Good morning…continuing in the study of Philippians Steve began on January 10th

Let me be really honest and transparent for a moment…I’d like to ask for the grace of this body as I begin to fill this pulpit each week; I realize I’m not Steve -- I miss him, too, and was looking forward to listening to his exposition of Philippians -- but God willing, we will move forward and carry on as we must in his absence -- with thankfulness for his ministry and with a commitment to build on the foundation of Christ that he faithfully laid down in people’s lives all over the world -- so thank you for your willingness to prioritize the message of the word of God over which messenger is bringing it -- I know Steve would expect that of all of us

To get a running start into verse 6, let’s read from verse 3 (Philippians 1.3-11)

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, 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. 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. 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. 8 For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus. 9 And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, 10 so that you may approve what is excellent, and so 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.

Not going to cover again all of verses 3-5, but I wanted to bring out a few things that will help prepare us for the rest of the book

Christ is indeed everything -- and this book is all about Him -- His Name appears more frequently than any other noun -- the Christ hymn is chapter 2 is one of the highest points of the NT and the center of this book

The keynote of the beginning of this introduction paragraph (v. 3-11) is fellowship -- very frequent use of Gr words from the koinon word group, the most familiar of which is koinonia, usually translated fellowship, but we also see the translated words “partaker” “participation” “share” “partnership” -- Paul speaks of the unbreakable bond he shares with the people of this church -- beginning in Acts 16.11-15

11 So, setting sail from Troas, we made a direct voyage to Samothrace, and the following day to Neapolis, 12 and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We remained in this city some days. 13 And on the Sabbath day we went outside the gate to the riverside, where we supposed there was a place of prayer, and we sat down and spoke to the women who had come together. 14 One who heard us was a woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul. 15 And after she was baptized, and her household as well, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.” And she prevailed upon us.

Paul challenges the Corinthians with the conduct of these Philippians: (II Corinthians 8.1-2)

We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia, 2 for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. 

Paul loved this church with all his heart

We know the names of some in this fellowship: Euodia, Syntyche, Clement

Others’ names we don’t know: the jailer and his family

But Paul knew them all by name -- and thanked God for them, not for things

And Paul prays for them with joy -- another dominant theme

Joy is an attitude whose source is outside itself: it’s “in the Lord” -- an attitude we are commanded to have (ch 4 “Rejoice, and I say again, rejoice!”)

Never an emotion -- those can’t be commanded, but attitudes can

Mentioned sixteen times in this book

Don’t miss this -- this characteristic three-way relationship: Paul, the church, and most importantly, Christ Himself and the gospel, the good news about the Savior…Paul and the Philippian believers were not only inseparably bonded to each other, they were each even more inseparably bonded to Jesus Christ

So even when Paul is in a Roman prison, he can know that the gospel will continue to advance and do its work in and through the Philippians whether he is present or not, because the work of the kingdom of God and the gospel are never dependent on any one person, but only on the work of God Himself

Remember that truth when you use the phrase “brothers and sisters in Christ” -- that’s the three in the relationship: you, your family in Jesus, and Jesus Himself

It’s BASIC to our faith: Brothers And Sisters In Christ, B A S I C

And that’s the very reason why Paul can say what he says in verse 6:

The outcome is certain. (v. 6)

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. 

This truth is one of the most encouraging in the NT: because God started this work, He has pledged Himself to finish it

Doesn’t depend on Paul, other apostles, even the church members themselves -- the ongoing work of the H.S. will accomplish all that He has planned -- what He has deliberately decreed He will complete -- all that He intends He will finish -- the Father never leaves anything undone -- His decisions are final

Whether the work he has appointed is in the life of an individual believer, or in the community life of a church, the God who started the work will complete it -- we are blessed to participate, share, partner with Him in that work, not because He needs us, but because we need Him -- the responsibility rests ultimately with Him, not us

The Philippian church felt a very strong tie to the apostle Paul, their founder and favored teacher; and he was in jail as this letter is being read to them, with no assurance of release; they were probably thinking, “can we make it without him?”

