Philippians- Living for Christ

We're stepping through the book of Philippians, a book, a letter, rather, written by Paul and Timothy to the church in Philippi. And the theme that underpins that is living for what lasts. And so, you know, in a world that really gravitates towards the. The temporary, this is calling us to change our focus. And that's the theme that underpins this whole book, is looking to those things that are lasting, the things that will bring you love, things that will bring you peace, hope and joy, the things that last.

And so the context for this letter comes from the fact that the church in Philippi was originally established by Paul. And so you can read about that in Acts chapter 16. This is a Roman colony in ancient Macedonia, and it's a place that's well known for its patriotism to the Roman Empire. And so when Paul originally went there, he faced huge resistance for telling people who Jesus was, because telling them who Jesus was meant telling them who the true king of the world was. And to a people who were loyal to the emperor, loyal to Caesar, this would have been confronting.

There's people here who were loyal to the emperor. They might have even sworn an oath to serve and protect him. And for them to come to know who Jesus is would have turned their world upside down. And we see, despite that resistance that Paul faces there, a large number of people come to know who Jesus is, and a community emerges there as the church in Philippi. And as we know from Paul's letters, that church remained this vibrant and faithful community to Jesus despite the ongoing persecution that they also then experienced and long after Paul had moved on.

And so in his time there, Paul had really forged these strong relationships with people. He'd gotten to know them really well, and even says in this letter how much he loves the people there and he wants to visit them again. But there's a problem. Paul is in prison. And this is something that happened multiple times throughout his life, simply for the fact that he was telling people about Jesus.

That's the reason he was in prison. And so when the Philippians find out that's where Paul is, they want to support him, and so they send him a gift. And this letter is a response to that gift. It's thanking the Philippians for their generosity, it's encouraging them. But also, as we're about to read in this next section, it's focusing on their obvious concern, which is the fact that Paul is in prison.

And so this is a real concern for them, because they can see Paul is facing a huge trial. He's Literally in chains. So we know from historical accounts of this time that people under house arrest, like Paul, they would literally be chained to a guard at all times, at all hours of the day and night guards would come through on shifts, and they would be chained to Paul. And so you can imagine that this is a demeaning experience to have to go through. There's a loss of freedom there, obviously from being in prison, but also just the discomfort from the lack of privacy in all your daily things.

But more than that, I think the thing that really, I would have guessed would have affected Paul the most was the loss of his career. And so you'd know that from reading the Book of Acts, all through the Book of Acts and even Paul's letters to the various churches, that Paul is this amazing leader and evangelist, and. And he could go to any town, any city in the Roman world. He could make connections with people there. He could reason with them and debate with them, and by the end of it, there'd be so many people converted following Jesus that he could establish a church there.

But now we see Paul, he's in the middle of his career, and he's unable to do the thing that he's best at. And actually the thing that he's most passionate about doing, it's been taken away from him. And so we see Paul in this letter respond to that. And so the question is, how will Paul respond to these circumstances? And we see his.

Not just his response to it, but we see how he's able to respond in the way that he does respond. And so if you'd like to turn with me, we're going to look at Philippians chapter one, verses 12 to 26, and it'll also be on the screen.

So chapter one, starting in verse 12, says this. And I want you to know, my dear brothers and sisters, that everything that has happened to me here has helped to spread the good news for everyone here, including the whole palace guard, knows that I am in chains because of Christ and because of my imprisonment. Most of the believers here have gained confidence and boldly speak God's message with without fear. And so notice here that Paul doesn't mention the hardships he's going through. That's not the first thing he talks about.

And this is actually the first time in this letter that he mentions his imprisonment. And there's no mention of his personal suffering or his loss, loss of his freedom or his career. He seems to just take the hardships of life in his stride. And Paul's first thought here isn't about himself. So in verse 12, he shows us what his true concern is.

He says, everything that has happened to me here has helped to spread the good news. So he's thinking about his purpose in life. He's thinking about spreading the good news. And his concern there is for the Philippian believers. So he's concerned that actually they might be discouraged by his circumstances, by the hardships that he's facing.

And so Paul wants them to know that his imprisonment has actually, paradoxically, turned out for good. All the Roman guards, they now know that Paul, he's in prison for announcing Jesus as the true king of the world, which, let's be honest, you'd expect to happen when one of the world's most persuasive evangelists is chained to you. There's no way they're getting away without hearing the Gospel message. And on top of that, his imprisonment has inspired confidence in the Christians in that area to talk more openly about Jesus. So they've seen Paul proclaiming the gospel despite his hardships, and it's given them the confidence to do the same.

And so his real concern there is for other people. He doesn't want them to be discouraged by what he's going through. He then goes on to talk about those believers that he's just mentioned that are speaking God's message without fear. And actually, they're a bit of a mixed bag. Goes on to say this in verse 15.

It's true that some of those believers are preaching out of jealousy and rivalry, but others preach about Christ with pure motives. They preach because they love me, for they know I've been appointed to defend the good News.

