CULTIVATING COMMUNITY IN THE CHURCH

CULTIVATING COMMUNITY IN THE CHURCH Philippians 1:1-11 Aug 1, 1999 Given by: Pastor Rich Bersett [Index of Past Messages] Introductory Paul and his companions had been traveling along the western perimeter of Asia, preaching the gospel and delivering the report they received at the Jerusalem Conference. For some strange reason, the Holy Spirit had steered them away from going into the heart of Asia where they felt they should go. Then, feeling they should go north into Bithynia, but they were blocked by the Holy Spirit again. One night Paul fell asleep praying about his quandary and asking the Lord for His direction. (How many times have you gotten frustrated with trying to do what you thought was right, hit the brick wall several times, and then finally said, "OK, Lord, what is it that You want me to do?"). That night the Lord answered by giving Paul a vision of a man who lived a hundred miles across the Aegean Sea--and the man was begging Paul, "Come over to Macedonia and help us!" Well, Paul had his answer, and the apostolic team left the next morning for the port of Troas where they took the next ship for Macedonia. During the trip, don’t you imagine that Paul and his companions were wondering why the Lord wanted them to go to Macedonia? The text tells us in Acts 16 that they concluded that God had called them to preach the gospel to the Macedonians. But why preach there--they were ready in season and out of season to preach wherever--Asia, Bithynia, Troas, Rome--it didn’t matter to them. But apparently it mattered to the Lord. For some reason, the Lord of the harvest wanted Paul and company in Macedonia, and He arranged a series of supernatural events to get their attention and get them steered in the right direction. Looking back from our perspective on this piece of history, we can perhaps see some reasons. First, of course, the gospel needed to be taken to Macedonia. The people in that Grecian territory were just as lost as the people in the other parts of the Roman empire, and they needed to hear the good news that Jesus Christ could forgive their sins and restore fellowship between them and the living God. But was there something else to it as well? What else does history tell us about the reasons God brought Paul and Luke and Timothy and the others into this region? Let me pause here and ask you to reflect: why has God brought you to the St. Louis metro-east area, or allowed you to live here all your life? There are no accidents, and in God’s wide will each of us is here for His divine reasons. Have you discovered any of those reasons? More specifically, why has the Lord brought you to Metro-East Christian Fellowship? What is there about your being here, now, in this group of people with your peculiar giftings and needs, mixed in with the rest of this bunch? For some of you, this is a very timely and serious question. Others have never really thought about it. Most of us, now and again, wonder why we are where we are at this particular time. Some are not very happy about being where they are and they can tell you exactly why (like 117 degree heat indices); others are delighted to be where they are and don’t know exactly why. But, as Hannah prayed in her prayer of submission to the Lord, "the Lord is a God who knows..." Proverbs 16:9 - "In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps." Proverbs 20:24 - "A man’s steps are directed by the Lord..." Would you agree that you are here in this place at this time for a purpose God has ordained? So when Paul’s team traveled to Macedonia, what else did God apparently have in mind? Let me suggest that the Lord wanted to connect Paul with a few key people who would not only be saved through Paul’s ministry, but would also become an important part of his life and ministry in the years ahead. Think of the people around you this morning. Ask the Holy Spirit, "Is it possible you have a very definite reason for getting me connected with so-and-so? Is there some ministry I am to give or receive from that person?" Within a week, Paul and friends find themselves walking into a city called Philippi, a leading city of that district of Macedonia. The first Sabbath day in the city the group decides to not search out a synagogue (there may not have even been a synagogue in this Roman town). So they went out the city gate to the river they had passed coming in, to a quiet little spot they had noticed a couple days earlier, where they could pray together. When they got there, they found a group of local women meeting. They, too, had come to pray. They were God-fearers, maybe Jewish. So Paul and the others began to share with them the gospel of Jesus. One of the ladies in the group was named Lydia. She received Christ as her Savior that day, and she and the rest of her household were baptized into Christ. Immediately, she invited the apostolic team members to stay at her house. The woman was a "dealer in purple cloth from Thyatira" and was probably well-to-do, with enough resources to offer Paul and his companions a place to stay during their sojourn in Philippi, but who would also be a supporter of his ministry for years to come. A few days later, as some of the group were going for prayer again, they heard the high-pitched voice of a young girl yelling something about ‘the Most High God’. Down one of the city streets came a slave girl who was possessed by a spirit of