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Introduction
The city of Philippi in the first century had
tremendous civic pride. History tells us they were a proud Roman
city. Named originally after Philip of Macedon as a great Greek
city, Rome kept the name for the town. They did get recognition as a
model Roman city, much like cities in Illinois get the governor’s
hometown award. As a result it did become a nice place to live and
do business. There was a sense of pride, and the citizens considered
it an honor to be able to say, I’m a Philippian and I am a Roman.
The result of that pride made it a better city. Civic pride gave
the people there a stronger sense of civic devotion, a desire to
become even more of a model Roman community. In
Philippians 1:27 Paul used a word right out of the political
vocabulary of the day. He said, Conduct
yourselves in a manner worthy.
That whole phrase is a
translation of one word,
POLITEUESTHE, which happens to be the only verb, an imperative,
in what is the second longest sentence in the New Testament
(including
vss. 27-30 in the Greek). It was a familiar term for the
Philippian readers had been raised, most of them, in this proud
Roman colony. All their lives they were reminded that it was their
political and civic duty to live up to their privileged position as
Roman citizens.
But Paul applies the term not to their Roman
loyalties, but their new citizenship in the kingdom of God. The
implication was clear: if you know how to live as a loyal Roman
citizen in Philippi, then you will understand that as Christians
now, you have an even more sublime citizenship in the heavenly
community, lived out in this world through the church. Now, far
above serving Caesar and the Roman state, you serve the King of
kings, the Lord of lords.
In
verse 27 Paul transitions from his report on his own situation
and his struggle between his impending death and his conclusion that
he will go on living to serve Christ a while longer on earth. And he
presents a powerful principle at the beginning of
1:27 - Whatever happens, conduct
yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ.
Whatever happens!
What a great thought! We can universalize
that concept easily to any and all circumstances in our lives. For
the Christian, this life-centering challenge never changes, no
matter what situation we find ourselves in. Live your life in a
manner worthy of the gospel. If your life’s purpose has been
settled—you’ve saved through the gospel of Jesus, all that matters
now is living under His lordship.
Have you found yourself
broke, penniless and jobless? Conduct yourself in a manner worthy of
the gospel, and lay hold of the promises of God.
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Are you facing a difficult challenge in your
family or marriage? Conduct yourself in a manner worthy of the
gospel and turn to God’s Word for guidance and encouragement.
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Are things going well for you, no current
anxiety about anything, your life is peaceful? Conduct yourself in a
manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, and war against any
complacency that keep you from loving and serving Him with your
whole heart, soul, mind and strength.
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Are you facing threat and persecution
because of your faith? Conduct yourself in a manner worthy of the
gospel of Christ, and trust Him to work everything out according to
His will.
Listen Christian, you have nothing else worthy of
your life’s devotion than to live for the Lord Jesus Christ. Center your
life on Him and lay claim to His great and precious promises that great
is your reward in heaven, and in this life He works all things together
for the good of those who love Him and are called into His purposes.
Paul says, Whatever happens, conduct yourselves
in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Live exclusively for
King Jesus and you and the Kingdom will be just fine.
You’re in Great Company Paul says that if the
Philippians in fact live in a manner worthy of the kingdom then
whatever happens he will know 3 things about them that will reassure
him. The first reassurance is that he’ll know they are in great company.
A loving, committed church family is great company. In the company of
other people who love the Lord and are committed to His purposes there
is encouragement, support, intercession, and love that are simply not in
the world.
There is nothing like being among a people who are
dedicated to the godly causes you are dedicated to, opposed to the same
demonic enemies you oppose, and dedicated to serving other people in
their lives, like you are. Jesus said, They’ll know you are my disciples
because you love one another.
Paul’s point for this church that
he loved so much was this: as long as I know you are fully committed to
Jesus, and are in the company of others likewise committed to Jesus,
whether I come and see you or only hear about
you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit,
contending as one man for the faith of the gospel. How terribly
important it was to his apostolic heart for Paul to be assured the
church was standing in unity. You don’t have to read far or deep in the
New Testament to see the value of unity in the body of Christ.
