The Path to Heartfelt Thanks and Joy- Pt 1

Philippians  •  Sermon  •  Submitted   •  Presented   •  46:20
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Shortly after WWII, in November of 1947, Dr. Martyn Lloyd Jones preached a message from the book of Philippians. And in his introduction he said this,
If ever the world needed the witness and testimony of Christian people it is at this present time. The world is unhappy, it is distracted and frightened, and what it needs is to see stars shinning out of the heavens in the midst of the darkness, attracting the world by rebuking that darkness, and by giving it light, showing how it too can live that quality of life.
So, apart from our own personal happiness and enjoyment, it is of vital importance that we should understand this epistle and its doctrine and that we should be living and practicing it for the sake of the world in which we live; we owe it to the world.
We owe it to the world! What do we owe the world? We owe them a personal demonstration through our own testimonies that the happiness they are seeking is only found in the life of one transformed by the gospel.
In other words, the lives of Christians-the people who claim to be children of God- should be shinning with agonizingly bright joy and should be radiating with astonishingly white thanksgiving. Our lives should be irrefutable evidence that no matter the circumstances, Christianity is the path of true happiness.
Psalm 16:11 ESV
11 You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
Christian you owe it to the world to live like you believe Psalm 16:11. You cannot simply say that the gospel is the path to fullness of joy. You must actually live joyful and thankful lives, especially in the midst of deep darkness. This is part of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ.
And this is what the Apostle Paul wanted for these Philippian believers!
Philippians 1:25 ESV
25 Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith,
This is Paul’s aim for the Philippians. Paul greatly desired that all of the members of the church in Philippi understood how it was possible to have deep joy and genuine thankfulness even in distressing circumstances.
Saints, oversees, and deacons of Faith Baptist Church I greatly desire for you to understand how it is possible to live as joyful and thankful people no matter the distressing circumstances that God allows into your lives.
Our question this morning is how do I do that? How do I live a life of heartfelt thanks and joy? Or what is the path that will cause me to become thankful and joyful even in distressing circumstances?
This is a very significant question for us this morning. Some of you are in the midst of very distressing circumstances in your personal lives and you may be tempted to think that joyfulness and thankfulness are unattainable. All of us are in midst of distressing circumstances in our lives as citizens of this earthly kingdom and you may be tempted to think that joyfulness and thankfulness are unattainable. So we must reprogram our thinking with the Word of God this morning and embrace what is actually true instead of what we tend to believe is true.
Here in Philippians 1:1-7 I believe Paul shows us three bases that make it possible for believers to live joyful and thankful lives even in distressing circumstances.
If these three things are present in the life of any believer there will be fullness of joy and a heart always ready to overflow with thanksgiving. And Paul uses his own personal prayer life as an example of exactly how that worked for him on a daily basis.
Philippians 1:1–4 ESV
1 Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and deacons: 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 3 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy,
I thank my God in all my remembrance of you / recollection of you / every time I see you again in my heart is the idea that Paul wants to get across. So these Philippians were dear to Paul, so much so that he saw them again and again in his heart.
Who is it in your life that God often brings up time and time again in your heart? For me it is most often people that God has allowed me to minister to through the gospel. It is the people that I am personally seeking to make disciples for the sake of Jesus. And it becomes so natural, like breathing air, I don’t have to force myself to pray for you all- God just allows your faces to float to the surface of my heart all the time and so I pray for you.
But notice Paul was a thankful guy- every time these Philippians floated to the surface of his heart, which was a lot, Paul would respond with real thankfulness.
Then Paul goes on in v. 4 and he says “always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy / or I keep on making my prayer with joy. It was Paul’s regular habit and routine. He not only prayed with a thankful heart, but he also prayed with a joyful spirit. All the time, in his personal prayer life, not matter the circumstances, Paul prayed with agonizingly bright joy and astonishingly white thankfulness.
And this brings us back to our question. What enabled Paul to pray this way? What is the path that will cause us to become thankful and joyful people even in distressing circumstances?

Basis #1: A Partnership in the Gospel (v. 5)

Philippians 1:5 ESV
5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.
Paul had developed a habit in his own personal prayer life that every time the Philippian believers floated to the surface of his heart he would pray for them, and in all his prayers for them they were always filled with thanks and joy. Why? On what basis?
Paul tells us firstly, it was on the basis of their partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.
Partnership- comes from the Greek word κοινωνία and we usually translate this word as Fellowship. Contrary to popular belief there is no reference to potlucks in any of the Greek lexicons that I could find.
