No one can receive anything unless it has been given to him from heaven. 28 You yourselves can testify that I said, \lquote I am not the Christ,\rquote but rather, \lquote I have been sent before him.\rquote 29 The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom, who stands by and listens for him, rejoices greatly when he hears the bridegroom\rquote s voice. This then is my joy, and it is complete. 30 He must become more important while I bLVALDecome less important.\rdblquote 31 The one who comes from above is superior to all. The one who is from the earth belongs to the earth and speaks about earthly things. The one who comes from heaven is superior to all (\cf2\ul Joh_3:22-21\cf3\ulnone ). \par John was a true slave, who found his joy in serving God and in fulfilling his mission of magnifying Christ.\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [14]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24\par A slave should love his master, and seek as much as possible to embrace his goals, his perspective, and his success. Such a slave will work hard for his master\rquote s success, whether or not his master is present. While employees in America are fortunate that they are not slaves (this is not the case in various parts of the world), Christian employees would do well to seek to develop a \ldblquote servant\rquote s spirit,\rdblquote that would motivate them to enhance and enrich their employer, and to do this in obedience to their true Master, which will be an adornment to the gospel:\par 5 Slaves, obey your human masters with fear and trembling, in the sincerity of your heart as to Christ, 6 not like those who do their work only when someone is watching\emdash as people-pleasers\emdash but as servants of Christ doing the will of God from the heart. 7 Obey with enthusiasm, as though serving the Lord and not people 8 because you know that each person, whether slave or free, if he does something good, this will be rewarded by the Lord (\cf2\ul Eph_6:5-8\cf3\ulnone ).\par 1 Those who are under the yoke as slaves must regard their own masters as deserving of full respect. This will prevent the name of God and Christian teaching from being discredited. 2 But those who have believing masters must not show them less respect because they are brothers. Instead they are to serve all the more, because those who benefit from their service are believers and dearly loved (\cf2\ul 1Ti_6:1-2\cf3\ulnone ).\par \cf1\fs36 Conclusion\par \cf3\fs24 When I was in India, one of my Indian friends living there LVALEhad a phrase he frequently used to sum up the religious condition of this great nation: \ldblquote Too many gods.\rdblquote He was right, of course. There are \ldblquote too many gods\rdblquote in India. More than one is too many, but they have so many gods. If I were to coin a phrase which would characterize evangelical Christianity in America, I would probably say, \ldblquote Too many masters; too few slaves.\rdblquote The servant spirit is not natural; it is exceedingly rare. It is contrary to everything the flesh desires. It is, however, the spirit of Paul, and of the other apostles. This is why they proudly identify themselves as \b\ldblquote bondservants of Christ.\rdblquote\b0 \par In point of fact, must of us like to think of ourselves as being free, and not being slaves to anyone. This was the proud claim of the Jewish religious leaders:\par 31 Then Jesus said to those Jewish people who had believed him, \ldblquote If you continue to follow my teaching, you are really my disciples 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.\rdblquote 33 \ldblquote We are descendants of Abraham,\rdblquote they replied, \ldblquote and have never been anyone\rquote s slaves! How can you say, \lquote You will become free\rquote ?\rdblquote 34 Jesus answered them, \ldblquote I tell you the solemn truth, everyone who practices sin is a slave of sin. 35 The slave does not remain in the family forever, but the son remains forever. 36 So if the son sets you free, you will be really free. 37 I know that you are Abraham\rquote s descendants. But you are wanting to kill me, because my teaching makes no progress among you. 38 I am telling you the things I have seen while with my Father, but you are practicing the things you have heard from your father\rdblquote (\cf2\ul Joh_8:31-38\cf3\ulnone ).\par Many of us who are Christians are sometimes willing to say that they are slaves, but the real test comes when someone treats us like slaves. We are very independent, self-sufficient people. We dLVALFo not wish to be dependent upon others, and we most certainly do not wish to serve others. We do not wish to hear about our obligations to others; we want to think in terms of entitlement. \par Someone may object to what I am saying, by responding, \ldblquote We are not to be slaves of men; we are to be slaves of God.\rdblquote There is a sense in which this is true (\cf2\ul 1Co_7:23\cf3\ulnone ), but the Word of God makes it clear that we are also to serve one another:\par For since I am free from all I can make myself a slave to all, in order to gain even more (\cf2\ul 1Co_9:19\cf3\ulnone ).\par For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity to indulge your flesh, but through love serve one another (\cf2\ul Gal_5:13\cf3\ulnone ).\par We are free, free to serve. There is also a sense in which we are no longer \b\ldblquote slaves,\rdblquote\b0 but \b\ldblquote sons\rdblquote \b0 (\cf2\ul Joh_8:34\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Rom_8:15\cf3\ulnone ; see also \cf2\ul Joh_15:15\cf3\ulnone ), but never in this life do we cease to be \ldblquote slaves of Christ,\rdblquote or of our fellow-believers. This is why the apostles so often refer to themselves in this way.\par It has taken me a long time to see this truth about slavery and servanthood, but I believe it is true, and so I will share it with you. For a long time I was willing to admit that slavery was the path to honor and reward. Servanthood, I thought, was the price Christians had to pay \i now\i0 so that we could enjoy glory \i then\i0 (in heaven)\i .\i0 It is as though one were saying, \ldblquote To serve is to suffer, and we must suffer (i.e., serve) so that we may someday experience glory.\rdblquote Several biblical texts have forced me to re-think my position on suffering and glory:\par 5 You prepare a feast before me in plain sight of my enemies. You refresh my head with oil, My cup is full of wine. 6 Surely your goodness and faithfulness will pursue me all the days of my life, and I wLVALGill live in the LORD\rquote s palace for the rest of my life (\cf2\ul Psa_23:5-6\cf3\ulnone ).\par We know this verse from Psalm 23 very well, but it just now occurred to me that while the Psalmist (David) speaks of God\rquote s protection and care, he also speaks of Him serving us at His table, and it is at this table that he know he will sit for all eternity. Imagine the wonder of knowing that God is preparing the table for us, even now!\par 20 Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to him with her sons, and kneeling down she asked something from him. 21 He said to her, \ldblquote What do you want?\rdblquote She said, \ldblquote Permit these two sons of mine to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.\rdblquote 22 Jesus answered, \ldblquote You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup I am about to drink?\rdblquote They said to him, \ldblquote We are able.\rdblquote 23 He told them, \ldblquote You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right and left is not mine to give. Rather, it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.\rdblquote 24 When the other ten heard this, they were angry with the two brothers. 25 But Jesus called them and said, \ldblquote You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those in high position use their authority over them. 26 It must not be this way among you! \b But whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant\b0 . 27 \b And whoever wants to be first must be your slave\b0\emdash 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many\rdblquote (\cf2\ul Mat_20:20-28\cf3\ulnone , emphasis mine).\par We might be tempted to conclude that Jesus is teaching us that one must suffer before he can reign, and there is, once again, an element of truth in such a statement (see \cf2\ul 1Ti_2:8-11\cf3\ulnone ). We may be inclined to think that our Lord suffered, so that He might reign. There is truth here, also. But is \ldblquote servinLVALHg\rdblquote part of our Lord\rquote s \ldblquote suffering,\rdblquote which He eternally sets aside in heaven? Did He serve then, so that He may be served forever in heaven? These words from the Gospel of Luke should give us pause for thought: \ldblquote Blessed are those slaves whom their master finds alert when he comes! I tell you the truth, he will dress himself for serving and have them take their place at the table, and he will come and serve them!\rdblquote\super \nosupersub (\cf2\ul Luk_12:37\cf3\ulnone ).\par My impression from our Lord\rquote s words is that there is glory in serving; there is greatness in serving. Is this not true to the nature of spiritual realities? The things we disdain and avoid (like serving), God exalts. The things we esteem (like fame, power, and authority), God finds less than impressive. I am saying that a position of servitude is not a position that leads to honor, it is a position of honor. This is why Paul employs the title \ldblquote\b servant\b0\rdblquote or \ldblquote\b slave\b0 ,\rdblquote in the introduction of his epistle to the Philippians, but not \ldblquote apostle.\rdblquote \par I have titled this series in the Book of Philippians, \ldblquote To Live Is Christ.\rdblquote I believe that we see the truth of this title played out in the first two verses of Paul\rquote s epistle. Paul sees himself as a slave because he looks at and lives life through the eyes of Christ. In Philippians 2, Paul once again employs the word \ldblquote\b slave\b0\rdblquote :\par 4 Each of you should be concerned not only about your own interests, but the interests of others as well. 5 You should have the same attitude toward one another that Christ Jesus had, 6 who though he existed in the form of God did not regard equality with God as something to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself by taking on the form of a slave, by looking like other men, and by sharing in human nature. 8 He humbled himself, by becoming obedient to the point of death even death on a cross! 9 As aLVALI result God exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow\emdash in heaven and on earth and under the earth,\b \b0 11 and every tongue confess to the glory of God the Father that Jesus Christ is Lord (\cf2\ul Php_2:4-11\cf3\ulnone ).\par If a slave is \b\ldblquote no greater than his master\rdblquote\b0 (\cf2\ul Joh_13:16\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Joh_15:20\cf3\ulnone ), and if Jesus became a slave, then how can we seek to be anything other than a slave as well? When we can embrace Paul\rquote s words, \b\ldblquote For me, to live is Christ,\rdblquote\b0 then we will embrace the perspective and the practice of a slave. And when we do, we live out the life of Christ before a lost and dying world. Slavery is no option for the Christian; it should be our way of life, because it was our Savior\rquote s way. The \ldblquote Suffering Servant\rdblquote of Calvary becomes the model and the motivation for our service (see \cf2\ul 1Pe_2:18-25\cf3\ulnone ).\par One last word. Do not suppose that yours is the choice of whether or not to be a slave. Your choice, and mine, is whom we will serve as a slave. We will be slaves; the question is, \ldblquote To whom?\rdblquote\par 15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Absolutely not! 16 Do you not know that if you present yourselves as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or obedience resulting in righteousness? 17 But thanks be to God that though you were slaves to sin, you obeyed from the heart that pattern of teaching you were entrusted to, 18 and having been freed from sin, you became enslaved to righteousness. 19 (I am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh.) For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification. 20 For when you were slaves of sin, you werLVALJe free with regard to righteousness. 21 So what benefit did you then reap from those things that you are now ashamed of? For the end of those things is death. 22 But now, freed from sin and enslaved to God, you have your benefit leading to sanctification, and the end is eternal life. 23 For the payoff of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.\par Have you been freed from your slavery to sin and death? The only way this can happen is through faith in the person and work of Jesus Christ:\par 14 Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, he likewise shared in the same as well, so that through death he could destroy the one who holds the power of death (that is, the devil), 15 and set free those who were held in slavery all their lives by their fear of death (\cf2\ul Heb_2:14-15\cf3\ulnone ).\par -------------------------\par \cf0\super\f1\fs20 [8]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 I am referring to the Urban Evangelical Mission (UEM), formerly known as Black Evangelistic Enterprise (BEE), with its headquarters in Dallas, Texas. The President of UEM is Dr. Ruben S. Conner, a long-time friend.\par \cf0\super\f1\fs20 [9]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 The closest one might come is the reference to \b\ldblquote the angel\rdblquote\b0 or \b\ldblquote the messenger\rdblquote\b0 in each of the seven churches addressed in The Book of Revelation, chapters 2 and 3. But it is not clear that this reference is even to a human being, let alone to one who would be called \ldblquote the pastor\rdblquote of that church.\par \cf0\super\f1\fs20 [10]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 It is evident that Paul had some very close, personal relationships with individual saints in the various churches. In the last chapter of his Epistle to the Romans, Paul specifically names a number of individuals, and this in a church he had not founded and had not even visited yet. Paul had certainly established some close relationships with some of the saints in Philippi. Paul values personal relationships, buNLVAL^t in Philippians he makes it clear that he is writing to everyone.\par \cf0\super\f1\fs20 [11]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 The interpretation of a passage of Scripture should not be individualized. The question is not, \ldblquote What does this text of Scripture mean to you?\rdblquote , but \ldblquote What does this text of Scripture mean in its context?\rdblquote \ldblquote What did the author intend for its original reader to understand by these words?\rdblquote After having answered this question, we can then ask, \ldblquote How does the teaching of this passage impact my life?