The Gospel Standard: Philippians 1:27-30

Good morning church. At this time I want to go ahead and dismiss our 2nd-5th graders. Our kids team is waiting for you in the back, and will walk you to your classrooms. And as a reminder parents, you will pick those kids up at the Wetlands Building. If you have any questions don’t hesititae to ask anybody with a lanyard.

But let’s go to the Lord in prayer together:

Introduction

Alright, you guys can go ahead and have a seat for me this morning. If you have your Bibles, go ahead and turn with me to Philippians 1.

When I was in 3rd or 4th grade, I leaned a lesson I’ll never forget.

I don’t have the faintest idea of what I was actually doing when I learned the lesson, but the “ah ha” moment has really stuck with me.

It was some type of school project and I was having to measure and cut some pieces of wood all to the same size.

So I grabbed the tape measure, marked a piece, and cut it to length.

Then I used that piece to measure the next one, and cut it.

Then I discarded the first, and used the 2nd to measure and cut the next one.

Then I discarded the 2nd, and used the 3rd to measure and cut the next one.

And I followed that pattern, until I had cut all 20 pieces or so.

And some of you know where I’m headed here, but by the end of all that work what did I have?

20 pieces that were of vastly different lengths from one another!

Why!? Because I used 19 different standards to make my cuts.

What I should have done instead, is cut the first piece to length and use THAT piece as my standard for all 20 pieces.

To have only one model, one standard as the only criteria.

Using a singular standard would have ensured way more accuracy in my board lengths.

Similar to my school project, when it comes to the manner of life for a Christian, we have way too many standards.

Let me give you just a few:

For a lot of us we look to one another to measure or evaluate our Christian Lives.

Other believers are our standard. And next to some we measure up, and against others we fall way short.

Or maybe you look to Christian Influencers.

Whatever Matt Chandler, or John Piper, or Andy Stanley, or my pastor growing up said or did

A lot of times it’s just our own concsiences. Right?

We measure our conduct by what feels okay, or not okay.

And finally, I think we use our own religious baggage or traditions as our standard.

For me growing up the standard was don’t drink, and save certain things for marraige. Do those things and you measure up. Fail, and you fall way short.

Even here at CBC, given some of the things we emphasize and value, you can easily take that emphasis and adopt them as standards.

Am I serving? Studying my Bible? Signed up for a group.

And listen, all of these things are good things, but should they be the standard that drives and dictates our behaviours as Christians?

The answer is no.

What we need is a single standard.

One cut from which we pattern all the others.

And that’s what we’re going to look at today!

So lets read our text, and what we’re going to find is that we need a Single Standard, to Stand Steadfast, even in the face of Suffering.

Standard, Stand Steadfast, even in Suffering.

Philippians 1:27–30 ESV

Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God. For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake, engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have.

Context

As we close out chapter 1, let me remind us all of a little context here.

The Apostle Paul is writing to the church in Philippi, the church that he helped plant in Acts 16, about 10 years prior to writing this letter.

And he’s writing from prison, with the outcome of death a very real possibility, and because of these circumstances the Philippian church was concerned for their beloved father in the faith.

So they dispatched one of their own, a man named Epaphroditus, to travel to Rome, provide Paul with some basic necessities, and check in on how he’s holding up.

And so he sends this brief, but beautiful letter back to Philippi with Epaphroditus, to quell some of their concerns, and at the same time share some concerns he has for them.

And in the 1st 26 verses he practically lets them know he’s fine. In fact, he tells them he’s more than fine.

That he’s actually rejoicing, because his imprisonment is promoting the gospel, and that his life and death will continue to be used to honor Christ.

But here in verse 27 the tenor changes.

Here Paul moves from informing the church as to his health to exhorting the church in their faith..

He shifts his focus off of himself, and begins to address the church there in Philippi.

And his specific concern was that they would use a single standard, and stand steadfast, even in the face of suffering.

So let’s begin by looking at the standard.

Single Standard

Philippians 1:27 “Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ,

There’s our standard. The Gospel of Christ.

And he says, “ONLY” meaning “above all” or “at all costs”.

Paul’s saying, all my exhortations, everything I’d like to say can be boiled down to this… live lives worthy of the Gospel.

Church, the Gospel should be the only standard, or criteria from which we measure the conduct of our lives.

The Gospel

In only 27 verses in Philippians we have seen the Gospel as the source of Paul’s thanksgivings,

the basis of their partnership,

The message preached by Paul’s imprisonment.

And the source of Paul’s irrational, joy given his circumstances.

And here in our text today Paul says the Gospel is also the standard.

So apparently, this Gospel thing is a big deal, and before we go any further we need to make sure we know what it is.

The Gospel is the greek word Evangelion which literally means “Good News”, and in the Bible, Gospel, always refers to the Good News of Salvation found in the person and work of Jesus Christ.