Part of the reason that Paul could live his life with thankfulness and joy was on the basis of the close association or close relationship that the Philippians had with him for the sake of the gospel. And this fellowship or close relationship for the sake of the gospel started right away and it has last for over ten years of ministry. And every time Paul thinks of that it fills his heart with thanksgiving and joy!
Now we must remember exactly where Paul is at the moment he is writing down these words. The guy was in a Roman dungeon!
“It is of vital importance also that we should remember that when he wrote this letter Paul was again a prisoner. He was in prison in Rome, which meant that he was probably in a kind of dungeon, chained to a soldier on both hands.”— D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
2 Timothy 2:8–9 ESV
8 Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David, as preached in my gospel, 9 for which I am suffering, bound with chains as a criminal. But the word of God is not bound!
Why is this so important to remember? When Paul wrote these words to the Philippians he was not sitting on a beach in Florida without a care in the world. We must remember that Paul was suffering, bound with chains as a criminal. Humanly speaking what greater obstacle could there have been to accomplishing the Great Commission in Paul’s life? And yet because of a long time partnership with the Philippians for the spread of the gospel, Paul had a thankful heart and fullness of joy. Why? Because, Paul says even though I am bound with chains as a criminal, the Word of God is not bound!
In other words it doesn’t matter what happens to us. No matter what God allows to happen to us we can still, as best as we are able, keep on partnering together for the proclamation of the gospel.
This is the path to fullness of joy and constant thankfulness! Today we might be tempted to say- I can’t partner together with anyone for the gospel. And we might be tempted to give all kinds of excuses for why that is- personal health, a pandemic, a lock down, a mask mandate, a particular person in government, a lack of finances.
We must realize this, God in his providence has allowed or caused everything and anything that has happened to you in your life. And no matter the circumstances, whether we are on a beach in Florida or we are bound in chains as a criminal, the path to joy and thanksgiving is to faithfully partner together for the gospel.
This is our responsibility. God is not going to do this for us, we must do it for ourselves. However imperfectly we must always be about this business of closely associating ourselves together so that the world might know the gospel. And if you will take God at His Word, and if you will faithfully labor to this end you will know a life full of joy and thanksgiving.
The other day when we had our good news about the good news testimony time together I was so encouraged to hear how you all were faithfully doing exactly this! The next day I went to the YMCA and as I was swimming laps God brought your testimonies to my mind and I spent a good deal of time while I was swimming laps thanking God for your partnership with each other for the sake of the gospel. And it was a wonderful time of prayer. And if Jesus should tarry, nothing would give me more joy than to be able in 10 years time to still be doing the same thing. Imagine where God might lead this church in 10 years if we will partner together continually for the gospel! It thrills my soul just to think about it.

Basis #2: A Confidence in Preservation (v. 6)

What is the path that will cause us to become thankful and joyful people even in distressing circumstances?
The first basis that enabled Paul to have abundant joy and genuine thankfulness in his personal prayers for the Philippians was their partnership in the gospel.
The second basis that that supported Paul’s life of joy and thanks was his confidence in the preservation of God.
Philippians 1:6 ESV
6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
I am sure of this
6πεποιθὼς αὐτὸ τοῦτο,
I have been convinced (perfect, active, part) of this,
Sure- “to be convinced” or persuaded of the truthfulness or validity of something.
Paul had been convinced of some truth, and he continues to be persuaded or sure of this vitally important truth. And what truth was Paul absolutely sure about? What truth formed the basis of his joy and thanksgiving?
Quite simply Paul gives us in two distinct statements of the wonderful plan of God for our salvation. And it is Paul’s understanding of this that thrills his heart with joy!
“It is his profound knowledge and understanding of God’s plan of salvation that really leads to his confidence. I think we must all admit that it is our apparent failure to understand and to grasp that central, mighty truth, that accounts for so much of our worrying and foreboding, of our unhappiness and of our concern. It is only the person who grasps the plan of salvation, its meaning, its character and its power, who can ever feel as the Apostle felt, and who can ever share his experience.”—D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Paul’s joy is based on his theology, on understanding, on logic!
What are these two distinct statements of the wonderful plan of God for our salvation?
1). He who began a good work in you
ὅτι ὁ ἐναρξάμενος ἐν ὑμῖν ἔργον ἀγαθὸν
that He who started a good work in you
Who is the He? Who is the one the who not only began or started the good work of salvation individually in the hearts of sinners, but also the one who started the good work corporately in the church? The obvious answer is it is no other than God Himself.
