By Dr. Brent Russett – Asbury Free Methodist Church
January 9th, 2022 – Philippians 1:12-18
Last week we began a new series titled “A Walk-through Philippians.” I to walk through this book with you because it is encouraging and uplifting, and it will help us in our discipleship journey.
Did you know that God wants us to flourish? He doesn’t want us just to survive; he wants us to flourish. But it is hard sometimes. I know that there were times in my life when all I was doing was surviving.
I know that some of you have found this time of Covid very difficult – especially the lockdowns. Now we find ourselves in another one. We are hoping it is short, but we are worried that it won’t be. How do we flourish in the middle of the times we are in?
One of the reasons that I love the book of Philippians is that it gives us some insight into that question. We have been almost two years in Covid. When Paul pens this letter, he has been a prisoner for two years. Let me tell you the story.
He was first arrested in Jerusalem for preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. He knew that he could not get a fair trial in that city, so he used his right as a Roman citizen and appealed to Cesar. He was taken in chains by ship from Jerusalem to Rome. On the way there, he was shipwrecked and had it not been for the hand of God, he would have died in the sea. When he finally got to Rome as a prisoner, he was held under house arrest to await trial.
Acts 28:16 (NIV)
16 When we got to Rome, Paul was allowed to live by himself, with a soldier to guard him.
Instead of being put in a jail, Paul was allowed to rent a room with a soldier to guard him. Historians tell us that what this means is that every four hours, a guard from Cesar’s elite forces, known as the Praetorian guard or the Palace guard, would come into this rented room and chain themselves to Paul with a short chain. It was better than being in a Roman prison, but his movements were extremely curtailed.
I know that the two years of Covid restrictions have been hard on us. Maybe now you can relate a little more to what Paul was going through, although he had it much worse.
As Paul was penning the words to this letter, one of the guards would have been looking over his shoulder. Paul was in limbo. He was just waiting for his trial to happen. It is not even like he had a court date to look forward to. He would be seen at the whim of the Cesar.
Paul knew that his trial could go either way. He may be set free, or he could be executed. All he could do right now was wait until Cesar had time to see him. This is happening around 60 A.D. The Cesar at that time was Nero. Nero was a man who was mentally unstable, yet who wielded great power. At this time, he would have been becoming more and more unstable. He eventually committed suicide in A.D. 68. The trial would probably go according to how Cesar was feeling on the particular day of the trial.
Talk about living with uncertainty. We face uncertainty, but nothing like the apostle Paul experienced.
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Can you imagine being Paul’s mom? I can just hear her. “Young people these days. I gave him a perfectly good name, and he goes out and changes it from Saul to Paul. Well, at least it rhymes. But I just can’t figure my son out. His father and I, we gave him a perfectly good education. We had him taught in the finest schools. And he was doing pretty good. He was at the head of his class. He kept on being promoted in the synagogue.
Then he threw it all away. I just can’t understand my son. He could be free, enjoying life. Instead, my son’s in jail. And I hear through the grapevine that even the Christians are slamming him. Night and day, he’s tied up to an awful Roman soldier. He has no freedom. Such talent going to waste. His reputation is being slandered – Oh, my son, my son.
Can’t you just hear her? Any mother with a son who is awaiting a trial that could end up in his execution by beheading would be distraught.
Now compare that to Paul’s tone in this passage.
Philippians 1:12 (NIV)
12 Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel.
Skip down to verse 18
Philippians 1:18 (NIV)
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. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice,
This does not sound like a man who is feeling like his life is being wasted in prison. It does not sound like a man who is depressed. It does not sound like a man who is feeling slighted or full of anxiety. It does not sound like a person who has been cooped up, tied to a guard for the last two years.
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Listen, I know that the past couple of years has not been easy for any of us, and it has been really hard on some of us. What I want you to know is that there is a better way of living through hardship than to gripe and complain. There is a better way than to get despondent and withdraw. There is a better way than to be angry all the time and to put up walls of self-protection and isolate ourselves.
I believe that Paul has something to teach us about how to live well in our time.
Philippians 1:12 (NIV)
12 Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel.
Paul says I want you to know that what has happened to me is really good. You wouldn’t know it from the outside, but God is at work.