\rdblquote \par \cf0\super\f1\fs20 [12]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 I find it interesting that even in hell the rich man still looks upon Lazarus as his servant. He asks that Lazarus be sent to cool his tongue with water from the tip of his finger (\cf2\ul Luk_16:24\cf3\ulnone ). \par \cf0\super\f1\fs20 [13]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 I must once again reiterate that the context of Romans 14 concerns personal convictions. I know that there are those who persist in saying, \b\ldblquote Judge not\'85\rdblquote\b0 (see \cf2\ul Mat_7:1\cf3\ulnone ). We are not \ldblquote judging\rdblquote when we rebuke a brother for disobeying the Word of God. When a brother sins, he is to be corrected (see \cf2\ul Mat_18:15-20\cf3\ulnone ).\par \cf0\super\f1\fs20 [14]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 This certainly helps to explain or qualify John\rquote s doubts and concerns, as recorded in \cf2\ul Luk_7:18-23\cf3\ulnone . John was concerned because Jesus did not seem to be successful. His mission was beginning to look like a failure. The disciples had their concerns, too, because no one really understood the role of the cross in God\rquote s plan for our Lord. His \ldblquote apparent\rdblquote failure on the cross was His triumph, proclaimed by His resurrection. \kerning36\f2\fs22\par } LVAL4L{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fswiss\fprq2\fcharset0 Arial;}{\f1\froman\fprq2\fcharset0 Times New Roman;}{\f2\froman\fprq2\fcharset2 Symbol;}{\f3\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}{\f4\fnil\fcharset2 Symbol;}} {\colortbl ;\red51\green102\blue102;\red0\green128\blue0;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sb100\sa100\cf1\lang1033\kerning36\f0\fs36 Lesson 3: Paul\rquote s Perspective as a Prisoner \line (\cf2\ul Php_1:3-11\cf1\ulnone )\fs48\par \kerning0\fs36 Introduction\par \cf3\fs24 This past week, convicted murderer Ponchai Wilkerson was executed in Huntsville, Texas. He was apparently a violent man. He was one of those who attempted to escape from death row in the Ellis Unit at Huntsville on Thanksgiving night, 1998. This was but one of his two attempts to escape. Last month, he held a guard hostage during a 13-hour standoff with prison officials. Prior to his execution, Wilkerson declined a last meal, refused to tell prison officials how to dispose of his body, and refused to leave his holding cell near the death chamber. Physical force and additional restraints were required to strap him down to his gurney. In the final seconds of his life, Wilkerson turned his head to the side and\emdash to the amazement of prison officials\emdash spit out a key that was used on handcuffs and leg restraints. One does not know for certain, but it would almost appear that this was his final act of rebellion. A bitter and angry man could certainly find some satisfaction in producing such a key, leaving officials to wonder how he possibly obtained it, and then managed to conceal it until his final breath.\par What a refreshing and remarkable contrast the Apostle Paul is to this Texas prisoner. Paul was a prisoner for the cause of Christ. He wrote the letter to the Philippians during his confinement as he waited for the time when he would stand trial before Caesar. From what Paul tells us in chapter 2 of this epistle, one could almost say that he was on \ldblquote death LVALMrow.\rdblquote Consequently, the outcome of his trial was not yet known, but it was apparent that he might be found guilty of treason and thus condemned to death by Caesar. But far from reading the bitter words of a hardened, belligerent prisoner, we find a wonderfully warm and tender man, taking what could be his final opportunity to express his love and concern for the saints at Philippi.\par \cf1\fs36 True Confession\par \cf3\fs24 I do have a confession to make. I agonized a great deal over this message. I had read a scholarly article on a couple of verses in this text, and I found it appealing. But by embracing this point of view, I could not seem to get a handle on this text. It was then that I remembered a friend who is a preacher in another part of the country. He was struggling with a certain passage of Scripture, and Sunday was bearing down upon him. He could not decide what to do, and so we talked by e-mail. After hearing his dilemma, I wrote this response:\par \ldblquote I think you are suffering from a case of over-scholasticitis. You\rquote ve gotten so entrenched in the details that the big (and, in my mind, rather obvious) picture is getting out of focus. I must say that I often experience the same thing, and when I do, I realize I have to put the technical works (most commentaries fit here) away, read the text repeatedly, and ask myself what the flow of the author\rquote s argument is.\'85The Bible wasn\rquote t written for technicians (linguistically and literarily speaking); it was written to common, everyday people. If your argument cannot be followed by the person in the pew, reading in their English text, then it\rquote s probably flawed.\rdblquote\par Late this week, I realized I was experiencing the very same problem, and I had to go back through my e-mail messages to find my own advice and read it again, as it applied to this text and this sermon. Our text is not really that difficult at all, but I had made it difficult by getting overly technical and missing the message. LVALNYou might say I had been \ldblquote straining gnats and swallowing camels\rdblquote (see \cf2\ul Mat_23:23-24\cf3\ulnone ). \par I decided to simply step back from the text and to look at it more broadly. In his so-called \ldblquote second missionary journey,\rdblquote the Apostle Paul and his colleagues had been divinely directed to \b\ldblquote Come over to Macedonia and help us\rdblquote\b0 (\cf2\ul Act_16:9\cf3\ulnone ). Paul and the others traveled to Philippi, where they proclaimed the gospel to Lydia, the Philippian jailor, and others (\cf2\ul Act_16:11\cf3\ulnone ff.). These and others had come to faith, and a church was born. The relationship between Paul and this particular church had been especially close. This epistle is written to the Philippian church some 10-12 years after Paul first came to Philippi. During this interval, Paul has corresponded with a number of other churches. From my reckoning, this would include his Epistle to the Galatians and his two Corinthian Epistles. \par As you will recall, there were very serious problems at Corinth and elsewhere that required Paul to speak quite sternly to these saints. I am impressed with how different the spirit (or tone) of this Philippian correspondence is from that of Galatians or 1 and 2 Corinthians. When Paul writes to the Philippians, he tells them that he is eager to come to see them and to minister to them. When he speaks to the Corinthians, he is warning the church that if they don\rquote t correct some of their problems before he arrives, they are not going to like what they see when he arrives personally (\cf2\ul 2Co_12:20-21\cf3\ulnone through\cf2\ul 2Cor13\cf3\ulnone :1-2).\par Paul was a man who deeply cared about the saints, even those who had come to faith apart from his ministry. He had a deep concern, and he agonized over reports of sin and willful disobedience: \ldblquote Apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxious concern for all the churches. 29 Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who isLVALO led into sin, and I do not burn with indignation?\rdblquote (\cf2\ul 2Co_11:28-29\cf3\ulnone ) \par As Paul writes to the Philippians, he is incarcerated in Rome, awaiting trial before Caesar. He is not able to visit this church; all he can do is get reports, either from visitors like Epaphroditus, or by receiving correspondence. He can write, and he can pray, but he certainly is not free to minister as he would prefer. \par As I read Paul\rquote s words in our text, I am reminded of these words, penned by Moses and recorded in Psalm 90, a prayer of Moses, the man of God:\par 1 O sovereign master, you have been our protector through all generations! 2 Even before the mountains came into existence, or you brought the world into being, you were the eternal God. 3 \b You make mankind return to the dust, and say, \ldblquote Return, O people\b0 !\rdblquote 4 \b Yes, in your eyes a thousand years are like yesterday that quickly passes, or like one of the divisions of the nighttime\b0 . 5 \b You bring their lives to an end and they fall \ldblquote asleep.\rdblquote In the morning they are like the grass that sprouts up\b0 ,6 \b in the morning it glistens and sprouts up; at \b0 evening\b time it withers and dries up. \b0 7 Yes, we are consumed by your anger, we are terrified by your wrath. 8 You are aware of our sins, you even know about our hidden sins. 9 Yes, throughout all our days we experience your raging fury, the years of our lives pass quickly, like a sigh. 10 The days of our lives add up to seventy years, or eighty, if one is especially strong. But even one\rquote s best years are marred by trouble and oppression. Yes, they pass quickly and we fly away. 11 Who can really fathom the intensity of your anger? Your raging fury causes people to fear you. 12 So teach us to consider our mortality, so that we might live wisely. 13 Turn back toward us, O LORD! How long must this suffering last? Have pity on your servants! 14 Satisfy us in the morning with your loyal love! Then we will shout for joy anLVALPd be happy all our days! 15 Make us happy in proportion to the days you have afflicted us, in proportion to the years we have experienced trouble! 16 \b May your servants see your work! May their sons see your majesty!\b0 17 \b May our sovereign God extend his favor to us! Make our endeavors successful! Yes, make them successful!\b0 (\cf2\ul Psa_90:1-17\cf3\ulnone , emphasis mine). \par No one really knows when Moses wrote this psalm, but it is my opinion that it may well have been written during the time the first generation of Israelites was dying in the wilderness. Moses had invested his life serving these people, and they had often stiffened their necks against God and rebelled. Knowing that the end of his days was near, and that this generation was dying off, Moses became painfully aware of the mortality of man. Men come and quickly go. Moses desired that God would impress him with the brevity of life, and that He would somehow prosper the work of his hands, that his lifetime of ministry would not be wasted.\par Can we not see that Paul could have felt the same way? Paul was now under house arrest, and his ministry had been greatly restricted, so far as his freedom to visit the churches was concerned. Paul knew, thanks to Rome, that his days were numbered, and he surely wanted his ministry to have counted for eternity. He wished to be comforted by knowing that those in whom he had invested his life would carry on in his absence.\par I believe these early verses in Philippians 1 emphatically declare Paul\rquote s perspective regarding the Philippian saints, their spiritual growth, and their future. In verses 12-18a, Paul discloses his perspective on his present adversity and the response of others to it. Then, in verses 18b-26, Paul will give us his perspective on his future, whether that be life or death. Let us listen well to this great man, so that we may learn to see things as he does, for our good and the glory of God.\par \cf1\fs36 Paul, What\rquote s That Smile Doing on Your Face? \liLVALQne (1:3-6)\par \cf3\fs24 3 I thank my God every time I remember you. 4 Always in my every prayer for all of you I pray with joy 5 because of your participation in the gospel from the first day until now. 6 For I am sure of this very thing, that the one who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus. \par If there is one thing that is clear in these verses (not to mention the rest of the book), it is that Paul is a happy, joyful Christian. His present circumstances looked less than promising, but Paul was jubilant and joyful. John Piper has written many excellent books, but my all-time favorite is still, \i Desiring God: The Meditations of a Christian Hedonist\i0 . Piper\rquote s thesis is that it is not wrong for a Christian to experience great pleasure in this life, so long as his pleasure is in the right things. To take pleasure in God is good. To take pleasure in one\rquote s fond remembrances of a dearly beloved church is a good thing. \par Just what is it, though, that gives Paul such pleasure when he thinks about the saints at Philippi? He tells us in verses 3-6. Note first that Paul\rquote s thoughts of the Philippians are in the context of his prayers for them. When Paul says he \ldblquote remembers\rdblquote these saints, he means that he is remembering them in his prayers. Every time Paul uses this term of his remembrances, he uses it in reference to his prayers of remembrance.\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [15]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 His prayers for the Philippians are joyful. \par Paul gives two reasons for his joyful prayers for the Philippians. \i First, Paul is joyful because of their participation (fellowship or koinonia) in the gospel from the first day to the present \i0 (verse 5). Here is where scholasticitis almost did me in. I read a scholarly article in which the author concluded that the \b\ldblquote participation\rdblquote\b0 to which Paul referred was primarily (if not exclusively) the gifts he had received from the Philippians. I would not go so far as LVALRto say that Paul completely avoids their gift here, but I am persuaded that this is not his primary meaning. \par \pard{\pntext\f4\'B7\tab}{\*\pn\pnlvlblt\pnf4\pnindent360{\pntxtb\'B7}}\sb100\sa100\f2\'b7\f1\fs14\~\~\~\~\~\~\~ \f0\fs24 Jesus taught that money is a little thing (\cf2\ul Luk_16:10\cf3\ulnone ). Paul would not make a \ldblquote big thing\rdblquote out of something that was really not that important.\par \f2{\pntext\f4\'B7\tab}\'b7\f1\fs14\~\~\~\~\~\~\~ \f0\fs24 It is clear that Paul downplays his need for the gift, and any hint that he seeks yet another gift. \par \f2{\pntext\f4\'B7\tab}\'b7\f1\fs14\~\~\~\~\~\~\~ \f0\fs24 Paul leaves the matter of their gift till the last possible moment in this book.\par \f2{\pntext\f4\'B7\tab}\'b7\f1\fs14\~\~\~\~\~\~\~ \f0\fs24 I decided to list all of Paul\rquote s prayers and, in the process, discovered something important. Paul\rquote s prayers consistently begin with praise, and then move to petition. Furthermore, in Paul\rquote s praise, he almost always gives thanks for the faith of the recipients of his letter. He gives thanks, \ldblquote for your faith,\rdblquote not \ldblquote for your check.\rdblquote\par \f2{\pntext\f4\'B7\tab}\'b7\f1\fs14\~\~\~\~\~\~\~ \f0\fs24 This forces me to conclude that when Paul gives thanks for the \ldblquote fellowship\rdblquote or \b\ldblquote participation\rdblquote\b0 of the Philippians \b\ldblquote in the gospel from the first day till now,\rdblquote\b0 he is referring primarily to their \ldblquote fellowship\rdblquote with him by virtue of coming to faith in Jesus Christ. This \b\ldblquote participation\rdblquote \b0 in salvation did manifest itself in hospitality and generosity. Both Lydia and the Philippian jailor invited Paul and Silas into their homes once they came to faith. But the thrust of Paul\rquote s joy is that they were saved, and not that they sent him gifts. A study of the fourth chapter of this epistle will make that much more apparent.