Our salvation is entirely dependent upon God from the very beginning.
Romans 3:10–11 ESV
10 as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one; 11 no one understands; no one seeks for God.
This means that if God had not begun or started the work of salvation in your heart you never would have sought after Him on your own. No one seeks for God. Unless God sought for you, you would never have sought for Him.
John 6:44 ESV
44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.
John 6:65 ESV
65 And he said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father.”
Now this does not rule out man’s responsibility, but right here is Philippians 1:6
Philippians 1:6 ESV
6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
Paul is highlighting the sovereignty of God. God is the one who starts the good work of salvation in us personally.
God is also the one who starts the good work in us corporately as a church. Notice, that Paul never talks about the good work that he himself started in Philippi. It is always God’s work. Yet go back and read in Acts of how much work Paul did to start the Philippian church.
He met with the group of women by the riverside and Lydia and her household came to Christ. He went around reasoning with the whole town concerning the gospel and eventually ended up in prison and the Philippian jailer and his house came to Christ and the church was born. And yet Paul always talks about this being a work of God.
And if we think through the story we see the power and the grace at God working side-by-side with Paul. Why did Paul go to Philippi in the first place? The Macedonian call! God led Paul by the Spirit to Macedonia, and then to Philippi, and then to that river, and then to a group of people who were perfectly ready to hear the gospel and believe.
How did Paul end up in prison? He, by the power of God, cast out the spirit of divination in a little girl. What happened that gave Paul such an excellent opportunity to share the gospel with the jailer and his household? There was a great earthquake and all the doors were opened and everyone’s bonds fell off. That was God’s doing.
So while Paul did his part, he did the hard work of the Great Commission- it was always God who graced Paul to begin a good work in Philippi.
Listen to the report that Paul and Barnabas give once they returned to Antioch from their missionary journey.
Acts 14:27 ESV
27 And when they arrived and gathered the church together, they declared all that God had done with them, and how he had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles.
“All that God had done with them!”
“How God had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles!”
Illustration: If you look on the back wall you will see several plaques. And on those plaques there are many names of the people that helped make this new church building a reality. They were a large part of helping this building come into being. Yet, every time I drive by this church who do I give credit to for making this place a reality? I praise God! Because this is a work of God. He began it. And so we look around this morning and we say look at all that God has done!
So Paul states the basis of his joy- the plan of God for our salvation- and Paul rests his soul in the grace and power of God- “He who began a good work in you!”
2). He will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ
ἐπιτελέσει ἄχρι ἡμέρας Χριστοῦ Ἰησοῦ·
He will carry it on until it is finished in the day of Christ Jesus;
He WILL bring it to completion, He WILL carry it on- this is a future tense verb meaning this hasn’t fully happened yet, which means this is a future promise by God Himself. And this is the key for Paul. This promise right here is so important. This is the grace of God that you and I must understand, and be sure of, and depend on if we are to have a life of joy and thanksgiving.
God will carry on, He will bring it to completion! What will God carry on? What is the it? The good work that He began. It is our salvation! It is God’s corporate plan for the continuance of that salvation in the church.
God never begins something that he does not intend to finish. He is not like us. We begin a diet and after two or three weeks we end it. We always begin the new year with good intentions and somehow every year we end in failure. But not God!
“God does not merely initiate the work and then leave it, he continues with it; he leads us on, directing and manipulating our circumstances, restraining us at one time and urging us on at another. Paul’s whole conception of the Church is that it is a place where God is working in the hearts of men and women.”
“Christianity is the result of God’s action and of God’s activity. It is not man’s idea, nor man’s theory; it is not moral uplift, it is nothing that man can do—it is God, from the very beginning to the very end. ‘The glory must be his alone’—the great watch-word of the Protestant Reformation.”— D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Notice the extent of this promise:
2). He will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ
ἐπιτελέσει ἄχρι ἡμέρας Χριστοῦ Ἰησοῦ·
He will carry it on until it is finished in the day of Christ Jesus;
God will carry on His good work in you and in His church until it is finished in the day of Christ Jesus.
God has promised to preserve you in His good work of salvation all the way to the end.
Romans 8:29–31 ESV
29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. 31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
V. 31 explains perfectly why Philippians 1:6 was a key basis of Paul’s joy and thankfulness. Because the hope for our own salvation, and the hope for the continuance of this church is not found in ourselves and in our own ability. Our hope is in God- is his great and precious promises! In his wondrous power and grace!
