biblestudy: Philippians (Part Three)

Philippians 1:12 - 2:4
John W. Ritenbaugh
Given 01-Aug-89; Sermon #BS-PH03; 81 minutes

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We'll get right into the book of Philippians. Just very briefly, I want to reach back to Philippians 1 and and verse 12. Where Paul begins the context that runs all the way to Uh, well, definitely through verse 13 and then actually bridges over into the next section which begins in in verse 19 and goes all the way through verse 30. But his concern right here at the beginning was their concern about the circumstance that was occupying his life at the time and he was in prison, apparently in Rome. And their concern was that that Paul himself was not in very good shape and also that the work that they were helping to support him in was not doing too well either, but he encourages them by letting them know that that things have actually worked out for the better, that his being in prison has not in any way hindered the preaching of the gospel or the work that God called him to do. So I'm sure that those people found that encouraging to understand that that Paul was not in the least bit discouraged and that the work was, was getting done. But then he does mention that. Uh, beginning in verse 14, that as a result of the way things were going with the apostle Paul, that others in the city of Rome other Christians, that is, had become emboldened by what Paul was doing and as a result, the gospel of Jesus Christ was being preached, but we find that some indeed, it says in verse 15, we are preaching Christ from envy and strife and some also from goodwill. Now, because in verses 16 and 17, there is no indication that Paul was At all displeased with. With what these people were preaching. That they must have been church members who were preaching. They were preaching the truth, but their attitude in so doing was actually to gain influence and a following for themselves as opposed to the apostle Paul. Uh, They apparently looked on Paul as An enemy, even though he was God's apostle and part of the true church. And he says that that the former preached Christ from selfish ambition. Now this cannot possibly be Judaizers. Uh, who are not a part of the church because he said that they were preaching the gospel, uh. At least there is no indication that he thought that they were preaching wrong things. So it must be that these were people within the church and that they were seeking people to follow them in opposition to the apostle Paul. So He was happy that the gospel was being preached. I'm sure that he was not at all happy about the attitude of these people who were preaching the way that they did. So some were doing it rightly, some were doing it wrongly. Those who did it rightly, he said the latter out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel. But he was content. He says in verse 18, only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is preached, and in this I rejoice, yes, and will rejoice. Now verse 19 is a spinoff. You see it, it is tied to what preceded it by the word for that begins verse 19. He says, for I know that this will turn out for my salvation through your prayer and supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ. Now salvation, I mentioned to you the last time here apparently does not mean that he was going to be spared from further imprisonment, but rather he is talking about spiritual salvation and that that was going to be supplied through their participation, that is the Philippians' participation in the work of God by their prayers. They were separated by quite a few 100 miles between Philippi and Rome. However, they were praying for Paul, and as a result, God was stirring up the spirit of God within Paul. That's what he means by the supply of the spirit of Jesus Christ, and Paul was then enabled. He was emboldened, he was given the courage, he was given the faith, he was given whatever it needed he needed in order to preach, even in those very trying circumstances. So in verse 20 then, according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body whether by life or by death. Oh, I see in verse 20. That This refers back to me back to the word salvation, which indicates that Paul was not sure that there was going to be a favorable court decision. Now for him. So therefore, salvation. It seems to me spiritual salvation. Paul was looking beyond prison, and if indeed the court decision was to put him to death, then he still would have done his work or the work of God. And so Christ would be magnified, whether in life or in death. And then he says, for me to live as Christ and to die is gain, uh. But If I live on in the flesh, this will mean fruit from my labor, yet what I shall choose I cannot tell. Now if he kept on living, it would mean he was going to be able to work more and therefore more would be produced from the work that he did. That's the fruit that he's talking about. Now what would be produced? Well, he's thinking about the possibility that there would be conversions in Rome as a result of his preaching, or he could also be thinking, we will see this a little bit later, that he was going to see more fruit in the Philippian people as a result of his preaching. We must, must have already had in mind that if he got out of prison, then he was going to go back to Philippi and visit with these people. Now we will see this tied together in in just a little bit because it becomes evident in just 2 or 3 verses later. So he says in verse 23, Uh, for I am hard pressed between the two. Uh, that is living or dying. Now, in a way, it's If you understand the apostle Paul. He was not really saying that he had a choice. Because his will was completely committed to God. And whatever God decided, Paul was going to be content with. But he is tossing this back and forth in his mind, and he's trying to figure out which is going to be the best. Is it going to be best if I live, or is it going to be best if I die? He wanted. Can you imagine that? I mean, can you imagine being that