Sermon Cloud

Phil 1: 20-30

Video- Starving Jesus

Welcome- Mike and Katie

Prayer for Jessica- Bob

As a community we are working through the book of Philippians, a letter Paul wrote while under house-arrest in Rome in the early 60’s AD- He wrote to this small group of people following Jesus in Phillipi, a Greek city in Mecedonia- they  that met in the house of a well-off business woman named Lydia.

He’s writing to encourage them, to teach them, to update them on his situation- he does a lot in this short letter…

Dustin kicked it off with the first few verses of Chapter 1 two weeks ago, and we covered the middle part of chpt 1 last week- this week we’ll finish it off.

As we start, I want you to take a minute and meditate on something: In vs 19 of chapter 1, Paul makes this statement:

VS 19

Here’s what I want you to think about- to sit with for a minute- Paul, in chains, under arrest, totally dependent on two things- what were they? Another question- what do you depend on? Sit and think about that for a bit and we’ll come back and move through this passage.

He says “I know as you pray for me and the Spirit of Jesus Christ helps me, this will lead to my deliverance.” Paul put his hope in two things- those who were praying for him and in the God who listened to those prayers… And Paul was released… but maybe there’s more here. I think when Paul says “deliverance” he possibly has a double meaning in mind.  He knew that his imprisonment would be ended one of two ways. Either he would be found not guilty and released, or those who were trumping up charges against him for religious reasons would have their way, and he would be executed. It seems as though Paul saw either of those options as “deliverance.”

VS 20

Whether he lived or whether he died as a result of what he was going through, one thing was central- that somehow, through the whole thing, people would continue to be pointed towards Jesus.  He says “ I trust that my life will bring honor to Jesus.” That’s an okay translation… Anyone have something different?

“I trust” (eagerly expect)- only used twice in the new testament- straining one’s neck to catch a glimpse of what is ahead. A word of hope and expectation but also struggle, reach… straining one’s neck.

Paul was released this time, but a few years later he was imprisoned again, again in Rome. And that time, it didn’t end the same way. Anyone know how Paul was killed? He was beheaded.

There’s just an irony here- I’m straining my neck forward in anticipation- to catch a glimpse of what God is going to do here… And I don’t know what will happen, but one thing I can say- I’m not backing down. I won’t be ashamed of this Gospel, this good news. They can lock me up, beat me, put me in chains, but even there, I’ll tell anyone I can about the great good news that God Himself has come to rescue and renew all of creation through the work of Jesus Christ on our behalf.

There is no doubt in my mind when I read passages like this and when I look at my life and the lives of those around me- Following Jesus is a struggle.

I’m glad that I don’t have to face the same kinds of things Paul did, though some people, in some parts of the world still do- there are still people being put in prison for following Jesus- in China for example. I’m glad I don’t have to face that, that my children don’t have to face that- but lack of persecution doesn’t necessarily equate to lack of spiritual struggle. I’m struggling. I feel as though life has caught up with me and my desire to grow spiritually is greater than my ability to deal with tiredness and business and all the things that so easily entangle us. I read this and I say- yeah, me too- I’m straining my neck- I want to see, what comes next spiritually? What happens now? What does God do next?

In one sense, Paul was uncertain whether he would experience release or martyrdom. But he knew one thing- either way, he wanted Christ to be the focus, Christ to gain… His ultimate concern was not so much what would happen to him… but how people would think about Christ because of what happened to him.

VS 21

Now- be careful when you read this. Everyone hears “To live is Christ, to die is gain” and miss the “to me” part. Paul was unmarried. He had no children. He was in prison. Making a statement like “living means living for Christ, and if they kill me, no big deal” was a little different for him than for many.

The reason I say this, is that many have read this, and heard this with a certain amount of guilt layered on- as though this is the ideal way to think about this life… that somehow we should all strive for some zen-like detachment from this life. “I’ll fly away, oh glory. Like a bird from these prison walls has flown, I’ll fly away”

Paul’s point is not that dying is better than living, though he notes that in his situation he could see the upside of both… it’s that whatever happens, life or death, Christ is the point. Not me. Christ.

Not a detachment from this life, and not a mundane, purposeless attachment to it either. John Piper, who some of you know and love, who some of you know and not-so-love, either way he’s got a way with words and he wrote this recently:

“I will tell you what a tragedy is. I will show you how to waste your life. Consider a story from the February 1998 edition of Reader’s Digest, which tells about a couple who “took early retirement from their jobs in the Northeast five years ago when he was 59 and she was 51. Now they live in Punta Gorda, Florida, where they cruise on their 30 foot trawler, play softball and collect shells.” At first, when I read it I thought it might be a joke. A spoof on the American Dream. But it wasn’t. Tragically, this was the dream: Come to the end of your life—your one and only precious, God-given life—and let the last great work of your life, before you give an account to your Creator, be this: playing softball and collecting shells. Picture them before Christ at the great day of judgment: “Look, Lord. See my shells.” That is a tragedy. And people today are spending billions of dollars to persuade you to embrace that tragic dream. Over against that, I put my protest: Don’t buy it. Don’t waste your life.” -John Piper, Don’t Waste Your Life,

As I said, whatever happens, life or death, Christ is the point. Not me. Christ.

VS 22-23

I know this may be a hard question to ask, but what does a Christ-centered spirituality look like? vs a me-centered spirituality… What do you think?