The reason why Paul was able to say this is that he had something in his life that was more important than himself. He had something outside himself that gave his life meaning. Paul’s life was found in Jesus. Paul lived to serve Jesus and to advance the gospel – the good news about Jesus. He knew his God, and he knew his calling.
If you are going to live well in the middle of difficult circumstances, then you need to have something more important than you. What matters is Jesus. What matters is that people come to know him and grow up into maturity in him. Give your life to that, and it will put the rest of your life into perspective.
There was an old Puritan named Jeremiah Burroughs who wrote a book titled, The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment. Here is what he wrote,
“Be sure of your call to every business you go about. Though it is the least business, be sure of your call to it; then, whatever you meet with, you may quiet your heart with this: I know I am where God would have me. Nothing in the world will quiet the heart so much as this: when I meet with any cross, I know I am where God would have me, in my place and calling. I am about the work that God has set me.”
That is good advice. Be sure of your call. Be sure that you are doing what God has called you to do – and if you don’t know what that is, then ask God about it. If you are a Christian and if you are alive, there is a calling on your life. We often think of calling as something we determine after we graduate from high school. But callings sometimes change over your life. I want you to know that just because you have retired from your career, that does not mean that you have shucked your calling. God has a plan and purpose for your life where you are right now. That plan and purpose is bigger than you.
Part of your calling is to advance the gospel. You may not do it like the apostle Paul did it, but loving your neighbour, serving that Lord with other believers, sharing your God’s stories as the opportunity arises is part of all our callings.
What you have in Paul is a real-life demonstration of what Jesus was talking about in
Luke 9:23–24 (NIV)
Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it.
Paul is sitting in chains, and he is thriving because he wasn’t trying to save his life; he was losing it for Jesus. That makes all the difference in the world.
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Paul could have been bitter about his circumstances. He is in prison; His life is threatened; His freedom is restricted. Instead, he chooses to give thanks. There are two things that happen because he is living out his calling by being under house arrest in Rome. The first thing that happened is that he had the opportunity to share the gospel with Palace Guard.
Philippians 1:12–13 (NIV)
Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually 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.
Can you imagine being chained to the Apostle Paul for four hours at a time? The poor guards didn’t have a chance. The handcuffs would go clink, and the apostle would think, “Oh good, a captive audience.” Mr. Guard, what’s your name. Stan. Hey Stan, tell me about yourself. Well Stan, do you know why I’m in here. No. Well, let me tell you the story. I met this person named Jesus, and he changed my life. Then the guard would get a four-hour testimony of the gospel. How we each individually need to receive Jesus into our lives. How he forgives our sin and gives us eternal life. How he calls each of us to follow him.
Then the next guard would come in. The handcuffs would go clink. Mr. Guard, what is your name. Jim. Hey Jim, tell me about yourself. Well Jim, do you know why I’m in here…
When you are under house arrest for a couple of years, you go through a number of guards. No wonder he writes, “It has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ.”
Tradition says that every guard he witnessed to got saved. I am not sure I believe that, but I do know that Paul had the gift of evangelism. I am sure a number of them gave their hearts to the Lord.
There is another thing that happened because he has been arrested and is living out his calling.
Philippians 1:14 (NIV)
14 And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear.
Remember, Nero is Cesar. As one commentator put it, “The early 60s were a tumultuous time in Rome as the emperor Nero grew increasingly unstable. Proclaiming a message about a crucified and risen king named Jesus risked both social and political persecution.”[1]
In spite of this, because of Paul, the believers in Rome have become confident in the Lord – and because of that, they dare to proclaim the gospel without fear.
Notice their confidence is in the Lord. Their confidence is not based on a lack of danger but in the Lord who would walk with them through the danger – therefore, they did not have to fear, even though they could be arrested or worse.
When we live our lives for a cause bigger than ourselves, it inspires others to step into their calling as well. How we live not only calls non-believers to put their faith in Jesus, but it also calls other believers to step into the fullness of their calling. People, we need to inspire each other to live our callings. We need to inspire each other to share the gospel.
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Now you would think that if these believers have become confident in the Lord, and they are daring to proclaim the gospel in spite of the possibility of social and political persecution – that they would have it all together – right? – Wrong?