committed? To Christ, to God, and His purpose. That in a sense you do not care. In a right sense. I mean, I do not mean that you have just given up and resigned. I mean rather that you are completely content. With no bad attitudes, no feeling of regret or remorse. Whether God permits you to live or to die. That's very interesting. Now, this Uh, verse 23, that first phrase for I am hard pressed between the two, it, it indicates. Uh, a fellow in what we would call today a catch-22 situation. But either way he turned. Uh, in this case, there was something that was good, bad. And so he did not, he did not know which way was going to be able to produce the most magnification or glorification of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Now, like anybody who had fought a hard struggle. He says that he had a desire to depart, that he wanted it to be over. And to be with Christ, And he had to admit that that's seemed to be the more attractive one. That's far better. Now one thing I, I need to interject here and I am not sure that I said anything the last Bible study, that is that this is one of those verses that people occasionally pick up on and say that uh. If you die, then you are immediately with Christ. But that is something that has to be read into it. Paul does not say that. The word immediate or the suggestion of immediate is something that has to be put into what he is saying. It doesn't say that there, and other scriptures, of course, supply the information that one would not immediately be with Christ, but yet it would seem as though one was immediately with Christ because he would be dead, he would not be thinking. He would not be conscious of the passage of time and because he was not thinking or conscious of the passing of time, that when his consciousness left and then returned again with the return of Christ and the resurrection, it would just seem as though it was immediate, just the blink of an eye. But that has to be put into the verse. The verse does not say that he would be immediately with Christ. But his trial as a Christian would be over, and so that would be better. Verse 24, the other side of the argument. Nevertheless, to remain in the flesh is more needful for you. And being confident of this, I know that I shall remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy of faith. So his reasoning brought him to the conclusion. That Even though He felt personally that it would be better to die and the struggle would be over. That it was going to be better for them, that is the Philippians, that Paul remained alive. And so he felt that that was the direction that Christ was going to take. Uh, him in. Now this is the, the section that I meant when I said earlier about fruit being produced that the fruit would be produced in the Philippian people as a result of the continued labors of the apostle Paul. You see, it was more needful for you. Paul come back there and continue to perfect their understanding to encourage them maybe to help resolve the problem that had developed in the Corinthian church. And so he was confident at this time that Christ would allow him to to live. Now, we do understand from other letters especially the pastoral epistles, 1 and II Timothy and Titus. That Paul was released from prison. There was a period of time of several years. And then he went back into a Roman prison, and it was the 2nd trip that he lost his life, and became a martyr for the faith. And so he did get an opportunity then to go back to Philippi. And help take care of those people and ensure greater spiritual growth for them. So he then, I mentioned something else last week that I want to reiterate. This phrase I know that I shall remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy of faith does not indicate infallible knowledge. That is, it does not indicate that God had spoken to him in terms of a voice or in terms of giving him a dream or a vision, but rather something that he reasoned. On his own and felt confident that this was the direction that things would go in. OK, verse 26 that you're rejoicing for me may be more abundant in Jesus Christ by my coming. To you again. You know this is the fruit that he expected from those people. Now, verse 26 then indicates That The Philippians then would experience more progress as a result of Paul being set free. And another way that that could be rephrased would be just as correct. would be That your pride in me may abound. Uh, Another way that it could be rephrased and also be correct, would be that you may have more reason to boast. In me Now, Why is it That they would have reason to boast or why should they be proud of the apostle Paul. Well, the reason is this. I think I mentioned to you the last time. That the Philippian Church apparently looked upon Paul as their apostle. There was a sense of possessiveness there. That probably came as a result of Uh, warm feelings of attachment to him. You know, that would include such things as Uh, family affection. They felt especially close to him. Now we will see. A couple of reasons why as we go on. But they, they had a feeling toward him. And apparently he toured them. That was Almost like what one would say would be a love affair. If we can see that in its in its right context. Now, this is not unusual even in a in a biblical senseThe apostle John was pointed out as being The disciple that Jesus loved. Now he loved the other ones as well. But there was a special warmth or affection. That produced a relationship. That was closer in terms of feeling. Uh, had an emotional context to it. That The relationship with the other 11 did not have. OK, it was the same way with the apostle Paul and this Philippian congregation. There was a special warmth and affection that was flowing back between the two of them. A mutual regard that was deeper in terms of feeling than Paul had for other congregations and they had for other apostles. And so they looked upon him then as their apostle. Now, where it says here, That they rejoicing for me may be more abundant in Jesus Christ. The