New York UBF - NY University Bible Fellowship

Philippians Lesson 1 (2008)

LIVING A JOYFUL LIFE IN A GRUMPY WORLD

Philippians 1:1-26
Key Verse: 1:21

“For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”

Has any of you read the book, “The Conquest of Happiness” by Bertrand Russell? I have always wanted to read this book because the title sounds so appealing. The ironic thing is that the author himself didn’t seem to have conquered happiness. In fact, although he achieved much as a philosopher, historian and mathematician, and though he won the Nobel Prize in literature, his personal life was a very tumultuous one. His three marriages failed and two of his ex-wives became mentally ill. Perhaps, he should have titled the book as “The Pursuit of Happiness” not “The Conquest of Happiness.” We all want to be happy. Yet, it seems that almost nobody knows the way to true happiness. “Are you living a truly happy life?” This is a very challenging question for all of us. There is no simple answer to this question. Paul’s letter to the Philippians is generally called “The Epistle of Joy” not simply because the word “joy” or “rejoice” is repeated over and over in the letter, but because in it we see that Paul was living a meaningful and joyful life even in the most unfavorable situations. He is a person who conquered happiness. Don’t you think that we can learn something from him about happiness and how we can live a joyful life in a grumpy world?

FIRST, PAUL WAS FULL OF THANKSGIVING AND PRAYER (1-11)

Look at verses 1 and 2. “Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, To all the saints in Christ Jesus at Philippi, together with the overseers and deacons: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” Paul’s letter to the Philippians was written around 10 years after he had pioneered the church in Philippi (A.D. 51). Paul sent this letter to the Philippians through a man named Epaphroditus, who had been sent by the Philippians with gifts and perhaps finanicial support to visit Paul who was imprisoned in Rome. (2:25, 4:18)

In his letter, Paul first expresses his gratitude to them. Look at verse 3-5. “I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.” His thanksgiving for them led him to joyful prayer for them. What was Paul thankful for? He was thankful for their partnership in the gospel. Paul and the Philippian Christians had been partners in the gospel for the last 10 years. If two or more people start a business together, we call them “business partners.” You need partners in doing business. But it’s not easy for people to remain faithful as business partners because of many challenges they face in doing business. However, the partnership in the gospel between Paul and the Philippian Christians was very special. They had such a strong bond of warm friendship and love between them. When you are going through difficulties especially in doing business, it’s hard to bear these all by yourself. But if you have someone who supports you no matter what, it’s really a great source of encouragement and strength. In fact, it was not easy for the Philippian Christians to be consistent in supporting Apostle Paul and his ministry because he was a very controversial man of God. Some fellow Christian leaders undermined Paul’s authority as the Apostle because he was not one of the Twelve. They gossiped about Paul, saying that he was a trouble maker among the Jews. Many people turned away from Paul. Yet, the Philippian Christians’ support for Paul didn’t change at all from the first day until then. According to 4:14 and 15, while Paul was going through many troubles in the early days, not one church shared with Paul in the matter of giving and receiving, except the Philippian Christians.

What a great support Paul received from them! I have a friend of mine who is going through a tough time in his personal life and ministry. I found that he needs support from me now more than anytime in his life. There is a proverb that goes, “A friend in need is a friend indeed.” It actually means that a friend in need acts friendly because he needs something. But we interpret that someone who helps you when you are in need is a true friend. Adversities reveal who true friends are. We also have many coworkers and friends in Christ who have gone out from us. Some of us are having difficulties among ourselves. We are to support one another especially when during these difficult times so that we can stand firm and secure in Christ.

Look at verse 6. “Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in your will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” At that time, Paul was confined in prison, yet when he remembered their constant support and partnership in the gospel, he could pray for them even more with great joy because he was also convinced that God who initiated his good work in them would eventually complete it until the final day. In verses 7-8, Paul confesses his deep love for them. Look at verses 7-8. “It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart; for whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God’s grace with me. God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.” Paul was fully aware that it was not easy at all for the Philippian Christians to be supportive of him because he was a very controversial servant of God. Especially when Paul was put on trial and put in prison for the sake of the gospel, they still supported him. In fact, they were stuck with Paul.