\par \pard\sb100\sa100\~\~\~\~\~\~ Second, PauLVALSl\rquote s prayers are joyful because Paul is assured that the Philippian church will persevere and grow, with or without him: \ldblquote For I am sure of this very thing, that the one who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus\rdblquote (verse 6). \par \~\~\~\~\~\~ The \b\ldblquote good work\rdblquote\b0 here is surely that of salvation, and not the giving of the gifts Paul had received (contrary to the scholarly article I read). Here was Paul, confined to his quarters, accused by Jews of treason, and accused by some of his brethren of wrong doing (\cf2\ul Php_1:17\cf3\ulnone ). If Paul were to be found guilty by Caesar, and his life was cut short, would this church survive? Could these people manage to get along without him? Would God (in the words of Moses) \ldblquote confirm the work of Paul\rquote s hands\rdblquote ? \par \~\~\~\~\~\~ The answer is a resounding and confident, \ldblquote Yes!\rdblquote First, this was not Paul\rquote s work; it was God\rquote s. This was not Paul\rquote s church; it was God\rquote s. Paul had not begun the work in Philippi; God had. From the Macedonian vision in Troas (\cf2\ul Act_16:8-10\cf3\ulnone ) to the meeting with the women by the riverside to the miraculous conversion of the jailor, it was all the work of God. God finishes what He starts. No one was more confident of this than Paul. God initiated the salvation of the Philippians and the birth of the church. God would complete His work, with or without Paul. The Philippians\rquote security did not rest with Paul, but with God. Whatever Paul\rquote s fate might be, the fate of the Philippians was not at risk.\par \~\~\~\~\~\~ Paul\rquote s confidence in God\rquote s ability to preserve and prosper His church is seen in another text as well:\par 9 He is the one who saved us and called us with a holy calling, not based on our works but on his own purpose and grace, granted to us in Christ Jesus before time began, 10 but now made visible through the appearing of our SavioLVALTr Christ Jesus. He has broken the power of death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel! 11 For this gospel I was appointed a preacher and apostle and teacher. 12 Because of this, in fact, I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, \b because I know the one in whom my faith is set and I am convinced that he is able to protect what has been entrusted to me until that day \b0 (\cf2\ul 1Ti_1:9-12\cf3\ulnone , emphasis mine). \par \~\~\~\~\~\~ The NET Bible has done an excellent job here, because most translations render verse 12 in a very different way:\par For this reason I also suffer these things, but am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard \b what I have entrusted to Him\b0 until that day (NASV, emphasis mine).\par There is a difference of opinion as to how this verse should be rendered, but I believe the NET Bible is correct. Paul is not just confident about his own salvation; he is confident about his ministry. Those whom God entrusted to the apostle, to serve and shepherd for a period of time, God will surely protect. God cares for His own. What an encouragement this was to Paul, whose future was certainly at risk. He was an endangered species, and he knew it, but the church was not. Here was the basis for Paul\rquote s confidence and joy, in the midst of his adversity.\par \cf1\fs36 Religious Affections \line (1:7-8)\par \cf3\fs24 7 For it is right for me to think this about all of you, because I have you in my heart, since both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel all of you became partners together with me in the grace of God. 8 For God is my witness that I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus. \par I confess, I borrowed the title \ldblquote Religious Affections\rdblquote from Jonathan Edwards, since this was the title of one of his finest works. Verses 7 and 8 are about Paul\rquote s \ldblquote religious affections\rdblquote for the Philippians. When you read books LVALUlike 2 Corinthians or Galatians, Paul comes across like a watchdog, but when you read Philippians and Paul\rquote s Thessalonian epistles, Paul comes across like a lap dog. Paul has a deep, enduring love and affection for the Philippians that is mutual. Paul has deep affections for these folks, and it is right for him to do so. He does have these folks in his heart. In other words, thoughts of them are constantly in his mind, and this is reflected in his prayers for them. The intimacy of their relationship has grown through times of blessing, times of need, and times of adversity.\par The word \b\ldblquote partners\rdblquote\b0 in verse 7 is a slightly different form of the term \i\ldblquote koinonia.\rdblquote\i0 They have become co-partners with Paul in his imprisonment and in his defense of the gospel. Paul\rquote s imprisonment was not about treason, as his Jewish opponents contended; it was about the gospel he preached: Christ and Christ crucified. It was dangerous business to identify with a man charged with treason. They, of course, remained faithful to Paul because they understood his role in defending the gospel. There is a bond which we form with those in the heat of battle or in times of great sorrow or trials. The Philippians had not forsaken Paul, and thus he had them constantly on his heart. He loved these people in Christ. He loved these people like Christ.\par \cf1\fs36 Paul\rquote s Prayer For the Philippians \line (1:9-11)\par \cf3\fs24 9 And I pray this, that your love may abound even more and more in knowledge and every kind of insight 10 so that you can decide what is best, and so be sincere and blameless for the day of Christ,\b \b0 11\b \b0 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God.\par Paul\rquote s prayer for the Philippians is similar to his prayers for other saints, as you might expect. But this is no \ldblquote boilerplate prayer\rdblquote either. Let\rquote s focus on what is unique about the specifics ofLVALV this prayer. First, take note of the fact that Paul prays for their continued growth in Christ.\b \b0 In verse 6, Paul has just indicated his certainty that God would complete the work He had begun in the Philippians\rquote lives. In other words, Paul was convinced that they would continue to grow, because God would bring that to pass. But now, Paul prays that they will grow in their faith. It is obvious, is it not, that Paul prays for what God promises? Paul\rquote s certainty regarding the sanctification of these saints was not an excuse for failing to pray toward that end. We pray for what God has promised because He is the One who will bring it to pass. We are to pray because we are instructed to pray, because prayer expresses our dependence on Him, and thus it glorifies Him.\par \i Second, Paul prays that the Philippians will grow as their love grows in knowledge and discernment. \i0 One of the most foolish statements I have ever read is, \ldblquote Love is blind.\rdblquote Love is not blind! Love does not close its eyes to the truth, to reality, to sin. What a horrible thing it would be if love truly were blind. Christian love must operate according to truth. We are to \b\ldblquote practice the truth in love\rdblquote \b0 (\cf2\ul Eph_4:15\cf3\ulnone ). Love has its eyes wide open to how things are, as well as to how things ought to be. Love acts wisely, making choices that are based upon discernment. Love does not always do what the other person wants us to do. Love does not always do what our culture thinks we should do. Love acts wisely to achieve what is in the best interest of the one loved.\par \i Third, Paul\rquote s prayers reveal a heavenly perspective.\i0 Paul\rquote s prayers are not that the Philippians might experience \ldblquote the good life\rdblquote of peace and prosperity in this world, but that at the coming of our Lord, they might be found pleasing to the Savior. Paul is like the father of the bride, who wants to present the bride to her groom in purity and perfectioLVALWn: \ldblquote For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy, because I promised you in marriage to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ\rdblquote (\cf2\ul 2Co_11:2\cf3\ulnone ). Paul desires that the Philippians will bear the fruit of Christlikeness, which will bring glory and praise to God. Bringing glory to God should be the ultimate goal of every Christian:\par 31 So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God. 32 Do not give offense to Jews or Greeks or to the church of God, 33 just as I also try to please everyone in all things. I do not seek my own benefit, but that of many, so that they may be saved (\cf2\ul 1Co_10:31-33\cf3\ulnone ). \par I remember very well the first funeral I ever performed. This woman was dying of cancer, and she had come to faith through the witness of her Christian friends. I visited her quite often, and we openly talked about her death and the blessings that were waiting for her. One day, a Christian friend had been there visiting just before I arrived. This dying woman told me that their conversation had not turned to spiritual things, and that it was not a very profitable visit. This woman had her eyes on the goal; she wanted to talk about the Christian\rquote s hope, not about the Dallas Cowboys\rquote football score. And when she died, her husband went around to those gathered at her grave saying, \ldblquote She never knew.\rdblquote I couldn\rquote t believe it. It never occurred to me that she didn\rquote t know she was dying. She knew, and she was heaven-bound. That\rquote s why she wanted to talk about the day of Christ.\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [16]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24\par \cf1\fs36 Conclusion\par \cf3\fs24 I can almost hear my readers sighing in relief. This looks like the kind of passage that won\rquote t be too hard on us, doesn\rquote t it? Well, I have to tell you that this text has proven very convicting to me. Let me focus on some areas of application.\par \i First, in our text, we see that Paul lLVALXived as though his days were numbered.\i0 You will recall that I likened Paul\rquote s circumstances to those of Moses, and his concerns as being similar to those expressed in Psalm 90. Paul had learned to \ldblquote number his days.\rdblquote Paul wrote to and prayed for these saints, because he knew that sooner or later he would not be able to minister to them personally.\par I wonder how many of us have learned to \ldblquote number our days.\rdblquote We act as though tomorrow were a certain thing, but such presumption is sin (\cf2\ul Jas_4:13-17\cf3\ulnone ). Our lost friends and relatives are rushing headlong to their eternal destruction apart from Christ. Are you and I living in the light of our departure and of the coming of our Lord? \par \i Second, notice that Paul did not use the sovereignty of God as an excuse for passivity in prayer. \i0 It was Paul\rquote s assurance that God would finish the good work He started in the Philippians that motivated Paul to pray (and work) for their growth. God\rquote s sovereignty is the incentive for effort, not our excuse for passivity.\par \i Third, Paul\rquote s words and actions in our text remind us that we don\rquote t have to be physically present to minister.\b\i0 \b0 I am reminded of 1 Corinthians 5, where Paul writes to the church concerning their toleration of sin. A man was living with his father\rquote s wife, and the church did nothing about it. Worse yet, some seemed to take pride in this. Paul, though distant, takes action. In effect, he commences church discipline long distance. \par In our text, Paul is far removed from the Philippians and is not free to come to them. This does not keep Paul from ministering to these saints. Paul writes this epistle; he will send Epaphroditus and then Timothy, and he persistently and fervently prays for these saints and their growth. Look what Paul did to minister to the Philippians without a mail service, without telephones, without e-mail. Absence is really no excuse for us, either. We can minisLVALYter from a distance, as Paul did.\par \i Fourth, we can learn much from Paul\rquote s joy.\i0 What was it that gave Paul such joy, such pleasure? It was the Philippians themselves, especially their participation in the gospel and their growth in their faith. Paul\rquote s joy was not in receiving gifts, not in comfortable living. Paul\rquote s joy was in having a part in the salvation and growth of lost sinners.\par 17 But when we were separated from you, brothers and sisters, for a short time (in presence, not in affection) we became all the more fervent in our great desire to see you in person. 18 For we wanted to come to you (I, Paul, in fact tried again and again) but Satan thwarted us. 19 For who is our hope or joy or crown to boast of before our Lord Jesus at his coming? Is it not of course you? 20 For you are our glory and joy! (\cf2\ul 1Th_2:17-19\cf3\ulnone )\par Paul\rquote s joy and his reward (crown) was people, specifically people who had been saved from their sins, and who were growing in their faith, love, and knowledge of Him.\par I have to ask myself, \ldblquote What is it that really gives me joy?\rdblquote Is my joy self-centered, or people-centered? Do I take joy in serving others, when I have to do so sacrificially? Do I really rejoice when others prosper in their faith and walk? Or am I jealous of their success? What gives me pleasure tells me a great deal about myself. Paul found pleasure in giving his life in ministering the gospel to others.\par \i Fifth, we can learn a great deal from Paul\rquote s prayers. \i0 If I were honest, I would have to confess that my prayers don\rquote t begin to measure up to Paul\rquote s. Paul\rquote s prayers have a fervency, a frequency, and a focus that mine often are lacking. \par Paul\rquote s prayers don\rquote t fit my formulas or the formulas of others. You must now listen very carefully to what I am saying because it would be easy to misunderstand what I am saying. I am not saying that we should not pray to praise God for His attLVALZributes, or His gracious acts on our behalf. The Psalms are clear on this matter. But sometimes we superimpose a certain pattern or structure on our prayers or the prayers of others, which cannot be found in Paul\rquote s prayers in his epistles. Here, as elsewhere, Paul\rquote s prayers contain praise and petition. The praise, however, is focused on God\rquote s gracious work in the lives of the saints, and the petitions are also directed toward the growth of the saints in their faith. \par I am beginning to see the relationship between verses 1 and 2 and verses 3-11. In verse 1, Paul speaks of himself and Timothy as slaves of Jesus Christ. A slave is one who adopts and embraces the agenda of his master. The slave seeks what his master seeks. The slave loves what his master loves. The slave finds joy in what causes his master to rejoice. Paul, the slave, has the same perspective as his master. Put differently, Paul has the same attitude and affection for the church as Christ. \par Our Lord deeply cares for His bride, the church (all those who believe in Him for salvation):\par 22\b \b0 Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord, 23\b \b0 because the husband is the head of the wife as also Christ is the head of the church\emdash he himself being the savior of the body. 24\b \b0 But as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. 