Psalm 42:11 ESV
11 Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.
Refutation:
Now some, at this point, might be tempted to say, “Wonderful, it is all a work of God! My hope is in God. That means I can go home and sit on my couch and wait for God to do His work.” And those that think this way and act this way are dreadfully wrong. What have they done? They have emphasized one clear teaching of the Word of God while excluding another clear teaching of the Word of God. And we must be careful never to do this.
We cannot only emphasize God’s sovereignty in the work of salvation and in the work of the church. Anytime you overemphasize any particular doctrine and you minimize or exclude others you end up in error. And men have been doing this for years. What do you get when you over-emphasize God’s sovereignty? Extreme Calvinism.
But the Bible also teaches man’s responsibility. Just look back to v. 5
Philippians 1:5 ESV
5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.
Here is man’s responsibility- being partners together for the work of the gospel. But, if you over-emphasize this doctrine to the exclusion of the rest of the teaching of the Bible you also get error. What is this error called? It is extreme arminianism.
But the Bible teaches both- man’s responsibility and God’s sovereignty. And many times the Bible teaches both side by side with each other.
Philippians 1:6 ESV
6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
V. 5- Man’s Responsibility (your partnership in the gospel) / V. 6- God’s Sovereignty (He will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ)
The Bible teaches both and so we must believe both.
“We must be willing to acknowledge all that the Bible clearly affirms but at the same time insist on no more than the Bible clearly affirms.”— Layton Talbert
“The providence of God is never intended to lull us into a lackadaisical attitude of fatalism, as if our actions don’t really matter because God rules and overrules however He wants anyway. It is revealed to maintain a glow of energizing trust that, despite all appearances to the contrary, God is governing for His glory and my good—a trust that inspires me to stay faithful, obedient, loyal and devoted to Him, and confident in Him.”— Layton Talbert
God’s sovereignty “is a bed for some men’s idleness; for us, it should be a couch for our refreshment.”—C.H. Spurgeon
And that is exactly what it was for the Apostle Paul- every time he prayed for the Philippians he was filled with joy and thanks on the basis of the preservation of God. He knew that God would carry on His good work in the Philippians until it is finished in the day of Christ Jesus. And this filled him with fullness of joy and genuine thanksgiving- even while bound in chains in a dungeon.
This leads us to our third basis for Paul’s joy and thanks-

Basis #3: A Participation in Grace (v. 7)

What is the path that will cause us to become thankful and joyful people even in distressing circumstances?
The first basis that enabled Paul to have abundant joy and genuine thankfulness in his personal prayers for the Philippians was their partnership in the gospel.
The second basis that that supported Paul’s life of joy and thanks was his confidence in the preservation of God.
The third basis that produced fullness of joy and abundant thanks was the Philippian believer’s and Paul’s shared participation in the grace of God. This last idea is really an explanation of how the first two work together. Philippians 1:7 is Paul’s explanation, as much as possible, for how the mystery of the man’s responsibility and God’s sovereignty work together in the church.
Philippians 1:7 ESV
7 It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel.
For you are all partakers with me of grace:
συγκοινωνούς μου τῆς χάριτος πάντας ὑμᾶς ὄντας.
you all became sharers with me of grace.
V. 5- κοινωνία / partnership in the gospel.
V. 7- συγκοινωνός / partakers with me of grace.
Partakers- a fellow partaker, one who participates with another in some enterprise or matter of joint concern. They became partners or shares with Paul of the grace of God.
The question that needs answering is how? How did the Philippians become partakers of the same grace of God together with Paul?
Both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel.
According the Paul the reason that the Philippians had access to the same grace of God that he did was due to these three things:
Imprisonment-
This may be a reference to the gift of money that the Philippians sent Paul. The idea would be that they shared this experience with Paul by supporting him with money during his imprisonment.
It could also mean that the Philippian believers themselves were being locked up in prison because they were sharing the gospel. Because they were actively and joyfully sharing the gospel with the people in Philippi they experienced the same thing that Paul experienced while he was in Philippi- jail time. And this is key- because they actively shared their faith- they did their part (man’s responsibility) they were then partakers in the grace of God (God’s sovereignty).