fortune-telling (divination). She could evidently tell the future for people with a fair amount of accuracy, and she made a lot of money for her owners. Maybe her owner was Dionne Warwick? If she were in America today, she would be the one on the other end of the telephone line when lonely and desperate people who need the Lord instead call the cheap imitation of good news, the psychic hotline. Evidently, that morning she was receiving a psychic message from somewhere that was so strong she had to scream it at the top of her lungs in the city streets, and she felt compelled to find the people the message pertained to. So she began following the group around shouting, "These men are servants of the Most High God!" In fact, for days she did this. And Paul and the others were apparently not bothered by it. But like an annoying noise, it finally got to Paul one day and he become troubled in spirit. He’d had enough, and he turned toward the girl and said, "In the name of Jesus Christ, I command you to come out of her!" Immediately the spirit that had her enslaved and empowered with divination came out. And for the first time she tasted the joy of the Lord. I’m sure she continued to follow these preachers of the gospel, but for an altogether different reason. And another believer is added to the rolls of the church at Philippi, and to the list of faithful friends of Paul. Well, her owners were not tasting any joy--they were losing money. Their well of riches dried up. They lost their golden girl and were going broke. They stirred up the town against Paul and company and threw two of them into jail. But in faith and power Paul and Silas were not sulking in their cells, but were pouring out their hearts in singing hymns to the Lord while the other prisoners were listening. Also listening was the next new member of the church at Philippi--the jailer. The Lord freed Paul & Silas by sending an earthquake which opened the doors of the jail and snapped the chains of the prisoners. The jailer knew that an escape like this would mean serious trouble for him, and the scripture says, "He drew his sword and was about to kill himself." You know, there was something else wrong in this man’s life to drive him so quickly to a decision of suicide--maybe serious problems at home, financial difficulties, chronic depression. Whatever it was he was ready to end it all when he heard Paul shout, "Don’t harm yourself--we’re all here!" The jailer dropped his sword, ran in to where the prisoners were standing, free of their stocks and fell down trembling before Paul and asked, "What must I do to be saved?" Now don’t tell me that Christian worship is not a witness to those who hear. When you sing your praise to the Lord it is a witness to the love and grace of our God in the hearing of hurting people around you. The two preachers speak the word of the Lord to him, and all of his household, and the same hour of the night they’re all baptized. And the scripture adds this note "...he was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God--he and his whole family." A desperate man moves from suicide to salvation, jeopardy to joy, and from the ranks of the Roman pagans to the roll of the Philippian church. Paul and Silas then did a noble thing--they went back to the jail with the jailer! The next morning the magistrate releases them, especially after he finds out about their being Roman citizens. Romans 16:40 reads, "After Paul and Silas came out of the prison, they went to Lydia’s house, where they met with the brothers and sisters and encouraged them." You know who was there, don’t you? Lydia with all her family and servants were there making everybody feel welcome, offering refreshments and serving as hosts. They also invited some of their business associates from Thyatira who were in town at a trading convention. Over in the corner is a young lady sitting with the friends that she has brought to church. You can barely recognize her as the slave fortune-teller she used to be. She’s been totally delivered and has redemptive relationships with other believers and she looks so much healthier than when she worked for the greed mongers. And look, there on the front row--it’s the jailer. He’s taking an extended lunch hour to meet one more time with Paul and Silas. And sitting beside him are his wife, smiling and thrilled with the man her husband is becoming in Christ. They don’t fight any more, the family’s not walking on eggshells, and the kids are happy. Along with her, Mrs. jailer has brought their servants and a couple of the neighbors, who are amazed at the difference in their friends’ marriage and family life. Welcome to First Community Church at Philippi. After the singing and the preaching and the testimonies, it’s time for the apostolic team to leave. But, before they do, Lydia stands up in front and says, "Brother Paul, we have something for you and the boys." Gift-wrapped packages are given to each of the delegation in which there are interesting items. There’s a pack of tarot cards from a smiling girl who used to make a living with them. There are new knapsacks for the whole group, made of the finest purple cloth in all of Rome. And in one of the packages there is a sword, a Roman machaira, a gift from the man who almost ended his life with its sharp edge. And then Lydia hastily calls a business meeting of the young church. The young girl in the corner makes a motion that the