25\b \b0 Husbands, love your wives \b just as Christ loved the church and gave himself for her \b0 26\b to sanctify her by cleansing her \b0 with the washing of the water by the word, 27 so that he may present the church to himself as glorious\emdash not having a stain or wrinkle, or any such blemish, but holy and blameless. 28 In the same way husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one has ever hated his own body but he feeds it and takes care of it, just as Christ also does the church, 30 for we are members of his body. 31\i \b\i0 For this reason a man wilLVAL[l leave his father and mother and will be joined to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.\b0 32 This mystery is great\emdash but I am actually speaking with reference to Christ and the church. 33 Nevertheless, each one of you must also love his own wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband (\cf2\ul Eph_5:22-33\cf3\ulnone , emphasis mine).\par Paul cared for the church, the bride of Christ, as Christ did. He sacrificed himself for the salvation of men and for their spiritual growth. His desire was to promote purity and holiness, and to present the bride to Christ without fault or flaw. Paul\rquote s deep love and affection for the church was a picture of Christ\rquote s love and affection for His own. \par Paul\rquote s prayers do not (at the moment) dwell upon God, but upon the apple of God\rquote s eye. Paul focuses upon that which God cares most about and toward which He is working. Paul\rquote s praises and petitions are thus people-oriented because God\rquote s delight is in saving and sanctifying lost sinners.\par As I was drawing near the end of my study on this text, I came across a startling application. If we took this text seriously, it would transform our marriages. Bear with me a moment. Paul\rquote s prayers and affections are an accurate reflection of the heart of God toward these saints. Paul thus prays and labors to bring about that which God desires (and has purposed to accomplish). Paul\rquote s devotion and his sacrificial ministry is a reflection of our Lord\rquote s sacrificial work on the cross of Calvary.\par What would happen if we who are husbands embraced this same perspective of our Lord, as Paul did? And what if we looked upon our wives as Paul looked upon this church? What if we prayed for and sought the same things for our wives that Paul sought for the church? That is precisely what Ephesians 5 commands us to do as Christian husbands!\par I am told that there are now more divorces in the church than in the world. I don\rquote t know if LVAL\this is true or not, but I do know that there are all too many divorces in the church. Why is this happening? I think that in general we can say that husbands and wives are not looking upon their marriage and upon their mates as our Lord looks upon His bride. If Paul\rquote s perspective and practice toward the church were to be our perspective and our practice toward our wives, marriages would be transformed. Instead of looking to our mate to \ldblquote meet our needs,\rdblquote we would joyfully sacrifice our selfish interests to promote the best interest of our mate.\par A masochist is one who endures pain for the pleasure it brings him. A martyr is one who gladly endures pain for the pleasure and benefit it will bring to others. We need more \ldblquote martyrs.\rdblquote We need more folks who love their wives as Christ loved His church, and as Paul loved it too.\par We live at a time when churches seek to enhance their size (and sometimes their status) by attracting new members. The way some seek to attract new members is by calling attention to all the benefits they offer. The church thus becomes the place where we go \ldblquote to have our needs met.\rdblquote The church is thus not a place to serve, but the place to be served. Sacrifice and servanthood are not very popular elements of church life. People don\rquote t come to \ldblquote take up their cross,\rdblquote but to be served. Let us see in Paul that frame of mind that was the mind of Christ:\par 42 Jesus called them and said to them, \ldblquote You know that those who are recognized as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those in high positions use their authority over them. 43 But it is not this way among you. Instead whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wants to be first among you must be the slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many\rdblquote (\cf2\ul Mar_10:42-45\cf3\ulnone ).\par \pard\kerning36\f LVAL 3\fs22\par -----------------\par \par \pard\sb100\sa100\cf0\kerning0\super\f1\fs20 [15]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 \cf2\ul Rom_1:9\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Eph_1:16\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul 1Th_1:2\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul 1Ti_1:3\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Phm_1:4\cf3\ulnone . \par \cf0\super\f1\fs20 [16]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 Technically, the \ldblquote day of Christ\rdblquote may be that day when we will stand before Him (\cf2\ul 1Co_3:11-15\cf3\ulnone ), but here I am speaking more generally of the day of His return for us.\par \pard\kerning36\f3\fs22\par } LVAL4^{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fswiss\fprq2\fcharset0 Arial;}{\f1\froman\fprq2\fcharset0 Times New Roman;}{\f2\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red51\green102\blue102;\red0\green128\blue0;\red0\green0\blue0;\red0\green0\blue255;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sb100\sa100\cf1\lang1033\kerning36\f0\fs36 Lesson 4: Paul\rquote s Perspective on Pain and Pettiness \line (\cf2\ul Php_1:12-18\cf1\ulnone )\par \kerning0 Introduction\par \cf3\fs24 This week we will be moving from our old church building of 20 years to a newer building, just a few blocks away. We have been planning on this move for more than a year, but in spite of all of our good intentions and preparations, some of our plans are going to change. This past week, I received a moving plan which was titled, \ldblquote The Final Plan.\rdblquote There was a note attached which indicated that these plans were now fixed and would not change. The announcement ended with the statement, \ldblquote God is sovereign.\rdblquote I had to snicker to myself because I thought, \ldblquote That\rquote s exactly the point. God \i is\i0 sovereign, and that probably means that He will be sure to remind us of this fact by changing our \i final\i0 plans at least once.\rdblquote\par Even the Apostle Paul\rquote s plans changed. I believe that part of Paul\rquote s reason for writing this letter to the Philippians was to explain to them how God had changed his plans for His glory, and the advancement of the gospel. Let\rquote s briefly review Paul\rquote s original plans, and then take note of how God changed them. We will do so by looking at his Epistle to the Romans (chapters 1 and 15) and the Book of Acts.\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [17]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24\par \cf1\fs36 Paul\rquote s Original Plan \line (\cf2\ul Rom_1:8-15\cf1\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Rom_15:14-33\cf1\ulnone )\par \cf3\fs24 8 First of all, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed throughout the whole world. 9 For GLVAL_od, whom I serve in my spirit in the gospel of his Son, is my witness that I continuously remember you 10 and I always ask in my prayers, if perhaps now at last I may succeed in visiting you in the will of God. 11 For I long to see you, so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you, 12 that is, that we may be mutually comforted by one another\rquote s faith, both yours and mine. 13 I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, that I often intended to come to you (and was prevented until now), so that I may have even some fruit among you, just as I already have among the rest of the Gentiles. 14 I am a debtor both to the Greeks and to the barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. 15 Thus I am eager also to preach the gospel to you who are in Rome (\cf2\ul Rom_1:8-15\cf3\ulnone ).\par 14 But I myself am fully convinced about you, my brothers and sisters, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, and able to instruct one another. 15 But I have written more boldly to you on some points so as to remind you, because of the grace given to me by God 16 to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles. I serve the gospel of God like a priest, so that the offering of the Gentiles may become acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit. 17 So I boast in Christ Jesus about the things that pertain to God. 18 For I will not dare to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in order to bring about the obedience of the Gentiles, by word and deed, 19 in the power of signs and wonders, in the power of the Spirit of God. So from Jerusalem even as far as Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ. 20 And in this way I desire to preach where Christ has not been named, so as not to build on another person\rquote s foundation, 21 but as it is written: \ldblquote\i Those who were not told about him will see, and those who have not heard will understand.\i0\rdblquote 22 This is the reason I was often hindered from coming to you. 23LVAL` But now there is nothing more to keep me in these regions, and I have for many years desired to come to you 24 when I go to Spain. For I hope to visit you when I pass through and that you will help me on my journey there, after I have enjoyed your company for a while. 25 But now I go to Jerusalem to minister to the saints. 26 For Macedonia and Achaia are pleased to make some contribution for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem. 27 For they were pleased to do this, and indeed they are indebted to the Jerusalem saints. For if the Gentiles have shared in their spiritual things, they are obligated also to minister to them in material things. 28 Therefore after I have completed this and have safely delivered this bounty to them, I will set out for Spain by way of you, 29 and I know that when I come to you I will come in the fullness of Christ\rquote s blessing. 30 Now I urge you, brothers and sisters, through our Lord Jesus Christ and through the love of the Spirit, to join fervently with me in prayer to God on my behalf. 31 Pray that I may be rescued from those who are disobedient in Judea and that my ministry in Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints, 32 so that by God\rquote s will I may come to you with joy and be refreshed in your company. 33 Now may the God of peace be with all of you. Amen (\cf2\ul Rom_15:14-33\cf3\ulnone ).\par When Paul wrote his Epistle to the Romans, he wrote to saints who lived in a place Paul had never yet visited, and thus where he had never preached. He wrote with apostolic authority to a church that he did not establish. From the final chapter of Romans, it is clear, however, that Paul was well acquainted with a number of people who lived there at the time of its writing. These were people for whom Paul prayed individually and frequently, in addition to his prayers for the church corporately. Paul informed these folks that he greatly rejoiced over their salvation and subsequent growth in the faith. He told them that he had wanted to come visit them for some time, buLVALat had not yet been able to do so. \par Paul had a plan in mind, a plan that God was soon to revise. His plan, as stated in Romans 15, was to proceed to Jerusalem, where he would present the contribution from the Gentile churches to the (Jewish) leaders of the church in Jerusalem. He then intended to make his way to Rome, where he would spend some time with them, before being sent on his way by them to Spain. He asked the saints in Rome to pray that his ministry to those in Jerusalem might be well received, that he might be delivered from those who opposed him and the gospel, and that he might come to them to be refreshed by them. \par Paul\rquote s travel plans remind me of the vacation plans my family had when I was in my teens. We were going to take a trip to Montana, where we would camp in Glacier National Park using a tent and equipment borrowed from my aunt. From Glacier Park, we planned to proceed to visit some of our relatives in Montana. I still have the picture of our family, posing in front of our tent, joyful and optimistic, ready for our first night of camping. A few hours later, it became a very different scene. A mountain storm blew in, with lightning and rain. No one had told us about facing our tent in the right direction, or about pitching it on high ground. And so when the rains poured down, they came in the tent door, and as the water gathered, we found ourselves in an inch or more of water. Our sleeping bags were soaking wet, and we were all wet and muddy. My brother sang \i Jesus Loves Me\i0 at the top of his lungs, and although this gave us comfort, it did not make us warm or dry. Hurriedly, we wadded up the tent and our sleeping bags and stuffed them into the trunk of our car. We made our way to a motel, where we cleaned up and spent the remainder of the night. When we arrived at our relatives\rquote home, it was not the way we had expected. We were a mess!\par That\rquote s rather the way it was with Paul\rquote s trip to Rome. He had hoped for a warm welcome in Jerusalem LVALband then a leisurely trip to Rome. He looked forward to a time of fellowship and refreshment there in Rome, before he set out for Spain. He was eager to preach the gospel in Rome, as well as to minister to the saints who were there. He anticipated being refreshed as they ministered to him as well. Paul did get to Rome, but in a very different way. His trip to Rome was anything but peaceful and enjoyable.\par All of this did not come as a complete surprise. When Paul was converted on the road to Damascus, it was revealed to him through Ananias that he would preach to many, including kings, but this would involve considerable suffering for him as well. \ldblquote 15 But the Lord said to him, \lquote Go, because this man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before Gentiles and kings and the people of Israel. 16 For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name\rquote\rdblquote (\cf2\ul Act_9:15-16\cf3\ulnone ).