Have you ever experienced being stuck with someone and as a result you got into trouble? For example, say you cosigned your friend’s mortgage and your friend could not pay the mortgage and had to file bankruptcy. What happens to you? Your friend’s filing bankruptcy still doesn’t release you from your obligation. You are stuck with your friend. That’s the kind of partnership Paul was talking about. Fortunately though, Paul’s ministry was a great success even though he was in jail. What if his ministry was not so successful? Would the Philippians have stopped supporting Paul? Probably not. Touched by their unchanging love and support, Paul said to them, “I have you in my heart”(7a) “All of you share in God’s grace with me” (7b) and “God can testify how much I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.” (8) He was saying to them, “I love you more and more.” We all have failings and mistakes in our lives. But we are greatly blessed if there are those who support us in prayer.

The movie “Titanic” is a sad movie. It’s really sad when Leonardo DeCaprio dies in order to save his lover Kate Winslet. People look for someone special with whom they can share deep, meaningful and lasting relationship like this. Some people think that if they find someone they can really like, they can fall in love and have a lasting and meaningful relationship. But that’s not true. If we fall in love, we can also fall out of love easily unless we make a constant effort to build the relationship. A deep, meaningful and everlasting relationship is possible only through the affection of Christ Jesus.

Look at verses 9-11. In these verses Paul prays for the Philippian Christians. What was his prayer topic for them? Read verses 9-11. “And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness - to the glory and praise of God.” Here, Paul prays for them that their love may flourish even more. No matter how much we may love one another in Christ, our love can always grow. In other words, we can love more people and love them in a greater way. It is interesting to note that Paul didn’t just pray for their love to grow more and more. Rather he prayed that their growing love may be accompanied with knowledge and depth of insight, so that they may have discernment. Some people say that love is blind. But love is not blind when it is accompanied with knowledge and wisdom of discernment. Paul knew that the world we live in is very deceptive. Sometimes, we are not aware that we are doing evil in the guise of doing good. So he prayed for the Philippian Christians to have the knowledge and the wisdom of discernment so that they may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless.

Why pray for the best? It’s because he didn’t want them just to settle for good or better. What does “pure and blameless” mean? It means wholesomeness, lacking nothing. Mostly, when we pray for our friends, it’s not easy to pray for them because we don’t know their situation or their prayer topics. So we just pray, “Lord, we ask you to bless them. Lord, just bless them. Help them so that they may not have any trouble.” That’s pretty good. But now we can pray even better, in more sanctified and educated way. “Lord, please help them to abound in love more and more, so that they may be able to love more people and love them in a greater way. Lord, also give them knowledge and the wisdom of discernment so that they may be able to discern what is best, pure and blameless with the fruit of righteousness.” Paul’s prayer for them reminds us of what was said later in his letter, “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things. Whatever you have learned from me, or seen in me- put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.” (Phil 4:8-9) What does this reveal about Paul’s attitude toward his friends in Christ? From a human point of view, the Philippian Christians might not have been rich and famous people in the world. They may not be perfect people. Yet, Paul valued them like treasures in heaven. He said in 4:1, “Therefore, my brothers, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown.” Paul dearly loved them and treasured them in his heart and prayed for them to be excellent and praiseworthy in God. Likewise, we should value and treat one another as Paul did for his partners in Christ.

SECOND, “FOR TO ME, TO LIVE IS CHRIST AND TO DIE IS GAIN.” (12-26)

Look at verse 12. “Now I want you to know brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel.” Here, we should think about what he meant when Paul said “what has happened to me”? What happened to Paul when he went to Jerusalem with the offering collected by the non-Jewish believers? (Acts 21-23) Was he welcomed? Not really. In fact, in Jerusalem, Paul was accused and beaten by the mob of people in the temple. Unless the Roman authorities had intervened, Paul could have been murdered by the Jewish extremists in Jerusalem. Paul was in constant threat and danger of kidnaping and assassination. But what also happened in Caesarea was that he had chance to give his testimony to local politicians, like Felix, the Roman governor, Festus, King Agrippa, Bernice and many high ranking officers and the leading men of the city. (24-26) Although he was in chains, he had such high ranking officers as these his audience. What happened to him next? Although he was found to be not guilty of all his charges, Paul requested not to be released but to stand in trial in Rome as a Roman citizen. In fact, he traveled to Rome in chains with other prisoners. The trip to Rome was very troublesome. But whatever situation he might be in, Paul found a chance to share the gospel with those who around him, including Roman centurions who escorted him and the captain, the crew members and the passengers on the boat. Once when the ship was about to sink because of a violent storm Paul exercised his leadership even though he was a prisoner. On the shores of the island of Malta, he was bit by a poisonous snake. Everyone expected him to swell like a balloon or suddenly fall dead. But to everyone’s amazement, Paul didn’t die. He just shook the snake off into the fire and suffered no ill effects. (Acts 27)