emphasis here is on the cause or the basis of their pride, or their boasting, or their glory. OK, now, the cause or the basis would be in. Christ Now Paul would seem to be on the surface, the immediate recipient of it and cause of it. But that's not really what the verse is saying. We're going to get to more of this principle when we get into chapter 2. But right here is is kind of like a first appearing of it in the book. And it's going to appear a little bit more later. OK. It's talking about the thing in which one is proud. OK, now that was the cause of their glory. Now it what Paul is saying is it is not really me. But Christ in me. Who is the cause of their rejoicing. It is Christ in him and Christ in them. That is the reason or the cause for their boasting. Even though it would seem on the surface to be Paul. Now what he is saying is a form of, without Christ, I can do nothing. That is put into a very unusual circumstance or context, that is where somebody would be actually boasting about their apostle. But Paul understood, they were not really boasting about Paul, they were boasting about Christ in Paul. And the cause in them for boasting was Christ. See, he gave them the perception and the understanding to both. About the work done through Paul by Christ. It's all ties together in one, you see, in Christ Jesus. OK, verse 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. And now what this is I it is a Including statement. That he has been leading up to. Now this, this helps you to understand. That verse 24 and 25 are a reasoned conclusion. Because verse 27 tells you that well. No matter what happens. He was not all that sure that he was going to be let loose. The way he had reasoned it, he felt that was the way that it was going to go. But Whatever happens, let your conduct be worthy of the gospel of Christ. In other words, whether I am set free and able to come back to you in Philippi and continue your growth, or whether I am crucified or beheaded regardless of what happens to me, you make sure that your conduct is worthy of the gospel of Jesus Christ. So what he is saying here then is, even though he wants to be an instrument. Further their progress in the gospel to continue their spiritual growth, and he thinks that it's going to go in that direction. Regardless The ultimate responsibility for spiritual growth lies with the individual. And his relationship to Christ. In other words, a person can grow. Whether the apostle speaks to them directly. Or whether there is a pastor local church elder or whatever it might happen to be in between him and Christ. For him and the apostle. Because it is the relationship to Christ. That is of greatest importance. The apostle does his part in the work. The local church pastor does his part in the work, but ultimately, the responsibility for growth and salvation lies with the individual and his relationship with Christ. Oh, He says, let your conduct. Here we come back to one of those things that we talked about last time and the time before when I was emphasizing this thing about being a citizen of Rome. Philippi was a Roman colony, something that Thessalonica, which was a much larger city, was not something that Corinth was not, something that Athens was not. Philippi, a relatively small city by comparison to the others though, was a Roman colony. And what did I tell you, the outstanding characteristic of that was that they were to be an extension of Rome. That everything in that city was to be Roman, just like it was in Rome, and most of these places. took such pride in that that they became more Roman than Rome. And they adhered very firmly to the tradition to the laws, the customs and dress and everything that Rome was supposed to be. OK, now he is harkening back to that. And see what is the application. He is telling these people behave as a citizen. But a citizen of what? It is a citizen of course of of heaven. And that these people, these Philippians who were members of the Church of God, begotten by God's spirit, they were a colony and outpost of the kingdom of God established in the city of Philippi. So he's telling these people then to live as one who has a higher and vaster vastly more significance of citizenship. Than just merely being a Roman poet. Whether he was there or whether he was not there. Whether he was allowed to continue to live and come back to them or whether he was going to be decapitated or whatever form of execution they would use. Uh, he wanted them to behave always to conduct their lives, remembering that their politics were in heaven. And that they were citizens of that kingdom. OK, now what did he expect of them? OK. First of all, to live as a citizen. Secondly, he mentions That they be united. The driving with one mind. So that's not the 2nd 1. Stand fast in one spirit, that's the 2nd 1. And now stand fast. Does not mean doing nothing. As we are going to see As we move through this book, because much of it is going to be concentrated on producing unity. Remember, it is a congregation that has a problem within it, apparently not a very serious problem, but the problem is nonetheless there. There seems to be two ladies Eurodia, I think her name is, and Eurodia, and Sintiki, whose names come up, I believe, in chapter 4. Apparently these ladies were butting heads over something. They had a disagreement and people in the congregation took up sides. And like I said, it was not really dividing the congregation. In such a way that there were hard and bitter feelings, but nonetheless it was drifting in that direction. So Standing fast. In one spirit Now you can tie this to of Ephesians 4. And the book of Ephesians again, largely deals with the subject of unity, only it has a a different Uh, different aspect of unity. And the 1st 3 verses here. In Ephesians 4 says, I therefore the prisoner of the Lord beseech you to have a walk worthy. That's very similar to behaving as citizens. Of the calling with which you were called with all lowliness and gentleness with long suffering bearing with one another in love endeavoring