When A Set-Back Isn't

Introduction

Something to process around what seems like a hinderance is really and an advancement of something important and worthwhile any inconvenience or hardship.

STORY/ILLUSTRATION OF THIS… Joseph

There are things that happen to us, to those we love, that in the moment are difficult to process and understand. But we serve a God (the God of the resurrection) that takes lives and circumstances involving those lives and resurrects them , what others might intend for evil, God can use for good.

If you have your Bibles or on your devices, would you stand with me as I read our text this morning… Philippians 1:12-18a.

This is the word of the Lord… let us pray. Amen… please be seated.

Thoughts: In three subsections between 12-30… there is a difficult/painful dilemma that Paul faces.

1. His imprisonment… chains (mentioned 3x)

2. Character maligning

3. His suffering and the suffering of the church

But it all has its center on vs 18… Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice.

Chains of irony

Philippians 1:12-13 “Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel. As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ.”

vs. 12, “actually/rather,” Paul tells the Philippians how things have turned out the opposite of what one might expect or perhaps of what the Philippians did expect, in this case the advancement of the gospel “rather” than its being stifled.

Not just did the gospel advanced but it went through out palace guard… the word here is praetorian… Caesar’s elite guard. Paul is in chains, imprisoned, and often times that could mean that he is literally shackled to a praetorian soldier… Paul has a captive audience.

What a gift to have such an outlook. “We’re stuck here together… let’s talk”… “what are you in for, Paul… what did you do?”, Paul with a smile on his face… “I’m so glad you asked”

When we think of going to prison, we can think, “whelp, that was a good ride… no more I guess.” But God was at work even in the dark and difficult times. More on this later…

The person responsible for this surprising reversal is of course God

Witherington, B., III. (2011). Paul’s Letter to the Philippians: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary (p. 76). William B. Eerdmans Company.

Paul is actually prepping the church for what he’s about to write in the content of the letter.

We are all going to have difficult circumstances, what do we do with that?

Paul has already shared with them that he has them in his heart, that he wants and prays for them to abound in love and knowledge, to be purposeful in their thoughts, and seek to be aligned with God in their purposes and work. (last weeks message; Philippians 1:3-11)

He knows they are going to encounter hard things, so much so, he’s working them through His process with the hopes to prepare them and get them ready.

Much like I do when presenting a sermon or talk, you’ll notice that often times preachers will have a story or relay and experience that puts flesh on what is about to be talked about. It’s a concrete example as you get into propositions.

I sat under and served my pastor for 12 years before this responsibility was entrusted with me. That’s watching, asking questions, working through experiences, given opportunities, examining successes, examining failures, watching, learning… Paul is doing this through his letter to the Philippians… as we progress through the letter we’ll see that more and more.

The call for imitation was a standard part of ancient way of teaching, not only in the Greco-Roman world, but also in the Jewish world. The disciple was taught to imitate the ways of his master. But, more than this, “imitation was the glue that held together the social order in a harmonious whole.” Plutarch (the Greek philosopher), for example, reminds his more elite audience (in this case, politicians) that “since you are henceforth to live as on an open stage, educate your character and put it in order” (Moralia 800). In a world where only fifteen percent or so people were literate, teachers like Paul, with their call to learn by imitation, were normally seen as providing a person with a means of upward mobility. But what Paul, the servant of the Christ who himself took on the form of a servant, will argue is that the way down is the way up. The Philippians are called to imitate a well-educated apostle as he steps down to serve others for the sake of Christ and the progress of the gospel.

Witherington, B., III. (2011). Paul’s Letter to the Philippians: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary (p. 76). William B. Eerdmans Company.

Paul was giving his life as an example… just as he will point the church to look to Jesus… He is the example for everyone, including Paul.

A way we’ve talked about this in our current context is that we can be “Jesus with skin on” to those around us. It helps people see the tangible powerful work of God in each of our lives. It’s the fruit of that in our life that causes others to taste and experience that fruit, understanding the goodness of God.

