God's Peculiar Means of Gospel Advancement

Theme: Thanksgiving for God’s unconventional means (separation anxiety, discernment, imprisonment, rivalry) of advancing the Gospel.

Fallen Condition Focus: We lack the faith to believe that God’s Gospel intentions succeed through lackluster circumstances. It is in our nature to doubt God’s ability to use frustrations for His glory and our good. God’s ways are frustrating to us.

Proposition: Because God finishes what He starts and since what He started is good (; ; ) you must rejoice in His peculiar means of bringing good things to pass.

Scripture Introduction: Please turn in your Bible to . Paul writes one happy thought after another as he reports and reconnects with some of his dearest brothers and sisters in the body of Christ. You may recall a visit to the first six verses of this encouraging letter back in February of this year (I know at least one of you remembers), but if not… for sake of context, please pick up with me in verse 3, we’ll read through verse 18.

Sermon Introduction: When we read a letter like this, it’s easy to only focus on the good news (and we should focus on the positives), things like: thanksgiving, the preservation of the saints, God’s power, our union with Christ, the advancement of the Gospel. There can be a problem though when we neglect to realize the context, the fact that all of these things are taking place in a time and place that is counter-Gospel: Paul’s in prison, he misses this congregation, the early church seems to constantly be threatened by false teaching our persecution. So much in the world seems to oppose the good that the Gospel brings but for as much as we may think that a tyrannical government would be the leading inhibitor to Gospel advance, Paul’s encouraging words come with an edge to them, revealing that how we deal with frustrations in life directly relates to God’s Gospel mission. In reality we all struggle with God’s plan, because often God’s way of sanctifying us is frustrating to us. The truth is, is that Paul is confident that what God starts, He finishes; and that everything the God starts is good (just look again at verse 6). Because this is true, you and I must rejoice in the circumstances God brings into our lives, no matter how inconvenient or frustrating they may seem.

So much in the world seems to counter the good that the Gospel brings...

Transition: Paul writes to encourage you to rejoice in God’s peculiar means of Gospel advancement in the face of life’s “frustrations,” and he does so by rejoicing in certain aspects of a life of faith. The first of these is the...

Effectual Bonds of Grace (verses 7-8)

Effectual Bonds of Grace (verses 7-8)

Effectual Bonds of Grace (verses 7-8)

1. Effectual Bond of Grace (verses 7-8)

In the face of his own frustrating circumstances, Paul demonstrates for us the encouraging bond of grace that unites believers together (read verses 7-8).

(verses 7-8)

Facing frustrations with our affections.

This deep expression of love (“having them in his heart…yearn[ing] for [them]”) flows from the gift that they share together in Christ, the Gospel itself.

Mankind is separated from God because of their sin, but God (the righteous Judge of all and the loving Creator of all) bought us back from our slavery to sin through the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus Christ. That if we have faith in Him, we are reconciled to God by His Spirit. This is the grace we have in Christ, this is the Gospel.

But what exactly does it mean for them to be stakeholders, partakers, “partners” in a common grace together?

First, they are bound together through the same gift of God’s love through Christ in the Spirit. They share the same status together that Paul already asserts in verse 1 when he greets the whole church as “saints.” Remember from back in February, there is no two-tier Christianity, all believers are all saints, and so Paul says it is fitting to speak so confidently of God’s persevering work, because he and the Philippians have received the same gift from God.

Here already, Paul again reflects on the long history he shares with these beloved people, a history (given the nature of the religious scene is Philippi) that typically involved persecution and even imprisonment for the church.

There is no two-tier Christianity, all believers are all saints, and so Paul says it is fitting to speak so confidently of God’s persevering work, because he and the Philippians have received the same gift from God.

Paul also speaks of sharing this grace because he was the vessel through which God ministered the Gospel to these people in the first place. Their dramatic first encounter is recorded for us in , and the simple first conversion of a desperate Philippian jailer and his family sparks the beginning of a new congregation. And this is where we see the link between a minister and his flock; oh, the effectual bond that forms between saints through the ministry of the Word together! I cannot believe there to be any greater affinity formed than such that is of the Gospel.

