Joy in Difficulties
Philippians 1:12-18
Joy In Difficulties
I. A.G. Psalm 4 – READ ALL It is no secret that bad things happen to good people. It’s not a mystery that Jesus said to us, “In the world you will have tribulation.” We can see this in many examples in the Bible:
a. Joseph – Whose brothers sold him into slavery. But God was with him and allowed him to be promoted in the household he was sold to. But Potiphar’s wife caused him to be put in jail. But God was with him and he interpreted the dreams of the baker and the cupbearer, hoping that they would remember him and give him a good word to Pharaoh. But he was forgotten for years. Then Pharaoh called him into his court and later promoted him to second in command only to Pharaoh himself. In all of Joseph’s situations he could have said, “who will show me any good?” “why are bad things happening to me?”
b. David – a man after God’s own heart. He was the youngest of all his brothers. He was not respected at all by his brothers and very little by his father, yet God was with him. He was called to minister to Saul and soothe his fits of anger and distress with his harp and yet Saul tried to kill David instead. Yet God was with him and later he came to slay a giant and rose to prominence among the people of Israel until they began to sing songs about Saul and David with David taking more credit than Saul. And Saul later tried to kill him. David had to flee, but God was with him. Later in his life when he was being ousted from the kingdom by his son, he wrote in Psalm 4 there are many who say, “who will show us any good?” Lord lift up the light of your countenance upon us.
c. Paul – Paul was a man who had been through some extreme situations that would have made any other person say, “stop the ride I want to get off.” If there was an argument to be made for the righteous not having to suffer, surely Paul would have been the ideal candidate for being exempt. Yet it seems as though he went through much more than what you and I have gone through.
d. Real Life – Not only do we see a multitude of examples in the Word, but we ourselves have seen bad things happen to good people.
e. And while it is true that Jesus said, “in the world you will have tribulation.” (John 16:33). He also reminded us that we could be of good cheer because He is the One who has overcome the world. He is the One through whom we can overcome the most strenuous circumstances that try our faith. Because, as we learned last week, Jesus began a good work in us and will carry out in us what He started because He is the author and finisher of our faith.
II. Intro. Today we are going to take a look at the situation Paul found himself in when he was in prison and see how even in the midst of difficulty God was doing a work in both Paul’s life and in the lives of those around him. And as we glean from Paul the exhortations he gave to the church in Philippi, we will see how God wants to work in us to have Joy In Difficulties.
III. Review
a. Last week we looked at Paul and his fellowship with the Philippians. We saw how he wrote this letter to the Philippians as a letter of thanks for what they had done for him in contributing to his needs.
i. We saw how Paul saw himself as a bondservant of Jesus Christ. Because he belonged to Jesus Christ, he lived for the desires of his Lord.
ii. We looked at the confidence Paul could have in what God was doing in the lives of the people at Philippi because of what God had done, not because of them.
iii. We began to see the secret to keeping our joy in light of not-so-joyful people in our lives.
iv. God was showing us the importance of our prayer lives as the secret or the key in all these areas of our lives.
IV. Preview
a. Attitude in Affliction (12-14)
b. Evaluation of Evangelists (15-18)
V. Body
a. Attitude in Affliction (12-14)
"But I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel, so that it has become evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the rest, that my chains are in Christ; and most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear. (Philippians 1:12-14, NKJV)
i. Trials Produce Testimony – What we go through determines what we will become.
1. Paul’s Circumstances – Background
a. There are some passages in the Bible you need to connect yourself with emotionally to fully grasp the weight of the situation. You need to fully put yourself in the shoes of the characters you are reading about in order to feel what they felt. This allows you to gain a better appreciation of what they were going through. When Abraham was told by God that he wanted him to take his son, his only son whom he loved and sacrifice him.
b. It is this emotional connection that is needed in order to appreciate where the Philippians are coming from as they are reading his epistle: about four years had lapsed since they had seen Paul. You can imagine them hearing rumors of what may have happened to him, and they were probably worried. They had heard about Epaphroditus being sick while he was in Rome. Those who told them about Epaphroditus had probably shared all they knew concerning Paul but now some time had lapsed and they were probably wondering a few things: Was Paul in chains? Was he sick? Did he go to trial? Had he been executed? Was he released and on his way? They had no way of knowing what was going on with Paul, until they received news from Rome about Paul and a letter written by him!
c. Yes/Yes – Can you imagine how fast they must have read the first eleven verses to finally hear about how Paul was doing? Doesn’t it show Paul’s Christ-centeredness by devoting so much time on his love for the Philippians and what the Lord was doing in their lives before he ever answered what was going on in his situation?
