Finding Joy in Philippians
Background: For the next three weeks, we will be studying the Book of Philippians, another of Paul's letters from his Roman prison. In Philippi, men were using Paul's imprisonment as proof he was not genuine and seeking to undermine his authority. Many in the church were shaken at the fact that the Apostle was imprisoned. He wrote the letter to explain his imprisonment and to encourage his readers to walk in joy despite all the evil in the world.
Philippians is not nearly as easily outlined at Ephesians was - it is much more personal and exhortational compared to the theological intent of Ephesians. Philippians was the church that was founded when Paul received the vision of the Macedonian man saying, "Come and help us."
As often as time allows, the reader is encouraged to read the entire book - it will not take more than a few minutes. Each day we will work our way through the book passage by passage.
Today's Reading: Philippians 1-4 Focus Passage - Philippians 1:27-30
Just one thing: As citizens of heaven, live your life worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or am absent, I will hear about you that you are standing firm in one spirit, in one accord, contending together for the faith of the gospel, 28 not being frightened in any way by your opponents. This is a sign of destruction for them, but of your salvation—and this is from God. 29 For it has been granted to you on Christ’s behalf not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him, 30 since you are engaged in the same struggle that you saw I had and now hear that I have.
Through the Bible Readings: Jeremiah 15-16, Ephesians 1, Psalm 112:7–10, Proverbs24:19–20
If you wish to read through the Bible in a year, follow these readings.
Devotional: A Bizarre Promise
When I was a kid, pretty much every church had Sunday night services. In addition to the singing and the preaching, we often had "testimonies" during those more informal meetings. One of the favorite testimony times was "claiming promises." People would pop up and read a promise from the word of God which they'd apply to a situation in their lives.
In all my years of hearing people claim the promises of God, not one person ever stood up in testimony time and claimed the promise of Philippians 1:29. In that verse, People claimed the verse "my God shall supply all your need" a million or so times and "If we confess our sins..." was a standard. But no one ever stood to say, "I claim the promise that on behalf of Christ I not only get to believe on him, but also to suffer for him."
That is right. We are promised that if we believe in Jesus Christ and live our lives for him, there will be sacrifice and suffering in this world.
Paul is continuing to explain his chains and suffering to the church of Philippi and was making a simple point. His arrest and imprisonment, his suffering - these were not anomalies. This was what happened to people who served Jesus. Jesus was rejected. He was brutalized and eventually crucified and he told his disciples that the world that hated him would hate them.
We are citizens of heaven and not of this world. It is not our home and will often not love us. Our goal is to love Jesus and serve him in this world, not to curry favor in this world.
Here's the kicker. Paul says, "don't be frightened by your opponents. Can then hurt you? Yes. Can they imprison you and torture you? Can they even kill you? Yes. But in Jesus Christ you have the ultimate victory and you should be confident in him.
One of our key problems is that we focus on this world and not eternity. In this world we may have suffering and pain - in fact, we will. But in Christ, we win.
Father, thank you for my victory in Christ that does not depend on anything in this world.
Think and Pray:
Are you living for Christ and for the things of heaven, or for success and victory in this world?
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