Imitation leads to approximating the likeness of the person one imitates.

vs 13.

Chains are seen as binding, restrictive, and often curtail any sense of freedom. The irony being while Paul is chained, the gospel is set free among the Praetorian guard and in the household of Caesar itself.

His chains could easily be viewed as a tragic end to a brilliant career, a restriction of a gifted apostle, and an outrageous injustice against a Roman citizen. Instead of being led by his chains to a negative outlook, Paul used them to lead his guards to the knowledge of Christ. He valued his chains as evidence of his union with Christ. A captive audience.

vs 14.

In verse 14, Paul says that it has given courage to most people to bear witness. The verb is actually stronger than "encourage". It means "to be completely convinced". It seems that Paul's imprisonment has inspired others who are free to go out and spread the Good News. However, some opportunistic people have used Paul's confinement as an opportunity to make themselves more important in Christian circles. They may even see themselves as replacing Paul as a leader or suggesting that his ministry is coming to an end.

It’s not always a comfort that what we are going through helps others, but sometimes that little glimpse of good is helpful. It doesn’t justify or make right the situation, but it can be helpful. **If you are going through something and someone has helped/encouraged you by their witness/handling of a like situation, practice gratitude and let them know that their witness has helped you**

Character Maligned

Philippians 1:15-17 “It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. The latter do so out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains.”

vs. 15-16.

Markus Bockmuehl (theologian and professor at Oxford) that one likely reason Paul brings this up here, is that he “may also wish to set an example to his readers in Philippi of how to handle personal animosity within their own church.” This passage is meant to encourage the reader and set the stage for future examples in Philippians. Paul here “picks up the accusations of persuasive rhetoric: envy and rivalry, selfish ambition, sharply contrasted with those whose motivation is love.” The goal that Paul desires for the church is love… not envy, selfish ambition, and/or rivalry.

Finally, a little something should be said about the culture in Rome and elsewhere in the Greco-Roman world. Theologian Bruce Malina put it rather well:

In the first-century Mediterranean world, every social interaction that takes place outside one’s family or outside one’s circle of friends is perceived as a challenge to honor, a mutual attempt to acquire honor from one’s social equal. Because of these constant and steady cues in Mediterranean culture, anthropologists call it an agonistic culture. The word agon is Greek for an athletic contest or a contest between equals of any sort. What this means, then, is that the society we are considering is a society that looks on all social interactions outside the family or substitute family (circle of friends, in-group) as a contest for honor. Since honor and reputation, like all goods in life, are limited, then every social interaction of this type comes to be perceived as an affair of honor, a contest or game of honor, in which players are faced with wins, ties, and losses.

But Paul did not see gospel work as such a zero-sum game that if he gained honor by proclaiming, his so-called rivals lost it in the process.

V. 17 makes evident that what Paul is really focused on is the defense and confirmation of the gospel, not of himself, perhaps unlike his rivals who are striving for self-advancement.

Dr. Lynn Cohick of Houston Christian University, says this…

The rivalry conventions of the agonistic culture have clearly invaded the church in this case. “The robe of Christian ministry cloaks many a shameless idolatry.” But Paul will not be moved, even if his rivals seek to cause him distress and promote themselves at his expense. As long as the gospel is truly proclaimed, that is all that matters to Paul. It is not hard to imagine what the rivals could have been saying about Paul: “What sort of apostle is this who is imprisoned like someone who has committed a serious crime against the state?”

Paul has re-calibrated “success” to be the advancement of the gospel, not his own personal fame. This is evident in two ways. First, he is happy to let others preach the word; second, he is unconcerned when his own person or ministry is attacked.

May we all adopt such a heart and attitude.

Cohick, L. H. (2013). Philippians (T. Longman III & S. McKnight, Eds.; p. 50). Zondervan.

Illus: My dad took this attitude into business and did really well. He would say, “it doesn’t matter who gets the credit, what matters is the job gets done, gets done well, and the organization flourishes.”

