Philippians 1:18-26

Introduction

Last week, in v.12-18, Paul focused on the results that his imprisonment had within Christianity. In particular, the advancement of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The bulk of the text highlights how his imprisonment ignited boldness and courage from everyday Christians to preach Jesus Christ. Paul divided them into two groups: Christians who were envious of Paul’s successes in ministry and strove against Paul, and those who preached of good will. Perhaps, the ones who preached from envy and strife would have been Jewish Christians who have not forgiven Paul for what he did as a lost man. I know a pastor today who has been saved for over a decade, and still not loved or embraced by some Christians because of deeds done while he was lost. Another reason some Jewish Christians were not fond of Paul is they felt he was destroying the pillars of Judaism through his teaching on Christian liberty. This group preached Christ contentiously and not sincerely because they wanted to supplant Paul; however, the other group preached Christ with love, knowing that Paul has given his life for the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

How did Paul respond to these two conflicting groups towards him: one group hated him and the other group loved him. Keep in mind, both groups preached Christ Jesus as the exclusive answer for man’s woes. Their attitude and motivation may have been different but their messaging was the same. Paul writes in Philippians 1:18: “What then? notwithstanding, every way, whether in pretence, or in truth, Christ is preached; and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice.” His answer was, so long as the unadulterated Christ is being preached, he would rejoice. As a verb, “rejoice” in the active voice, which means he is the one rejoicing; it is in the present tense, which means he is rejoicing; and, it is in the indicative mood, which means he is really rejoicing, and not just saying something that sounds good.

There is a foreign policy shared by many countries. The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Even though this policy has some short-term success, it has often proved to be a long-term failure. Paul’s policy was the friend of my friend is my friend, even if they do not like me. His friend was Jesus. If you were friends of Jesus, then you were his friend. How was he able to separate some Christians negative view of himself with their love for Christ? He kept Jesus as the main object, and not himself. This only makes sense if you are living for your friend. If you are divided in your loyalty then this does not make sense. If Paul was divided in his loyalty between Jesus and himself, then he could not have rejoiced while his enemies preached with motives of supplanting or reducing Paul’s visibility within the Lord’s churches.

Why is having an uncontested loyalty to Jesus important? Divided loyalty means you cannot give your whole heart towards both loyalties. Jesus said in Matthew 6:24 “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” In divided loyalty, one of the two people or movements that compete for your loyalty will hold the trump card.

Let me illustrate this point. You cannot be loyal to the Lord and your employer or family. I am using the word “and” with respect to sharing your loyalty. Either the Lord, your employer or family will come first and will dictate them terms of your loyalty to the other factions. My loyalty to the Lord is the reason I am a good employee and love my family. If this is true then God’s word dictates them terms of my relationship to my employer and family. If your are committed to you employer or family more than the Lord then they will dictate the terms of your relationship to the Lord.

The seventh church that John wrote to in Revelation 2-3 was the church in Laodicea. John records Jesus’ accusation against them in Revelation 3:15–16: “I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.” Their problem was divided loyalty. Based on Revelation 3:17 (“Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked”) their division of loyalty focused on their material wealth versus their undivided faith in Jesus. In stead of trusting Jesus, they put their faith and confidence in their material wealth. His counsel to them in Revelation 3:18 was “…buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.” In other words, they needed to be focused completely on Him.

In our hierarchy of loyalty, why is being completely loyal to the Lord a struggle for Christians? One would assume, Jesus would have our undivided loyalty. After all, He died for sinners without hope so that sinners can have hope in Him alone. The answer goes back to what Paul wrote regarding how we are to live in 2 Corinthians 5:7: “(For we walk by faith, not by sight:).” It is humanly easier to be more loyal to your employer, family, or hobby than Jesus because we are in the driver’s seat. To be more loyal to Jesus than anything else means He is in the driver’s seat.

I have a pastor friend who often said it is easier to trust Jesus for the big things in life, like eternal life, and not the small things in life, like food, clothes, housing, relationships, and jobs. The reason this is true for many Christians is that while they trust God for salvation (Jesus is “the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by (Him)” (John 14:6)), they do not trust Him for the everyday things in life that people need. The result in having Jesus be the driver in our salvation but not the driver in everyday life is an identity crisis within the Christian community.

Paul’s identity was clear and unmistakable. His identity is understood in what he wrote in Galatians 2:20 “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”

In our text before us, Lord willing, we will see the impact and importance of having an undisputed and indivisible loyalty to Jesus.