\par During Paul\rquote s stay at Ephesus, he determined to press on to Jerusalem, and from there to make his way toward Rome: \ldblquote Now after all these things had taken place, Paul resolved to go to Jerusalem, passing through Macedonia and Achaia. He said, \lquote After I have been there, I must also see Rome\rquote\rdblquote (\cf2\ul Act_19:21\cf3\ulnone ). It was not long, however, before the Holy Spirit began to reveal to Paul and to others what this trip to Jerusalem would entail:\par 22 And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem without knowing what will happen to me there, 23 except that the Holy Spirit warns me in town after town that imprisonment and persecutions are waiting for me. 24 But I do not consider my life worth anything to myself, so that I may finish my task and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the good news of God\rquote s grace (\cf2\ul Act_20:22-24\cf3\ulnone ).\par 10 While we remained there for a number of days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. 11 He came to us, took Paul\rquote s belLVALct, tied his own hands and feet with it, and said, \ldblquote The Holy Spirit says this: \lquote This is the way the Jews in Jerusalem will tie up the man whose belt this is, and will hand him over to the Gentiles.\rquote\rdblquote 12 When we heard this, both we and the local people begged him not to go up to Jerusalem. 13 Then Paul replied, \ldblquote What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be tied up, but even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.\rdblquote 14 Because he could not be persuaded, we said no more except, \ldblquote The Lord\rquote s will be done\rdblquote (\cf2\ul Act_21:10-14\cf3\ulnone ; see also verse 4). \par When Paul arrived in Jerusalem, the leaders of the church in Jerusalem welcomed him. Paul reported to them how God had brought many Gentiles to faith in Jesus. They reminded Paul about the multitude of Jews who had come to faith, and that these believers were still committed to keeping the law. These Jewish brethren had been told that Paul was teaching the Jews who lived among the Gentiles to forsake the law. In order to preserve peace and unity, the elders of the church in Jerusalem proposed a plan of action, which would show those who were skeptical that he had not forsaken his Jewish roots. They counseled Paul to take four of the Jewish young men who were under a vow, and to purify himself and offer sacrifices, along with them, paying their expenses as well as his own. This way, they reasoned, all would see that Paul was still a \ldblquote practicing Jew,\rdblquote while at the same time knowing that Gentiles were not obliged to do so (see \cf2\ul Act_17:21-25\cf3\ulnone ). \par It was not a bad idea. In theory, it would accomplish what they hoped for\emdash it would put to rest the fears that Paul was completely forsaking his Jewish roots. But God had other plans. When Paul accompanied these men to the temple, some Asian Jews who had come there to worship saw Paul and recognized him. Apparently these men had come to LVALdknow Paul while he, and they, were in Asia. I am assuming that these folks were unbelievers, who were opposed to Paul and to the gospel he preached. When they saw Paul in the temple, they hastily jumped to a false conclusion. Having seen Trophimus the Ephesian (a Gentile) with Paul in the city of Jerusalem, they assumed that he was also with Paul in the temple. From the false assumption that Paul had taken Trophimus with him into the temple, they went on to announce to their Jewish brethren that Paul was seeking to turn Jews from Judaism. Ironically, the false charges they made against Paul were very similar to those made against our Lord (\cf2\ul Luk_23:2-5\cf3\ulnone ) and against Stephen (\cf2\ul Act_6:12-14\cf3\ulnone ).\par The Jews were convinced that Paul had desecrated the temple and began to beat him, fully intending to kill him. Had someone not summoned the Roman soldiers, Paul would have been killed. When the Roman troops brought the crowds under control, Paul asked the commander if he could address the mob that had gathered. When he shared the testimony of his conversion, the people listened intently until he spoke these words:\par 21 Then he said to me, \lquote Go, because I will send you far away to the Gentiles.\rquote\rdblquote 22 The crowd was listening to him until he said this. Then they raised their voices and shouted, \ldblquote Away with this man from the earth! For he should not be allowed to live!\rdblquote (\cf2\ul Act_22:21-22\cf3\ulnone ). \par The Roman commander decided to let the Jewish religious leaders handle this situation, and so Paul was brought before the Sanhedrin. It did not take Paul very long to determine that he would receive no justice from this body, and so he cried out that he was a Pharisee who believed in the resurrection of the dead (\cf2\ul Act_23:6\cf3\ulnone ). This divided the Sanhedrin, which was made up of Pharisees, who also believed in the resurrection of the dead, and Sadducees, who did not (23:7-9). A great debate brought this distinguishedLVALe body to blows, so that the commander had to rescue Paul from their grasp and place him in the barracks for safekeeping.\par That night Paul was visited by the Lord in a vision: \ldblquote The following night the Lord stood near Paul and said, \lquote Have courage, for just as you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome\rquote\rdblquote (\cf2\ul Act_23:11\cf3\ulnone ). \par Surely this was a divine assurance that Paul\rquote s life would not be taken in Jerusalem, and that he would surely journey on to Rome, where he would testify to the saving grace of God in the person of Jesus Christ. I take it also from the \b\ldblquote just as\rdblquote\b0 of this assurance that Paul is being informed that his ministry in Rome will be resisted, just as he was opposed in Jerusalem. He will testify of Jesus Christ in Rome, but accompanied by suffering.\par Providentially, Paul\rquote s nephew learned of a plot to kill his uncle. This plot was reported to the Roman commanding officer who, acting promptly and decisively, sent Paul under heavy guard by night to Caesarea. Here, Paul was to remain two years before he was finally sent on to Rome. It is possible that Paul\rquote s correspondence with the Philippians was actually penned during this time, but I am still more inclined to think that it was from Rome that Paul wrote Philippians. Here in Caesarea, Paul had the opportunity to proclaim the gospel to Felix, and to Festus, his successor. Both men sought to avoid pronouncing a verdict, wishing to appease the Jewish leaders, and in the case of Felix, hoping to receive a bribe from Paul (\cf2\ul Act_24:26\cf3\ulnone ). When Festus sought to persuade Paul to return to Jerusalem, to stand trial there, Paul felt he was forced to appeal to Caesar. He knew all too well that the Jews in Jerusalem intended to kill him on his way back to Jerusalem.\par Festus had no choice but to grant Paul\rquote s appeal. He had one very serious problem, however\emdash he had no formal charge against PauLVALfl. How could he possibly send Paul to stand trial before Caesar without specifying any charge against him? Festus was greatly relieved when King (Herod) Agrippa and his wife Bernice arrived in Caesarea. They knew more about Jewish law and culture; surely they could help him arrive at some kind of charge. It was yet another opportunity for Paul to give his testimony and to proclaim the gospel.\par Finally, Paul was sent to Rome, but this journey was not without its difficulties. Paul was taken aboard a ship that was carrying a number of other prisoners. The centurion in charge was named Junius, and over time, he came to respect Paul\rquote s judgment. The storm season was approaching as they came to a place called Fair Havens. Paul urged the captain of the ship and the centurion to winter there and not to attempt sailing any farther. He warned that pressing on might very well bring about great loss and perhaps even the loss of life. The ship\rquote s captain wanted to go on a little farther, to a port better suited for wintering, and he managed to persuade the centurion to press on to the next port. As there was a moderate wind at the moment, going on did not seem that dangerous, and so they put out to sea, hugging the shore of Crete.\par A great storm rushed down on the ship, and they were completely powerless. They simply allowed the storm to blow them where it would, casting cargo and even hardware overboard to lighten the ship and keep it afloat. Everyone but Paul had lost hope of surviving this storm. Paul informed his shipmates that God had assured him that he would stand before Caesar, and so everyone on board would be saved, though the ship would be lost. Paul urged everyone to eat to gain strength for what was ahead. Then, the ship ran aground, but in the end all were saved. Not only was Paul the hero of the day for his courage and leadership at this time of danger, he also survived a deadly snake bite and healed many on the island of Malta where they had run aground. By the time Paul reacheLVALgd Rome, he was both a prisoner and a hero. His plans to visit Rome had been realized, but in a way that he would never have imagined.\par For some (in Rome, and elsewhere), this change in plans might have raised questions about Paul and about his qualifications for ministry. Were some embarrassed by the fact that Paul was a prisoner, waiting to stand trial before Caesar? Were some tempted to keep a low profile so far as proclaiming the gospel was concerned? Did some conclude that Paul\rquote s imprisonment was a serious blow to the advance of the gospel? Our text in Paul\rquote s Epistle to the Philippians lays such fears to rest. Indeed, his circumstances did not hinder the gospel at all; his circumstances served to advance the cause of Christ. In the early verses of Philippians, Paul tells us how this came about.\par \cf1\fs36 Paul\rquote s Joy at the Advance of the Gospel \line (1:12)\par \cf3\fs24 I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that my situation has actually turned out to advance the gospel. \par We must admit that being arrested does not usually enhance the status of a person, and particularly a preacher. His situation in Rome might have shaken the faith of some who had become believers in Christ through Paul\rquote s preaching, or who had been taught by the apostle. His enemies and the enemies of the gospel would surely use this to oppose Paul and the gospel he declared and defended. Even some who were jealous of Paul might have used his incarceration to discredit him and to enhance their own status. Verses 12-18 set the record straight. They inform us how Paul\rquote s situation actually enhanced the cause of the gospel. They also inform us of Paul\rquote s response to adversity and abuse, even when it came from fellow believers.\par \cf1\fs36 Paul\rquote s Circumstances and His Prison Guards \line (1:13)\par \cf3\fs24 The results of this are that the whole imperial guard and everyone else knows that I am in prison for the sake of Christ.\par I can tell you from a number of yeLVALhars of experience in prison ministry that there is no one more cynical about a prisoner\rquote s innocence than a prison guard. In their experience, almost no one on the inside thinks they deserve to be there. They also watch inmates \ldblquote using\rdblquote religion for self-serving reasons. They \ldblquote meet Jesus at the gate,\rdblquote and they leave Him there \ldblquote at the gate\rdblquote when they leave. And even during their time in prison, many \ldblquote talk the talk\rdblquote in chapel, and fail to \ldblquote walk the walk\rdblquote in their cell. I\rquote ve watched a prison guard explode, shaking his finger in an inmate\rquote s face, telling him what a hypocrite he is.\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [18]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 \par Paul tells the Philippians that even the most cynical and hardened group\emdash the imperial guard and many others\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [19]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24\emdash has come to realize that Paul is no \ldblquote hardened criminal\rdblquote or \ldblquote revolutionary,\rdblquote as he was charged by the Jewish religious leaders. Surely word of Paul\rquote s conduct\emdash in Jerusalem, in Caesarea, and on board the ill-fated ship\emdash had circulated widely among the imperial guard. They must have taken note of Paul\rquote s prayer life in prison and of those who came to visit him. If his confinement was anything like prison life today, all of his correspondence would have been read. From Paul\rquote s words here, we know that most of the guards realized the charges against him were trumped up and that the issue was really a religious one. From Paul\rquote s later words, we also know that some of those who had contact with Paul in prison came to faith in Christ: \ldblquote Give greetings to all the saints in Christ Jesus. The brothers with me here send greetings. 22\b \b0 All the saints greet you, especially those from the emperor\rquote s household\rdblquote (\cf2\ul Php_4:21-22\cf3\ulnone ).\par Certainly Paul\rquote s \ldblquote good reputation\rdbLVALilquote among the imperial guard and by those who dealt with him enhanced his stature, and thus enhanced the gospel that he proclaimed. Paul\rquote s imprisonment had not damaged his testimony among those who did not believe in Christ; Paul\rquote s imprisonment enhanced his standing in the eyes of unbelievers, and paved the way for the proclamation of the gospel to them.\par \cf1\fs36 Paul\rquote s Circumstances Encouraged \line Christians to Evangelize \line (1:14)\par \cf3\fs24 And that most of the brothers, having confidence in the Lord because of my imprisonment,\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [20]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 now more than ever dare to speak the word without fear. \par After I graduated from college, I was a schoolteacher. The way I responded to one student had a great impact on the rest. If a student failed to give a good answer to a question, I could have responded with some very critical and harsh words of rebuke. But if I did, I can tell you that very few hands would have been raised when I asked additional questions. On the other hand, if I responded to a student\rquote s remarks in a very encouraging manner, the other members of the class would be encouraged to attempt to answer my next question. \par It is very easy to see how Paul\rquote s incarceration could have silenced some saints. And even those who persisted in speaking openly of their faith might have been tempted to choose their words more carefully, so as not to be as direct in their declaration of the gospel. Paul\rquote s courage in the midst of his suffering for Christ and the gospel encouraged other saints to be bold in their faith as well. \par \cf1\fs36 Paul\rquote s Attitude Toward Self-Serving Saints \line (1:15-18)\par \cf3\fs24 15 Some, to be sure, are preaching Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from goodwill. 16 The latter do so from love because they know that I am placed here for the defense of the gospel. 17 The former proclaim Christ from selfish ambition, not sincerely, because they think they can cauLVALjse trouble for me in my imprisonment. 18 What is the result? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is being proclaimed, and in this I rejoice.