2. I want you to know, brethren, that the things that have happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel. (vs. 12)
a. Questions:
· Have you ever felt like God had made a mistake in your life?
· Did you ever question what God was up to when something came along in your life?
· Have you ever felt as a Christian that you seem to go through so many more struggles and difficulties than those in the world?
b. If we get carried away with this kind of thinking we will find that we could have an Asaph experience:
i. Psalm 73:2-3 Asaph became envious of those in the world who didn’t seem to have any problems. When he thought of how easy they have it he said, “my feet almost stumbled. My steps had nearly slipped.”
ii. Another Translation - But I had almost stopped believing; I had almost lost my faith because I was jealous of proud people. I saw wicked people doing well." (Psalm 73:1-3, NCV)
iii. Asaph was about ready to throw up his hands and throw in the towel when he looked at those who are not walking with the Lord. He saw them and said, “they don’t have problems as other people” (vs. 5).
1. And some times we can get into that very same attitude when it comes to being a Christian. We can come to a place where we say like Asaph in verses 13-14 (TLB) Have I been wasting my time? Why take the trouble to be pure? All I get out of it is trouble and woe – every day, and all day long.
c. What We Need to Know – Paul is saying in the middle of facing an uncertain future, in the middle of being in prison, in the middle of circumstances which he probably never would have chosen for himself; that God has actually worked out those things for the furtherance of the gospel. God has worked those circumstances so that the gospel is preached in ways never imaginable. So that God is able to work in a way Paul never would have guessed. So too, with you and I God is able to work in ways we would never have imagined or allowed any other way.
i. The Bible tells us that we need to have this mind-set when trials come along:
d. God’s Purpose In Pain – James 1:2-4 "My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing." (James 1:2-4, NKJV)
i. God wants us to be mature and complete lacking nothing. But there are some times in which He allows us to go through suffering and pain and difficulties. Generally speaking there are 4 reasons:
1. Corrective – It is intended to put us on the right path when we have gone astray.
a. Proverbs 3:11-12 "My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, Nor detest His correction; For whom the Lord loves He corrects, Just as a father the son in whom he delights." (Proverbs 3:11-12, NKJV)
b. Psalm 119:67 – before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep your word.
c. It’s when we don’t feel any conviction or go through any discomfort or difficulties that we should wonder who we belong to.
2. Instructive – Sometimes God wants to make us aware of needs and feelings of other people and be more sympathetic to what they’re going through.
a.
3. Reflective – An indication or reflection of the world we live in. We live in a sinful world. We will go through suffering due to the consequences of other’s decisions on us. People who don’t know the Lord or are submitted to Him.
a. Romans 8:23 – not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body.
4. Objective – In all of our suffering God has a plan and an intended end for it. Some of those objectives are for us and other objectives are for others because God wants to use us for His glory in other people’s lives.
i. Romans 8:28 - "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose." (Romans 8:28, NKJV)
ii. Even though there are times when we feel like God has made a mistake, the word, “oops is not in His vocabulary.” Many times He will keep one hand on you and one hand on the thermostat.
iii. God can and does use difficult circumstances for His glory. The question is: Are we prepared for when He wants to do that in our lives?
iv. Jan Morrison –In those times when we don’t always understand why God does the things He does, there comes a moment and at some point in time we will understand. If you were to ask Jan Morrison she would tell you that she would Pray as a 5 and 6 and 7 year old child and say, “Lord, I love you and all I want from you is if you could change the color of my eyes from brown to blue.” If you could change the color of my eyes I would appreciate it so much.” She would pray this prayer over and over and over again until she grew up and forgot all about that prayer. Then one day as a woman she heads out as a missionary to India and she serves the Lord in a remote village in northern India. At that time in northern India communists were trying to take control of India and dealing with Westerners and Missionaries in a very barbaric way. One day the word came, “the guerillas, the communists are on their way!” The villagers loved Jan for all that she had done for them and so they did their best to try and cover her with their clothes and paint her skin to look like their native skin. The color of an Indian’s skin. The communists come and lined all the people and said, “we have heard that there is a Missionary here. We want that missionary turned over to us immediately. And walked down that line and looked at each of the villagers individually. And when they came to Jan and looked her in the eye and passed her by because she looked like a native with their garments. It was exactly then that she remembered the prayer she used to pray when she was a little girl. She then understood immediately that if God had answered her prayer and her eyes were blue, she would be dead. God knew what He was doing when He gave me brown eyes. It was for this very moment so that her life could be spared. She was then able to continue on with a very fruitful ministry for many years.