Paul’s deliverance

Philippians 1:19–20 “For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death.”

The word “for” is a term of explanation. He is further explaining how Philippians 1:18 (“What then? notwithstanding, every way, whether in pretence, or in truth, Christ is preached; and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice”) is true.

The reason Philippians 1:18 is true is the preaching of Christ shall turn to his “salvation.” What did Paul mean by “salvation?” Some have argued his reference is freedom from prison. This does not seem likely, based on Philippians 1:20 “According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death.” Even though people preached Christ as a result of being imprisoned, he was unsure if he would survive his imprisonment. So, his salvation cannot mean freedom for jail.

Others believe this is a reference to his future salvation. Even though there are three aspects of salvation that the scriptures mention: past, present and future. All three of these have already been secured in Christ, and consequently, is not in need of Jesus being preached to others, Christians praying for him, or fresh help from the Holy Spirit. I agree with others who assert that Paul referenced Job in Philippians 1:19 (“For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ”). Job said to his three friends in Job 13:16 “He also shall be my salvation: For an hypocrite shall not come before him.” The main idea in this statement is the Lord will vindicate him now or in the future. Therefore, Paul’s point is the preaching of Jesus Christ by people who hate and love me vindicates my pursuit “…to testify the gospel of the grace of God” (Acts 20:24).

The Apostle Paul had enemies from every sector. The Romans did not care for Paul (he tore down the fabric of paganism), the Jews hated Paul (He taught against legalism and embraced the Gentiles), and some predominately Jewish Christians disconnected from him (He fiercely and ferociously persecuted them before his conversion). He had enemies from without and from within. His vindication was multi-directional.

The preaching of Christ shall vindicate him through the avenues of prayer, and the Holy Spirit, which is line with his expectation and hope. We see this in Philippians 1:19–20 “For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death.”

At first glance, my mind struggled to understand the flow of the text. On one hand the preaching of Jesus vindicates him, but on the other hand it has to be through prayers of others, and the Holy Spirit? I was confused on what actually vindicated him, was it preaching or praying? The answer is both. In a court of law the testimony vindicates the defendant through the jury’s verdict of not guilty. In like manner, the preaching of Jesus vindicates Paul, who is in prison for his faith in Jesus, through the prayers of others, and the help of the Holy Spirit.

First, his vindication is through churches like the Philippian church praying for him. Prayer is instrumental in the affairs of the world. I once heard a missionary from the Philippines say: “Much prayer, much power; little prayer, little power.”

John Gill wrote regarding prayer: Peter was delivered out of prison through the incessant prayer of the church for him. The apostle (James) knew that the prayer of a righteous man availeth much with God.” Prayer is a difference maker. Albert Barnes wrote: “Paul felt that his trials might be turned to good account, and give occasion for thanksgiving; and that this was to be accomplished by the aid of the prayers of his fellow Christians.”

David Guzik wrote: “We can hypothetically say that if the Philippians didn’t pray for Paul, then God’s deliverance for Paul would be hindered. It certainly seems that Paul thought this way, and it shows what a serious matter prayer is.”

This is not the first time Paul wrote about others praying for him. In Romans 15:30, Paul beseech the Roman Christians for “the Lord Jesus Christ’s sake, and for the love of the Spirit, that ye strive together with me in your prayers to God for me.”

Paul attributes the Corinthians helping him through their prayers in 2 Corinthians 1:8–11: “For we would not, brethren, have you ignorant of our trouble which came to us in Asia, that we were pressed out of measure, above strength, insomuch that we despaired even of life: But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead: Who delivered us from so great a death, and doth deliver: in whom we trust that he will yet deliver us; Ye also helping together by prayer for us, that for the gift bestowed upon us by the means of many persons thanks may be given by many on our behalf.”

He exhorted the Colossians in Colossians 4:3–4: “Withal praying also for us, that God would open unto us a door of utterance, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in bonds: That I may make it manifest, as I ought to speak.”

Paul really believed, like the other apostles and early saints, that God uses the prayers of His people to provide strength to His servants. This is why we need to view prayer as “sweet hour of prayer.” Is it any wonder that Paul tells us to view prayer as a joyful recreation, instead of a forced activity? And exhorts us in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 to “Pray without ceasing.”