So it’s good news, but before good news is only good in light of the bad. so let me start with the bad news.

The Bad News

The bad news is that before Christ came, there was another measuring stick, another standard, and that was the Law of Moses.

And to sin, was to miss the mark, or to fall short of that standard.

And although people have tried with all their might, not a single person born of Adam has been able to follow it perfectly. And this is becuase in Adam we inherited a sin nature.

At the core of who we are, we aren’t inherently good, we try to think that we are but we’re not.

Why do we have to work so hard and tirelessly to teach our kids what is right and how to do right, when doing a whole bunch of wrong is their preprogrammed factory setting!

Now we can learn and do some good things, but there is always something in us that draws us away from God’s righteous requirements.

But you don’t need me to tell you that… just start becoming aware of your own consciences.

You’ll notice that you do the things you know you shouldn’t.

You’ll think the things you know you shouldn’t.

And at the same time, you struggle to do and think about the things you should.

Even if you’re totally ignorant of the law of moses, you know deep down you fall short of it, because as Romans 2:15 says, “The work of the law is actually written on all of our hearts.”

And consequently we know we fall way way short.

And that is all because of sin.

And we are all guilty.. Romans 3:23 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”

And the bad news gets worse, because the punishment for sin is death, because a HOLY, HOLY, HOLY God must in his righteousness and Justice condemn sin to death.

And death by definition is separation from God, who is the source of all life!

So we are separated from God now, and in our sin we will be seperated from God for all of eternity.

So that’s the Bad News. And it’s Bad News for everyone.

But that Bad News, has paved the way for some really Good News

And I want to explain the Good News by using two words found in the Law of Moses.

Atonement & Propitiation.

The Gospel as Atonement

Even in the Old Testament, God knew that no man, due to the sin nature, was going to be able to live up to His standards.

So in his mercy he offered ways of atonement.

Atonement simply means “To Cover”

When a person sinned, God provided some ways for their sin to be covered. And it was always a blood sacrifice or a payment of a certain amount.

So in Numbers 5:7-9 God says that if any man or woman commits any sins they can go to the priest, and they can buy a “Lamb of Atonement.”

And that Lamb can be killed as a substitute for the persons sin. Because the punishment for sin is death.

But having an atoning lamb serves as a substitute for your deserved death, and in that sacrifice your sins will be COVERED, or Atoned for.

But even with that gracious provision, you’d have to come back the next day, and the next day, and the next day, and the next day, actually, you’d probably need to come back the next hour or minute!

This is what Hebrews 10 tells us.

in fact… you just need to hang at the Temple because your thoughts are betraying you continually. Your sin nature destines you to repeat your sin, like a dog returning to its vomit.

We are stuck in the cycle of sin and consequently need for atonement.

So God, in his great love for you, made a way to break the cycle.

John 3:16 ““ God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

God sent Jesus Christ, who is not some common lamb, but a man born of a woman, yet who lived sinless.

He didn’t have a sin nature, and he never sinned. And yet that perfect, sinless man chose to be our Lamb of Atonement.

And he was killed as a substitute for the sin of all mankind.

And acceptance of his sacrifice will “Cover” your sins too.

So instead of death and separation from God being your present and future, it is now reconciliation to God in life and in death.

All because Jesus Covers your sins.

The Gospel is also the Good News of Propitiation

In 1 John 2:1–2 “But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.”

Propitation is the act by which God becomes “propitious”, meaning favorable toward those who have offended him.

Propitiation is the act by which God becomes favorable toward his offenders.

Church, your sin is offensive to God. Every thought, attitude, and action that fails to meet his standard offends him.

It angers him, and is fully deserving of His Wrath.

And it is a fearful thing to fall under his wrath.

So God provided a way for his Wrath to be appeased, and mankind once again be the object of his favor.

And that way is found in the Cross.

At the cross Jesus stood under God’s wrath.

And At the cross we stand under God’s favor.

John 3:16 ““For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

That’s the Gospel. That’s the Good News.

And Paul says, “Let your manner of life be worthy of the Gospel.”

Now, Paul is not suggesting that we we live lives worthy of EARNING THE GOSPEL.

No, no, no, he’s not suggesting we try harder to secure our forgiveness and the favor of God.

No he’s saying, “That because God went to such great lenghts, and paid such great costs for your forgivness and standing, than we should live in a way that recognizes and expresses gratitude for the Gospel!

We don’t earn acceptance before God, but rather out of our acceptance earned by Christ, we live.

That is our standard. The Gospel of Jesus Christ.

And he says, “Let your manner of life...”

Many of your footnotes may actually have a more accurate translation, at the bottom of my bible it says, “Only behave as citizens worthy of the Gospel.”

That’s the exact translation of the Greek.

And Paul’s audience in Philippi would have totally understood this!