to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace. Now you tie that thought together with what he has here in Philippians 1:27. Uh, whether I come to see you or I'm absent, I may hear of your affairs that you stand fast in one spirit. So standing fast does not mean doing nothing. So the emphasis here is on the cause of the action. Uh, no, wait a minute. I got this backwards. The emphasis here, unlike verse 26, is not on the cause of the action. Verse 26, it's on the cause of the action. In verse 27, it's the result of the action. And the result of the action is unity. And the stand fast It illustrates the action. OK, then the third thing that he expected of them. Is that with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel. Now this word striving can easily be translated wrestling. Uh, So they were to be joined in wrestling. Now what he is emphasizing In all three aspects is one overall subject. And that is He's appealing to them that what they are involved in is a team effort. They are joined in wrestling a common foe. Now, if they are divided amongst themselves, then The team effort is going to be very severely weakened. Now this is where the first point is about living a life worthy of the gospel, behaving as a citizen. He is saying that the individual parts. Carrying out their responsibility and being obedient to God is going to strengthen the action of the whole. And so if they are concerned about what the team produces, then they are first of all going to make sure that they live like a citizen. Secondly, they are going to make effort to be unified. We're going to get to more of that in just a little bit. We already saw a taste of it in Philippians 4 verses 1 through 3. And the result then will be that they are going to have a team effort. They're going to be wrestling together against a common foe. Now this Faith of the gospel. Means here not confidence. But rather, body of beliefs. Or religion. or way of life. Now, much Of this striving together for the faith of the gospel is going to be an effort. Made Toward denying the body and the mind what they want to do by nature. Now it seems to be something that somebody does alone. A private battle that he is fighting. When one denies himself what his body wants to do or what his mind wants to do. The mind may want to hate, the mind may want to envy. The mind may want to be jealous. The mind may want to be angry, and that is natural for the mind of man. To want to do those things, the body may cry out for food. Or alcohol, The body may cry out for sexual gratification. See, some kind of sensual pleasure that is Uh, unlawful in God's eyes, and the person thinks. That he is fighting that battle alone. Paul says, no, you're not. This is all part of a team effort. We are one body. And as as the individual members make their effort. The whole body is going to be strengthened. And the effort may be in struggling in prayer to To appeal to God. The effort may be made in in Bible study. But it's adding to the strength of the whole. And when an individual overcomes something or denies his body something that it wants to do by nature, The body is unified and strengthened as a result of that. He's letting them know that they really do not stand alone. They are part of a spiritual body. Verse 28. And there comes another point. And 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. Now what he means here is this way. If I can paraphrase it, I think I can make it a little bit clearer. Uh, this phrase that is translated in my in my New King James and not in any way terrified by your adversary. It means In no way swerving aside. As a horse startled by something. Like a dog, a snake, horses going down the road, and a dog comes snarling and barking from a house on the side. And the horse's eyes get big and roll, and you see the whites of their eyes, and they swerve aside. Well, that's what he's talking about. Only in this case it's not a horse, it's a human being in whom is the spirit of God, who is not terrified by what is going on around it. And not swerving aside, not taking his eyes off the goal, but going straight ahead. OK OK, now, in our case, The adversaries Uh, First of all, is Satan. And Anybody That he is using To cause us to be put in fear or to be terrified so that the result is that we turn aside. You know, how does, how does Satan work? Well, he uses trickery and subtlety. And if he can get us distracted and cause us to swerve or turn aside in that way, fine. But if that fails, Then he will use fear, terror. Now, mostly that's going to come from people making threatening gestures against us. And in that case, we could be afraid for the loss of respect or the loss of friendship or for the loss of life or danger that comes from being injured in some way. You have to understand That Paul is talking to people who were witness to him being put into prison. See in Philippi. Being stoned. OK, they witnessed that, and we are going to see in verse 30 that they experienced it themselves. OK, now. Their foes In this case, We're different from the kind that Paul was talking here in verses 1415, 1617, and 18. Paul's foes in those verses. Where someone internal within the church. The foes in verses in verse 28, 29, and 30 are external. They are not church members, but rather people who are applying pressure from them on the outside, from the outside. We're going to see when we get to chapter 3 that he mentions the Jews. Now it might be argued if you can recall that when we went through the book of Acts. The we said that. I think I mentioned this here since we've been on Philippines too. But there was no synagogue in Philippi. And the first convert, apparently Lydia, was met out at the side of the river where prayer was wont to be made, you see, which would indicate that there was no synagogue there. But do not forget. That he was hounded all over Macedonia because when he left Philippi and showed up in Thessalonica and in Berea, in both cases, Jews showed up to cause him a great deal of trouble. Those cities were not so far