Fellowship of the Faith

Big Hugs

In the fall of the year, Linda, a young woman, was traveling alone up the rutted and rugged highway from Alberta to the Yukon. Linda didn’t know you don’t travel to Whitehorse alone in a rundown Honda Civic, so she set off where only four-wheel drives normally venture. The first evening she found a room in the mountains near a summit and asked for a 5 A.M. wakeup call so she could get an early start. She couldn’t understand why the clerk looked surprised at that request, but as she awoke to early-morning fog shrouding the mountain tops, she understood.

Not wanting to look foolish, she got up and went to breakfast. Two truckers invited Linda to join them, and since the place was so small, she felt obliged. “Where are you headed?” one of the truckers asked.

‘Whitehorse’

“In that little Civic? No way! This pass is DANGEROUS in weather like this.”

“Well, I’m determined to try,” was Linda’s gutsy, if not very informed, response.

“Then I guess we’re just going to have to hug you,” the trucker suggested.

Linda drew back. “There’s no way I’m going to let you touch me!”

“Not like THAT!” the truckers chuckled. “We’ll put one truck in front of you and one in the rear. In that way, we’ll get you through the mountains.”

All that foggy morning Linda followed the two red dots in front of her and had the reassurance of a big escort behind as they made their way safely through the mountains.

(10,000 Sermon Illustrations, Swindoll, Growing Strong, p. 286)

If it had not been for those two truckers, Linda would have felt small and insecure driving that dangerous road alone. For many, that is what this pandemic is like. We feel small and isolated, driving a dangerous road all by themselves. However, even in our isolation, we feel a fellowship with each other due to the commonality of the issue. We my be apart, but we are all going through it. We have a common enemy, the COVID-19 virus, and many fellowships have been forged to help fight this battle. People joining forces to deliver groceries to high risk people. People joining forces to provide solutions for the needs of our communities. We see medical fellowships, political fellowships, supply fellowships, all being forged to combat one common enemy, the COVID-19 virus.

There is another world-wide fellowship that has been around for nearly 2,000 years yet many of its members have never met. It is the fellowship we call Christian. It is a very special fellowship that can bring joy even in the darkest of circumstances. We see this special kind of joy and fellowship in the book of Philippians. There is a lot experienced in this small book of the Bible that relates well to what we are experiencing today. I believe this letter from Paul will bring you encouragement, peace and joy in these difficult days of isolation.

Our text today is Philippians 1:1-11. Please read along with me as we start there.

Philippians 1:1–11 NIV

1 Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, To all God’s holy people in Christ Jesus at Philippi, together with the overseers and deacons: 2 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 3 I thank my God every time I remember you. 4 In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, 6 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. 7 It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart and, whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God’s grace with me. 8 God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus. 9 And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, 10 so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.

Pray

Fellowship of the Faith

In J.R.R. Tolkien’s first novel of The Lord of the Rings, a fellowship was forged with a common purpose; to see that the ring of Mordor was destroyed. This ring was forged with such evil power that it would bring the destruction of all men. However, the destruction of the ring was no easy task. It could only be destroyed in one place; the fires of Mount Doom. Getting to this place would be difficult and near impossible. It would require great physical skill. Treacherous landscapes would be crossed as well as many enemies fought along the way. A team consisting of men, elves, dwarfs and hobbits banded together to see that the task was done. They felt that by their number they had the best chance of succeeding. However, as the journey continued, a multitude of events continued to separate them. Despite their separation, they each continued to forge forth with the purpose of accomplishing their task. The fellowship was separated, but it still remained true to its purpose and accomplished its task despite the physical separation from each other.

Paul understood this kind of fellowship and separation. As he traveled and preached, he saw a growth in the fellowship called Christian. However, his travels along with various times of imprisonment kept him physically separated from those he was in fellowship with. But Paul never allowed this to discourage him and he encouraged others not to be discouraged.

One such fellowship that became very dear to Paul was the church in Philippi. It was through Paul’s own preaching that this church was formed. They had eagerly believed though they lived in a difficult place to do so. They were generous in supporting Paul then and throughout his ministry. At a time when you would expect Paul to be discouraged and lonely, he writes to this fellowship declaring his love for them and the joy they bring him. It is believed to have been approximately ten years since he has last seen them. At the time Paul authored this letter, most believe he was under house arrest in Rome or Caesarea (500-1000 mi). He has no idea if he will be set free or put to death. He has received a gift from the church in Philippi and this letter is his response where he acknowledges a special “fellowship of the faith” with this church and how that encourages him.