v. Application - Why does God allow bad things to happen to this person or why does God allow that person to get so sick? Above and beyond the general reasons mentioned before, it’s difficult to say, but God does have his reasons for the things that He allows to come into our lives.
e. “Actually” – Existing and not merely potential or possible. Based on fact. American Heritage Dictionary
i. Don’t you hate it when people worry about things that may or may not ever happen?
ii. Paul is reminding the Philippians of what God is really doing in his circumstances. God is really working these circumstances out in a way that is both beneficial for the gospel and a blessing to Paul in that God is using him in a way he never anticipated.
iii. They were worried over what might have been happening. But Paul said to whatever might have been happening, God was using the circumstances for the furtherance of the Gospel.
iv. There are some who focus so much on what may happen that they don’t see what God is actually doing.
3. so that it has become evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the rest, that my chains are in Christ; -
a. Praetorian Guard - a special group of Roman soldiers in New Testament times, established to guard the emperor of the Roman Empire. Originally, they were restricted to the city of Rome, but later they were sent to the Roman provinces as well. This guard was an elite corps of soldiers whose salaries, privileges, and terms of service were better than the other soldiers of the Roman Empire.
i. Paul’s Witness – Paul was able to share with the Praetorian guard while chained to them.
ii. Imagine – Ever since Paul has been arrested he has been chained to a Roman guard. Except for moments while he was on the ship going to Rome. Now he is in the care of the special guards who are trained to guard the Emperor himself. These are the crack units like the CIA of today. Paul would share with them. They would go back to the palace where the other officials and Caesar Nero was and they would share with those who were there. Ingenious plan of God!!! In Phil. 4:22 we see that many people within Nero’s palace were getting saved by Paul’s ministry.
iii. Instead of complaining Paul saw his chains as opportunities instead of obstacles. He saw them as conduits instead of chains. Paul knew that he, the captive, had a captive audience.
iv. This is the attitude we need in affliction. When we go through something we don’t like.
1. Chuck Swindoll - "I believe the single most significant decision I can make on a day-to-day basis is my choice of attitude. It is more important than my past, my education, my bankroll, my successes or failures, fame or pain, what other people think of me or say about me, my circumstances, or my position. Attitude keeps me going or cripples my progress. It alone fuels my fire or assaults my hope. When my attitudes are right, there is no barrier too high, no valley too deep, no dream too extreme, no challenge too great for me."
v. How is your attitude to God changing your life a little bit? How do you respond to changes that take place? Do you look to God to see what He is trying to do in your life through this, or do you kick and fight the whole time?
ii. And most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear. (vs. 14)
1. When the brothers saw the boldness of Paul while he was in chains, they were encouraged because God was still using Paul even in such adverse circumstances. They then became bold.
a. This is something that we have all experienced: We have seen someone become bold in the Lord in a good way and have taken steps to proclaim the gospel and this gave us an example to follow.
b. It’s like going into a pool of cold water. You usually don’t want to go there until you see someone else go in and then you’ll watch them to see what happens.
i. This is similar to what happened to Paul on the island of Malta:
1. Acts 28:4-6 - "So when the natives saw the creature hanging from his hand, they said to one another, “No doubt this man is a murderer, whom, though he has escaped the sea, yet justice does not allow to live.” But he shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm. However, they were expecting that he would swell up or suddenly fall down dead. But after they had looked for a long time and saw no harm come to him, they changed their minds and said that he was a god." (Acts 28:4-6, NKJV)
2. It was only when the people saw Paul still serve the Lord, still share the word while in chains, still function after he was bitten by the snake that they changed their minds.
c. Application - This shows us that those circumstances that Paul found himself in, though they may have caused personal injury, limited his mobility, and were looked upon as a trial or difficulty; those circumstances God used in Paul’s life to actually give others boldness that if Paul could have boldness in the midst of difficulties so could they. They became confident that if Paul wasn’t afraid of what might happen if he preaches Jesus, so they too could have confidence without fear of consequences.