A Christ-centered spirituality has Christ as the purpose, rather than me. For too many people, spirituality becomes those practices in their lives where God is the object only in so far as He is what is acted on- I pray to change Him and His mind to be more like me and mine. I act to win His favor on me. I refrain from doing evil to keep Him from smiting me.  He’s the object… but me, myself and I… I’m the purpose.

In a Christ centered spirituality, that script is flipped J God is the purpose, Christ in the center. I’m the subject, I’m what is acted on, but the agenda is His, the reasons are His. I bend to Him, not attempt to bend Him to me.

Now, we say all of this knowing full well: Everyone pursues a me-centered spirituality at first. Just as everyone pursues a me-centered romantic relationship at first. We enter love and dating and marriage, not because we spot someone across a crowded room and think “Hey, Hey… Now there’s someone I could really serve.” We start off on that road not for what we can do for someone, but because of how they make us feel. But slowly, over the years as we live with, struggle with, walk with someone- love changes that. We learn- they come first. We learn- I’m a selfish… guy- and slowly, slowly, slowly… it changes.

And so goes our relationship with God.

And here’s an odd thing- when you start to care about others, the care you have for yourself begins to change and mature as well… If I had to be perfectly honest, isn’t wasn’t until I got married and until I had kids that I really gave a rip about my health- I didn’t want to die, but if something happened, hey- not a huge tragedy. Now I think about leaving Jack without a dad, Jane without a dad (I think Amy settled when she married me, so I’m pretty sure she could do better)… but my family needs me. I don’t want to leave them. I’m not done.

And Paul, for all the talk of living vs dieing, I think recognized the same thing

 VS 24

So even though his focus is Jesus, his care and concern is for all the people in all the churches he had started… He says:

VS 25-26

I love this- the guy who is in prison, is here re-assuring the people he is writing to- look, this is going to turn out okay. “I think God is going to bring me through this, for your sake.” It seems like the encouragement should have flowed the other way, but hey…

Paul could speak like this, because later in his life he had figured out- he’s not the point. Christ is.

His ultimate concern was not so much what would happen to him… but how people would think about Christ because of what happened to him. And how people would think of Christ because of how he, Paul, handled what happened to him.

And so for any of us who follow Jesus- the big issue becomes not so much what happens to us, but we handle it, how we point to Christ through it… Too often we want people to look at us, to notice us, to be entranced by, impressed by us. And that’s because our focus, our purpose is painfully obvious- us. Paul had done this following Jesus thing long enough that he had reached a certain point of balance in his life- a refocusing from himself, to something, to someone else.

Christ. Whether he lived or died, Christ was Paul’s focus.

And should be ours…

Break- worship (Jesus, Be the Center would be perfect)

Without turning this into a doctrinal exposition, not that there’s anything wrong with that, but a couple of points before we move on:

Even though it’s not the point of this passage, it tells us something about what happens when we die.

1. We don’t just cease to be. Physical death is not the end.

And

2. For those that are Christ followers, to be absent from the body is to be present with Christ. And even more than that, which is totally a topic for another time since this passage doesn’t address it- to be absent from the body, to be present with Christ … even that is not the end of the story. In the same way Christ was resurrected, so we too will be- we won’t be absent from the body forever…

He says:

VS 27

What do you think he means: “Citizens of heaven”?

What does it mean to conduct ourselves in a manner worthy of the Good News about Jesus?

VS 28-

The people in Philippi and other places were beginning to experience persecution for following Jesus. People were being beaten, harassed, even killed- because they were a counter-cultural community- one that gave slaves a place at the table, one that advocated for the education of women over and against the prevailing custom of the day- but the biggest thing- a counter cultural community that refused to worship what those around them worshiped- Caesar, tribal gods, the Greco-Roman gods… They said “no” and they paid a price. And Paul tells them Don’t be intimidated- God is your savior, your helper. Echoing what Jesus said: Don’t be afraid of those who can harm your body but can’t touch your soul…

VS 29

I wouldn’t blame anyone who read that for questioning it- that is a hard, hard statement that no doubt makes complete sense to very few ears. But I think I can begin to make some sense of it… No one wants to suffer- but if suffering in life is inevitable, and it is, then let it be for something that matters. Let it be for something bigger than myself. And let it be with people who are not simply good companions in the journey, but in the struggle as well…

VS 30

“we are in this struggle together”

We as a community must strain our neck to see what it is that God is pushing us towards- to see where He’s working here in Portland… and to struggle and strain with all that we are to join Him in that. 

We’ve strained to do a number of things in our short history… but if we fail to strain to place Jesus at the center, if we fail to strain at growing spiritually… then honestly, this whole community thing becomes an exercise in futility - welcome to the social, you know?

Life is struggle, and all too often we struggle at and for the wrong things, for the things that don’t matter, for the things that fade away. And we struggle alone rather than in community. I love these words- “We are in this struggle together.”

Today we struggle with Jessica. We pray for her- for God’s mercy on her, for God’s healing on her. We struggle with Aaron in the Sudan and pray for his safety and effectiveness in that war-torn region. And we struggle with one another… we struggle together, holding one another up, against the sin we try to leave behind, against the pain and sorrow of life… we struggle with each other each to turn our faces towards Jesus- the author and finisher of our faith.

Song- The Drinking Song

Wrap up, blessing