\par Paul has given us a very general picture of the outcome of his incarceration: (1) the unbelievers with whom he has come in contact have discerned that Paul is not a criminal, and that the issues are religious, not legal; and, (2) that by and large the believers who have been affected by his incarceration have been encouraged to proclaim the gospel more boldly. When one gets into the details of this second outcome, the picture is not quite as pretty as we might wish. Paul divides the second category of true believers into two further categories: (a) those who preach Christ out of love and goodwill toward Paul; and, (b) those who preach the gospel but are motivated by envy and rivalry toward Paul.\par Those in the first group genuinely love and appreciate Paul. A number of them may have come to faith in Christ through Paul\rquote s ministry to them. If this were so, they, like many of those at Philippi, would proudly embrace and endorse Paul, not \ldblquote in spite of his status\rdblquote but because he was a \ldblquote prisoner for Christ.\rdblquote They understood that the charges against Paul came from unbelieving Jews who hated the gospel and Paul, and that the real issue here was Paul\rquote s freedom as a Roman citizen to proclaim the gospel.\par Paul\rquote s actions in his day would be something like appealing his case to the Supreme Court in our own times. Suppose, for example, that enemies of the gospel were able to pass a law that forbade preaching the gospel in any public meeting (this would include preaching the gospel in church on a Sunday morning). Paul would undoubtedly have preached the gospel in a very public way, and then would have been arrested for breaking this law. Paul would have appealed his case all the way to the Supreme Court, not just for his own sake, but for the sake of the gospel. In this way, thLVALke law forbidding the preaching of the gospel would be tested by the high court, and hopefully it would be declared unconstitutional.\par We should remember that when Paul was illegally beaten and thrown into prison in Philippi, the Philippian jailor and his family came to faith, perhaps along with others. But when the authorities sent word the next morning that Paul and Silas were to be released, Paul refused to leave prison without the authorities coming to the prison in person, acknowledging that they had broken the law by the way they had dealt with Paul and Silas. This was not a petty matter of pride on Paul\rquote s part; it was his way of protecting the freedom of others to preach the gospel in Philippi. \par Paul\rquote s appeal to Caesar was rightly understood by many of the saints as Paul\rquote s way of defending the gospel. In my opinion, he was not defending the purity of the gospel (as he was in his Epistle to the Galatians, for example), but rather he was defending the freedom to proclaim the gospel. Those who loved Paul were encouraged by his boldness and courage, and prompted to proclaim Christ with greater boldness.\par There were others, however, who were not so noble minded. It is primarily these folks whom Paul has in mind in verses 15-18. I believe it is this group of folks who are most misunderstood by Christians today. We need to carefully define this group and to distinguish them from others, with whom they might be confused. Let me begin by pointing out what these folks are not: (a) They are not unbelievers. Unbelievers were dealt with in verse 13. These are \ldblquote brothers\rdblquote (verse 14). (b) They are not those who are accused of twisting or perverting the gospel. These are not said to be Judaisers or those who are diluting the gospel. They are said to \b\ldblquote proclaim Christ\rdblquote\b0 (verse 17). \par These are folks who \ldblquote preach Christ,\rdblquote but from impure motivation. They are hostile toward Paul, and they seek to add to his grief whiLVALlle in prison. They hope to gain at his expense, by accusing him of wrongdoing, adding to the number of those who follow them. I fear that they are seeking to regain some of their authority and prominence at Paul\rquote s expense.\par I think I have misunderstood this text for a long time, and I\rquote m just now beginning to understand why. Let me suggest two ways that the meaning of this text can be missed. \par \i First, we will err if we assume that the \b only\b0 motivation of these \b\ldblquote preachers\rdblquote\b0 is their \b\ldblquote envy and rivalry\rdblquote \b0 toward Paul.\i0 It has taken me a good while to see this, but I\rquote m convinced that although Paul chooses to focus only on the sinful attitudes of these folks, they have other motivations that are much more noble. It may be easier to make this point by calling your attention first to those who preach Christ from a pure motivation. These folks, Paul has written, preach\b \ldblquote from goodwill\rdblquote\b0 (verse 15), \b\ldblquote because they know that I am placed here for the defense of the gospel\rdblquote\b0 (verse 16). Paul speaks only of the attitudes of these \ldblquote godly preachers\rdblquote toward Paul. Surely we would agree that in addition to their goodwill toward Paul, these folks preached Christ because of their love for Christ, and their love for the lost. \par I am trying to say that very few of us act on the basis of a single motive. When we do most anything, we do it for a mixture of motives. For example, I am inclined to believe that Ananias and Sapphira were believers, and that they wanted to obey Christ by giving to the poor. They just did not want to give all of the proceeds of the sale of their land to the Lord. Thus, they were motivated, perhaps, by love for God and for man, but also by greed. Elsewhere Paul writes that the one who gives must do so \b\ldblquote with sincerity\rdblquote\b0 (\cf2\ul Rom_12:8\cf3\ulnone ). The KJV renders these words, \b\ldblquote with simplicity.\rdblquote\bLVALm0 A number of the translations emphasize generosity, and I think that is part of what Paul is saying. But I also think that the apostle is encouraging saints to act with a simplicity of motivation and not to act with mixed motives. How easy it is to give out of a genuine concern for the poor and a love for God, \i and\i0 the desire to be seen and recognized by others as generous.\par My point in all this is that I believe those who are preaching Christ from envy and rivalry are also preaching Christ because they love God and desire to see the lost saved. I am willing to believe that they wanted to be obedient to the Great Commission. In other words, their\b \ldblquote envy and rivalry\rdblquote \b0 was definitely a part of their motivation\emdash the bad part!\emdash but it was not their only motivation. It would be very difficult for me to think of anything I have ever done that was \ldblquote purely\rdblquote out of love for Christ, or out of a desire to obey His Word. Acting, no doubt, with a certain measure of godly motivation, these \ldblquote preachers\rdblquote have also acted out of ungodly motives. We might say that they have preached Christ \b\ldblquote in the flesh.\rdblquote\b0 \par \i Second, many Christians err in assuming that those who are in \ldblquote full-time Christian ministry\rdblquote cease to have fleshly desires and motivations.\b\i0 \b0 I believe that those to whom Paul referred were Christian leaders who were once threatened by Paul\rquote s popularity and influence from a distance, but who are now intimidated by his presence. Many Christians seem to think that this is not possible. As one who has been involved in full-time Christian ministry for a number of years, I am here to tell you that Christians who are \ldblquote in the ministry\rdblquote are just as selfish, just as jealous, and just as manipulative as Christians who are not paid for their ministry. Indeed, some Christians in the ministry are more jealous and power hungry than some unbelievers I know.\paLVALnr Over the years, I have watched young people in search of a \ldblquote significant ministry.\rdblquote Very often these folks look for employment in churches, in Christian educational institutions, and in parachurch ministries. And more often than I would wish to admit, these folks are badly disillusioned by their experience with such ministries. Until they saw it with their own eyes, they would never have believed that Christian leaders could be so jealous of others in ministry, so threatened by the success of others, and so manipulative and vindictive. Two nationally known speakers at a Bible conference may find it almost impossible to get along with each other, because of rivalry and competition. One speaker may lose his credibility, not because of his speaking, but because he can\rquote t lose on the tennis courts or the golf course. Those of you who are in Christian ministry know that I am not exaggerating, and that what I am saying is true. Some of the most disillusioned people I know are those who were badly \ldblquote burned\rdblquote by Christian ministry, or by those in Christian ministry. \par \~Let me be painfully blunt by using a very specific illustration. In the recent past, it became known that Chuck Swindoll had consented to serve as the next president of Dallas Theological Seminary. It was obvious that in order to maintain his excellent radio ministry he would have to continue preaching on a regular basis. Finally, it was announced that Chuck Swindoll would plant a church in the Dallas area. (To his credit, I believe that he did everything possible to avoid sheep-stealing and doing damage to existing churches and their ministries. He chose to start a church as far removed as possible from existing Bible churches, and in a rapidly growing suburb as far to the north of Dallas as possible.) We would be na\'efve to think that every pastor in the Dallas area responded like this:\par \ldblquote Praise God! A wonderfully gifted preacher is coming to Dallas. What a blessing it will be LVALoto our city. How grateful to God I am that he is coming! I\rquote m going to pray for Chuck, for his health, for physical strength, and for many new converts through his ministry.\rdblquote\par I am sure that there are many noble-minded pastors in Dallas who responded this way, but I am just as convinced that a disturbing number did not. If one is jealous of or threatened by Chuck Swindoll\rquote s success, it will almost never be couched in honest terms like this: \ldblquote I\rquote m jealous of Chuck Swindoll and his success, and I regret his decision to come to Dallas. Indeed, I\rquote m going to do all I can to discredit him and his ministry.\rdblquote Instead, it will be \ldblquote pietized,\rdblquote so that our jealous criticism is camouflaged as \ldblquote concern for pure doctrine,\rdblquote or \ldblquote contending for the faith.\rdblquote We will look for failures in his personal life, in his ministry, or in his methods. We will listen for rumors, and accept them as true. And when we hear of anything negative, we will be sure to let others know, \ldblquote for their edification,\rdblquote or as \ldblquote a matter for prayer,\rdblquote of course.\par I have to say that as I look back over my own ministry, I wonder how much of my criticism of other men and of other ministries was motivated (at least in part) by my own jealousy and ambition. I wonder how many church splits and how many doctrinal battles were really a matter of men\rquote s egos, rather than of a love for the truth. It\rquote s a sobering thought, but if we believe that the heart of man \b\ldblquote is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked\rdblquote\b0 (\cf2\ul Jer_17:9\cf3\ulnone ), it should not surprise us.\par What I have said above paves the way for my understanding of Paul\rquote s words in our text and of the circumstances he is describing. The church at Rome had been established through the preaching of men other than Paul, men who are not even named in the New Testament. From many miles away, PaLVALpul wrote his Epistle to the Romans, the definitive and authoritative declaration of the gospel, with special emphasis on the relationship between Jews and Gentiles in the gospel. Paul mentions his desire to come to Rome and to have a successful ministry there. \par Surely some of those who had established themselves as leaders in the church at Rome were threatened by Paul\rquote s announcement that he was planning on coming to Rome. If these men were those who first preached the gospel in Rome, and also the ones who founded the church in Rome, then they would have been tempted to feel that they \ldblquote owned\rdblquote this church. They would have been tempted to look on Paul as an intruder. They knew that when he came, many of the Roman saints would seek his counsel and would ask his opinion on matters of importance. These were some of the very ones who used to rely heavily on the advice and counsel of the church\rquote s founding fathers. It would take great humility for them to welcome Paul and to be willing to step aside from their dominant role, at least for the time that Paul was in Rome. And now, to add insult to injury, Paul was a \ldblquote jail bird.\rdblquote The one to whom many would turn for leadership was actually awaiting trial, in a Roman prison (or at least in the custody of Rome).\par How opportune it was for such folks that Paul\rquote s arrival came about in a very different way. He did not arrive after a very effective ministry in Jerusalem. He did not come to Rome with an impressive entourage, received by Roman officials as an honored guest. He came as a prisoner to Rome, where he lived under house arrest for two years (\cf2\ul Act_28:16\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Act_28:30-31\cf3\ulnone ). He could not attend their church services nor fellowship with them in their homes. Can\rquote t you see how those who were jealous of Paul and threatened by him could put a \ldblquote spin\rdblquote on Paul\rquote s circumstances to make Paul look bad and to make themselves look good? \ldblqLVALquote Well,\rdblquote they might say with a pained expression, \ldblquote I wanted to believe the best about Paul, but now that it has come out that he is a trouble-maker, I think it is probably best for the church here to keep its distance from him. We don\rquote t want our testimony to be tainted by such a fellow.\rdblquote \par I would not be surprised at all if some of those who turned against Paul in this way were men to whom Paul had entrusted himself and had invested in them by discipling them. I wonder if any of these folks had actually come to faith through Paul\rquote s ministry? Those who have invested deeply in the lives of Christians who later turn against them can identify with the pain Paul must have suffered from such folks.