d. God places us in circumstances that challenge us so that in those circumstances he can encourage others. The question is: Have others grown confident by your chains? Have others seen you go through difficulties and become more confident in Jesus? Have they seen you tied or chained to circumstances that you really had no control over and watched your life becoming more confident in Christ. Or have others seen you in your chains and thought, “if that’s the way brother so-and-so handles difficulties, no thanks. I don’t want to go any further in my walk with Jesus.”
i. Do your chains cause others to become confident or complaining?
e. Someone once said, “Christians are like tea bags. You never really know what kind they are until you put them in hot water.”
f. The Key - They way Paul was able to rejoice in his situation was because he saw his chains 1) my chains are in Christ: IOTW he knew that he was there not because he was being punished for doing something wrong, but because he was being a faithful witness for Jesus. And 2) as an opportunity instead of an obligation. This is going to be the only way others will be able to see our chains, trials, difficulties and become confident instead of complaining.
iii. NOT ONLY DID PAUL HAVE THE RIGHT ATTITUDE IN AFFLICTION BECAUSE HE KNEW THAT TRIALS PRODUCED A TESTIMONY, BUT LET’S LOOK AT THE EVALUATION HE MADE OF THOSE WHO HAD BECOME EVANGELISTS
b. Evaluation of Evangelists (15-18)
Some indeed preach Christ even from envy and strife, and some also from good will: The former preach Christ from selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my chains; but the latter out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel. What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is preached; and in this I rejoice, yes, and will rejoice."
i. Paul’s Evaluation – Paul said there were 2 groups of people who were bold to preach since he was in chains: those with fleshly motives, and those with Spiritual motives.
1. Carnal Motives – Some indeed preach Christ from envy and strife, and some also from goodwill; the former preach Christ from selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my chains:
a. Good Ole’ Days – When I was teaching at Calvary Downey and someone who was new would walk into the fellowship and introduce themselves. If they were had walked away from the Lord and had a background with Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa and were just coming back they would always want to talk about what Costa Mesa was like back in the tent days. As though this was the closest thing to the early church that existed. In all this they seem to presume that the early church didn’t have any problems. But what we see here is in essence right at the beginning there were Christians who preached Christ from Carnal motives.
b. Anti-Paul – These people were jealous of Paul’s accomplishments. He had the keenest mind within the church of that day. There was no one who was truly able to stand against his intellect. For this the Christians were jealous of the impact Paul made on the church.
i. It is interesting that if you seek to lead people in any capacity there are those who will always be against you and try to work against you…those within the church. This is something that exists in the church today.
c. Next week I am finishing out a commitment in working with the Billy Graham Organization for the upcoming Crusade in Pasadena. It has been a real privilege to watch how they come into a state and work with the churches in that area for the furtherance of the gospel. But what is equally interesting is to watch what churches wont work with Billy if other churches are working with Billy Graham. There is envy and strife still existent in the church today.
d. Selfish Ambition, not sincerely- There are those who are preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ through selfish ambition. They wanted to see how they could further their kingdom instead of Christ’s. They wanted to see who would follow them instead of Paul. There were some who were trying to get Paul into further trouble by making themselves such bad witnesses, they hoped it would reflect poorly on Paul.
i. Bad Witness – I was recently told of a situation where there were Christians who made a public spectacle of themselves in order to make a statement. The person who was telling me this story was doing so with disgust as he related the incident. You could tell that this situation made a bad taste in his mouth.
ii. This is what those carnal preachers were trying to do when it came to Paul. They thought now that Paul was gone, they could take advantage of the Paul vacuum and preach the gospel without being called.
1. I had recently taken over a ministry from another pastor when a person who really wasn’t called wanted to go ahead and start a ministry within this ministry. After a while it became apparent that this person wanted to begin a following for himself. He had to make a pretense for the study by calling it something else and it led to a bunch of problems where people started complaining and coming to me telling me that it was turning into a carnal gathering. This person wasn’t being sincere about what he wanted to do and actually caused more work for me in the end.
iii. The Carnal Christians who were in Rome actually added affliction to Paul’s chains. But they were preaching the gospel.
iv. It really shouldn’t matter to a Christian minister if someone has a Bible study that the Lord is blessing
2. Spiritual Motives - But those who were spiritual recognized God’s call on Paul’s life and preached Christ out of love for Paul and obedience to Jesus.
a. Spiritual Motives -
b. Carnal Motives -
i. Galatians 5:19 – now the works of the flesh are evident "Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies," (Galatians 5:19-20, NKJV)
ii.
VI. Conclusion