apart that there would not be that it would not be possible, I should say very much possible that there would be those in Berea or Thessalonica and a small group of Jews in Philippi that would provide some external pressure on these people that was causing them fear, and he was concerned about that. About that. OK, now, what is this thing? Proof of perdition. Or a sign Or a token Of perdition. You know, but there are two things that are mentioned here. In in the King James and the new King James. Which seems to be a proof. To the foes and a proof to those within the church. But that does not seem to be correct. But rather the two signs are both to the adversaries. The way that it is worded in the King James and the new King James does not appear to be correct. But rather that it is a sign, there are two signs, and they are both to the to those who are on outside. So it's a sign To the adversaries, that is the fact that they are not intimidated. The fact that they are not terrified. It is a sign of their. Ultimate destruction and Your salvation. So the two things are Destruction and salvation. But they are both to the adversary. Even if they do not understand it for a while, it's going to nonetheless be a sign. OK, now, again, there is an intimation. It is not strong, but it is nonetheless there. That the courage. That these people We're experiencing. was something that was given them by God. This is going to become very strong when we get over into chapter 2. And it's one of the reasons why this book is so encouraging. Because what we are going to see here as we go through here. As if God He is involved with you in what you are going through. He is going to supply your every need. He's not going to leave you strung out. Hang on to that. Verse 29. Now look at this, this, this time he comes on very strong. Or to you it has been granted. On behalf of Christ. Not only to believe in him. But also to suffer for his sake. I'll just think back to Mr. Flynn's sermon last Sabbath. Was God with Job in his suffering? Of course he was. Did it seem like to Job that God was with him? Of course not. But God was. That's the point. And we so often lose faith because we do not know God. He is with us. And if he has granted that we go through an experience. He is going to give us the wherewithal to overcome it. And if we fail, It is entirely our fault. Now he wants us to understand though, that there is no reason to fail. He is with us. And the suffering that we are going through as a result of the difficulty. is something that is positively intended. It is going to produce good. It is not intended. Merely to cause pain. Even though there may be pain involved. Seems as though that's the only way we can learn. Now the suffering, by and large, is the result of having to do something, to learn to do something that we have not done before. And we are uncomfortable with that. And a lot of the suffering is mental. Because we are uncomfortable with the situation. Or we are frightened with it. Or we are doubtful and unsure. And we are kind of swimming. We feel like we are over our head. Do you understand that every time you do something that you're unfamiliar with, that you're not experienced with, That's the way you're going to feel. You do not feel well doing something. That you do not do well. But in order to learn to do well, you have to go through the uncomfortable feelings of not doing it well until you do it well. And then once you do it well, What's the result? You're confident about doing it. You feel good. OK, that's the principle that he's talking about here. But God is with OK, now, what are you saying here then? It is a very high privilege. To suffer with Christ or for Christ. Or to glorify Christ. In in the suffering. Now, what these things do. They provide a means. These trials, these tests, they provide a means of putting Our knowledge of God. Of Christ of His word. To the test In order to discover what faith really means. If we do not do that, All it is is just so much theory. It's so much head knowledge. But it's not really learned. Uh, the man who was I think his name was Samuel Johnson. I believe that he is credited with being the first one to really put together a comprehensive dictionary of the English language. And he said, That a thing is not learned Until it is able to be used. There is a lot of wisdom there. Otherwise, It is just so much knowledge. Wait. To be used. It's of no value till it can be used. I heard Mr. Armstrong saying that. It was just a takeoff on what Samuel Johnson said several 100 years ago. OK, now that's what God does with the test. I Enables us To really put our knowledge to use and to find out what faith really means. Now, Is suffering a privilege. Yes, it is. But it is not suffering for the just the sake of suffering. It is suffering with Christ, that is a privilege. Now turn with me to to Hebrews 2. And in verse 10, It is suffering With a certain end or result or goal in mind. OK, now in Hebrews 2 in verse 10. I think that there is a standard that is set here. In regard to the suffering that we go through. For it was fitting for him. For whom are all things and by whom are all things in bringing many sons to glory. To make the author of their salvation perfect through suffering. Now, if suffering was deemed by God. To be good for the one who became savior. Lord and Master, the author of salvation. If suffering was deemed by God to be good for him. Doesn't it seem as though The same God is going to think the same things are going to be good for those who are the heirs of salvation brought by the author of salvation. S In other words, what is good for Christ is also going to be good for his brothers and sisters too. Now, it seems likely to me. That our suffering is not going to have the degree of intensity to it that Christ did. If only because we are not called. To the same Station In God's kingdom as he is. And that the author of salvation is going to have a rougher row to hoe than those who follow. Remember the word author here. It's the word archigos. It means