A Heart for Christian Ministry

Good morning if you have your bibles open them up to Phil 1.

I have titled the message this morning A Heart for Christian Ministry.

As I was studying this week I really found the words in Phil 1:3-8 really powerful, especially as one who gets to pastor a group of people, In fact as I examined the text I began to see really the heart Paul has for these people. In each and every letter Paul writes he is writing to a group of people in a specific town or certain persons as we see in a few of his letters.

Remember last week we were introduced to a few of these people he was writing to. in fact they are people who have been changed by the very God that changed Paul, and as he writes this introduction to this letter he stirred me to think about my own heart for ministry, and why I do this in the first place, and things that I may be missing in my own life that are causing me to not be the minister I want to be and what we can learn personally from this text I believe is really powerful. and I want to quickly read to you our section of text today then I want to walk you through our main Idea and several points to support that today.

So our text today says this…

Philippians 1:3–8 ESV

3 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. 6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. 7 It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. 8 For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus.

What a powerful text, and as I was coming up with the main Idea for the text, I really wrestled with this one this week with how I wanted to word it, and after writing it down a few different ways. I came up with this as a conclusion for the main idea for us today..

A heart for Christian ministry has many defining characteristics.

In fact I would argue that there are many more than just the text provides today, but I think any ministry we have should reflect these points I am giving you. In fact they are vital to having a healthy spiritual life, that is fruitful. Paul as we have learned really cares about these people. He wants them to know that very thing. And he is writing specifically to them things he desires that very church to know. He knows what is going on, he knows their needs, and through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit he has something to say.

And the way he ministers to them in this introduction is so beautiful it really shows them the fact that he truly cares deeply about them in fact everything he is about to tell them, they should really know, but he first wants to remind them his heart towards them. You all are probably familiar with the quote by Theodore Roosevelt, “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” These people know Paul care’s for them and he is reminding them of that very thing. AS a pastor I look at this text thinking about how much I deeply care for you, and hope you know that very thing, and Ill touch more on that as we go along.

But what is important to see through is what the apostle Paul is saying truly is flowing from a heart for Christian ministry.

As you are taking notes today the first thing I want you to take note of is this.

A heart for christian ministry is thankful.

Paul starts out this introduction with a reminder how thankful he is to God. And he is thankful to God for a few reasons. 1 He is thankful for God’s grace. He is thankful for the fact that God in his great love for Paul saved him, changed him radically to be a follower of Jesus Christ. Not only did he change Paul, but he gave the apostle Paul one of the most important ministries of all time. Including a ministry to the people in Philippi which as we saw he had a unique connection with him.

And he has remained connected to them throughout the years, one of the reasons is because they have been extremely generous to Paul.

If you recall last weeks message I read to you the fact that Paul was well taken care of by these people, Remember what Paul said in Phil 4:18-19

Philippians 4:18–19 ESV

18 I have received full payment, and more. I am well supplied, having received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God. 19 And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

And he has a thankful heart because of the grace of God, and these people who he knows personally very well.

I would argue today that Christians are not thankful enough in fact living here in America we struggle with what it truly means to be thankful. Thankfulness was not a problem for Paul, and I believe that is one of the reasons he had much success in his ministry, and I am convinced a lack of thankfulness is why mine, and your ministry is not where it could be.

In fact I thought of it like this…

When you are thankful to God everything falls in it’s proper place. X2

When you read Pauls writing you get constant reminders of his thankfulness, and how that impacts his own ministry.

As I was thinking about this I decided to google some things about thankfulness and stumbled across something I thought was really good and helpful.

In the article the author says many wonderful things but specifically this stood out to me… The more thankfulness is present in us, the less vulnerable we are to sin. That’s why the Bible talks so much about thanksgiving. Thankful people have set their eyes on God (Hebrews 12:2), recognizing to some degree how much grace we are receiving right now (2 Corinthians 9:8), trusting him to cover all our sin and work our painful past for good (Romans 8:28), and looking to him for all we need tomorrow and into eternity (Philippians 4:19). Souls that learn to be content in God “in whatever situation” (Philippians 4:11) are souls that are the least vulnerable to temptation, particularly covetous temptations.

Are you a thankful person, and are you like Paul using that thankfulness as a key part of your ministry. Paul had so much to be thankful for and he shared it with others , and I believe if we leaned into being more thankful to God. Than we would be more ready for the ministry God has for us. And not only that we would lean into that thankfulness when sin and temptation comes our way.

And I believe that thankfulness ties into another thing in the text which I want to highlight as our second point, and that is this.

A heart for Christian ministry is joyful.

There is a nice acronym I discovered this week describing joy. Jesus, Others, and yourself. And I think this describes the kind of Joy Paul truly had. His joy was much about Jesus, and others, and that flowed into his own personal life. And let me tell you something friends Paul had this great joy.