Paul’s words also indicate that these believers were now facing the same pushback that Paul was experiencing... as they had also been given opportunities to explain the reasonableness of the Gospel in a world grasping for truth... as well as to confirm the Gospel through a martyr’s death. They were all sharing the same consequences of the Gospel, both the distain of the world and the glory of heaven; they were all partaking together.

This is a key essential for a life of faith: though you may feel alone, you are never truly alone. Don’t lose heart.

Such was the concern of Elijah during a time in which it seemed that he was the only one in Israel who cared to follow the LORD. In he bemoans his perceived loneliness, only for God to let him in the truth: “Yet I will leave seven thousand in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.” ()

God has guaranteed his people that He will not abandon them, Jesus commissions His Spirit so to never leave us comfortless. We could count all day the assurances of God’s presence, and yet... here Paul is… alone, far detached from where he says his heart is… Consider the frustration that would set it, being moored far from familiar, familial faces...

As Paul writes, he is very open about how much he wishes he was with these brothers and sisters. Paul again reflects on the long history he shares with these beloved people, a history (given the nature of the religious scene is Philippi) that typically involved persecution and even imprisonment for the church.

Think for a second about who Paul is writing to when he brings up his “imprisonment” in verse 7. It seems all things concerning Philippi involved imprisonment in some way shape or form, and here Paul is writing from prison, in Rome, but despite all the undesireable circumstances, he is still as joyful as he was when he and Silas were chained in their cell together, singing hymns in the middle of that glorious night years before when God birthed a new congregation in Philippi.

How Paul recalls these memories with fondness. (read verse 8) How he must have longed for a similar miracle to take place there in his Roman confines as it had in Philippi, not so much for his own relief, but for the sake of the Gospel.

Paul has become accustomed to imprisonment, and he knows he can cherish this frustra-… no, He knows he can cherish God’s peculiar means of ministry with these dear people given their shared history.

Application: to put it simply... Paul missed these dear people. They had his heart, but he was hundreds of miles away from them. Thus comes the "rub” when God’s plan brings distance, differences, or any change between us and the people we find so comfortable and easy to connect with; when God’s design for growth involves relocation, or a change in work schedules or shepherd groups; when God’s call on the lives of our children takes them around the world away from us; when a church program doesn’t quite fulfill what we’ve experienced at other churches… we are quick to idolize the past and lament what God is doing today. How fickle is our American Christianity; how rebellious is our contempt of God’s work when it frustrates us.

May we embrace this essential to a life of faith: that all of life really is all about God, and that means that any frustration I feel about differences between the past and the present comes from my selfish resistance to His good hand at work.

Transition: Paul, on the other hand (again verse 8), is beaming. He rejoices in the past, he cherishes everything that he has shared with these people that have made them so dear to him, but he doesn’t just stay there. Look now to verse 9 as he begins his exhortation in this letter and we encounter a second vital aspect of a life of faith...

(read verses 9-11) Here Paul encourages the congregation to continue in discerning love.

2. Abounding, Discerning Love (verses 9-11)

Abounding, Discerning Love (verses 9-11)

Paul begins by praying that the Philippian congregation would continue to abound in love. The text indicates that this is not something Paul is introducing them to, Paul loves them so much because they are already so lovable and..

Paul begins by praying that the Philippian congregation would continue to abound in love. The text indicates that this is not something Paul is introducing them to, Paul loves them so much because they are already so lovable and..

This is a fitting encouragement. According to Jesus, love is the fulfillment of the whole Law of God, the truest form of holy devotion. Love is in fact the foremost fruit of the Spirit of God at work in a believer’s heart. The love Paul is condoning in the Philippian church is the true mark of the follower of Christ and this congregation had well cultivated it.

When the New Testament speaks of love, It speaks of a very costly thing. Contrary to popular opinion, love is not a natural expression of the human heart. True love is a sacrificial, others-focused devotion.