Defense of the gospel-
ἀπολογία / apologetics- a legal defense of using speech to attempt to prove some act or belief to be reasonable, necessary, or right. As the Philippians were out and about in their culture, building redemptive relationships and sharing the gospel, it became necessary to come to the defense of the gospel. To show why the gospel is reasonable and necessary and right. And again because they did this specific responsibility they were sharers or partakers in the grace of God.
Confirmation of the gospel-
The process of making known something in such a way as to confirm its truth. The Philippians, by their witness and by their testimony, caused the gospel to be confirmed- they caused the gospel to be confirmed in its truth. And because they did this specifically they were partakers of grace.
Now, there is a very important reason why Paul mentions these three things, and why these things and not other things caused the Philippians to share in the grace of God.
The Philippians participated in the grace of God not because they hid behind the walls of their homes. They participated in the grace of God not because they went out and performed political protests, they participated in the grace of God not because they insulted unsaved people on Facebook.
How do we know what things will and what things will not enable us to partake in God’s grace?
Because without the grace of God working in our church it is doomed to fail. Salvation, the growth and success of the church, they are all God’s work and unless God works in us and through us by His grace we cannot succeed. Any yet we must also do our own part, we must accomplish the “man’s responsibility” part of the equation. So what kinds of things should we pour our passions and our affections into in order to participate in God’s grace?
“There are outward ways and duties whereby our spiritual affections are expressed. The rule of them also is the Scripture. The way marked out therein is the only channel wherein the stream of spiritual affections doth take its course unto God.”— John Owen
I want you to carefully think about the illustration that Owens gives us in this statement. “The way marked out therein is the only channel wherein the stream of spiritual affections doth take its course unto God.”
God has created us / He has hardwired us for love, for worship, and for obedience. Owens calls these things “spiritual affections.” And every human being is created by God in such a way that they have a metaphorical stream of affections gushing out of their soul.
Spiritual Affections Illustration
“The graces required therein are to act themselves by [them]; the duties it prescribes are those which they stir up and enliven; the religious worship it appoints is that wherein they have their exercise.” — John Owen
“Where this rule hath been neglected, men’s religious affections have grown irregular, yea, wild and ungovernable. All the superstitions that the world is filled withal owe their original principally unto men’s affections set at loose from the rule of the word.”— John Owen
“Nothing is more extravagant than the affections of men, tinctured with some devotion, if they forsake the rule of the Scripture.”— John Owen
Philippians 1:7 ESV
7 It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel.
This brings us back to our text- why is Philippians 1:7 a key basis for the joy and thanks in Paul’s prayer life?
Because of how the Philippian believers were channeling their spiritual affections. What were they pouring their passions into? The Gospel!! The were being imprisoned because of the gospel, they were speaking out in defense of the gospel, and they were confirming the truth of the gospel by their words and by their actions. Because they were pouring the stream of their spiritual affections into the channel of the Scripture they became partakers of the infinite ocean of the grace of God. And for this basis Paul had fullness of joy and overwhelming thanksgiving.
Human responsibility (partners in the gospel) + God’s sovereignty (He will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ) + Partakers of grace (They were being joyfully obedient to the demands of grace according to the Scripture) = joy and thanks.
The problem with the church in America today is they have allowed their affections to run wild. What we need is keep the main thing the main thing.
Revelation 2:4–5 ESV
4 But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. 5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.
John 15:5 ESV
5 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.
John 15:8–11 ESV
8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. 9 As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. 10 If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. 11 These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.
Luke 8:15 HCSB
15 But the seed in the good ground—these are the ones who, having heard the word with an honest and good heart, hold on to it and by enduring, bear fruit.
What do we need the church to be doing now more than ever in America? We do not need more political activists, we do not need more rude comments on Facebook, we do not need more people isolating themselves from the world. What we need is every believer to pour all of the spiritual affections of their heart into the channel of God’s Word in order to become a partaker in God’s grace. And what will that really look like?
Philippians 1:27 ESV
27 Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel,
Pour out your affections into joyful obedience to the Word of God-
Build a redemptive relationship with an unsaved person this week.
Start following someone in a disciple-making relationship.
Let the Word of Christ dwell in your heart richly this week- more bible, less entertainment!
Seek God more and more in prayer- go to him and intercede for someone
What is the path that will cause us to become thankful and joyful people even in distressing circumstances?
Basis #1: A Partnership in the Gospel (v. 5)
Basis #2: A Confidence in Preservation (v. 6)
Basis #3: A Participation in Grace (v. 7)
This is the path to joy and thanks- let’s walk it together!
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