Philippians 1:12-26
When I was away in October, I finished reading through the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible, and then because Dave Robey was preaching through Philippians, I decided to begin reading that book for my devotional time. Philippians is a great book to read and I regret that I was not in Rabat to hear Dave’s sermons. As I was reading, I came upon a passage from which I wanted to preach and since Dave did not deal directly with this text, I will pick it up today.
In order to tell you what made such an impression on me, let me paint a picture of Paul’s situation. Paul was fifty-six years old when he wrote this letter to the church in Philippi. It had been twenty-nine years since he was on the road to Damascus, coming to persecute the followers of Jesus. It had been twenty-nine years since he himself had been converted to be a follower of Jesus.
Paul had been busy in those twenty-nine years. He spent thirteen years in study and preparation for the calling God had in mind for him. And then Paul made three missionary journeys through what is today Turkey and Greece. These were not short-term trips. They lasted two, three and five years. Paul went from town to town speaking out in synagogues and public streets about Jesus, starting churches and then writing letters to encourage the churches he had started.
Paul gave up the right to have a wife, family and comfortable life and devoted himself to sharing the good news of Jesus throughout the Gentile world. He worked tirelessly. Was there anyone who worked harder than Paul did to spread the good news of Jesus and build the church? Paul poured his life into this task given him by Jesus.
What had this cost him? Aside from the comforts of life he might have known, Paul suffered physically. Five years earlier, at the age of 51, he wrote what we know as II Corinthians. In the course of this letter, he described his credentials. I read this passage as part of a sermon in just the last couple weeks so I thought I would simply list what he says, but that loses too much so let me read once again from II Corinthians 11:23-29.
I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. 24 Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, 26 I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false brothers. 27 I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. 28 Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches. 29 Who is weak, and I do not feel weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not inwardly burn?
In Walter Wangerin’s book: Paul, A Novel, he talks about Pricilla and Timothy and finally Luke, the doctor, having to massage and oil Paul’s back each day in order for him to be able to walk with a minimum of pain and in order that his back with scars upon scars would not crack open and bleed. He was fifty-six years old but his body felt like he was ninety-six.
And as a further reward for his long years of service, as Paul wrote his letter to the Philippians, he was once again in prison, this time under house arrest in Rome and had been there for about two years.
Paul had paid with his life and body for the church that was growing as he sat in his prison and now some of those who were free to preach the Gospel while he was under house arrest were doing so in a way that undercut his authority and reputation.
Paul had developed a great, well-deserved reputation and it was being attacked while he sat under Roman guard.
What would you do in such a circumstance?
I know what I would do; at least I know what I would instinctively want to do. I would want to work to discredit those attacking me. I would want to gather support from my friends to attack those who were working against me. After all, it would not just be me they were attacking. It would be my Gospel for which I have been working for years, for which I have been suffering for years that they were attacking. I would turn it into a holy crusade against those who were working against Jesus and me. I would feel justified in doing this. I would build a case to make sure everyone else saw things as purely and clearly as I did.
But what is so amazing to me is that this is not what Paul did.
What would you do? Most people would not react as Paul did. Listen to Paul’s reaction in Philippians 1:12-26
Now I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel. 13 As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. 14 Because of my chains, most of the brothers in the Lord have been encouraged to speak the word of God more courageously and fearlessly.
15 It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. 16 The latter do so in love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. 17 The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. 18 But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice.
But what does it matter? This is the phrase that grabbed me when I read through Philippians.
What does it matter? It matters a lot! It matters because instead of people being grateful for all I have done; instead of people affirming me for all I have sacrificed; instead of people admiring me for the ways in which I have suffered, I am being attacked.
It does matter that I am attacked. It does matter that my reputation is being tarnished. It does matter.
But Paul was able to say, But what does it matter? and he was able to say that because he knew that it was all about Jesus. It was all about Jesus and it was not about him. Paul knew that it is always about Jesus and it is never about us.
Bishop Lockridge said in his message, “Do you know him?” Do you know Jesus? Jesus lived and died. But then it was in his resurrection that Jesus, as Paul wrote in Romans 1:4
was declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead
And then as the early hymn of the church Juliet read at the beginning of the service proclaims:
God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name
Jesus was revealed to be the supreme God who preexisted creation. All things were created by him. All things we see and all those we cannot see were created by him and through him.
It is impossible for us to know Jesus in his fullness. We read the Bible and pray. We try to read between the lines of Scripture to figure out just who Jesus was and after a lifetime of study, we know only the smallest part of who Jesus is.
Jesus is so great that if we used all our creativity and all our imagination and tried to paint a picture of Jesus, we would still know only the smallest part of Jesus.