Remember he is writing this from prison and you would never know unless he told you in the text, because his heart did not depend on his circumstances, but on who he was in Christ.

he was more concerned about the welfare of his brothers and sisters in Christ than his own situation.

When joy is rooted in things that change its not surprising when it comes and goes, but when our joy is in the unchanging work of Christ it cannot be moved.

And it was his joy that every prayer he ever had for them reminded him of how much joy the people of Philippi brought him.

It was a true joy just to pray for these people, because of everything he has been through with them, and everything they have given him.

Anyone ever struggle with joy? If you do you have set your joy in something other than Jesus. Because my biggest problem when I don’t have the joy is because I let something exceed the joy that comes from Christ.

The greatest distraction we have from the enemy today is all this stuff we have in this world. This world sucks the joy out of you if you let it. Because this world comes at you in some many different ways, and with so many temptations that take your heart away from Jesus. and if you are not careful it can happen quickly in your life.

And if your joy is in something else its going to shift as fast as the wind does.

And if you are in a season where joy is far from you sometimes you just need to preach the gospel to yourself. Remind yourself how good Jesus is.

One man I was reading this week says this… Stop listening to what your culture says you need. Dwell in God’s Word daily, don’t neglect meeting with the saints regularly, and sings songs of praise constantly all in a spirit of prayer. Know the joy of prayer.

and I would add to that know the joy of having a relationship with the savior of the world.

And if we are going to do that we are also going to have to thank God for the people he gives us, and pray for them just like Paul did with joy, and if we are going to be people who minister faithfully we have to be thankful, and we have to be joyful. It should come naturally to us because of how good God truly is.

and a thing that helps us stay thankful, and joyful, is our next point, and that is this…

A Heart for Christian ministry is cooperative.

Did you know no matter how great a Christian you are or how powerful your story may be, you can’t do ministry alone. Verses three through 6 are really one large sentence, that tie so well together and Paul says right.. Phil 1:3-5

Philippians 1:3–5 ESV

3 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.

He is praying with thankfulness with joy, because of this partnership he has with these people. Charles Spurgeon himself says.. The apostle longed to spread the gospel; so did they. He was earnest to carry it to the regions beyond; so were they. If he preached, they would be there to encourage him. If he held special meetings, they were ready to help. If money was required, every man was ready according to his means, without pressing. Each one felt as earnest about the work as did his minister. They were enthusiastic for the furtherance of the gospel. They were heartily with him where he most valued their sympathy.

These are great church members that is why it was easy to pray for them. They believed in the mission of Paul, and they went along with him in his journey. We need people to believe in the mission, just like the church of Philippi did.

What should make the church so different than other places is the fact that we love and care deeply about one another. Centered around that fact that we become more like Jesus bought into his mission. We are ourselves cooperate with other churches, with other associations.

In fact you should know of four. First we belong to the Union association. Who’s director Preston Collins prays for us I believe like Paul does for the Philippians, the association has helped us as a church in a few ways, and without that partnership I would not be the pastor here, and when we are able we get to bless that association as well.

Secondly we belong to the Oklahoma Baptist convention who’s president Todd Fisher, and regional director Brett Selby prays for us, helps me be a better pastor.

Third we belong to Souther Baptist convention who we share common convictions with as well as common mission to reach people with the gospel.

Finally, we belong to a ministry alliance of other churches in this city who get together and pray and encourage one another to do the work of ministry.

I say all this because cooperation is a key of Christian ministry, and we should have a heart for it, because seeing other churches and other associations doing well benefits not only us but more importantly the kingdom of God.

And all these things we have talked about so far like being thankful, joyful, and cooperative are key to the next point which is this..

A heart for Christian ministry is confident.

One man said delightful confidence is the crowning joy of the Christian life. I have quoted verse 6 a few times in my preaching the last few years… because it holds so much weight and in this context its powerful.

Because he says I am thanking God for everything that has happened this includes when I was thrown in Jail, when I was beaten, when I was mocked, and you were with me, and you have helped me through it all, and I believe because of who God is he is going to finish the work he has started in you.

Friends if you read your bible you should know God is not one to start something and not finish it, we are good at that, I am good at that, but Gods plan always work’s itself out including your own salvation. now we will touch on sanctification as we make our way through this book, but I am convinced that sanctification only happens, because the promise of glorification in the believers life.

For the people at Philippi this would be an encouraging truth that everything that has happened up it to this point is leading to a finished product.

I have read much about this verse, its often cited when you talk about the perseverance of the saints, or the term once saved always saved, and the truth of this verse allows me to know that there is meaning in everything in this life.