Philippi was a Roman Colony. And they took pride in their Roman citizenship.

They dressed roman, spoke latin the roman language, governed the Roman way, and shared the common responsibilities.

And here Paul is saying, “The Gospel has made you citizens, but not of Rome, but of heaven… so act like it!”

In Heaven, love is the civil responsibility… so love.

In Heaven, forgiveness not vengeance drives justice… so forgive.

In Heaven, generosity not greed defines the citizesn… so give.

In Heaven, leadership is serving not self promotion... so serve.

And on and on and on. This is what Jesus came to do, establish the Kingdom of Heaven,

And Paul is saying, live as citizens of that Kingdom!

Paul saying, “Live as citizens worthy of the Gospel”… is actually a great summary of what we mean when we close with “Go and Be the Church.”

Somehow that has generated a lot of confusion over the last year and a half.

And we get all stiff and weird, and try to robotically fufill that charge by praying a little louder at lunch so that everybody knows you just went to church.

No… it means being enamored by God’s Love for you in the provision of Jesus Christ, and Going to live between now and next wake accordingly.

To let the Gospel be the standard that sets your week.

So when your in that meeting, you allow the Gospel to drive your attitude.

When your in your commute, you let the Gospel control your hand motions.

When your changing diapers, you let the Gospel motivate your compassion.

When your coaching youth sports, you let the Gospel be reflected in your tone and tenor and words.

You let the Gospel be the Standard that propels us to Go & Be the Church.

And he ends that thought saying Philippians 1:27 “ so that whether I come and see you or am absent...”

You remember being in elementary school and the teacher would step out into the hallway for a moment, and just pandemonium would ensue.

But as soon as she came back in we’d be so quiet you could hear a pen drop.

Paul’s saying, “Don’t be like that!” Don’t let the presence or absence of the Pastor be your standard.

Let the Gospel!

But, to live this way is going to be hard.

Because it’s going to be contray to the way the citizens of Rome think and behave.

And newsflash, it’s going to be contrary to way the citizens of America think and behave.

Consequently it’s going to be viewed as a threat to the Romans around them.

Just as it was 10 years earlier with the Philippian Romans beat and arrested Paul and said, Acts 16:21 “They advocate customs that are not lawful for us as Romans to accept or practice.””

Paul was persecuted because he was operating as a citizen of Heaven, contrary to the customs of Rome.

And Paul says, that’s probably going to be the fate of the church too.

Consequently, they will need to stand steadfast.

Stand Steadfast

Philippians 1:27–28 “Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, and not frightened in anything by your opponents....

Church a life lived according to the Gospel will be opposed.

Somehow we’ve conconted a picture of this lifestyle as some hidden, privatized internal mediatitve state… but that’s not the whole truth.

We may pray in the closet, not wanting to be seen by man, but we live in the public unto the Glory of God.

This isn’t a cloistered or monastic lifestyle, but one out in the open. Exposed & Vulnerable.

And as Luther penned, “This world, with devils filled, threaten to undo us!”

Therefore Paul says, we need to STAND FIRM.

Stand Firm

The greek here is a militaristic term. Picture a a soldier standing his post. Unwilling to budge or abandon his post.

Like the British Queen’s Guards. You’ve seen the videos right. They stand at post in their red cots, and big bushy hats, and tourists mock and clown all for some instagram likes.

But the guards, who are real military personnel with real guns and real bullets, stand their ground. Unwilling to budge.

That’s how we need to stand. Unintimidated. Steadfast.

And this Stance ya’ll, isn’t conjured or willed, but flows naturally from none other than our standard: The Gospel.

Romans 8:32 “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?”

If God is willing to go to such great lenghts to save us, then surely that will provide confidence that he will provide us all we need to live this out.

So The Gospel propels us to stand firm.

But we have to keep reading… because as Americans we are tempted to hear the exhortation to Stand Firm and try to accomplish that with our independent and individualistic operating system.

But this isn’t an individual matter, but a corporate one.

Philippians 1:27 “I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel,”

Paul’s addressing the church, the collective body of believers in Philppi, not just individual christians.

Church, we can’t miss this.

Standing Firm in lives that are worthy of the Gospel, requires a cooperative battling. We need each other.

But he says we need to stand firm together, in one spirit.

In Unity.

Now listen, this sense of uniformity doesn’t come from all of us possessing the same exact beliefs, behaviors, backgrounds, skin color, paychecks, stage of life, etc.

It’s a unity in the midst of great diversity.

It’s a unity accomplished by God, and set by the standard of the Gospel.

The beauty of the Gospel is that is that dividing lines of this world are broken down, as we prioritize being a citizen of another world.

So Romans 10:12 “For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him.”