The congregation in Corinth would have done well to follow the example of their Philippian siblings. In writing them, Paul did have to introduce and explain love in all its facets: patience, kindness, gratitude, humility, meekness, and gentleness. “It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends.” ()

It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”

Such love and devotion grows from a heart that has been radically turned inside out and renewed. To be dead in sin means to be a slave to self-devotion and pleasure. Only a work of God can bring such a change to a darkened heart. There is no surer mark of being in Christ than a love that counters personal interest for the sake of others. Paul prays that this will continue and swell over in Philippi.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.”

But notice, this isn’t just any kind of love, Paul mentions a special quality of Christian love (verse 9): knowledge and discernment. Love will not survive where there merely are emotions and affections. Biblical love is not a blind love.

We must beware such blind love: Love without maturity enables sinful behavior; love without discernment is an invitation for abuse; it is a cheerful fool who abounds in heart but has no mind. Many gatherings, even churches, have much to say about love, but their words are empty of meaning. Love means more than blind affirmation and open acceptance.

Paul makes the point that no church should love for “love’s sake.” Because love is not an end in and of itself; Paul desires that they love in a way that “approves what is excellent” (read verse 10). In a time in which love is often an excuse for poor choices (“Why’d you do that?” -> “Well because I love him.”), Paul encourages us not to put love to waste, which is not an altogether difficult thing to do. Caving to the pressure that society even puts on the church to “do the Christian thing” is no excuse for ecumenicism or for associating with evil organizations or compromising biblical truth. True love is discerning and discriminating in how it acts and what it says.

That being said, truth, knowledge, and discernment are not ends in and of themselves either, and it’s often that “being right” comes in a loveless form... The truth of the Gospel will produce love, and true love loves truth.

True love loves truth.

This is an equipping love that approves what is excellent, meaning that it is able to differentiate between the most important things in life, this is a love that takes the moral high ground and holds it fast,

Paul

The result of this is a pure and blameless church (verse 10).

This is a recurring theme in Paul’s epistles, which is fitting seeing how abounding, discerning love is vital to a life of faith. In Paul instructs husbands in loving their wives just as Christ loves His church whom He gave His life for “that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.”

It’s the same in our day as it was in Paul’s, when churches compromise in areas of doctrine; when ministers are passive with issues of sin, the church has long forsaken the grace of God’s Spirit and the Word. God desires a people of purity.

Discerning love also produces the fruit of righteousness (verse 11).

This is an obvious nod to the “fruit of the Spirit” that we see explained in , and notice the emphasis here that any fruit in our lives comes from our union in/through Jesus Christ.

Note this small clause in verse 11, “that comes through Jesus Christ.” It’s the Son who has given to us His Spirit, the Comforter, who will lead us and guide us unto all truth. Without Christ, we are hopelessly unrighteous; grafted into His by faith, we bear fruit.

How emphatic Christ is in explaining this in “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”

A final consideration about this discerning love...

Discerning Love glorifies God (Verse 11).

Discerning Love glorifies God (Verse 11). Here is where what is good for us, righteousness, is the natural glory of God, because, in all things, He gives the increase. We are made righteous according to His marvelous grace. We are “His workmanship” (), not our own...

Here is where what is good for us, fruitfulness, is the natural glory of God, because, in all things, He gives the increase.

Application: Our society has lost its grip on actual, meaningful love, and in a world of blind love we are confronted with the rub between pointing someone to the truth versus blindly affirming their choices. Truly, the most loving thing you can do is to direct someone to what is true no matter the friction this may cause.

Facing the frustration of ambiguous love and blind affirmation.

Our affirmation means nothing if it isn’t according to truth; The most loving thing you can do is to direct someone to what is true; Our personal holiness is directly impacted by how discerning we are with our love.

Application: Our affirmation means nothing if it isn’t according to truth; The most loving thing you can do is to direct someone to what is true; Our personal holiness is directly impacted by how discerning we are with our love.

This calls for our own personal devotion to the truth, God’s Word; may we give ourselves to this vital aspect of living a life of faith!