How did Paul view what had happened to him? Look at verse 12 again. “Now I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel.” How did they serve to advance the gospel? Look at verse 13. “As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ.” How did the whole palace guard know about Paul? According to Acts 27, we learn that when he arrived in Rome, Paul was kept under house arrest for two years, awaiting trial before Caesar. In the meantime, Paul had chance to share the gospel with members of the elite Roman officers in Rome who had guarded him 24 hours a day. Since they changed guards every six hours, Paul had a chance to share the gospel with 4 different Roman officers every day. That’s a great number of Bible students, 4 one-to-one Bible studies a day. That means that he had 28 Bible students a week and more than 100 Bible studies in a month and 1,200 over the years. That’s not small number of people to share the gospel with. It’s amazing to see how Paul’s imprisonment and trial served to advance the gospel. Paul believed in God’s providence. Many of us think that life in prison as a terrible situation, but not so with Paul in Roman jail. In fact, he was fully secured with body-guards, with free room and board.

But that’s not all, of course. Paul explains in detail in verses 14-18. “Because of my chains, most of the brothers in the Lord have been encouraged to speak the word of God more courageously and fearlessly. It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of good will. The latter do so in love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. 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.” Now, we wonder who these selfish preachers might be? Paul wasn’t talking about false prophets. Otherwise, he would not have rejoiced in their preaching. No, they are true brothers in Christ who had been jealous of Paul. In fact while many friends of Paul were very sympathetic about Paul’s situation, they also used Paul’s situation as an opportunity for their own advance. Their messages were good, but their motives were questionable. But what was Paul’s attitude toward these people? Did he become bitter toward them or try to block their way? No. He said in verse 18, “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.” Paul wasn’t seeking their approval. How easy for us to become upset and act out in anger! It’s very natural to attack those who attack you. Sometimes, it’s hard to love and accept some ambitious coworkers because they seem to be very annoying all the time. Yet, Paul was not upset with his brothers. He believed that God could use imperfect people, like all of us, for his kingdom work and praised God.

Look at verse 18b. “Yes, and I will continue to rejoice.” This means Paul decided not to care about the motives of his less than perfect bothers, knowing that God is sovereign. He left all the judgment in God’s hands, focusing on preaching the gospel. There are many unpleasant things that can happen to your life. But one of the most unpleasant things is when your integrity is questioned by others. Since Paul was in prison, some accusations against Paul might have been very persuasive. “See, what God has done for him? God locked him up.” If you are in Paul’s shoes, you would be very upset. But Paul said that he would rejoice and even more! Why? Look at verse 19. It’s because he believed someday God would vindicate him from his false charges.

Look at verses 20 and 21. “I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” Verse 21 is one of the most well known verses in the Bible. Here, we see Paul’s genuine quality as a Christian. Paul was not even afraid though he faced death all the time. What he was concerned about was, whether by life or by death, he wanted to make sure that Christ will be honored.

“For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” (21) What does it mean? It is his confession of faith and love in Christ. To him Christ is everything. He is the Lord, Savior and King. He was saying that Christ is his life, his joy, his strength, his sword, his peace his everything. Paul was in prison in his old age. He had worked harder than all others. Paul was a human, so he had feelings about his situation. Sometimes, he could have cried, “Why me, Lord? Why?” Yet, he wasn’t overcome by his sad feelings. When he really thought about what had happened to him he knew it was actually good for the gospel. He also realized that as long as he was in Christ, his life is wonderful and only going to be better and better. If he died, he would be transformed in Jesus’ glory. So he had lost nothing! He only gained. These days, those who put money in stocks and investments are very upset because they have lost a lot. But in Christ, we lose nothing. We actually gain more and more. The more we are in Christ, the more we gain. No wonder Apostle Paul rejoiced! “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”

In conclusion, we learn that Paul was rejoicing and living a meaningful life because he didn’t let his circumstances dictate his emotions. In fact, although Paul was in prison, he was free in Christ because he knew the life-changing power through his personal relationship with Christ. We find that although we are not in jail, we are in prison with chains of bitterness, anger, lust, despair, jealousy, pride and all sorts of sin. We are living in a grumpy world. Sometimes, we feel powerless because we cannot control what happens to us. But we must remember that even though we cannot control what happens to us, we can control our attitude before God. That’s why Paul said, “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” If you have Christ Jesus, you have the best treasure. True joy and happiness does not depend on our circumstances. If we know what it means to live in Christ, we can actually live a joyful and most meaningful life in whatever situation we may be in now. We can be real conquerors of happiness.