Those others do not have pure motives as they preach about Christ, they preach with selfish ambition, not sincerely intending to make my chains more painful to me. But that doesn't matter whether their motives are false or genuine. The message about Christ is being preached either way. So I rejoice, and I will continue to rejoice.

So Paul says that those people who are speaking God's message, they're kind of a mixed bag. And to Paul's dismay, there are some people who are preaching because they want to surpass Paul, right? And those people, they were actually glad that Paul was in prison because they now had this competitive advantage, I guess, over him. You know, they were going to make a name for themselves now that Paul was out of the picture. And Paul says those people were intending to make his chains more painful.

They were so competitive that they didn't just want to win, they wanted to see Paul lose. And you can see by how Paul frames this part of the letter that he's bringing this up because he's worried about how the Philippians would be concerned about this. Right. And this would be a horrible thing for Paul to be confronted with. Right.

So he would have expected. Right. That those people who were hostile to Christianity, you'd expect those people would be rejoicing that he'd be in prison. That wouldn't be a shock. But those people who were fellow preachers who were also, you know, telling people about Jesus, that part would have perhaps taken him, you know, by surprise.

I think he would be taken aback by the fact that those people who were other preachers who were spreading the good news were rejoicing that he was in prison. And he's saying there's some people out there like that. They were the people who he would have thought would be in solidarity with him, lifting him up in prayer and encouraging him in this moment. They're actually rejoicing that he's in prison. And so Paul's response to this is quite amazing.

He simply says that doesn't matter to him. As long as the gospel was being preached faithfully, he it didn't matter. So he's saying, you know, God will deal with those people and their motivations if they're not right. But if the gospel message is being preached faithfully, then actually that's a good thing. And he's rejoicing because of it.

And he's going to keep on celebrating. That's what he says here. And he's going to keep that celebration going because he knows what's going to come out of that situation that he's in. He says this.

He says, for I know that as you pray for me and the spirit of Jesus Christ helps me, this will lead to my deliverance. Paul says his current circumstances will lead to his deliverance. The suffering and the tragedy that he's going through will set him free, in other words. And so he's not talking here about being released from prison. And that's important.

I think you could easily read this verse and think that's what he's talking about. But that's not what this one is about. He says. He doesn't say, rather, I'll be set free in spite of these horrible things. He says, I'll be set free because of these horrible things.

So what is Paul getting at? Paul's essentially saying that his suffering and his tragedy will refine him personally. So setting him free from the effects of sin in his life, he believes that those things about himself that are imperfect and need refining are being refined through this. So Paul is saying, I rejoice because I know that the suffering, the tragedy that I end up facing is making me into the person that I want to be. It's refining me.

It's making me more like my Savior, a person of love and humility. And so he's not expecting to be delivered from the circumstances that he's in, but he is expecting that God will be at work in it. So in a way, Paul is saying, no, I need this. If this makes me more like my Savior, then I want to be part of that. And this is not an easy thing to get your head around.

This is a very advanced idea, and it doesn't equate to bad things automatically purifying you or making you a better person. The trials in your life do not automatically have that effect. Whether or not hardships in life refine you or destroy you depends on your definition of life. And in this next section, Paul gives us his. He says this.

For I fully expect and hope that I will never be ashamed, but that I will continue to be bold for Christ as I have been in the past. And I trust that my life will bring honor to Christ whether I live or die. For to me, living means living for Christ, and dying is even better. So in verse 20 there, he starts off by saying, far from being embarrassed or ashamed of my current situation, I can see that actually everything that's happening to me in this prison only serves to make Christ more accurately known. So in fact, to him, it doesn't matter if he lives or dies.

He's not discouraged. He's not in despair. There is joy here, despite his circumstances. And that's because he has a definition of life that allows him to face anything. And in verse 21, he tells us what that is.

He says, living means living for Christ. That's his definition of life. Living means a life centered on Christ. For Paul, that's the thing that makes life, life, the most important thing to him. If Paul's entire life, his actions and his purpose, they're centered on Christ, and he's living like Christ, then he's living his best life, regardless of whatever else is taken from him.

And there are lots of alternatives to this. We do live in a world that focuses on the temporary. And if you ask people, what is your definition of life? You know, just what is life about? You know, you might get a whole bunch of different answers, but here are some common ones the Epicurean would tell you.

Life is to have Pleasure. I live to have pleasure. You know, I only work so that I can have fun, right? So I'm going to do everything I can to maximize the good times that I have. The stoic will tell you to live is to be strong, is to be tough, is to be in control.

It's having that ability to endure life's pain and hardships in your own strength. The moral person would tell you, to live is to be a good person, right? And again, doing that in your own strength, not accepting grace, but just to be a good person on your own. And then there's a whole bunch of other things that you could put in here. There's, you know, living for your family, living for your friends, living for your career.

There's anything that you could put really at the top of your life that becomes your focus point. And these are all the things that people live for and build their lives around. But they all have one major flaw. They're all reliant on your circumstances, going well. But everyone who has ever lived knows that there are lots of circumstances where these start to fall apart.