Consider the display of Paul’s humbleness and humility in asking the Philippian church to pray for him. Chrysostom wrote: Behold this blessed man’s utter humility! Here is the season competitor! The crown was already to be his. He had passed through a thousand exploits. This was Paul. What more could one say? And yet he humbly ask for the prayers of the Philippians, that his deliverance may be ensured through their supplication.”

Before moving to the next thought, keep in mind the praying that Paul needed for his vindication came from a pool of love. He needed people who loved him to be praying for him.

In like manner, we need people praying for us who love us. They love us enough to sacrifice time to pray on our behalf. Gary Chapman wrote a book to help married couple called the Five Love Languages. The idea is everyone has love languages that need to be tapped into by their spouse. The love languages he mentions are: acts of service, receiving gifts, quality time, words of affirmation and touch. Within the Lord’s churches, the universal love language that surpasses people groups and time is prayer. Spirit led prayer is an expression of love.

Praying for others energizes other aspects of the Christian faith: faithfulness to God’s house, connection with God’s people, communicating with God, being accountable, and selflessly loving. A couple decades ago, a family in our church was on the verge of falling apart. The church was broken over the devastation taking place within the family. One particular, Sunday evening, the men of the church went forward to privately and publicly pray the family. The pastor called on a number of men to pray. The first man he called on had been unfaithful to God’s house, and consequently disconnected from God’s people. I remember the first statement out of his mouth was, “Lord, I did not know.” He had not been praying for this family because of his selfish instead of selfless living. His pursued his activities, rather than the mission of the church. A person who desires to pray for others from the soil of love will by implication be faithful to God’s house, connected to their church community, be a regular communicator to God, accountable and selfless.

The Philippian church prayed to God for their brother in Christ, Paul, who they loved dearly. The kind of praying that avails with God is “(t)he effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man” (James 5:16). Passion for who you are praying for and who you are praying to are important for effectual prayers. The Philippian church demonstrated their love for Paul through sharing their lives, sending Epaphroditus to help in his time of need, and praying for him.

Second, his vindication goes “through…the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.” “The Spirit of Jesus” is the Holy Spirit. Luke writing in Acts 1:1–2 “The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, Until the day in which he was taken up (The Gospel according to Luke), after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen (Acts of the Apostles).” Jesus communicated through the Holy Spirit to His Apostles. Paul connects the Spirit of God and the Spirit of Christ as the same person in Romans 8:9: “But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.” The person he referenced was the Holy Spirit. Paul needed the Holy Spirit’s help.

The word “supply” does speak of help and contribution. The Holy Spirit gives us necessary help to accomplish the task. If a divine task is not accomplished the reason has nothing to do with lacking help from God. Paul believed the Holy Spirit would supply the necessary help and resources to vindicate him. Warren Wiersbe wrote that Paul was not depending upon his dwindling resources but the bountiful and generous resources from God. Paul’s vindication does not hinge exclusively on the prayers of others. He needed divine help in order to be vindicated from his enemies.

Lets not forget why he needed vindication. The outside noise that being heard about him detracted from his mission to clearly preach Christ. We have seen this often in America, where the media forms an unfair narrative that drowns out a person’s message. Consider some of the noise that could possibly drown out his message of the Gospel: The lost Jews argued that he preached a message that was foreign to their scriptures (Judaism was a protected religion within the Roman Empire) and he was a rebellious seditionist who should be put to death (Acts 24:1-6). The saved Jews who disliked Paul argued that he was unraveling the Old Testament (Acts 15), and could not be an Apostle of Jesus Christ because he was too bold (2 Corinthians 10:10), and was not sophisticated enough in his public speaking (2 Corinthians 11:6). If this was not enough, there could have been Gentiles upset with Paul because the Gospel he preached took away from their livelihood (Acts 16:16-24 and Acts 19:21-41). He wanted vindication from the outside noise. He needed divine help to change the narrative.

One pastor testified: “Every time I share with someone, a stranger on the plane, or whatever, I just say to God, “God, the only thing that’s going to differentiate me from the Jehovah’s Witness, or the Mormon, or the Unitarian, or the Muslim, or whoever it is, is this time right now.” I have to pray. You have to do something, otherwise I’m going to sound like some religious freak, some fanatic, some cult leader. You have to make it known to them that my God is the real God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Peter, Paul, and Jesus. Let them know that Jesus is Lord. Somehow you’ve got to do that in their lives.” In the same way, he needed help from God to vindicate his name by others preaching Jesus Christ.

Conclusion