Philippians Series I
Philippians • Sermon • Submitted
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1 Paul and Timothy, bondservants of Jesus Christ,
To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, with the bishops and deacons:
2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
3 I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy, 5 for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now, 6 being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ; 7 just as it is right for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart, inasmuch as both in my chains and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel, you all are partakers with me of grace. 8 For God is my witness, how greatly I long for you all with the affection of Jesus Christ.
9 And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, 10 that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, 11 being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.
12 But I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel, 13 so that it has become evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the rest, that my chains are in Christ; 14 and most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.
15 Some indeed preach Christ even from envy and strife, and some also from goodwill: 16 The former preach Christ from selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my chains; 17 but the latter out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel. 18 What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is preached; and in this I rejoice, yes, and will rejoice.
19 For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, 20 according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death. 21 For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22 But if I live on in the flesh, this will mean fruit from my labor; yet what I shall choose I cannot tell. 23 For I am hard-pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better. 24 Nevertheless to remain in the flesh is more needful for you. 25 And being confident of this, I know that I shall remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy of faith, 26 that your rejoicing for me may be more abundant in Jesus Christ by my coming to you again.
27 Only let your conduct be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of your affairs, that you stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel, 28 and not in any way terrified by your adversaries, which is to them a proof of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that from God. 29 For to you it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake, 30 having the same conflict which you saw in me and now hear is in me.
Paul’s Salutation: A Bond servant
Compare this to the titles and accolades given to the preachers of today
The simplicity of the gospel —
He had purposed to know nothing except the gospel of Christ
The intended recipients: The Saints at Philippi
The letter is written to Christians - us
It is one of the most personal, and affectionate of Paul’s epistles
Grace and Peace to you from God the Father and the Lord Jesus
God wants peace for you
these words are not just poetry - every word is intentional
The Church at Philippi
The Church at Philippi
The city in Northern Greece
where Macedonia and Thrace come together
a seaport city with diverse people
The first church on European Soil was founded here by Paul
founded on his second missionary journey
He and Barnabas disagreed over Mark
Wanted to go to Asia, but the Holy Spirit forbade it
Saw a man in a dream from Macedonia calling for help
Paul is now Writing the church from prison
probably in Rome
probably 10-12 years after founding the church
a warm letter, expressing thanks for their support
probably a thriving church
exhorts them to keep unity, joy and faith
Thanking God Upon Every Remembrance of You!
Thanking God Upon Every Remembrance of You!
What and extraordinary statement
too many people can’t remember anything but pain
And they bring complaints to God (and everyone else) upon every remembrance of their pain
That kind of attitude will not bring victory, and will dissolve the victories you’ve received
So many people can’t even recall the Glory that God has done for them, becasue they are busy complaining about their trials
If anyone had an excuse to be bitter, Paul did
and if there was going to be a city he might have had some sour memories of, it might of been Philippi
He and Silas went there in answer to a god given vision
they came to help - to do good
They found a damsel in need, and cast out the devil
instead of celebration, they were arrested
they were terribly beaten - with many stripes
thrust into he inner prison and chained
Yes, most of us know the story and how it ends - but lets talk about those stripes for a moment
“after they laid many stripes on them”
these were deep and bloody wounds - no antiseptic or anesthesia
Think about the pain - the suffering of these wounds
think about the scars that must have remained - no stitches, no plastic surgery - no neosporin
He probably had little trouble remembering them- he saw the scars every day
Anyone suffering like this in today’s age might have to have years of counseling for the PTSD
And Yet Paul says “I thank God upon EVERY remembrance of you!
I could almost stop this sermon here ---
What Are You Remembering?
What Are You Remembering?
Paul must not have been recalling the pain of the scars, becasue of the joy of their salvation
When He was in that jail, he began praising God - in expectation of joy and thanksgiving
Now, while he is in another jail, we find him thanking God and thinking of Good things
If you want to live a life of Joy, you may need to change your thinking
Paul understood that “Those things that happened to me have happened for the furtherance of the gospel
He was speaking of the things that lead to his current imprisonment
but they knew that they could believe him because of the example that they had seen him live in front o them a decade earlier
What are you going through today?
Let it be for the furtherance of the gospel
He Will Continue What He Started
He Will Continue What He Started
Paul said he was confident that He who has begun a good work in you, would be faithful to continue to the day of Jesus Christ
He has “begun” a work in you- you are not finished yet
That’s okay — God is not finished - and He is not going to quit
You can be confident too
He said that He would continue the work until the day of Jesus
It will never be finished!
That’s good news! He will never stop working on you and in you! until Jesus comes.
Paul said he wasn’t finished yet either -
Be confident — He has begun a good work in you!
You are His workmanship - beautiful in His sight — He is not going to quit on you.
This I Pray For You!
This I Pray For You!
That your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment,
Love never fails
Love more and more
love should never stop growing
to walk in love is to walk in God
Love more!
That you may approve the things that are excellent,
Too many Christians condemn themselves in the things they approve (Rom. 14:22)
What are you approving of?
that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ,
Too many people today are not sincere—
having false motives or ulterior motives
to many are quick to offend -
Jesus wants us to be different
being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God
What would your life look like if it was filled with the fruits of righteousness?