"Philippians 2: Shining Like Stars"

What does it take for a star to shine?

For starters, it is caused by the intense pressure and temperature at the core of a star which allows nuclear fusion reactions to take place. This is where atoms of hydrogen are fused into atoms of helium. This reaction releases an enormous amount of energy in the form of gamma rays.

To oversimplify, something great happens from something that starts out under intense pressure over a process of time. Coal becomes diamonds in much the same way. Coal experiences intense pressure over a long period of time and eventually a very valuable diamond is formed.

We like the end results, don’t we? We like to see the beauty of the stars in the heavens and ladies going to the jewelry store to slip a large diamond on the finger, diamond earrings on each ear, or a large diamond bracelet around her neck. And, there’s nothing wrong with that! But, we must remember that we are seeing the finished product and not the work in progress.

As much as anything, Paul is telling the Philippians that they are works in progress. In fact, we’re all works in progress and God is the master craftsman!

With that in mind, let’s hear the word of the Lord this morning from Philippians 2: 12-17, NIV.

Please stand for the reading and the hearing of God’s word this morning:

12 Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.

14 Do everything without grumbling or arguing, 15 so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.”[c] Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky 16 as you hold firmly to the word of life. And then I will be able to boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain. 17 But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you. 18 So you too should be glad and rejoice with me.

May glory be to God for the reading and the hearing of His word this morning, “Thanks be to God.”

I Googled this past week, “Can a star shine forever?”

Here’s what I found out: Most of a star's lifetime is spent shining bright. It gets its energy from nuclear fusion reactions at its core. ... A star will shine bright until all the hydrogen at its core has been converted to helium. Then it begins to die.

Imagine for a moment that we are each God’s created star. We are the created beauty of Yahweh… Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Yahweh loves us so much that he set us into motion at our birth, and the choices we make determine how brightly our star continues to shine. The right choices allow our star to shine more brightly. The wrong choices can lead to our star dimming and eventually we may collapse inwardly upon ourselves.

In 2: 12, Paul says, “As you have always obeyed...” In other words, he is saying that we make the right choices. Then he goes on to say, “continue to work out your salvation with hear and trembling.” So, continuing to work out our salvation is part of how we help our star to shine more brightly.

John Wesley famously said, “I have been saved, I am being saved. I will be saved”, and it was a part of his larger belief that our salvation is a work in progress. Outward actions should always evidence inward faith. In other words, as the nuclear fusion reaction of faith occurs deep within our souls under immense pressure, then the light of Christ can shine out for all the world to see. And, if we want our star to not have an end date or to go out, then we must allow Christ free reign within us so that He can continue to shine brightly through us.

Remember the old song? This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine. Hide under a bushel, NO! I’m gonna let it shine.

Or in more recent times there was a song whose lyrics said,

“Shine, Jesus, shine Fill this land with the Father's glory Blaze, Spirit, blaze Set our hearts on fire Flow, river, flow Flood the nations with grace and mercy Send forth your word Lord, and let there be light”

In October 1595 the Dutchman David Fabricus observed the star Ceti to disappear. The same star was noted to vary in brightness during 1638-39 by another Dutch observer and became known as Mira (the "Wonderful") due to its behaviour. It was the first pulsating star discovered. A star pulsates based on the changing reactions deep within the star. These changing reactions can cause the star’s light to appear to go away all together. That’s how it is with us sometimes. Wrong choices and human sin can causes the light of Christ within our hearts to be covered over so that the light cannot get in or out. Jesus is still there and the light is still burning brightly, its just that sometimes things come between us and Jesus and the ability of others to see the light of Christ burning brightly through us. That’s why it is so important for us to turn from our sins to God. When we confess our sins to God, through the blood of Jesus God wipes the slate clean and its just as if our sins never happened. Cleaning the slate is kind of like cleaning the windows into our soul. Once again, the light of Christ can not only shine in, but through us for all the world to see as well.

Can a star shine forever? “Yes!” But only because of the fuel that lies deep within. Just as the stars in our universe need hydrogen to survive, Jesus is the never ending fuel that allows our star to not only survive, but to thrive.

So what happens when you and I are placed under great internal pressure?

Paul knew what it was like to live in a world of great internal pressure all too well… the kind of pressure that we all know too well. We look okay on the outside, but deep within we are in turmoil. That why he said in v. 14, “14 Do everything without grumbling or arguing, 15 so that you may become blameless and pure, ‘children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.’”

He recognized that life is hard. It is tough. He knew that the people of there day were going to have a lot to complain about, and he wanted those people not to complain or grumble. Why? So that they could remain blameless and pure, without fault in a world that was warped and crooked.

Warped or Perverse comes from the word diastrefw / diastrephô and means to distort, twist and is used metaphorically of misleading, diverting, lead astray, and lead away. The sense here refers to those that distort and twist the principles and precepts of God’s word and who lead people away from its truths.

