Blessed Assurance

Introduction

(Lydia, the Philippian Jailer)

The church met in Lydia’s house.

Philippians 1:1–11 CSB

1 Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus: To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, including the overseers and deacons. 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 3 I give thanks to my God for every remembrance of you, 4 always praying with joy for all of you in my every prayer, 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. 6 I am sure of this, that he who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. 7 Indeed, it is right for me to think this way about all of you, because I have you in my heart, and you are all partners with me in grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. 8 For God is my witness, how deeply I miss all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus. 9 And I pray this: that your love will keep on growing in knowledge and every kind of discernment, 10 so that you may approve the things that are superior and may be pure and blameless in the day of Christ, 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God.

Praying with Joy

phil 1 3-

Philippians 1:3–5 CSB

3 I give thanks to my God for every remembrance of you, 4 always praying with joy for all of you in my every prayer, 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.

There is a difference between:

Praying for someone you love and someone you do not know

Praying for someone who is a partner and someone who is opposed to you.

Praying for someone who shares your convictions and someone who believes differently than you do

Paul prays with joy for this church in every prayer he prays.

They are partners with him in the gospel.

This means: Paul considers their work to be just as effective as his in the spread of the gospel. Spreading the gospel is the DNA of the Philippian church

Paul has every confidence in them. He is one with them. He loves them and they feel the same about him.

Do you have a partner in ministry like that? Is it the whole church? Do you consider everyone in our church a true partner in the gospel? If not why?

I find in this text a great conviction that we must pursue a unity in ministry that allows us to pray for each other in every prayer we pray with joy! Let’s work…do whatever it takes to be that kind of church.

The Theology of Assurance

phil 1

Philippians 1:6 CSB

6 I am sure of this, that he who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

Why does Paul say this? Where does he get this theology from?

He says in

Romans 16:25 NKJV

25 Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery kept secret since the world began

This is something Paul believes about the Lord. We say, “Once saved, always saved.” We believe this, but why? How do we know that we do not loose our salvation when we sin? We know that we have sinned…and we know that we will sin. We are covenant breakers. How do we explain the doctrine of the Security of the Believer?

Layer One: We have access to stories of faith. These stories of faith teach us the doctrine of the Security of the Believer.

Snapshots and Videos (Abraham)

God called Abraham and Abraham believed God. , God credited his believe for righteousness.

but he didn’t always look righteous…he didn’t always look saved

David was a man after God’s own heart.

God promised David a son would sit on the throne BEFORE he sinned with Bathsheba.

Layer Two: God revealed His desire to dwell with covenant breakers and He designed a plan and system to accomplish that.

God dwells with covenant breakers:

Mt. Sinai — Golden Calf

Moses pleads with God not to kill the people.

Moses pleads with God to go with the people.

God has to create a way to dwell with covenant breakers. (levites)

We are covenant breakers also. We sin after we are saved.

Jesus replaces the Levites

He prays for us daily

He offered Himself as the final atonement for sin

The Holy Spirit is sent to baptize us—to dwell among us, in us.

The Holy Spirit calls us to repentance. Like the prophet Nathan was sent to David after he sinned with Bathsheba and killed her husband, the Holy Spirit is continually making our sin known to us.

Paul is convinced that once we have responded to the Lord by faith, Jesus is able (unlike the levites) to establish our faith and keep us from stumbling.

A great example of this is Jesus’ letters to the churches in the Book of the Revelation. He is warning them and commanding them to repent. Reminding them to finish the race and return to Him.

Jesus is able to establish our faith and finish what He began in us. Blessed Assurance!

The Privilege of Intercessory Prayer

Philippians 1:7–11 CSB

7 Indeed, it is right for me to think this way about all of you, because I have you in my heart, and you are all partners with me in grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. 8 For God is my witness, how deeply I miss all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus. 9 And I pray this: that your love will keep on growing in knowledge and every kind of discernment, 10 so that you may approve the things that are superior and may be pure and blameless in the day of Christ, 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God.

phil 1 7-

Paul: not only is Jesus praying for you, but I am praying for you. And the Lord listens to the prayers we pray for each other.

Paul gives us the reason they are so important to him:

He has them in his heart…He loves them with a special love.

They are partners…they have sent people from their congregation to help him when other churches shied away…possibly out of fear.

His Prayer: 1:9-11

love will grow in knowledge and discernment (Bible Literacy)

The ability to gain wisdom (know what is good from what is evil)

the result: filled with the fruit of righteousness