church begin immediately begin financial support of Paul’s apostolic ministry. The jailer’s wife seconds (her husband had to return to work, but left an offering to be added to their first gift). With no discussion it is passed by acclamation, and the young Philippian church had its first, and most beloved missionary. They pledge to pray for each of the missionaries, Paul, Silas, Timothy, Luke and the rest. Then, following the first of many love offerings to come, with hugs and tears, they send them on their way. As they make their way out of Lydia’s courtyard and onto the Roman Road, you can hear Luke turn to Paul and say, "Now I know why God sent us here!" Twelve years later the love relationship is as strong as ever. The congregation at Philippi has grown and remains vibrant. They have just sent another in a long series of monetary gifts to Paul, along with a letter of deep concern. Paul was in prison again, but this time in Rome. The Philippian believers had been praying for him and worried about him, so they sent their favorite courier, a deacon named Epaphroditus, to see Paul and to deliver their recent love offering to him. "Be sure to see how he’s doing--how he’s really doing! Don’t believe him if he just says he’s fine. Ask him what he needs, when he’s getting out of jail. Find out if he is being well-fed--take him a nice loaf of barely bread. Tell him we love him. Tell him we miss his preaching! Tell him how the church has grown." One young lady urges, "Tell him one of my old slavemasters is now a follower of the Way!" "Oh, yes," the jailer cuts in, "tell him four of the guards at the jail are now believers and they sing hymns every night shift and witness to the prisoners." Lydia adds, "Tell him his old room is waiting, and to hurry back for a visit." Epaphroditus thinks he has delivered all the messages as best as he could remember them, and now it is time to return to Philippi. He’s not as worried as he was when he first arrived at Paul’s cell, even though Paul did not have very encouraging news about getting out of jail. Preaching the gospel was getting to be more of a crime than it used to be. He actually said he might even die before they released him. But he was still ministering the Word of God--he had been preaching to the Praetorian guard and some of them were converted. Paul has just dictated the final words of his letter back to the Philippian church, "...I am amply supplied, now that I have received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God. And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus. To our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen. Greet all the saints in Christ Jesus. The brothers who are with me send you greetings. All the saints send you greetings, especially those who belong to Caesar’s household. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen." Epaphroditus left the jail and started his month-long journey back to Philippi. Within a mile his tears finally dried enough for him to take out the letter Paul had written. It started with these words, "Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, To all the saints in Christ Jesus at Philippi, together with the overseers and deacons; Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart; for whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God’s grace with me. God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus." I believe that in the relationship we find here between Paul and this church, and the relationships among the believers in Philippi, we can find a model for how the Lord wants his people to be in Christian community. I think the Lord would have us understand more about the care and feeding of such community. For the next couple of weeks we will look closely at the nature of Christian fellowship as it is to be lived out in the everyday life of the church. I am calling this mini-series "Cultivating Christian Community". Pray and believe with me that the Holy Spirit will stir up in our hearts and our church the kind of attributes we find in this first chapter of Philippians. Ask the Lord to reveal to you personally what you can do to help create the kind of Christian community that always encourages, motivates, blesses and helps you and those around you to live better for Jesus. In the couple of minutes remaining, I’d like us to consider one term that stands out to me in these early verses. It is the word "Partnership" found in verse 5, and is often translated with the word "fellowship". The Greek word is KOINONIA. The word means BEING TOGETHER IN PURPOSE AND ACTIVITY, MOVING IN THE SAME DIRECTION, HAVING A COMMON MISSION. Paul celebrates that he has KOINONIA with the believers in Philippi. Notice, it is a fellowship "in the gospel." Notice, Paul goes well beyond much contemporary understanding of "fellowship," which to many today means having pie and coffee together or squeezing ten minutes of visiting in before or after services. Much of modern Christianity has cheapened the word fellowship by making it synonymous with "dinner" or "fun" or "friendship". Maybe because the English word "fellowship" has been so trivialized, the translators of the NIV chose to use the word "partnership". Please don’t misunderstand me--there is nothing wrong with friendship in Christ and having meals and fun with one another. These are certainly some enjoyable aspects of being partners in Christ, but they are far from