the trailblazer, the one who goes before. Now, does not it seem logical to say that the one who blazes the trail. has a harder job than those who follow after him? And so his suffering is going to be a greater intensity than those who follow. The same principle is followed. So we are going to undergo some suffering. Let's go to the next book, James I. In verse 2, My brethrencounted all joy when you fall in the various trials. Knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. Or steadfastness. But let patience have its perfect work. All this is going on while we are suffering. That you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. Now there you have stated very briefly. What the purpose of the suffering is. We may be perfect. Or mature. And complete, lacking nothing. Now you can see then that God wants in us something more than just head knowledge. There has to be trials that will perfect. And those trials are going to have suffering contained within them. Sometimes Most of the time. The suffering is going to be mental. We're going to be fearful. We're going to be doubtful. We're going to be frustrated You're going to have feelings of hopelessness. We're going to be depressed. But there will be times when it will contain elements of bodily pain. The other than that, which is mental. But the purpose is always To make us perfect and complete. So that we lack nothing. On First Peter In chapter one, In this verse 6. You greatly rejoice. Uh, let's see, in this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials. That here comes the purpose, the genuineness of your faith. Being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the Revelation of Jesus Christ. I think that we can confidently say then. Based on scriptures like this, and there are others besides. That If there is no cross, there is no glory. Remember what Christ said in Luke 14:26. Take up your cross and follow me. No cross, which is a symbol of suffering, no glory. The two go hand in hand. OK, back to Philippians. Verse 30. Having the same conflict which you saw in me. And now here is in me. Now what he's saying here is that these people were experiencing the same sort of struggle. In Philippi that Paul had endured when he was there. The word conflict Has an interesting etymology. It originally meant a place of assembly. Like this hall, the place of assembly. But eventually it came to me. The place where contests were held. As in a gymnasium. Or an athletic stadium. But then it came to me What was going on at the gymnasium or the athletic field itself, which was always a struggle of some kind. Wrestlers fighting Or today it might be wrestling, it might be basketball, it might be football or baseball, but two teams or two individuals are in conflict with one another. Hey. The conflict here was between the truth as represented by the called out ones of God and the adversaries who were apparently Jews who were trying to quash the church that was there in Philippi and quash with it the preaching of the gospel. So this word conflictRefers all the way back to verse 27. To the conduct worthy of the gospel and behaving as a citizen. They were to behave that way. In the midst of the conflict that was going on. in spite of it, regardless of it. They were to conduct their lives as a as a citizen of the kingdom of God. on the chapter 2. Now Paul at the beginning of this chapter. Addresses the reasons why they should be able to resolve. The only church problem that he addresses in this, in this epistle. And That apparently it was the disunity that was being produced within the congregation. Now verse one says, therefore, yeah another connecting word. Because he's he's going to conclude something here or give reasons why they should be able to resolve this. If there is any consolation in Christ, If any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit. If any affection and mercy Fulfill my joy being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord of one mind. OK. End of sentence. Back to verse one. Paul gives 4 incentives for solving the problem of disunity. I think of these things in regard to yourselves. Any problems of disunity that there might be between husband and wife. Between parents and children. Between member and member. Here's the basis for his reasons or the basis for his reasoning. So why he came to the conclusion is they ought to be able to resolve this problem. OK, number one, If there is any consolation in Christ, Consolation is a word that you and I do not use very frequently in the In the way That it is used here. It means encouragement. If there is any encouragement. Or another word. A synonym that would also fit here is the word support. If there is any support or encouragement. Or consolation. At being in Christ. Another way, if there are any grounds for It would be another way of putting it. OK, now the ground for the reason that they should be able to resolve this is because they were in Christ. OK, now being in Christ places obligations on those who are in Christ. Now what is the obligation? Well, that we submit to him. That we obey him, see that we pay heed. To either direct commands for him from him, or orders issued through the apostles in this case. Now this word consolation or support. Uh, or encouragement. Comes from the same root as the word. That is translated back in John Comforter. Remember the word there in the Greek is Paraclitus. And this is not Paraclitus, just a different form. Though coming from the same root. And it is used in the sense of help or helper. In John 14, Paraclitus means helper. It means one who comes to the side of or one who comes to the aid of. OK, now, what is Paul saying here? He is saying to these people that making peace or being unified. is not something that is beyond your strength or ability because hey, you are in Christ. He is saying, look, you have the strength of Christ to fall back on. OK, now making this peace then should not be something that is beyond them. OK, that's reason number one that he gives to them. The second one. If any