To begin, we need to take a look at the word “fellowship” as we often have a misunderstanding of this word. We often confuse fellowship with eating together and visiting with each other. But it is a much greater connection than that. Fellowship means, “to share, or to have in common with.” People can share fellowship with common acquaintances and even with a stranger in a moment of common interest/circumstance. However, Christian fellowship is much deeper. We are connected through the Holy Spirit as one family. Our commonality is fused in the salvation gifted us by Jesus Christ and we know we will share an eternal home together. We are forged through the work of the Holy Spirit to be one family. That is why at times you can meet someone you think is a stranger yet sense something different in them. As you get acquainted you find you are both believers. There are many such times this has occurred in my life. But there is more. Not only are we bonded through our common belief, but also through our common goal and purpose. We labor together to accomplish the proclamation of the “good news” of Jesus Christ as well as growing in our spiritual walk to be ready for Christ’s return.

Paul demonstrates this in 1 Corinthians 3:5-9.

1 Corinthians 3:5–9 NIV

5 What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. 6 I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. 7 So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. 8 The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. 9 For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.

There are a couple things that really stand out to me in this book of Philippians that I wish us to see today. First, Paul was under “stay in place” orders much as we are today. If someone wished to see him, they had to come to him. The second thing is the love and fellowship that Paul felt for these people despite the distance between them. They were physically separated, they were each facing dangers, and yet their fellowship, their common goal was still in tact and this gave Paul encouragement and joy in his isolation.

Theirs was truly a...

I. Fellowship of the Faith

The first thing that stands out in Paul’s letter is that he addresses them all. Look with me at verses 1 and 2.

Philippians 1:1–2 NIV

1 Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, To all God’s holy people in Christ Jesus at Philippi, together with the overseers and deacons: 2 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Overseers were the pastors, or shepherds if you will, of the flock of believers. This was a newer concept. In the beginning, the churches were shepherded by the apostles. However, as churches became more widespread and the apostles travels (or martyrdoms) kept them away for longer periods of time, new leadership needed to be provided for the individual body of believers. The Overseers jobs pertained to the internal affairs of the church; the preaching, teaching, and guidance of the people. The Deacons were over the external affairs of the church providing certain service responsibilities for the church (such as Stephen’s appointment to see to the food distribution to widows in Acts 7).

Most people will write a letter to the leaders, but Paul writes to the entire church. He shows no favoritism, in fact, he lists the leaders secondary.

Once the greeting is written, we find Paul pouring out his love for these people. The first thing he communicates is...

A. I Have You in My Mind (vv 3-6)

Philippians 1:3–6 NIV

3 I thank my God every time I remember you. 4 In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, 6 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.

The first thing we see is that...

1. Paul was others-focused not self-focused (3)

Philippians 1:3 NIV

3 I thank my God every time I remember you.

Paul was under house arrest and facing the possibility that he may soon be put to death, yet his focus was not on that. He was remembering good times. Oh and by the way, those times were not quite as good as you might expect. If you look back at the story in Acts you will find that he had been illegally arrested and beaten, put in stocks and humiliated before all the people. Yet despite all of that, these people’s faithfulness to him gave him joy in the remembrance as we will see in a moment.

Paul demonstrates for us how to deal with hardship. Instead of dwelling on the difficulty things before us. It is good for us to remember the other difficult things we have gone through and how we came through. Things such as...God’s answers to our prayers...Good people who have come alongside us to encourage us... As wells as the good things we have learned through those time.

As Paul reflects back we see...

2. Paul experiences joy in the memories of others (4)

Philippians 1:4 NIV

4 In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy

It helps to remember that we are not alone. Not only had the Philippians supported Paul despite his harsh treatment by others, but they too were experiencing their own difficulties. If you watched that overview video I sent, you will see that living in Philippi was no picnic for these other believers. They were persecuted also. Which brings us to another way to deal with our struggles. Look at the struggles of another and pray for them. Paul remembers them and he prays. I am also sure there were times he was praying and he remembered them. When we get our focus off ourselves and on others, we find we can better handle the difficulties we are facing.