\par How does Paul respond to this underhanded attack from those who know Christ, and who successfully preach Christ? Most of us would be greatly distressed, and perhaps even depressed by this kind of betrayal and opposition. We would probably spend a great deal of time and effort defending ourselves and exposing our opponents. Paul is not disposed to do this. He rejoices. He knows that God is in control. He knows that God will not allow the gospel to be defeated, whether that be by unbelievers who oppose it (for example, the unbelieving Jews who charged Paul with treason against Rome) or by those who profess and proclaim it (such as those who preached Christ with impure motives). He knew that while these folks \b\ldblquote meant it for evil,\rdblquote\b0 God \b\ldblquote meant it for good\rdblquote\b0 (see \cf2\ul Gen_50:20\cf3\ulnone ). Unbelievers were not deceived; they knew that the issue behind Paul\rquote s imprisonment was really the gospel. And regardless of their motivation, the gospel of Jesus Christ was being vigorously proclaimed. Paul was resolved to rejoice in the success of the gospel, even if it was at his expense.\par \cf1\fs36 Conclusion\par \cf3\fs24 I wish to conclude by pointing out three lessons: a lesson about man, a lesson about Paul,LVALr and a lesson about God.\par \i First, let us learn that redeemed men, even those who powerfully preach the gospel, are never completely free from fleshly and impure motivations.\i0 No one really wants to admit that when a classmate from seminary publishes a book that is widely acclaimed and becomes a best seller, he feels envious of his brother\rquote s success. He should rejoice in his brother\rquote s victory as his own, because both are members of Christ\rquote s body, the church. But instead, there is\emdash at least for a fraction of a moment\emdash a jealous thought. \par Too many Christians are disillusioned when they learn, much to their dismay, that even Christian leaders are prideful and arrogant, jealous, greedy, lustful, or manipulative. It is as though we wish to believe that Christian leaders have reached a plateau of spirituality that places them above the sinful lusts of the flesh. I am here to tell you that Christian leaders have no claim to sinless perfection. There are some Christian leaders who encourage others to think of them as living on a higher spiritual plane, and thus they do not wish to acknowledge their struggle with sin, and they do not wish to make themselves accountable to others. To be viewed (even though falsely) as more spiritual is to have power over others, who know they are not as spiritual as they ought to be. \par It isn\rquote t all the fault of those in leadership, either. We want to \ldblquote idolize\rdblquote our leaders, but this is wrong. Leaders are to be honored and respected, but not idolized. They are to be imitated, to the degree that they follow Christ; but they are not to be blindly followed, as though they were infallible. This is why the New Testament church was (and is to be) led by a plurality of elders, rather than by one man. This is why every elder is to be subject to the other elders. Let us not be deceived as to the fallibility of those in positions of Christian leadership.\par I must say one more thing about leaders and their strugLVALsgles with the flesh. Just because I have said we should \i expect\i0 leaders to struggle with sin, I have not in any way implied that we should \i accept\i0 sin in the life of a leader, or anyone else. No leader should be exempt from being accountable to others or be considered above rebuke. I have known of too many cases of blatant sin in the lives of leaders which were not dealt with because it was assumed that leaders are untouchable, so far as rebuke and correction are concerned. The Bible does lay down very clear guidelines regarding accusations against leaders (see \cf2\ul 1Ti_5:19-20\cf3\ulnone ), but this is to make sure that leaders are not frivolously accused of wrongdoing.\par \i Second, let us learn from our text that Paul did not allow adversity to rob him of his joy in the Lord.\b\i0 \b0 There are times in my own life when I realize that I am \ldblquote down in the dumps,\rdblquote discouraged or depressed. And when I seek to discover the source of my lack of joy, I often find that it is caused by some rather trivial matter. In Paul\rquote s case, it was no trivial matter that brought about his incarceration; he was falsely accused by his unbelieving Jewish opponents, and even by fellow-saints. One might think that Paul had good reason to be discouraged, but he was not! Paul was deeply joyful and resolutely determined to continue to be so. He would not allow his circumstances to rob him of his joy. \par How can this be? How can Paul remain joyful in such adversity? It all boils down to Paul\rquote s priorities. What is it that Paul most desires, and in which he finds his delight? It is the advance of the gospel, even if that requires sacrifice and suffering on his part. Paul\rquote s joy is not in being popular and being considered a great leader; it is in the proclamation of the gospel, the salvation of lost souls, and the growth of Christians. \par The secret to Paul\rquote s joy was having the right goal. Let me illustrate. Suppose that a man plays a game of golf with his frienLVALtds, and after 18 holes of golf learns that this round of golf resulted in the worst score of his life. If this man\rquote s goal was \ldblquote winning,\rdblquote then he would go home discouraged and disappointed, because he failed to achieve his goal. But suppose that this man\rquote s goal was to enjoy the companionship of his golfing partners or to share the gospel with them. If this man achieved his goal, then it would not matter to him whether he won or lost the game. In fact, if doing poorly provided an opening for him to share his faith, he would rejoice in his failure. \par This is the way it was with Paul. His goal was not to be admired by everyone or to achieve great fame. He goal was not to live a life of freedom and self-indulgence. His goal was to proclaim the gospel to as many lost sinners as possible. His goal, as indicated by God at the time of his conversion, was to preach the gospel to Gentile kings, as well as to the Jews (see \cf2\ul Act_9:15\cf3\ulnone ). That goal was being achieved at the expense of his ease and freedom and self-indulgence, but it was being achieved. Paul was filled with joy in our text because the gospel was being proclaimed, and lost sinners were being saved. Paul gladly sacrificed his \ldblquote image\rdblquote as well as his comfort for the cause of the gospel. \par Put differently, Paul would not be robbed of his joy because he looked at his life and ministry as his Savior did. In short, Paul had \b\ldblquote the mind of Christ.\rdblquote\b0 As we shall soon read in Philippians 2, our Lord was willing to set aside the pleasures of living in the presence of His Father in heaven, so that lost sinners might be saved. As our Lord was willing to suffer, that men might be saved, so was the Apostle Paul. And as the salvation of lost sinners brings joy to our Lord, even though it was at great personal sacrifice to the Savior, so it was with Paul.\par Thanks to a friend, I came across this quotation by Jean Nicolas Grou (1731-1803): \ldblquote The chief pang LVALuof most trials is not so much the actual suffering itself as our own spirit of resistance to it.\rdblquote\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [21]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 \par I believe it would be proper to turn this excellent statement around, in a way that would explain the joy of the apostle Paul: \ldblquote The Christian\rquote s joy in the midst of trials is not to be found in the suffering itself (which would be mere masochism), but in the privilege of taking part in the good ends God has foreordained to come about through these trials.\rdblquote\par In our day, when self-indulgence is rampant, what are you and I willing to joyfully forsake for the sake of the gospel?\par \i Third, our text instructs us that in the outworking of His purposes, God is not limited to the rightly-motivated, perfectly-executed acts of sinless saints.\b\i0 \b0 I cannot number the times I have heard it said or implied that God can only use people with pure hearts and godly lives to achieve His purposes. It is assumed that those who are most successful in ministry are those who are most spiritual. This is very similar to the legalistic assumption of the Jews of Jesus\rquote day that those who are rich are the most spiritual, and that those who suffer most are the greatest sinners (see \cf2\ul Luk_13:1-5\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Luk_16:14-31\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Joh_9:1-3\cf3\ulnone ). It is the same mindset that we see in the Corinthian church, where the possession or practice of certain spiritual gifts was viewed as proof of greater piety. Let me remind you that God brought great glory to Himself through the opposition of Pharaoh, the heathen king of Egypt, who refused to heed the words of God through Moses to let the Israelites leave Egypt (see \cf2\ul Rom_9:17\cf3\ulnone ). It was through the cruel betrayal of Joseph by his brothers that God\rquote s purposes for Israel were furthered (see \cf2\ul Gen_50:20\cf3\ulnone ). God can use what wicked men intend for \b\ldblquote evil\rdblquote\b0 to accomplish \b\ldblquote good.\rdblquotLVALve\b0 It was partly through the disobedience of Jonah that salvation came to the sailors on board that ship headed for Tarshish (Jonah 1), and to the people of Nineveh. It was through Balaam that God blessed Israel and revealed the prophecy of the coming of Messiah (Numbers 22-24). It was through the opposition of the Jews to our Lord that God brought about the atoning work of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary.\par I am so grateful that God\rquote s purposes are not thwarted by my failures, and that God can use even my failures to bring about good, in my life, and for others. In no way should this be misinterpreted to mean that it doesn\rquote t matter whether one sins or not. There are serious and painful consequences for sin; there is a price to be paid for disobedience. But my sin will not prevent even one of God\rquote s promises from being fulfilled. God is glorified not only by the obedience of His saints, but also by the ways He sovereignly transforms our failures to fulfill His purposes. David committed two great sins in his life: (1) he committed adultery with Bathsheba and killed Uriah her husband (2 Samuel 11); and, (2) he numbered the people of Israel against God\rquote s instructions (1 Chronicles 21). These were terrible sins, and both David and the nation suffered because of them. But in spite of this, God turned these \ldblquote evils\rdblquote into good. It was through Bathsheba that the Davidic (and thus the messianic) line would continue.\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [22]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 It was due to the numbering of the Israelites that the land on which the temple was built was purchased (2 Samuel 24).\par \~Praise God that we serve a God Who is greater than all our sins. He is never thwarted by our sins, and often God glorifies Himself and brings about our \b\ldblquote good\rdblquote\b0 by using the \b\ldblquote evil\rdblquote\b0 of men to achieve His purposes. How foolish it is to resist Him. What joy there is in serving Him! Have you trusted in the death, burial, and resurLVALwrection of Jesus Christ? I pray that you have, and if you have not, I pray that you will acknowledge your sin, and your desperate need for His forgiveness through the shed blood of Jesus Christ, which brings the forgiveness of sins and the certainty of eternal life with Him.\par \pard\kerning36\f2\fs22 -----------------------\par \par \pard\sb100\sa100\cf0\kerning0\super\f1\fs20 [17]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 The reader should recognize that I am assuming that Paul was imprisoned in Rome, as many students of the Bible do.\~ There are those who think Paul was imprisoned elsewhere (Caesarea, Ephesus, or even Corinth), but I don\rquote t find their arguments for this view to be compelling.\~ The next most likely place of writing other than Rome would be Caesarea, the place where Paul was imprisoned for two years before he appealed to Caesar (see \cf2\ul Act_24:27\cf3\ulnone ). \par \cf0\super\f1\fs20 [18]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 Gratefully, there are also those who have truly come to faith in prison, and their lives are different.\~ At the beginning of an in-prison seminar, I\rquote ve seen men who would not lift their eyes to meet yours.\~ As some of these men come to grasp the grace of God in Jesus Christ, their eyes lift, and they look you in the face with joy and gratitude.\~ For those who have never experienced serving Christ in prison ministry, I would encourage you to consider this wonderful opportunity to serve our Lord \ldblquote on the inside.\rdblquote\par \cf0\super\f1\fs20 [19]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 I think we can safely assume that Paul\rquote s words, \b\ldblquote and everyone else,\rdblquote\b0 in verse 13 does not mean \ldblquote everyone without exception,\rdblquote but rather, \ldblquote many others.\rdblquote \par \cf0\super\f1\fs20 [20]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 The NASB differs here, rendering instead, \b\ldblquote trusting in the Lord because of my imprisonment.\rdblquote\b0\~ If this is the right rendering, then Paul is indicating that those who love and support him are al LVAL so those who have come to faith through his imprisonment. Either way, while Paul is indicating that some saints, from pure motives, are preaching Christ more boldly, his main emphasis falls on those who are preaching from less than noble motives.\par \cf0\super\f1\fs20 [21]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 Jean Nicolas Grou, \i The Hidden Life of the Soul, \i0 cited by Christian Quotations of the Day, April 1, 2000, {\field{\*\fldinst{HYPERLINK "http://www.gospelcom.net/cqod/cqod0004.htm"}}{\fldrslt{\ul\cf4 http://www.gospelcom.net/cqod/cqod0004.htm}}}\f0\fs24 .\par \cf0\super\f1\fs20 [22]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 That is to say, the heir to David\rquote s throne was Solomon, the offspring of David and Bathsheba.\par \pard\kerning36\f2\fs22\par } LVAL4y{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fswiss\fprq2\fcharset0 Arial;}{\f1\froman\fprq2\fcharset0 Times New Roman;}{\f2\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red51\green102\blue102;\red0\green128\blue0;\red0\green0\blue0;\red0\green0\blue255;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sb100\sa100\cf1\lang1033\kerning36\f0\fs36 Lesson 5: Paul\rquote s Perspective on Life and Death \line (\cf2\ul Php_1:18\cf1\ulnone b-26)\par \kerning0 Introduction\par \cf3\fs24 I am going to do something that I have never done before in more than 25 years of preaching. I am going to dedicate this message to a woman who knows far more than I the meaning and the comfort of Paul\rquote s words in our text. I dedicate this message to Kathie Keathley, who from the founding of the Biblical Studies Foundation has been responsible for preparing thousands of manuscripts for the Biblical Studies Foundation website.\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [23]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 Hundreds of these messages have been my sermons from the past 20 years or more. Kathie and her husband Hampton have diligently labored to provide quality materials for students of the Scriptures. At this moment, she appears to be in the final days of her sojourn on this earth, rejoicing in her Savior, and looking forward to being in His presence for all eternity.