Transition: Paul turns slightly, pausing to fill the Philippians in on his current imprisonment, something that had evidently gripped their hearts and attention since first hearing about it. In doing so, he highlights another important aspect of true faith in the face of earthly trials...

3. Kingdom-oriented Optimism (verses 12-14)

Facing the frustration of limited freedom.

(read verses 12-14)

Paul was now in Rome as a prisoner, limited in his freedom, and thus seemingly is handicapped in His service to the Lord. Paul, however, begins to describe how God, as He always does, has worked all things together for good. Paul concludes that his imprisonment has been to the advantage of the Gospel, because through it, God has opened doors into areas once thought unreachable: the whole imperial guard, the whole praetorium, that is the governing house of Rome, the heart of the empire! In fact when Paul says that it has become known “to all the rest” we have every reason to believe that everyone in Paul’s vicinity was impacted by his fervor for Christ. Everywhere Paul went the testimony of Jesus went as well.

Paul was now in Rome as a prisoner, limited in his freedom, and thus seemed handicapped in His service to the Lord. Paul, however, begins to describe how God, as He always does, has worked all things together for good. Paul concludes that his imprisonment has been to the advantage of the Gospel, because through it, God has opened doors into areas once thought unreachable: the whole imperial guard, the whole praetorium, that is the house of military and government officials. In fact when Paul says that it has become known “to all the rest” we have every reason to believe that everyone in Paul’s vicinity was impacted by his fervor for Christ. Everywhere Paul went the testimony of Jesus went as well.

Paul’s imprisonment was for Christ, and everyone involved in his journey seemed to realize at some point or another that he was imprisoned, not for crimes, but for the contempt people had for this Jesus. And what a wonderful ambassador for Jesus was Paul! That by his kingdom-oriented optimism and his discerning love he would impact those in the governing of the empire.

To Paul, “All of Life was All About God!” And having this focus in the face of what we would describe as frustrating circumstances served an additional purpose; not only was it a means to sow the Gospel among the unbelieving world, but it also served as a means to embolden the church (verse 14).

The word of Paul’s imprisonment had spread as far as Philippi, and all throughout the region, the testimony of “all of Paul’s life being all about God” was changing the way how believers looked at trials in life.

How was it that Paul could seemingly be so “carefree” about conditions that we consider taboo? Typically persecution discourages enthusiasm and boldness (that’s the point of persecution), but here we read that the church was actually abounding in their Gospel proclamation.

There was no secret movement here. Grasping the reality of God’s promise of how sure His sovereign goodness is and how vain our earthly comforts are frees the church to live boldly.

How liberating it is to know and to witness the patience of kingdom-oriented optimism, encouraging the church to live faithful to God’s Word in the face of imprisonment.

Paul’s kingdom-oriented optimism in the face what we would describe as frustrating circumstances served an additional purpose; not only was it a means to sow the Gospel among the unbelieving world, but it also served as a means to embolden the church (verse 14).

Application: Now, we take no issue with that thought, and we even subscribe to it (“I need to make Jesus known wherever I go.”) UNTIL that means losing our rights, until we are stripped of our comforts. Then, all of a sudden, our biblical Christianity goes into hiding. Oh, our American Christianity becomes very bold (demanding the restoration of the status quo), but our true Christianity grows quiet and fearful. The boldness of Paul’s brothers flies in the face of “I’m not allowed to talk about Jesus at work.” We must repent of our fickle faith that boasts of Gospel advancement so long as we can hold onto our status, job, and income too.

This is not a call for disruption for disruptions sake, but it is a call to humbly recognize that “all of life is all about God” not just in your safe spaces. (As one who finds the idea of safe spaces ridiculous, I think we have a beam in our eye… and it concerns the Gospel). These words of Paul should still embolden us today, just because it’s 2019 doesn’t mean we’ve gotten this Gospel Advancement thing figured out here in America. If anything, we’ve relegated the gospel to safe spaces.

And Paul’s not mentioning that we should simply live a certain way so people would ask us questions, he reports that they spoke “the word without fear.” Some would say, well things are different here in America. I agree, they are different, but they cannot be worse than what our brothers and sisters endured under Roman oppression. May God cause us to abound more and more in a love for His Word that we couldn’t help but speak It without fear.