But we see something else that happens as Paul remembers these people and prays for them. He experiences joy in the remembrances. This speaks of a sweet fellowship. One that can only be forged through shared hardships. When we are shaped in hard times together, we find a companionship that brings sweet joy. I am sure there were times when Paul was with them that they sat over meals laughing and teasing each other. Just enjoying each others company and now he remembers those times and they bring him joy.

In times of grief we can have this experience. In grief counseling, you are encouraged to embrace memories. It is healthy to speak of things you remember and share them with others. When you are with someone who has just lost someone, they are always glad to have someone to share their memories with. And even in that moment of pain and loss, I see them smile or chuckle over a fond memory of the person they have just lost.

As I have spoken with various ones of you over the past week, you have mentioned the fellowship times we have had and the fun we have together. A couple of us have already talked about the fact that our first Sunday together should end with a potluck! :-) Memories can give us joy in the midst of hard times.

There is another reason Paul’s memories bring him joy.

3. Paul’s joy comes from their encouragement (5)

Philippians 1:5 NIV

5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now,

These people had supported Paul in his ministry. They helped him in his trials there. They opened up their homes and hearts to him. They financially supported him and even now, this letter is in response to support that they have sent him.

Early in this pandemic, I gave someone the task of creating support groups. Several people were called and asked to call a few people every week, checking in and praying with them. It has been a delight when I have called to hear people say, “I have been making my calls” and others, “I have been called by others.” As you give support or are supported by others, it brings “joy” to our hearts in the midst of the difficulties.

We also find one more reason for Paul’s joy.

4. Paul feels joy knowing that God will bless them eternally (6)

Philippians 1:6 NIV

6 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.

As Christians, we can look back at what God is doing in people’s lives and find joy. We are excited to see the transformation in their lives. We are delighted to see their joy increase. We are thankful that one day they will find their final home with God. We have talked about this a lot lately, but it is true. We face death completely different when we have a saving relationship with Jesus Christ. Not only are we able to face our death with peace, but we can better accept the death of loved ones when we have the confidence that we will be reunited again one day.

The next thing that Paul tells the Philippians is, not only our they on his mind, but he says...

B. I Have You in My Heart (vv 7-8)

Philippians 1:7–8 NIV

7 It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart and, whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God’s grace with me. 8 God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.

In the Greek, “I have you in my heart” sounds more like “You have me in your heart.” The NRSV Bible states the latter, but most interpret it as “I have you in my heart.” The truth is, usually one leads to the other. When people are dear to us, it is usually because we are dear to them.

Paul is very clear about...

1. My affection is for all of you

There are at least nine instances in this letter when Paul says, “all of you.” He wants to make it clear that every one of them is dear to him. One of the actions of the Christian body is that we love one another. That is one of Christ’s commands, “You should love one another.”

John 13:34 NIV

34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.

Now that does not always mean we agree, but even if we disagree, we are to love one another. I heard an illustration that was used of a marriage that I feel also fits in a church body of believers.

“There seems to be friction in our home,” a concerned wife said to a marriage counselor. “I really don’t know what the trouble is.” “Friction is caused by one of two things,” said the counselor, and to illustrate he picked up two blocks of wood from his desk. “If one block is moving and one is standing still, there’s friction. Or, if both are moving but in opposite directions, there’s friction. Now, which is it?” “I’ll have to admit that I’ve been going backward in my Christian life, and Joe has really been growing,” the wife admitted. “What I need is to get back to fellowship with the Lord.”

When the body of believers in a church are moving forward in the direction God points, there is unity. However, there are times when someone is out of sync with this forward movement and they will feel the friction. However, just because there is a feeling of friction, does not mean that there is not love for that person.

Later in Paul’s letter he addresses a couple of ladies in that church that seem to be experiencing some friction with each other. However, this does not change Paul’s love for them. It may also be that Paul has perhaps clashed with someone there in the past. In either case, he wants to make it clear that his affection is for all and he even classifies it as, “the affection of Christ Jesus.” This is deep spiritual affection.

However, there is even something more beyond affection. He says...

2. We share in God’s grace together

Earlier we talked about the definition of “fellowship.” It was “sharing or having in common with.” As I stated before, Paul relates to these people in several ways.

a) They have suffered together in the past

b) They are now still both suffering in one way or another

c) They share a common purpose, the proclamation of the gospel

d) They share in a common goal, eternal life with God

Whether it be the grace of God for salvation or the grace of God’s mercy in times of suffering, Paul and these believers are united in God’s grace. It is hard not to feel a kinship to people under such circumstances.