a full definition of biblical fellowship. Frankly, you don’t need common faith in Jesus to have these pleasures. We all know of non-Christian organizations in which people experience this kind of fun and friendship. In fact, I’ve seen some quite secular clubs and fraternities where there is a tremendously fulfilling sense of this kind of community--some of them put the friendship in some churches to shame. But this is a relatively superficial level of biblical fellowship, and, unfortunately, many believers are satisfied with this shallow level, remaining content to go no deeper in their mutual faith. So, what is the difference? What makes the deeper relationships in Christ real Christian fellowship/partnership? The clue is found in the prepositional phrase which follows the word partnership in verse four: "in the gospel". Paul is a happy pray-er here. He says, "I always remember you in my prayers, and when I do I always pray with JOY BECAUSE OF YOUR PARTNERSHIP IN THE GOSPEL." This kind of deeper fellowship is all caught up in standing together in mutual concern for the ministry of the gospel. It is working together in furthering the gospel. It is encouraging one another, helping one another, fighting alongside one another, defending one another, standing united together in the work of the gospel, laboring side-by-side in the kingdom, rejoicing with each other, weeping with each other, celebrating the success of the gospel with one another. You see, if you leave out the PURPOSE of the church when you talk about the fellowship of the church, you pervert the rich meaning of the term "partnership". Let me describe the kind of fellowship Paul is talking about. It’s a cell group going out to help one of the members’ neighbors in a time of crisis, praying that their work will be a witness to those neighbors, with a view to them eventually coming to faith in Christ. It’s two volunteers sharing the responsibility of teaching first and second graders in the Sunday School, praying and working in the gospel, believing that their mutual efforts of preparing lessons, cleaning up spilled Kool-Aid, getting down on their knees to hug the kids, taking time to listen, loving and encouraging them. That’s fellowship! It’s a half-dozen people giving up their Saturday morning to hang ceiling tile, measuring, cutting, climbing, cleaning up, and rushing over to make sure Gary was alright when he fell off his ladder. It’s giving up a little more precious time to make sure the room is done before leaving. It’s turning to one another and saying, "Good job! Praise the Lord!" when the work is done. It’s three cell leaders meeting with their section leader late at night to pray together for the people with whom they minister, weeping over their needs, crying out to God to bring new believers, grow the old believers and to multiply their cell groups so others can be reached. It’s Gordon and Leo standing together, preaching the Word of God to a couple dozen inmates in the St. Clair County Jail on Wednesday night. Praying together for the success of the gospel before they go in, working hard to make the message meaningful to murderers, thieves and child molesters. It’s rejoicing with each other when another prisoner comes to faith in Christ. It’s the church family at MECF rejoicing that six more Wodaabe converts were baptized in Niamey, Niger last month, because we have been praying for them together, collecting offerings among ourselves and crying out to the Lord for their salvation. It’s cell members diligently prayer walking the neighborhood they meet in, asking the Lord for the salvation of the people who live there. It’s bravely knocking on doors of people they feel they should meet and share Christ with. It’s reaching out to the Michelle Bauers and the Caleb Ingersons and Linda McRees and their families with loving concern, hot meals, visits, support. It’s showing up at the ICU only to learn there are too many other Christians already there to get in for a visit. It’s filling the auditorium for the funeral service and surrounding the grieving family with love. it’s praying faithfully for healing and knowing there are dozens of others doing the same thing. It’s teaming up with others to fill communion trays, take turns in the nursery, lovingly greet newcomers, sing with the worship team, count with the finance team, visit with the hospitality team, serve with the Christian Education team. It’s riding over to St. Louis with a brother to deliver a truck load of furniture and kitchen supplies to a needy Bosnian refugee family. My friends, this partnership of which Paul writes to this church that has stood with him in the ministry of the gospel, this fellowship into which we are called, is made up of standing shoulder to shoulder working with one another; face to face encouraging one another; back to back defending one another; and arm in arm helping one another in the greatest work in all the world -- taking the gospel to people who need to hear. Let’s stand and verbalize the prayer that Paul prayed for his partners, as we read verses 9-11 of Philippians 1. We will modify it to the first person plural. Make this more than just a recitation. Make it your sincere prayer of fellowship: And this is our prayer: that our love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that we may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ--to the glory of God.           [Back to Top]