I pondered a few peoples statements this week for awhile, wondering if it would be beneficial to share them and I found Spurgeons take on this verse is powerful, he says.. God did not begin the work in any man’s soul without due deliberation and counsel. From all eternity He knew the circumstances in which that man would be placed, though He foresaw the hardness of the human heart and the fickleness of human love. If then He deemed it wise to begin, how can it be supposed that He shall change and amend His resolve? Yet some would persuade us that this great work of the salvation of souls is begun by God, and then deserted and left incomplete, and that there will be spirits lost forever upon whom the Holy Ghost once exerted His sanctifying power, for whom the Redeemer shed His precious blood, and whom the eternal Father once looked upon with eyes of complacent love. I believe no such thing. No, where the Lord begins He will complete. If He puts His hand to any work, He will not stay until the work is done. There is a world of argument in the quiet words that the apostle uses. He is confident, knowing what he does of the character of God, that He who has begun a good work in His saints will perform it until the day of Christ.

Spurgeons thought’s led me to think about the redemptive plan of Jesus Christ. When God sought and chose Mary to bring about the Savior of the world Jesus Christ, and how he did not just cause the child to be born as a virgin, but God in fact carried out the mission his entire life, living the perfect life so that he could be a pleasing and acceptable sacrifice to God on behalf of his people. If he started and finished the word through his Son we should be confident that the one who died for us will make sure he finishes a good work in us.

God began’s a good work in us as believers in Christ we should be confident that he will finish it.

Spurgion would go on to add these words. So Paul said to himself, “This is the finger of God; the Lord himself has begun this work.” Did not Paul begin it? No, for if he had begun it he would have to carry it on; that could not be. Did not they begin it themselves? Certainly not. Does the sinner take the first step? How can he? He is dead in sin. If he takes the first step apart from the Spirit of God, he can take all the rest without God.

Paul though a great man of God knew God was going to be the driving agent to save these people from the beginning to the end.

Spurgion says one more thing.. The work of grace has its root in the divine goodness of the Father, it is planted by the self-denying goodness of the Son, and it is daily watered by the goodness of the Holy Spirit. It springs from good and leads to good, and so is altogether good. The apostle calls it a “work” and, in the deepest sense, it is indeed a work to convert a soul.

Essentially he is saying in verse 6. God started it he is going finish it. You have to know this if you are a Christian.

Church family if he has started something in you know he is going to finish it, and be confident in that. Knowing that he is going to finish a good work in you and that is going to change everything about you life, im serious everything. Its not like the rest of our life where things are so uncertain though we should know God has it under control as well. I can’t tell you what will happen in your life if you are a Christian, but I can tell you what is going to happen at the end of it. and let us respond to that truth with Thanksgiving, joy, and cooperation. Like Paul, and the people of Philippi did.

One last point today and its this…

A heart for Christian Ministry is loving.

Let me read to you again verse 7 and 8.

Philippians 1:7–8 ESV

7 It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. 8 For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus.

These two verse’s are awesome as a pastor, and im sure for you all as well. He is ministering to real people in this letter people whom he lived life with for a time, people whom he saw the Lord save, people whom he is praying for. Don’t you think Paul’s prayer is more than Heavenly Father I am praying for the people at Philippi who helped me on my journeys, and have giving me joy because they have worked along side of me, and you are doing a great work in them that you will finish, I pray this in Jesus name.

Its more than that its loving those people, whom did ministry with them. Church family I love for you guys.. You are in my heart during response time and throughout the week I pray for you, and your family by name knowing the struggles you and they have, how some are far from God, far from church, Paul has a love for these people. Just like I have a love for you.

He loves them and holds them in a special place in their heart because not only has he walked along side them, they walked along side of them. Effective ministry is a two way Street I or another pastor could pour into you all the time through preaching prayer a relationship , but if you are not willing to be like the Philippian church and partner up with the pastor and be commited to his church it isn’t going to work.

These people were so commited to Paul, and the work he had they even ministered to him when he was in chains. I am not asking you to be that commited to me, but I am asking you to be that commited to Jesus And his bride the church.

Now I will say they were commited to Paul, because they were commited to Jesus. In fact they were so commited that they defended the gospel when Paul was not there.

If you have a loving heart for ministry you should be commited to defending the gospel when your pastor isn’t around or is some cases when your daddy or mommy is not around or your spouse in not around. Because you love Jesus that much.

What Paul loved about this church is whether he was there, in prison or our ministering in another place they defended and lived out the gospel, because they had a heart for ministry just like Paul do you? do you?

If you are missing one of those things we talked about ask yourself why? Self examination is key in the Christian life.

Maybe today you are missing all of them because you are not saved. The truth is you can possess many of these characteristics and not know the Lord.

But the good news is today you can ask the same question the jailer asked last week, and that was sir what must i do to be saved? and I will tell you the same thing Paul told him, Repent, turn away from your sin and believe in Jesus Christ as Lord.

Let us pray…