There's lots of circumstances where you're not going to have fun, where life isn't pleasurable, where we aren't strong or in control of what's happening around us, where we make mistakes and unintentionally hurt people, where we might lose family, lose friends, lose our career. When hardships, loss or suffering come along, they do have the power to take away the things from us that the average person would say makes life worth living. And if a definition of life comes from any of those things, it will eventually collapse. And that's always devastating. Paul, though, he gives us an alternative way to define life.

And then, reflecting on the fact that he actually doesn't know if he'll live or die, he goes on to say this.

He says, but if I live, I can do more fruitful work for Christ. So I really don't know which is better. I'm torn between two desires. I long to go to be with Christ, which would be far better for me, but for your sakes, it is better that I continue to live. And so that's why Paul says in the previous verse, living means living for Christ.

And dying is even better because he knows that death is not the end. Death means that he'll go to be with Jesus. He'd go to be in the fullness God's presence. And if you follow Paul's train of thought here, you'll see that dying for Jesus is not the true sacrifice for Paul. He's actually staying alive to serve others.

That's Paul's way of, you'd say, participating in the story of Jesus to suffer so that he can love others more than himself. Which is why he finishes off this section of the letter with this verses 25 and 26. He says, Knowing this, I'm convinced that I'll remain alive so that I can continue to help all of you grow and experience the joy of your faith. And when I come to you again, I'll have even more reason to take pride in Christ Jesus because of what he is doing through me. So Paul, he's actually optimistic that he will remain alive, that he won't be executed, which was a real possibility for him.

And he believes that because he sees that God still has a purpose for him. His work isn't finished here. And while Paul doesn't really know what the future holds, he's showing us here his deep understanding of how God works. Right. He knows that when you partner with God, that God is all about doing what's best for other people.

He's doing what's best for the church, what's best for spreading the gospel message as a purpose that Paul knows he will have in any situation and any circumstance. And it's a purpose that stems from Paul's definition of life. Living means living for Christ. And this is the one thing that I hope you take away from this message today. Paul says this is the only definition that will stand up to anything that life will throw at you.

And what we've seen is that Paul experiences actually a number of things that would break the average person. There's a loss of freedom. Paul's in prison, he's in chains. And with that comes the loss of a whole bunch of other things that Paul would have found to be really significant in his life. There's the loss of his career.

Paul was passionate about planting churches, and that's been taken away from him. There's the loss of connection, his friends, the people he loves in the Philippian Church. He doesn't have that ability to go and see them anymore. He's facing possible death by execution. And on top of all that, there are people out there who he thought would be on his side, lifting him up and encouraging him, who are actually rejoicing about the really horrible situation that he's in.

So that betrayal, on top of all of this has happened to him. That would have been crushing. There are a number of things here that would break the average person, but they don't break Paul. He's not Discouraged at all. Instead, what Paul can see time and time again is how God is at work in all of this.

Turning everything here into something good. All the guards, they now know the gospel message, right? The Christians around the city that he's in, they've been emboldened to spread that message as well because of what Paul's going through. And God isn't just turning the circumstances into something good, He's. He's turning the people into something good as well.

Paul can see himself becoming more like his savior, more a person of love and humility because of the trials that he's going through. And the reason he's able to see this and experience that change is because how he defines life. Living means living for Christ. And so for you this morning, the question is, what is your definition of life? If someone were to ask you what is the most important thing to you, what are you living your life for?

What would you tell them? We live in a culture that does chase what's temporary. And from that we're given so many different ways to define our lives. Pleasure, strength, morals, other people, careers. There's so many things that you could put at the top of your list.

But Philippians is calling you to anchor your life in what lasts, in what truly lasts. And Paul tells us what that is. He's worked out a definition, a definition of life that enables him to face anything, and it's living for Christ. So I'd say if you're feeling overwhelmed, if you're feeling like you can't go on, like your circumstances have taken from you what makes life worth living, then this is a great time to reflect on your definition of life. Is Christ at the center of your life?

Is he the model, the one that you model your actions after? Is he the one that determines your purpose? And do you see the most important thing in your life as living out your faith in Him? Because that is something that can never be taken away from you, no matter if things are going well for you or not. Jesus, love and his presence in your life can never be taken away from you.

That is the source of all these good things that we experience, the source of our joy, our hope, peace and love. And those things persist in all circumstances. Let's pray.

Dear Lord, we just want to thank you this morning that you are in the center of our lives, Lord. I just want to thank you that you are an everlasting God, an all powerful God. And you are the source, Lord, of our hope, our joy, our peace. I just want to thank you, Lord, that you love us so much that you are there at the center present in everything that we go through, Lord, loving us all the time. And so we pray Lord for all of us who are going through trials, for all of us who are going through bad situations, Lord, where there is suffering, loss and tragedy, Lord, that you would help us to refocus on you.

You'd help us to turn our focus to the things that do last, the things that are eternal, Lord, that we would just be so focused on you and what you're doing for us that we would would be overwhelmed with the sense of your presence, your love and from that the joy, the hope and the peace that comes with that. So pray Lord, that feeling of supernatural peace in our lives and I pray Lord that that would overflow into love for other people in all circumstances and all situations. Just pray that blessing on us now Lord in your mighty name. Amen. SAM.