Crooked comes from the word skolioV / skolios from which we get the medical term, scoliosis, which refers to a crooked spine. When used in a metaphorical sense it refers to anything that deviates from normal standards. In the passage here, the standards are those God has set down in His word. When someone deviates from God’s standards, they can be said to be crooked. That is why we still call those who steal or defraud “crooks.”

The two words are connected. Those that are crooked themselves will lead others into their same crooked path. Because they reject the Word of God, they pervert it in an attempt to get others to also reject it. Though Paul is referring to a specific generation that the Philippian believers were dealing with at that time, the same truth can be applied to generations of similar people throughout history, including many in our own society that reject God in favor of their own ideas.

The warped world in which we live and the crookedness within our own society ranges from the subtle to the flagrant, but all of it is dangerous.

Now think about that for a minute. It wasn’t a great world or even a good world for Paul. It was a warped and crooked world. How many of you feel that way about our current circumstances in the world?

As it turns out that as the writer of Ecclesiastes says, there is nothing new under the sun! Moses once said to the people in Deut 31:27, “For I know how rebellious and stiff necked (stubborn ) you are. If you’ve been rebellious against the Lord while I am still alive and with you how much more will you rebel after I die?”

Yikes!

We need enough pressure in order to survive, but not too much!

An airplane has a pressurized cabin so that we can fly way up high in thin air. Without the pressurized cabin, we would not be able to breath. Conversely, submarines that dive down into the depths of the sea have too much pressure for humans to survive. The skin of the submarine is pressurized so as to provide a cocoon or bubble in which we can exist.

Life is full of pressure, from those that want us to live life contrary to the life that God desires for us and a world that wants us to live up to certain standards. Warped and crooked generations have existed through time. It started in the Garden of Eden and will continue until Jesus comes back and finally creates a new heaven and a new earth in the second coming. Until then, it will be important for us to live within the pressure our own protective bubble. We live within our protective bubble by have a relationship with God and relationships with others who are equally yoked.

Living in within God’s protective bubble to survive the pressures of this world is just like what happens to a baby as it grows for nine months in their mother’s womb. The baby is protected until it is ready to survive in the world. Even then, there is a recognition after nine months that the baby still depends on its parents for life. That’s how it should be with God as well.

Since Erin and I have been married, we’ve experienced the highest of highs and the lowest of lows in life. Erin and I both agree that our relationship with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is a non-negotiable. He is the most important thing in all the world to us. Second, family is priority. We not only value family greatly, but we determine how the rest of our lives makes sense by putting everything else below our relationships with God, our spouse, and our children. Then comes everything else. We are so blessed individually to have great friends, who not only tell us what we want to hear but what we need to hear. And, the old saying is true. If you want to know who your best friends are, look at who’s running into burning building that is your life when everyone else is running the other way. Those will be your true friends and those are our true friends. I have three people, including Erin, that I level with on the deepest of levels.

I tell you this because we must have human relationships that are going to help us to hit the pressure release valve in our lives. If we come under too great a pressure for too long a time, something will eventually give, and it may not be pretty. That’s why there is such a mental health crisis today in our world and why so many people are turning to alcohol and drugs as coping mechanisms. It is estimated that one in five Americans by definition is an alcoholic right now. There is no judgement here, but it means that there are a lot of souls that need help and are suffering in silence. The pressure has gotten too great, and in their isolation, they turned to a vice to help them survive the pressures. If unchecked, ultimately the pressures may lead to an even worse problem such as depression or suicide.

My challenge to you today is this...

Shine like the stars in the heavens! But if you need help to get back to that beautiful star that God has created, get the help that you need.

God- Yahweh, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, is the fuel that helps our star to shine brightly for all the world to see. Receive Jesus today, whether through a first time commitment or through re-commitment of your life to him.

To commit your life, privately pray this prayer with me, “Jesus you died upon the cross, and rose again to save the lost. Forgive me now of all my sins. Come be my Savior, Lord, and Friend. Change my life and make it new. And help me Lord to Live for you.”

If you prayed that prayer today, “Receive and then believe!” Believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sins but now live for him each day. How do you do that? Read the Word, beginning in the Gospel of John— a great place to start!

Secondly, get the help that you need.

Erin tells me all the time that I’m “Mr. Fix It!” I listen to people and then I want to fix them. But that not what the world needs right now. Over the past few months, I’ve encountered a lot of people that simply need someone to listen. I’m hear to listen to you and pray with you. If there are further steps that you need, we can work on that as well. But please allow me to be the Shepherd to my Flock as I care for and love each one of you. I’m here.

Shine like the star God created you to be forevermore! He created you. He loves you. And now He wants to fuel your life forevermore.