We must repent of our poor faith! Consider Paul’s circumstances and think about your own; when will you stop letting the potential frustrations of Gospel Advancement keep you from participating in this marvelous work?

Transition: Lastly, Paul writes to encourage the Philippians by equipping them with his immovable joy (read verses 15-18).

4. Objective Joy (verses 15-18)

Facing the frustration of rivalry.

What we read in verses 15-18 may at first seem a bit troubling to us, simply put: the Gospel of Jesus Christ has been preached with mixed motives, but this should not be the most astonishing thing indicated here...

Here, Paul implies an underlying truth that gives us reason to rejoice: God squeezes glory out of believers, in-spite of their motives! (verse 15 & 18) The text helps us see these motives for what they are, there are two groups described here.

First, there are those who preach out of love (verse 16)

This speaks of a love both for Christ and for the Apostle. What a high calling for the church that we be emboldened to preach even if the pulpit becomes a highway to the prison. The suffering of God’s saints bring them into a fuller union with Christ in His sufferings.

With a heart to continue the work of the Apostle. Paul is encouraged that even when he is sidelined in many ways, God has worked in the hearts of a host in His church to take up the same Gospel work.

However, there are those who were preaching out of envy (verse 17)

These had desire to bask in the recognition that Paul had as an Apostle. They sought to be held in the hearts of the churches as the beloved Apostle was. And now, having heard of his imprisonment, they boldly boast of their Jesus, as if this were a perfect time to be advantaged by Paul’s chains. They had a heart to overshadow the work of the Apostle and to bring affliction to his spirit, but as we’ve already seen in this passage, Paul has opened his heart and mind to the goodness of God’s work in all things and thus he is grateful.

Here again God proves Himself mighty to save, and able to use sin sinlessly. These envious preachers meant their deeds for evil, but God meant them all for good, thus we have freedom to rejoice in times where it seems the most unlikely person is used to advance the Gospel. We can rejoice even when the ulterior motives of a man are revealed to be less than godly, yet Christ is accurately preached. This is exactly what Paul does...

Rejoice; Christ is proclaimed! (verse 18)

So long as Christ is truly preached. This is the crux of the matter. And may I say that this is a relief for me this morning… church history is filled with the stories of congregations enduring young pastors who are trying to make their way in this journey of sermon-crafting. What an encouraging truth that God’s Word doesn’t return void.

This is not a commendation of those who have been spreading false gospels. Let me be clear, while Paul (and you and I) are able to discern an accurate message about Christ, we cannot always know the motive of the one speaking. So Paul is not entirely being apathetic about the motive or the message of the preacher. In this, he simply recognizes the role that God alone has in judging the intensions of the heart.

Application: May these words be a comfort to our hearts that God delights to use imperfect vessels to make His glories known, and that leaves you and I as sufficient candidates for service. All who are in Christ, have all the grace necessary to be useful in His service. There is no 4 year program, you don’t need to be proficient in Microsoft Word. God gives you His Word, He guides you by the Spirit, and He puts you in His church to serve Him.

Now, by no means does this justify our sinful motives, nor does it free us of our responsibility to confront sin and repent of it with the discerning love prayed for back in verses 9-10.

Conclusion: Ultimately, reading this letter leaves us little room to complain. A brief scan of all that is going on in Paul’s life could have warranted him writing a letter venting about all the frustrations in his life (separation anxiety, discernment issues, imprisonment, rivalry, etc.), but he’s not writing about all that… at least not in that way. He praises the goodness of God in using these peculiar means to make His Gospel known, and in doing so we find a wealth of encouragement in our bond of grace together. May God cause His love to abound in you with all truth-loving discernment, may your eyes be fixed on a heavenly kingdom when this one seems to leave you all alone, and may the joy that God is still in the business of using imperfect vessels (like you and I) for His name sake cause us to glorify Him and make His name great!

Prayer

“And [our] God will supply every need of [ours] according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. To our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen.” (Philippians 4:19-20)