Ephesians 4:4 “There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call—”

1 Corinthians 12:13 “For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.”

So we must individually fight to identify ourselves first and foremost by the Gospel of Grace, then we will be able to stand firm in one spirit, the Holy Spirit, collectively.

But he goes on and says, “in one spirit” & “with one mind”

The mind raises questions as to what we consider valuable and what constitutes our beliefs.

For far too long, the greater church has lived without this oneness of mind, and the world notices ya’ll.

Divided local churches have almost been accepted as the norm.

This ought not to be so.

But divisions come in because our standard of the gospel, the great unifer lessens, and our value for secondary beliefs replaces it.

We see this over music choice, carpet colors, and small group curriculum.

I love that people have preferences and belifs about these things, but are they gospel issues!? NO. Then they should never divide.

We see this over secondary doctrinal beliefs. Now I believe it’s important you find a church where you primarily align, as long as those doctrines can be found in Scripture,

But if you believe the gifts of the spirit have ceased, and the person next to you believes they haven’t. Is that reason to divide?

You’re a Post Millenial, and the person behind you is Pre Millenial, and others are Amillenial… debate! Have discussion and discourse, but don’t dare divide!

Because are these Gospel issues? NO.

Now, later in Phil 3:18 Paul will warn the church about false teachers who walk as enemies to the cross… which are enemies of the Gospel.

They will tolerate, and even promote sin, and if that’s the case! Run! Divide! Get out of there. Because that’s the enemy of the Gospel.

ANybody that preaches a different gospel may he be accursed!

But if the Gospel is Proclaimed, don’t divide.

We must let our standard, drive our stance.

The Gospel must promote One Spirit, and One Mind, so that… and go back to our text

Philippians 1:27–28 “ striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, and not frightened in anything by your opponents.”

We need to stand firm together, so that we can strive side by side for the faith of the Gospel.”

The Greek word picture here are once again soldiers, or gladiatoral athletes who stand shoulder to shoulder and advance one step at a time like the Spartans.

And the advance we take in unity, is for the advancement of the Gospel.

The unity we possess inwardly as the church, promotes the gospel outwardly to the world.

And doing it together gives us courage, so that we won’t be frigtened.

The word picture here is like a horse being startled.

Church, don’t panic. Don’t be startled by the roar of the prowling lion. Don’t be startled because the world is “going to hell in a handbasket” or because “they, never mind that we don’t know who we mean by they, but “they” are after our kids.

DUH. Jesus told us that plainly! John 15:18 ““If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you.”

2 Timothy 3:12 “Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,”

Of course the world is going to hate you. Of course the world is going to persecute your beliefs.

Don’t let that startle you though. Don’t run and bury your head in the sand. Don’t lock the doors, and throw away the keys. Don’t go into hiding.

Instead link arms with the Church of Jesus Christ and strive side by side to advance, not retreat, but advance!

And when you do Paul says, Philippians 1:28 “ This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God.”

Now this can be a confusing statement but it simply means,

that when the world sees the unified church living by the Gospel and living to advance the Gospel they will see the truthfulness of our message, and consequently their inevitable end which is destruction.

So our standard and our stance serve as a warning to the world to accept the Truth.

And a double blessing is that other believers will be encouraged, knowing that God has strengthed in them and our salvation is sure.

A church gripped by the Gospel, standing for Christ, standing for eternal things, enduring worldly loss and disrepute, shows the world the truthfulness of our message.

And Paul says, so don’t be frightened, stand firm.

But let me close by saying one more thing…

Philippians 1:29 “For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake,”

Our Suffering

WHAT!? Paul ends chapter 1 saying… Live according to the Standard, and Stand Firm in the Standard… because Christ has graciously granted you the privelege of suffering for his sake!

Most of us agree and acknowledge that salvation is a gift of God, but what about suffering for the sake of Christ?

Oh church, it may be confusing, but suffering is such a gift of Grace.

You see suffering moves us beyond beneficiaries only, and actually places us as companions with Christ.

There is a special intimacy with Jesus as you identify with Him in courageous witness, and sustained suffering.

And often suffering is the vehicle God utilizes to advance His Gospel.

Missiolgists tell us that the greatest period of Gospel advancement has been the last 150 years.

Which is also the same time period that has witnessed more Christian martyrs than the previous 1800 years combined!

And since we’re on this incredibly “feel good” topic let me put the nail in the proverbial coffin by quoting Bible Commentator D.A. Carson.

He writes, “It is not at all impossible, if present trends continue in the West, that opposition here in America to the gospel will extend beyond family disapproval, trouble at work, condesencion from intellectual colleagues, and the like to very real concrete persecution...”

But I believe we will be ready.

All because we Live according to the Standard of the Gospel, stand firm with one another, and like Peter and John maybe one day we will have the chance to leave the presence of a governing body, rejoicing that we were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the sake of Christ’s name.

Let me pray.