comfort of love. OK, we could also use a couple of synonyms here. If there is any incentive of love, I have seen that used in some translations of the Bible and that's a good one. The English word encouragement. would also fit here again as well. You know, let's paraphrase what he is saying here. He's saying that if there is in you any sense. Of Christ's love to impel you. To, to desist from anything that divides. That's reason number 2. Number one, you see, is that they are in Christ. And they have the strength of Christ to fall back on. Number 2 is that they should have a sense of Christ's love in them that should impel them, constrain them to move in a certain direction. OK, number 3. If any fellowship of the Spirit, here is that word again, communion or participation. Now what are you saying here is this. If there is any fellowship by means of the spirit. That is, the spirit is perceived here as being a tool. Or it could also be translated if there is any fellowship. Produced or motivated by the spirit. Now it can mean one or the other or both. OK, then the 4th 1, if any affection and mercy. For any affection and tenderness. Or any compassion or sympathy. Now what he is simply saying is Do you people have any emotional attachment to each other? Is there any affection? There is any concern there? OK, now. Think about this congregation. And what you already know about The book of Philippians. There is no real hard correction in this book. It was a a congregation Of people I had a kind of a special relationship with with an apostle. Now, from what I see here, Is that it was a a congregation. That had An awful lot of zealous people. Now, I do not know whether you ever thought of this. But it is when there is the most zeal in people that they are most likely to collide with one another. And to irritate one another. And to get in one another's way and in one another's hair. If people really feel passionate about what they believe. They're probably going to rub somebody the wrong way. Uh, California is one of the most tolerant areas in the whole country. A word that we use today is laid back. Anybody can do anything and almost nobody cares. Southern California. is to me Epitomizes Laodiceianism. This was a zealous congregation. They had strong feelings, you see, about what was right and what was wrong. And They ran into each other. That doesn't mean that they Didn't love Christ or they did not love one another. Now there truly was zeal there. And they felt strongly about things. Then they probably also made peace as well with the same kind of zeal that they displayed in other areas. And so This is not really something to, to put them down. It is instruction to show them how to use their zeal. In a way that will produce a kind of unity. Kind of relationship with one another that will not divide. A lot of us have come out of the Southern California area and it's something that I think that As an outsider looking in in a way. That we need to be careful of. This is the kind of environment that we've come out. This is a generality, it doesn't mean everybody is this way. But it is a generality and It is one incidentally that most of the rest of the country kind of accept as a true a truism. But Southern California is tolerance for just about anything. I shouldn't say Southern California, all of California. What was it Mark Twain said? He said that they tipped the whole United States on one side and all of the fruits and nuts settled in California. Well, here we are with all the rest of them. But it it's that kind of where where there is zeal, that there is an opportunity for party spirit to be developed and party spirit is is not good. And so zeal has to be. Uh, dampen. By an affection and a desire for unity. Through concern for others and tolerance for them as well without reducing one one's own level of belief. OK, verse 2. Fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord of one mind. Now Paul said, fulfill my joy. He means fill it to the full. Now I already had joy because they were converted. And that they had fellowship with one another. regarding the same things. Now, so he is asking them to bring his joy to the full. By being of one mind. Now one thing that I, I think that I need to interject here, and that is that he did not want them to be of one mind at the sacrifice of truth. He means of one mind in the truth. That is not that they would give up something that was true just to be at peace. And just to be unified. That is never to be understood with God. You never give up on what is true. Just in order to have peace. That's an important point to understand. Would God want A converted person. To give up the truth he has in order to save a marriage. To an unconverted person. Of course not. Truth is worth more than that. Because it's a truth that leads to salvation. It leads to eternal life. It leads to life on, on a God plane. So peace is never to be made at the sacrifice of truth, just so everybody can be of the same mind. It is better not to be of the same mind and to be at one with God than it is to be of the same mind with people and to be wrong. So we have to make sure That we do not make peace at any price, at any cost. And when Paul says to be of one mind, it is implied, it ought to be understood that it is one mind in truth. And that he is not asking people to give up truth just for the sake of unity. One zeal for truth should carry through. So that if one has to, one stands alone. Disunited from those who are not. In And in some cases, like I mentioned, that may cost a marriage. So who was it? Who was Joshua? You know in his farewell address. I'm going to read that just so I get it straight. Joshua 24. See if I can find it here now. It's where he said that as for me in my house, we will serve the Lord. Yeah, verse 15. And if this is Joshua 24, and if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your father served that were on the other side of the river or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me in my house, we will serve the Lord. Joshua