But all that which God began beside a river by opening the heart of a woman named Lydia, or in the depths of a city jail as He brought a desperate husband and father to faith in Christ, He will complete -- through His sovereign authority, He will not lose one person nor moment -- He would not have started the Philippian fellowship were He not capable of completing all that He intended in the life of that church

Paul assured them here in v 6, the continuation of the work isn’t the work of Paul, it’s the work of God Himself, Who started the church

In I Corinthians 3.5-9, Paul says this:

5 What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. 6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. 7 So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. 8 He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. 9 For we are God's fellow workers. You are God's field, God's building.

Paul says that he and Apollos are not anything -- what matters is the gospel, the truth about Jesus Christ…God has called missionaries, preachers, teachers, all laborers in the gospel, to their work, and while they serve as they are called, it’s God who gives the increase…the church is God’s field, God’s building…we are but His fellow workers

A church need not be anxious that some unexpected event or loss will somehow derail the work of God -- it will not -- for the Lord Jesus Christ says this: (Matthew 16.18b)

I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. 

So do not fear…the Almighty God is still on His throne and He is still about His work.

Not only is the outcome certain, but…

The Relationship is Close. (v. 7-8)

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. 8 For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus. 

You can feel the love in these words…it’s almost as if Paul is present in Philippi as he’s writing this instead of a Roman prison

There is a “rightness” to this…Paul had founded this church, yet he had not stayed a significant length of time there, not even close to the time he spent in ministry in Corinth or Ephesus, yet this is the warmest, most loving greeting that Paul ever wrote…compare it to the opening lines of the book of Galatians: (Galatians 1.6-9)

6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— 7 not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. 9 As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.

At roughly the same point in the book, Paul is calling the Galatians deserters and traitors to the gospel, and by verse 9, he’s calling down curses on false teachers, probably some in the church itself 

But here, Paul says he holds these dear Philippians in his heart…a phrase that could be translated “you have me in your heart”

Maybe you’ve been in other churches in past years…you might recall with great love and affection the saints of earlier times whom you hold in your heart even now

We traveled a good bit during my active duty military career, living in nine different locations over the years, all over the world, and I can remember dear friends, brothers and sisters in the faith...I know you can look back and remember your friends, too…

Those friends who become family, the ones with whom we served and prayed and worked and witnessed, those we’ve taught and labored with, the ones who cared for our kids, and then we cared for theirs, when we each needed just one night away; those who faithfully served alongside us in small churches and large churches and base chapels, through pastorates and interim pastorates and supply preaching and Sunday School classes and youth groups and children’s ministries…

Those who ministered to us when we were in grief and mourning and couldn’t see where to take our next step, who comforted us in the loss of loved ones, those who have admonished and strengthened and encouraged and prayed with us, who have shared meals and money and guest rooms and cars with us, the men and women, saints every one, who were the friends you called at three in the morning; the friends who were unfailingly encouraging, who picked us up when we were down

In fact, I recall the final time I spoke at our home church in Nebraska, I chose this passage as my text as I tried to tell that wonderful family of believers how much they had meant to Sharon and I as we had served alongside them, and they had ministered to us in some of the most difficult times we had faced to that point…

There are those whose lives have been knit together with ours…those we hold forever in our hearts

What could possibly bind people who would otherwise be strangers together with cords of fellowship that cannot be broken, even by death itself? 