Centered On The Main Thing

Philippians 1:18 “But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice.”

In v. 18 Paul makes a strong contrast between pretext (false motives) and truth. The word πρόφασις (prophasis) is used elsewhere in the NT, for example in Mark 12:40 and parallels, to refer to scholars who are hypocrites. They pretend to be doing something out of good ethical motives but are actually not doing so. Paul here is calling for something that has become a buzzword in our time: transparency, honesty about one’s motivations, and telling the truth. Paul comments elsewhere (2 Cor. 4:2), “We have renounced secret and shameful ways, we do not use deception, nor do we distort the Word of God. On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God” (cf. 1 Thess. 2:5).

Paul does not seem to be accusing his rivals of distorting God’s Word here, but is accusing them of lacking transparency about their motives.

Witherington, B., III. (2011). Paul’s Letter to the Philippians: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary (pp. 80–83). William B. Eerdmans Company.

Pastor Josh will unpack a little more the idea of suffering and Paul’s words to the church in Philippi.

The gospel must be truly proclaimed even if it results in more suffering… no matter what happens,

1. His imprisonment… chains (mentioned 3x)

2. Character maligning

3. His suffering and the suffering of the church

Paul will have joy in the work of God in Christ

Conclusion

We see three things that make this a powerful moment in Paul’s life and the witness of Paul in the life of the church.

Paul’s theology is in good order. He sees things from the divine perspective… not wishful thinking but this is deep conviction. God had worked out his own divine intentions through the death and resurrection of Christ, and that by his Spirit he is carrying them out in the world through the church, and therefore through both himself and others. It is not that Paul is too heavenly minded to be in touch with reality, or that he sees things through rosy-tinted glasses. Rather, he sees everything in light of the bigger picture; and in that bigger picture, fully emblazoned on our screen at Calvary, there is nothing that does not fit, even if it means suffering and death on the way to resurrection. God help us to have this vision.

Paul is a man of a single passion: Christ and the gospel. Both life and death mean Christ.

Paul’s passion for Jesus led him to an understanding in which he took up a cross to follow HIm. As he will tell the church a little later… we are meant to participate in the sufferings of Christ (3:10-11), to be ready to be poured out as a drink offering in ministry for the sake of others (2:17). In a moving image of a mother giving birth, Paul in Romans 8:22–23 points to labor as symbolic of a believer’s current situation. From the woman’s perspective, her labor and delivery are the necessary transition for the life within her to be welcomed as a life on its own. The struggle in labor becomes a metaphor for Paul of our own lives now. Believers are as the mother laboring to give birth; they too suffer as the new life of the Spirit is formed in them and as God’s kingdom is built through their faithful work. Paul sees in this everyday event a symbol of God’s pattern—suffering brings new life. Suffering is not alien to the gospel; it enters into the gospel itself. (For more on this, see commentary on 3:10.)

Once we embrace this difficult but necessary truth that suffering is part of the believer’s current lot and, even more, that such suffering connects us to Christ, we can begin to see our own circumstances with a similar subtlety

Cohick, L. H. (2013). Philippians (T. Longman III & S. McKnight, Eds.; p. 49). Zondervan.

Paul’s narrow but deep theology of Christ cultivates Christ’s heart in Paul. He is theologically narrow (knowing nothing but Christ and Him crucified) but this leads to a gigantic heart within his theological convictions. He understands that the Gospel is God’s not his, it’s something that God wants all to hear and believe. Others thought it was Paul’s ministry, Paul’s doing, but it was God’s all along.

May we be encouraged, wherever we find ourselves (in the difficult or in the good season), that we keep focused on Jesus. That are feet are quick to go where He is going. That we like Paul are able to be conformed to the image of Jesus…

There is provision for us church if we are suffering… suffering is not alien to the gospel; it enters in but it is not wasted, it has its perfect work… causing our heart to be with the Lord but also builds our heart and compassion towards others. May God grant us grace as we pursue Him in all that we do.