said, I'm going to stand alone. I do not care what you think, or I do not care what the people of the land think. I'm going to serve God and if I am disunited from people in my service of God, tough. But he was not going to give up the truth just to be at peace with the people around him. So he was going to hang on to that on to the truth, even if it cost unity with people. And so you have to understand. This being of one accord of one mind, it means to be in truth. To be of one mind in the right things. OK, now beginning here in verse 2, Paul begins to Give what is absolutely essential to the unity that God desires within the church. So Christianity then. is a condition. Her state of mind That will produce unity in the church and thus enable us to be able to live together. OK. Number one, I By being like-minded. That is having the same attitude. Toward life. Now he qualifies that. By saying having the same love. Now that's what he means about attitude toward life. OK, being of one accord. Now here he seems to me Having the same Desire To know God and to serve Him. Now mind here means Inward disposition. What we would call today attitude. And then number 3, I mentioned in verse 3. Let nothing be done. Through selfish ambition or conceit. But This is the other side of it and it's still part of the 3rd point. In lowliness of mind, this is the contrast to selfish ambition and conceit. In lowliness of mine, let each esteem others better than himself. OK, now let me rehearse them again. If there is going to be unity. Understand that it's going to be in truth. That it is going to display the same attitude toward life. And is going to have the same attitude or desire to know God and to serve Him. And the person is going to avoid. Selfish ambition. Serving out of conceit. But by contrast, he will show. Loneliness of mine and consider others better than himself. OK, now people who seek to advance themselves. That is, those who are serving out of selfish ambition or conceit. People who seek to advance themselves. Always create division because they use other people. To their advantage. Now when Paul says In lowliness of mind. Let each esteem others better than themselves. He does not mean that we disregard. Our gifts or abilities from God. But rather he simply means that consideration of others must precede concern for self. If God gives a gift, Where we have an ability. It should be used for the good of the congregation. It should be used to glorify and to serve God. It should be used to help others. But it should not be used merely to advance the self. Now, if a person is working out of selfish ambition and concern, I mean, working within the conceit. If he is doing that within the congregation, he's going to be advancing himself, not the work. He's going to be seeking to glorify himself, not God. He is serving himself, not others. I think that God shows. In numerous places in his word. That the desire for prestige. It is a very Difficult Urge, desire. To control. It has been the cause of much trouble. The pride of life. What John calls it, but it's part of that. Part of the same thing. You could refer to Well I'll go to it. Romans 12:10. So I put down here as a reference that is similar to what we just read here. He says be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love in honor giving preference to one another. He's indicating that That the kindly affection. will lead us To give honor to the other, prefer the other, letting them take the higher seat or encouraging them to use their abilities within the congregation. Now, A large percentage of the problems in this area of selfish ambition and conceit. arises within us. In in terms of feeling hurt. Because We did not get What we felt was do us. That we were not given the right or the place that we felt that we should have. Or Maybe we felt that we were ignored or slighted or not thanked sufficiently for what we did. Now if those things arise, just recognize that you're very, I mean, those feelings arise, just recognize that you're very human. But it's natural to feel that way. But it's not good to allow those things to be harbored within us. As if it does, it will begin to divide. First of all, you away from the congregation. And then others If you encourage them to commiserate with you in your feelings. And then you see that selfish can see. Selfish ambition and conceit will begin to do its dirty work in dividing. A verse 4. Here comes the 4th Uh, The factor that he feels is necessary for unity in a congregation. Remember we have the same general approach to life. Its first one. The second one is that we have the same desire to serve God and to glorify Him. The third is We do not let anything in our life be done through selfish ambition and conceit but rather with lowliness of mind. And now the 4th 1. is that you let each of you look out not only for his own interests but also for the interests of others. What Paul is doing there is he is telling these people that they need to have a concern that is broad enough. To include others within it that the person is not so self-concerned, so involved in himself. That it excludes others. Now verse 4 also includes something else. It is alluded to, not directly stated. But this is involved within what he is talking. Talking about that a person may indeed Have a claim or praise. Or precedent But he doesn't insist on it. In other words, the person may be doing a lot within the congregation. He may be doing a lot of serving within the congregation. That is, that is very helpful. But if the person is really serving in lowliness of of mine, and he's looking out not just for himself, but the interests of others as well, then he doesn't insist upon. Not being given the precedent or the praise. That he might think should be do him for what he has done. And Included within this is that he does not begrudge the honors that come to others. Sometimes that last one is hard. OK, I I think that that's going to be a good place to stop. Because verse 5 begins another paragraph. And It is a tremendous paragraph.