The answer is simple: the gospel of Jesus Christ

That Person -- that mission -- that binds us together -- that makes us fellowshippers, partners, fellow partakers of His grace, even if the grace is cast in shades of darkness and suffering, as Paul’s was…he said to those precious Philippian believers, “I hold you in my heart” -- and they knew exactly what he meant, for they held Paul in their hearts, too

You see, there is a real difference between fellowship among Christians and Christian fellowship…the first, fellowship among Christians, is sweet and pleasant, and sometimes just a matter of a short conversation or a fist bump; and that is needed and has its place, certainly…but then there is Christian fellowship, as deep as your soul, the partnership, the sharing that happens in repeated moments of service, in adversity, in suffering, in difficulty, and in triumph and deep joy and blessing; this is the fellowship shared by Paul and the Philippians, and shared by many of us within this body of Christ…to quote Michael Card, there is a “joy in the journey”, even in the uphill, tough, painful miles of the journey

We find our most enduring connection, our closest ties, in shared service in the cause of the gospel, advancing the kingdom of God, as Charlie and Amy sing, “…like a driving rain…”

It wasn’t the Philippians’ devotion to Paul that mattered, nor Paul’s devotion to the Philippians…it was their mutual devotion to the gospel

And that commitment will be evident through the rest of this book -- the word “gospel” appears more times per line in Philippians than it does in any other NT book

Even when that service means imprisonment, as it did for the apostle Paul, it ties us together, and it leads to the “deep affection” of which Paul speaks…the Philippian church had Paul…I think Epaphroditus probably said as he arrived in that Roman prison to visit the apostle, “we got you, Paul”

Interestingly, the words here give us a clear impression of the impact of the conditions and challenges Paul faced…a direct reference to his imprisonment, which we will hear about later, and the words “defense and confirmation of the gospel” -- Paul knew that this imprisonment was completely in the plan of God and under His sovereign control -- and it would result in the confirmation of the truth claims of the gospel 

Jesus would be proclaimed through Paul’s circumstances, so even in that he could rejoice

And Paul does something here very unusual: in essence, he takes an oath, calling on God to be his witness as he proclaims the depth of his love and affection for his dear brothers and sisters in Philippi…he yearns for them, longs to be with them, not just to be out of the Roman prison he’s in, but even more to share in the fellowship and partnership with the saints in Philippi

Yes indeed, the outcome is certain…the relationship is close…

And the prayer is clear.

Paul now tells the Philippians how and what he’s praying for…

9 And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, 10 so that you may approve what is excellent, and so 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.

Listen to the heart of Paul…do you pray like this? Do we pray like this?

Let’s look at this carefully…

“That your love may abound more and more…”

No object…not “love for God” or “love for others” -- just “love”

We already know love is a distinguishing mark for Christians…I John 3.14

14 We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. 

How do we know we’re saved -- we’ve passed out of death into life? What is the proof our faith, our relationship with Jesus? We love each other.

But too often, Christianity today stops here -- as if they got their theology from the Beatles, “love is all you need” -- FALSE -- Paul rightly adds “with knowledge” -- epignosis, experiential knowledge -- we must love God, but we must love God with a true knowledge of Who He is…it’s not sufficient to say that you love God but you can’t explain or describe God from His own word…a love that isn’t founded on an the truth of the Scriptures is just an emotional response to an emotional plea…it needs the substance of the Word to undergird it

How much better it is to understand the truth of the Person of Jesus Christ from His Word, as He Himself taught it…

On the road to Emmaus, the day He rose from the dead, Jesus took the time to instruct two disciples in the truth of the Word…Luke 24.25-27

25 And he said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” 27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.

You want to know Jesus more? You want to love Him more? Go to His Word…for Him, the cliché is true: to know Him is to love Him.