\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [24]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 To Kathie and Hampton Keathley, the words of Paul in our text beautifully describe the hope and the joy that the Christian should experience in the face of death. May their comfort be yours as well, as you consider the truths of this great text.\par In the providence of God, today is Easter Sunday, and no text could be any more appropriate to Easter and the resurrection than \cf2\ul Php_1:18-26\cf3\ulnone . If this is not a resurrection passage, I don\rquote t know what is. Paul\rquote s perspective on life and death is founded upon the bedrock certainty of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and from that, the certainty that all tLVALzhe dead will be raised\emdash some to eternal life, and some to eternal torment.\par From what we read in \cf2\ul Rom_15:22-33\cf3\ulnone , we know Paul had long hoped to visit the saints in Rome. This was a city he had not yet visited; it was a church he had not even planted. Nevertheless, Paul knew a number of the saints in Rome, and he knew about many others. He prayed for them by name, and he wrote one of his finest epistles to the church in Rome, the Epistle to the Romans. Paul hoped to visit Rome soon after he completed his ministry to the saints in Judea. He was taking a gift from the Gentile churches to the saints in Jerusalem, who were in great need at the time. Paul knew the dangers involved in returning to Jerusalem, but he hoped for a favorable reception by the saints. He also hoped that those who opposed the gospel would not be successful this time. Paul hoped to visit Rome, to encourage the saints there, and then to press on to places where the gospel had not yet been proclaimed.\par Paul did make it to Rome, but in a very different way than he had expected. He arrived in the custody of Roman soldiers, and he was not free to travel about. He was confined in some form of incarceration because he was a prisoner, awaiting trial before Caesar. The Jews in Jerusalem had falsely accused him of treason against Rome. After months of waiting, Paul was virtually forced to appeal to Caesar, and after various difficulties, he arrived in Rome, under house arrest. The Philippian saints had stood behind Paul from the beginning, and they were most interested to hear from the apostle how he was faring in the midst of his incarceration. \par In verses 12-18a, Paul described his response to his present circumstances. His guards and those who came into contact with him had watched Paul closely. If anyone were to look upon Paul\rquote s arrest and trial with cynicism, it would be these prison guards. (\ldblquote Sure, Paul was innocent, just like every other prisoner they had worked with.\rdblquote ) EvenLVAL{ though many of them were unbelievers, they realized that Paul was no criminal. They seemed to grasp the fact that the real issue was the gospel itself, and Paul\rquote s freedom to preach about Jesus Christ. Believers, too, were impacted by Paul\rquote s circumstances. They were motivated to proclaim Christ much more boldly. Not all the Christians who preached Christ were prompted by pure motives, however. Some were jealous of Paul and sought to capitalize on his troubles. They used Paul\rquote s incarceration as an opportunity to question Paul\rquote s character, and perhaps to gain a larger following for themselves. Paul did not waste his time or energies agonizing about such innuendoes or allegations. Paul\rquote s great desire was for the progress of the gospel, and whether rightly motivated or not, the gospel was being proclaimed and advanced. And because of this, Paul rejoiced.\par But what of the future? While the gospel was making great progress, Paul was imprisoned, soon to go on trial before Caesar, and his future was cause for great concern\emdash for some perhaps, but not for Paul. After Paul presented his case to Caesar, he could be found guilty, and if so, he would be executed. He might also be declared innocent and set free. The mere possibility of death would be enough to send some into a deep despair. In the last part of verse 18, Paul takes up the subject of his outlook on the future. Paul would not only rejoice about his present circumstances, he will now tell us why he is able to rejoice in his future, whether that be life, or death. Let us look carefully at the words of our text and see why Paul has such great joy.\par \cf1\fs36 An Uncertain Future, But Certain Joy \line (1:18b-20)\par \cf3\fs24 18 What is the result? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is being proclaimed, and in this I rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice, 19 for I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayers and the support of the Spirit of Jesus CLVAL|hrist. 20 My confident hope is that I will in no way be ashamed but that with complete boldness, even now as always, Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or death. \par I found Gordon Fee\rquote s translation of verses 18-20 fascinating and very enlightening:\par For I know that through your prayers and God\rquote s supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ \lquote this shall turn out [as with Job] to mean vindication for me,\rquote which will also be in keeping with my earnest expectation and hope, namely, that in no way will I be brought to shame, but rather that with all openness/boldness\emdash as always so now\emdash Christ will be magnified in my \lquote body,\rquote whether I am released or executed.\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [25]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24\par Paul is joyful because he is certain that his present and future circumstances will turn out for his deliverance. The question we must ask and answer is, \ldblquote What does Paul mean by deliverance?\rdblquote As a concordance search will indicate, this word can refer specifically to one\rquote s salvation (\cf2\ul Act_4:12\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Act_13:26\cf3\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Act_47:16\cf3\ulnone :17; \cf2\ul Rom_1:16\cf3\ulnone ), but it is also used with a broader meaning of \ldblquote deliverance\rdblquote or \ldblquote rescue\rdblquote (\cf2\ul Act_7:25\cf3\ulnone ), or \ldblquote preservation\rdblquote (\cf2\ul Act_27:34\cf3\ulnone ). From what Paul will say in verses 20-26, we know that the meaning of the word must be broad enough to encompass anything from his release from prison (due to a verdict of \ldblquote innocent\rdblquote ) to his release from this life, by his execution. \par The key to understanding Paul\rquote s words is (as Fee suggested above) to be found in the Book of Job. We need to understand that the phrase, \b\ldblquote this will turn out for my deliverance,\rdblquote\b0 in \cf2\ul Php_1:19\cf3\ulnone is identical with Job\rquote s words in Job 13:\par 12 Your maxims are proverbs of ashes; your defenseLVAL}s are defenses of clay. 13 Refrain from talking with me so that may speak; then let come upon me what may. 14 Why do I put myself in jeopardy, and take my life in my hands? 15 If he slays me, I will hope in him; I will surely defend my ways to his face! 16 Moreover, \b this will become my deliverance\b0 , for no godless person would come before him. 17 Listen carefully to my words; let your ears be attentive to my explanation. 18 See now, I have prepared my case; I know that I am right. 19 Who will contend with me? If so, I will be silent and die (\cf2\ul Job_13:12-19\cf3\ulnone , emphasis mine). \par This is no accident! Paul intended for his readers to understand that his choice of words was deliberate. He purposely chose to employ the very words of Job, because they applied to his own situation as well. Think about it for just a moment. Job was a righteous man, whose suffering was not due to his sin, but because of his piety (see Job 1 and 2). God was demonstrating to Satan that the righteous worship Him because of who He is, and not simply because God blesses them. Job\rquote s friends then came along and accused him of wrongdoing. In various ways, they told Job that his suffering was the result of his sin, and if he would confess his sin and forsake it, God would once again bless him with prosperity.\par In the context of Job 13, Zophar has taken up accusing Job of sin (\cf2\ul Job_11:1-20\cf3\ulnone ), and in chapter 13, Job responds to Zophar. I wanted to be sure that I was right in assuming Paul was claiming that his suffering, like Job\rquote s, was innocent, and that his accusers were wrong. I consulted one of my old and favorite works, \i Explore the Book\i0 , by J. Sidlow Baxter. Listen to what Baxter has to say about Zophar:\par Zophar is less courteous and more drastic than either Eliphaz or Bildad.\'85 Zophar, like the other two, has his distinguishing feature. Eliphaz, as we have seen, bases his view on observation and experience. Bildad rests on tradition. But Zophar is content witLVAL~h mere ASSUMPTION.\'85 He is the pure dogmatist. From beginning to end of his speeches there is not a semblance of \i reasoning\i0 .\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [26]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 \par Baxter then goes on to say:\par \'85 All these three men are committed to what is substantially the same fixed theory of life, namely, that calamity is always the direct outcome of sin, and that the Divine favour or disfavour is indicated by a man\rquote s material prosperity or adversity. . . They all want to prove that goodness and wickedness are always rewarded and punished \i in this present life\i0 : they are all silent concerning human destiny and Divine retribution in a life beyond this present one. Their philosophy and doctrine have no horizon beyond this earth.\cf0\super\f1\fs20 [27]\cf3\nosupersub\f0\fs24 \par Job\rquote s response to Zophar (and the others) might be paraphrased this way:\par Your accusations that I have sinned and need to confess are empty and without grounds. Be quiet and let me speak. I am ready to face whatever comes my way. Why do I put myself at risk as I do? Because I have entrusted my life and my eternal destiny to God. If He chooses to take my life, that will be fine with me because I believe that I will stand justified before Him. I believe that my circumstances will turn out for my deliverance, whatever form that may take. Ultimately I will stand before Him without fear. And so you had better listen to me, instead of urging me to heed your words. My own defense is clear in my mind, so that no man may shake me with his accusations. If need be, I will willingly die (\cf2\ul Job_13:12-19\cf3\ulnone , my paraphrase).\par Now, with Job\rquote s situation and response in mind, let us consider how Paul meant for us to see his response to his circumstances and his accusers. In \cf2\ul Php_1:12-18\cf3\ulnone , Paul wrote about his present circumstances and the various responses others had to his incarceration. He said that even cynical guards had come to see that the real issue was notLVAL an offense against the state, but the offense taken by the Jews, because of the gospel Paul preached. Most of the saints were encouraged by Paul\rquote s boldness in proclaiming the faith, and in the advance of the gospel. But some, sad to say, had used Paul\rquote s suffering as a pretext for accusing him of wrongdoing. Are these folks not just like Job\rquote s \b\ldblquote friends,\rdblquote\b0 who accused him of wrongdoing? \par Paul chose his words very wisely when he borrowed from Job\rquote s own words of defense. Like Job, he knew that he was not guilty of wrongdoing. Like Job, he was ready to die, if necessary. Like Job, Paul was ready and willing to stand before Him and make his defense. Like Job, he knew that somehow God was going to make his circumstances turn out for his deliverance. In the end (if not in time), he would be vindicated, and his enemies would be silenced. In the end, God\rquote s purposes and promises would be accomplished through his innocent suffering.\par I believe Paul is clear in verse 19 that his \b\ldblquote deliverance\rdblquote\b0 is not his spiritual salvation, but rather his vindication. I say this because Paul\rquote s salvation was not dependent upon the prayers of the saints. He was saved, once for all. The prayers of the saints and the support of the Holy Spirit were those things that strengthened him in his times of adversity, and which gave him courage to stand firm for the gospel. And because of this, he would not be ashamed when he stood before God. His goal was to glorify God in his body, whether this was by life or by death (\cf2\ul Php_1:20\cf3\ulnone ).\par \cf1\fs36 Death: Friend, Not Foe\fs22 \line (1\fs36 :21-24)\par \cf3\fs24 21 For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. 22 Now if I am to go on living in the body, this will mean productive work for me; yet I don\rquote t know what I prefer: 23 I feel torn between the two, because I have a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far, 24 but it is more vital for your saLVALke that I remain in the body.\par Paul\rquote s statement in verse 20 leads to the words of verse 21, which is surely Paul\rquote s life motto, and the key to his boundless joy, even in the face of death. Verse 21 is probably one of the most well known verses of all Paul\rquote s writings. I fear, however, that like \cf2\ul Joh_3:16\cf3\ulnone , it may not be well understood, even though it is well known. For many years, I read Paul\rquote s words in verse 21 something like this: \ldblquote For to me to be able to live is wonderful, And to die will be better.\rdblquote I have now come to see it in a different way. Allow me to explain.\par I want to first of all show you a picture of what I am about to say. This can be done by thinking of God\rquote s blessings as two circles. The first circle represents the blessings we have in Christ, now, in this present life. The second circle represents the blessings we have in Christ, which we will only receive in eternity, after this life is over:\par Earthly Blessings Heavenly Blessings\par Christians don\rquote t differ over the fact that we have these blessings, but they do differ greatly over the relationship between these two blessings. There are some who believe that these two circles almost overlap, something like an eclipse:\par \pard\sb100\sa100\qc\f1 [Image of two circles overlapping]\par \pard\sb100\sa100\f0 Many sincere Christians believe that most of heaven\rquote s blessings are intended for us to enjoy now, if we but have the faith to claim them. We know that in heaven there will be no sin, but some saints believe in sinless perfection now. We know that in heaven there will be no sickness, sorrow, or death, but some believe that if they have enough faith, they will be healed of their illnesses now. In short, some folks believe that because there will be no suffering in heaven, there should not be any suffer