The final thing that Paul communicates in this passage is...

C. I Have You in My Prayers (vv 9-11)

Philippians 1:9–11 NIV

9 And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, 10 so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.

What is the first thing he prays for them?

1. Overflowing love (9)

In Luke, Jesus is addressing the problem with judging others and he says the following:

Luke 6:37–38 NIV

37 “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. 38 Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”

I suspect that same quote can be applied to love. Love, and love will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over. Love that abounds. Overflowing love. That is Paul’s desire for these people. How much this reveals of his love for these people.

Paul also prays...

2. May their love be grounded in spiritual truth and discernment (9)

There were a lot of false teachers expounding a lot of false doctrines. However, Paul’s desire is for them to mature spiritually in the truth which only comes through the teachings of Jesus Christ. Spiritual discernment comes to us through the work of the Holy Spirit from within us. Look at 1 Corinthians 2:6-11.

1 Corinthians 2:6–11 NIV

6 We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. 7 No, we declare God’s wisdom, a mystery that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. 8 None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. 9 However, as it is written: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived”— the things God has prepared for those who love him— 10 these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. 11 For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.

Next Paul prays...

3. For them to discern God’s good will (10)

Our lives are a series of choices every day. There are many things crying out to distract us from the things God would have for us to do. Paul’s desire is that they be faithful to follow God, making wise choices for their life. Choosing the right priorities and accomplishing the work that God would have them to do. In this way, they will be found “pure and blameless” come judgement day.

In the NIV is says “pure” however, in others the word is “sincere.” I love the Greek expression of this word “sincere.” It is, “examined in the sunlight and found pure.” This was Paul’s desire for these people.

Next Paul expressed the desire that...

4. They would produce the correct fruit (11)

The fruit of righteousness is only ours through Jesus Christ our Lord. Look back at what we talked about last week.

John 15:4–5 NIV

4 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. 5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

This is Paul’s desire for the Philippians, that they remain in Christ. In doing so, they will fulfill all Paul’s hopes accomplishing the most important of all, producing righteousness through Jesus Christ and ”bringing glory and praise to God.”

Conclusion:

Just as Paul prayed all these things for the Philippians, he is demonstrating his love for them. Look at Philippians 1:7 one more time.

Philippians 1:7 NIV

7 It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart and, whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God’s grace with me.

Paul is even in that moment fighting a battle for them. Whether he is in chains, or as he stands before the Roman counsel pleading his defense of the gospel, he is doing it for them. His courage, his actions, his faith is a demonstration for them as they fight their own battle in defense of the gospel. Theirs was a true “fellowship of the faith!”

We are also a “fellowship of the faith” struggling through difficult days. We may feel like we are unable to do the things God has called us to do right now while we are under “house arrest.” But Paul has shown us what we can do.

1. We should not despair in self-focus, but instead pray for others as they come to mind.

2. We should remember we are not alone, but are a fellowship of believers making us one in the body of Christ.

3. We should take time to write or call others within our fellowship to encourage them.

4. We should stay grounded in our faith through the word, prayer, and communication with each other.

In closing, I wish to say to you that one of the reasons I felt so drawn to this book is I relate to Paul and his letter. I truly remember you and feel great joy as I do so even if I am unable to call you as much as I would wish. I pray for each and every one of you as God brings you to mind as well as I have a list I pray through. Every one of you who have attended our church is on that list, even some who are no longer attending or only attended once or twice. And you are in my heart. You have been so good to me. You have blessed me with gifts and with love from the time I arrived. You are in my heart and I feel that I am in yours. I look forward to many days ahead with you. We will have good times and we will have difficult times, but we will always be together in heart and spirit through the Spirit of Jesus, the blessed Holy Spirit.

Pray

Blessed Father,

We are in difficult days. They are trying days that get on our nerves. However Father, we know we are not alone. We are united in spirit through Your Holy Spirit. We rejoice in the things we are learning during this time. We take advantage of the extra time to pray and commune with You without the outside things that so often distract us.

Father we pray for our nation and our world during this time, that through this pandemic, many will be saved. We grieve with those who have lost loved ones, feel the struggles of those who are unemployed, and the depth of angst for those trying to lead and find answers.

If there is something more we need to be doing, we give you permission to impress it upon our hearts and help us to be diligent about the things we have already committed to.

In Your blessed name we pray Jesus,

Amen