This isn’t the time to do a full study on Christian unity, but we are
reminded that any time there is disunity in the church it is because one
or more individuals have quit putting Jesus and His agenda first. Often
there is sin involved—in fact, disunity IS sin. Disunity is the result
of one or more members in the body of Christ deciding that serving
others is a waste of time.
Paul’s ideal here is the church
standing firm in one spirit. There is much opposition to the gospel in
Philippi at the time of Paul’s writing, just as there is mounting
opposition to the gospel today in our culture. The church will be
powerless in standing against the attack of a hostile world if she is
not standing firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of
the gospel.
What does it take on the part of each of us to
contribute to that unity? A servant heart, humility, genuine love and
again, a radical commitment to Jesus and His will through the church.
Every link in a chain is critically important. If one is weak, the chain
is powerless to accomplish the task. As a member of the body of Christ,
if I am to be prepared to face the onslaught of opposition from the
devil and a hostile culture, I will need you. The church must be able to
stand in unity, as one man, each member reliant on the others, confident
that they’ve got his back come what may, and ready to support and defend
them, too.
That means being committed to the community of
believers where you serve. Ready to serve, to give, to encourage, to be
relied on by the others. There simply is no room for slackers in the
kingdom. There will be a time when some whose commitment to the Lord’s
church goes no deeper than their own comfort and desires will fall away
from the church because of the pressure. The cost of following Jesus
will become too great for them. The Word of God predicts this very
thing. (1
Timothy 4:1; 6:10, 21)
It remains that those who are truly
committed to serving the Lord will have to find others who are similarly
serious about the faith and start standing firm in one spirit,
contending as one man for the faith of the gospel. I believe this is
part of what the Lord is calling us as a church to in our current
commission to pray, a fundamental and urgent leading from God’s Spirit
that we learn to pray for and with one another in increasingly effective
ways. You Have Nothing to Fear
If a believer determines to live for Christ and His purposes and is
devoted to that kingdom calling, he will receive from the Lord enormous
courage to face any difficulty, trial or attack, and not back down in
fear. When you die to yourself, nothing intimidates you. Please look
again at
verse 27b as it leads into verse 28.
The safest place in all
the world to be is the center of God's will.
…whether I come and see you or only hear about
you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit,
contending as one man for the faith of the gospel
without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you.
If you will stand for Christ you may be certain that you will
encounter opposition and persecution. It is inevitable. Jesus promised
it: follow me, and you will suffer. If your belief has never cost
you suffering, there is reason to question the verity of that belief.
Your very goodness as you live out your faith will provoke anger and
reaction in those around you. It is best to remember, of course, that
this is really the devil’s doing. We can’t entirely blame people who are
lost in sin and duped by the devil to do anything different than to
oppose us, can we?
Your light disturbs the darkness, and the
prince of darkness will react, bringing against you all manner of
attack. There is a move in football that is illegal but they do it all
the time. A defensive lineman will have his hand wrapped up like a big
bear paw and he will get right across from an offensive lineman. When
the ball is snapped he will hit the offensive player on the side of the
head as hard as he can. They call it, "ringing his bell". The offensive
player is stunned and the defensive player can run right past him.
Now, that is an illegal move in football, but they do it all the
time. And Satan, the father of lies and master of evil does it all the
time, too. He loves to slap you in the head and stun you. He loves to
use dirty tricks, illegal moves and threats, to cause you to stumble, to
doubt and to question yourself. "Man, if I lost this one, maybe I will
lose the big one." You begin to doubt your cause, your faith, even your
salvation.
But, the One who is in you is
greater than the one who is in the world, promises
1 John 4:4. In this world you will have
trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world. (John
16:33) Here are the things we must never forget, fellow Christians:
the Lord is fully aware of our suffering, He is fully capable of using
it to our good and His glory, He will never allow more than we can bear
and evil will not ultimately win. Don’t fear—you’re in the Father’s good
keeping. And when you show the courage of faith, it is a sign to them
that they, not you, will be destroyed by evil. (verse
28b)
There are two more things about suffering for Christ
this passage brings out: 1) our courage and stamina in the face of
suffering is a sign, and 2) we are supposed to suffer for Christ. First,
look at
verses 27 and 28 again:
…I will know
that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith
of the gospel without being frightened in any way by those who oppose
you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you
will be saved—and that by God.