In light of this, think of the arrogance of those who are so proud of their intellect and reasoning powers and after studying the Gospel accounts conclude that Jesus was a good moral teacher.
To say Jesus was a good moral teacher or a good model for how we ought to live is ignorance of the highest order. It is perhaps like saying an atomic bomb is a good way to start a fire. It will start a fire, that is true, but that is the least of what an atomic bomb is.
It is precisely because Jesus was God in the flesh that we say it is all about Jesus. It is because when we are gathered in heaven at the end of time and every knee is bowed and every tongue confesses that Jesus is Lord, that it is all about Jesus.
I came across this quote by Austin Farrer, an Anglican priest in England from WWII to his death in 1968.
Oh God, save me from myself, save me from myself … this masterful self which manipulates your creation … this self which throws the thick shadow of its own purposes and desires in every direction in which I try to look, so that I cannot see what it is that you, my Lord and God, are showing to me. Teach me to stand out of my own light, and let your daylight shine.
Let me present a few examples of how we might stand out of our own light and let the daylight of Jesus shine.
I don’t agree with all parts of Pentecostal theology but I love the kind of Christians Pentecostal theology produces and I love my Pentecostal brothers and sisters for proclaiming the name of Jesus.
I don’t agree with all of Catholic theology but I love the fact that across this land the mass is celebrated in towns where there may be only a small handful of people in church. Each Sunday as the mass is celebrated, the Scriptures are read and the name of Jesus is lifted up.
We may not like the theology of some who lead churches in this country, but when the name of Jesus is lifted up in song and scripture and maybe even in the preaching, what does it matter if they do not agree completely with me?
Who do I think I am? Am I the first person in all of church history to have all my theology spot on target? There are those who do not agree with all of my theology and yet I trust they are blessed that when I preach, I lift up the name of Jesus.
There can be two church organizations that do not have a cooperative relationship and between whom there is not a lot of trust. But I am grateful that Jesus is proclaimed in both organizations.
It is all about Jesus and it is not about me.
Why should I forgive someone who has hurt me? Why should I forgive someone who has betrayed me?
I forgive because it is all about Jesus and it is not about me. It is not about my feelings and how badly I was hurt and how terrible someone else was in the way they treated me. It is about Jesus who while we were still sinners died for us. It is about Jesus who told us to forgive as we have been forgiven.
There are some who come to this country and then have to leave because they cannot receive an identity card giving them legal residence here. There are some who come for just a short year or two and then have to leave. And in the trauma of leaving they ask, “Why did God bring me here only to have me leave so soon?”
A friend who is considering coming to work in Rabat asked me after this last year’s experience of Deon Malan being kicked out of the country if he should still come. My response was to say that if God was leading him to come, he should. And if he was here only for two years or one year of even just a few months, what did it matter? It is our obedience to God that matters, not how long we stay where we are called to come. It may be God’s purpose for us to be in a country for a short period of time. We are his servants to go where and when he wants us to go.
Because it is all about Jesus and it is not about us, our attitude should be, “Lord, I am here in obedience to your call and am ready to serve you wherever and for however long you want me to serve in this place.”
Even in tragedy, it is still all about Jesus. A widow of the September 11 attacks on the US addressed a national conference shortly after her young husband died when the plane he was in crashed in a Pennsylvania field. This is part of what she said:
After the hijacking I was left with a choice: Either living with fear or living with hope. As a follower of Christ I could only choose hope, hope in Him.”
When we acknowledge that it is all about Jesus, we submit to his love and care for us. We may still grieve, but our grief is encompassed by our hope that comes from knowing that Jesus who loves us and died for us was God in the flesh and awaits us when we will enter into his kingdom.
Even in tragedy it is all about Jesus.
Has someone hurt your feelings? It is all about Jesus and it is not about you.
Has someone wronged you? It is all about Jesus and it is not about you.
There may be some who will object to my saying over and over again that it is not about you. “We are important and what we feel is important and to disregard who we are is a mistake,” they may say.
When we say that it is all about Jesus and it is not about ourselves, we are not being masochistic. We are not like those who cut themselves so they bleed as a sign of their devotion.
Because of who Jesus is, when we live so that it is all about Jesus and not about ourselves, we discover what life really is and we are able to live life to its fullest. Our sacrifice of ourselves to Jesus is a win-win situation. The desire of God for us to come to him and submit to him is met and we discover what is best for ourselves. Jesus said in John 10:10 (in several different translations)
I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
Life abundant
more and better life than they ever dreamed of.
Do you want to live life in all its fullness, have a more and better life than you ever dreamed of? Then live with this truth: It is all about Jesus and it is not about you.