Philippians 1:15–17 (NIV)
15 It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. 16 The latter do so out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defence 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.
You have to love human beings. We can be so awesome and so horrible all at the same time. They are following Jesus – and some have goodwill towards Paul, and others seem to be in a competition with him or even be envious of him.
There were people who were out to make a name for themselves now that Paul was out of the way. They could now grab more of the spotlight. There were people, can you believe this, who were trying to cause Paul trouble. The Greek word for trouble has the idea of causing him distress. People were trying to build themselves up by putting Paul down. Then they were trying to rub his face in it.
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I would bet that they were doing it with finesse. The blessing of God is on me because I am free and able to preach the gospel. Our friends who are in prison, they have lost God’s blessing. Poor them.
Now, if Paul were all about Paul, he would be really offended. But Paul was all about the gospel. He was able to see the big picture. So, here is his response to the people who are slamming him and trying to cause him distress.
Philippians 1:18 (NIV)
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. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice,
People are slamming him, and he is rejoicing; He is thriving. When I run into someone who is easily offended, I know a couple of things are true. Their focus is on themself, and life is all about them. I also know that if they are going to be truly free to experience the joy of the Lord, they will need to find something bigger than themselves. They will need to become invested in the gospel.
I want my life to reflect Paul’s attitude. The important thing is that Christ is preached. My guess is that you want your life to reflect that attitude as well.
What that means is that we cannot be the kind of people who have to protect their own turf. I have seen churches where some ministries of the church were a particular person’s domain, and if you dare step on their turf, they got highly offended. But that is not us. We are not building our kingdom; we are serving the kingdom of God. It is not my turf and your turf; It is God’s turf.
Reflecting Paul’s attitude means that I don’t have to be at the centre of things. God and his glory are what matters. There were times when Paul was the centre of attention. There were times when he was on the sidelines. It mattered not, as long as Christ was being preached.
This kind of thinking is in direct opposition to our culture. It is even in direct opposition to some church cultures. But if we really want to be who God has called us to be, then we need to adopt this attitude of humility. An attitude that asks not about our own glory but God’s glory. An attitude that sees the task, not the reputation or the applause, as important. An attitude that holds the kingdom of God first.
One of the ways that this comes into play in Perth is this: Will we choose to cheer on other life-giving churches in our area?
Will we rejoice a Northgate grows and sees a lot of people come to the Lord? Will we rejoice as Glad Tidings Pentecostal Church grows and see a lot of people come to know the Lord? – Of course we will; because what matters is not who gets the credit but that the gospel advances.
More than that, will we help churches like that to grow and become all that God has called them to be? Of course we will; because it is not about us; it is about the gospel. As Paul said, “The important thing is that in every way, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice.” We will cheer each other on.
I started off this message by reminding you that God wants you to flourish. Yet we find ourselves in a season where we are tempted to hunker down and just survive. We are tempted to make life all about us.
Jesus was right. If you go down that road to try and save your life, you will lose it. But if you will deny yourself and make your life about Jesus and the gospel, you will find it. I want to urge you, live for something greater than yourself.
[1] Matthew S. Harmon, Philippians: A Mentor Commentary, Mentor Commentaries (Great Britain; Ross-shire: Mentor, 2015), 118–119.
Sermon Questions for January 9th, 2022
Philippians 1:12-18
Introduction
1. What are you thankful for today?
2. What are you praying about this week?
Digging in
3. Read Philippians 1:12-18 – Remembering that Paul had been under house arrest for two years.
4. If all you knew of Paul was found in this scripture, what would you say is most important in Paul’s life?
5. Although Paul doesn’t know if he is going to live or die (See next week’s scripture verses 19-26), why is he so upbeat? What can we learn from Paul in regards to this?
6. Reread verses 13-14. What two things have Paul’s imprisonment accomplished?
7. Have you had any Christian in your life inspire you in your faith journey? How?
8. Reread verses 15-17. What motives are given by which the gospel might be preached?
9. Does it bother you that people who are sharing Jesus can have sinful motives for preaching the gospel? Does it bother you that Paul’s comment on that is, “what does it matter?”
10. At Asbury, we will strive to be the kind of people who preach Christ out of love and goodwill. What could this practically mean for our relationship with other Jesus followers in Perth?