Here we are taught that
when we suffer, and we face that suffering with courage and grace (that
is, not being frightened in any way by those who oppose you), God does
something quite extraordinary. He gives a clear message to those who are
persecuting us that they will be judged and destroyed, but we will be
saved by God. How does He do that? I don’t have a clue! But the Word
says that it is a sure thing.
The only contingency is that we
who are suffering must undergo the suffering with the courage that only
comes from trusting Christ with the outcome. You might recall this is
what Paul most wanted back in
verse 20 – that he would have sufficient
courage so Christ would be exalted in his body, whether by life
or by death. Are you ready for martyrdom? Have you prayed for the
courage you’ll need? [Preachers make good martyrs – they’re so dry they
burn well.]
I call to your remembrance
1 Peter 2:21 in this context: When they
hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he
made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.
Notice, it is not our place to retaliate in any way. Knowing that God
uses our suffering to prove to them they’re under judgment, it is
tempting to say to those who taunt and persecute us, Just wait, God is
going to get you… But that is precisely what we are not to do; rather,
we are to leave that message to God who judges justly.
Secondly,
and this may be a stark and unwelcome truth, but
verse 29 says, For it has been granted to
you on behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer
for him, since you are going through the same struggle you saw I had,
and now hear that I still have. Did that say what I thought it
said? Yes, it is as clear as the ink on the page: we are called to
suffer. It’s part of the package of faith. A quick look at
1 Peter 3 again bear that out. There,
verses 20-21 plainly teach: …if you suffer
for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. To
this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an
example, that you should follow in his steps.
The vine
clings to the oak during the fiercest of storms. If the vine is on the
side opposite the wind, the great oak is its protection; if it is on the
exposed side, the tempest only presses it closer to the trunk. In some
of the storms of life, God intervenes and shelters us; while in others
He allows us to be exposed, so that we will be pressed more closely to
Him."
You Are in the Middle of His Will
David Livingston gave all he had to serve Christ in Africa as a
missionary. After decades of service he got sick and died. The Africans
cut his heart out and buried it in Africa before shipping his body back
to England for burial.“Dr. Livingston’s heart belongs here.” Where would
they bury your heart? Office? TV? Safety Deposit Box? The Mall
In
fact, believe it or not, you can even become an instant martyr according
to an article I recently clipped. You can send away for a frameable
award that reads: "The suffering you have had to endure at the hands of
life has been almost more than any person can bear. Rarely has such a
noble soul been forced to put up with such undeserved agony. In
recognition of your extraordinary plight, the Church of World Peace
hereby awards this Certificate of Martyrdom."
Just mail $5 and a
letter listing three tragic events in your life to the church in Denver,
Colorado, and become an instant martyr. The organization says it offers
the award to those who find it difficult to get through their day and
need something "to console their misery."
We know, and God knows
that suffering and trials are a part of life on this sin-soaked planet,
and He has told us that when we decide to follow His kingdom, that
suffering will likely increase. That you suffer for the cause of Christ
is a sign to unbelievers, but it is also a sign to you that you are
where you wanted to be: right in the middle of His will. Jesus said,
Blessed are you when people insult you,
persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of
me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in
the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. (Matthew
5:11-12) Garrison Keillor, in his witty and
thought-provoking book, We Are Still Married, writes To know and to
serve God, of course, is why we're here, a clear truth, that, like the
nose on your face, is near at hand and easily discernible but can make
you dizzy if you try to focus on it hard. But a little faith will see
you through. What else will do except faith in such a cynical, corrupt
time? When the country goes temporarily to the dogs, cats must learn to
be circumspect, walk on fences, sleep in trees, and have faith that all
this woofing is not the last word. The Church exists
for nothing else but to draw men into Christ, to make them little
Christs. If they are not doing that, all the cathedrals, clergy,
missions, sermons, even the Bible itself, are simply a waste of time.
God became Man for no other purpose. --C. S. Lewis
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