It’s very significant that at the end of all four of the prison epistles, Paul prays for his readers to gain greater knowledge of God…why? Because everything you learn about Jesus is another reason to love Him

R. Kent Hughes commends believers to “give priority to gathered worship with our Bibles and our hearts open to God.” Well said…

Paul also prays the Philippians may develop discernment -- the Gr word is ‘aisthesis’ (144), meaning perception, with the external senses as well as the mind...it involves knowledge based on experience in life situations and circumstances

Used only here in the NT, but used 20 times in the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the OT, all found in the book of Proverbs…the deepest well in scripture of practical insight for life choices

Coupled with ‘epignosis’, experiential knowledge, it really represents what my dad used to refer to as “book learning” coupled with experience, and “common sense” 

To be able to “test and approve that which is excellent” is Paul’s third request for the Philippians

The Gr word originally meant testing metals or livestock to discern or determine which one of several choices was best…it came to apply to life choices, ethical or moral decisions we face…it’s one thing to love God…it’s another to know about Him and to know God…it’s another thing to have the insight to be able to distinguish, to test and approve, not just good from bad, but best from second best

This is what we all need to live in the gray areas of life that require a greater degree of perception and application of scriptural principles

Having these qualities will prepare a believer, Paul prays, to be “pure and blameless for the day of Christ”

These two words combine to form a powerful word picture…we are to be pure, of unmixed substance, free of spot or blemish, even when examined in the bright light of the noonday sun; and “blameless,” which speaks to freedom from stumbling, meaning that we have no practices or habitual sins that would cause us to fall

And we are to be “filled with the fruit of righteousness”

Picture an apple orchard or an orange grove, filled with well-tended and healthy trees laden with fruit ready to harvest…that’s what we should be as individual believers, but also as a small group, or a ministry team, and certainly as a church

Matthew 12.33-35 says “33 “Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, for the tree is known by its fruit. 34 You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. 35 The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil.

What grows out of your life is the proof of what is in your life

Paul’s desire for the Philippian believers is that they would bear much fruit -- not just thirty fold, or sixty fold, but a hundred fold…a tree “filled with fruit”

When the Father looks at us, I want Him to see us as trees whose branches are hanging down low with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5.22-23)

So let’s trace Paul’s thinking to bring this together -- his prayer for believers is that we overflow with love, matched with knowledge based on deep understanding and application of the Word of God and common sense wisdom for practical choices in living; and that we would be equipped to test the difficult choices in the gray areas of life and choose the best; and that the result would be that we would be pure and clean, with nothing in our lives over which to stumble, but instead that the very fruit of our characters and lives would precede us, and that in the day of Christ, we would hear those precious words, “well done” -- as our lives are poured out to the glory and praise of God

Do you pray like that? Do I pray like that? I wonder if sometimes my prayers, our prayers, are too small…

What if our prayers grew in size and scope and scale until they were like this prayer…what kind of change might we see in ourselves and in each other if we were to raise our prayer lives to this level…for lives filled with love, knowledge, and discernment; for pure and clean and right conduct, unstained by the world, and filled with fruit to the glory of God?

So as we’ve looked deeply into this passage, how can we take this knowledge and let the Holy Spirit add to it discernment and wisdom, practical insight for living, resulting in a harvest for God? 

What do we do with what we now know?

We trust God to finish what He has started in this fellowship…we’re already returning to ministry, and beginning new ministry, confident that we are to plant and water, but that it’s up to God to bring the increase, and He will not fail at that which He has purposed

We draw close in our relationships with each other…at this moment, we need each other as much or more than we ever have…despite this pandemic, we can -- we must -- come alongside each other in support and strength and compassion and encouragement -- and yes, in joy -- for we are in fellowship -- koinonia -- with each other -- one body, fitted together in Christ…use whatever means you have available, but for the sake of the kingdom of God, and also for our own good, let us draw close to each other in love

We commit to pray like Paul -- let us pray not ONLY for healing, though that is important; not only for earthly needs or desires, which the Father already knows we need; not only for the circumstances we face in this world -- instead, let us add to those prayers the kind of prayers that cry out to our Father for more love to return to Him and share with others -- for more knowledge of Him and discernment in the dark gray corners of our lives -- for more ability to make ethical and behavioral choices in life that will honor our Lord, not shame Him -- that we might one day stand, without sin or stumbling, before Him, confident in His grace, with lives characterized by the fruit that only comes from the Holy Spirit Himself

What must change this week for our walk to be like that?