Philippians 1:17-20To: Philippians Main MenuTo: Grace Notes Home Page Philippians 1:17"But the latter out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel."In verses 15 and 16 Paul's lists both proper and improper motives. In verse 17 Paul sets forth another proper motive--"but the latter out of love." Paul has just made the point that some Christian workers in Rome were seeking to rub salt into his wounds (his prison experience) by bragging about their successes in ministry. They were envious about the way the Praetorian Guard responded to Paul. "but the latter out of love"Love is the second valid motive. The first good motive was "good will" of verse 15. Love is an advance on good will. "Of" in "of love" is source. Love is the source (motive) for what they do. Wolf packs turn on their own when one falls in the fray. Christians often shoot their wounded as well. "Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal" (I Co. 13:1). Preaching without love is just a lot of noise. Preaching like that is just sound and fury but without integrity. "knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel."Paul saw his purpose as defending the gospel. Note the emphasis upon the gospel in this chapter: -"fellowship in the gospel" (v.5) Paul was greatly exercised about advancing the gospel. Paul viewed himself as "appointed" for the gospel. He knew his mission. He saw himself clearly in God's plan of world evangelism. PRINCIPLE: The reason some Romans loved Paul was that they knew God had appointed him to advance the gospel. Love found its source in viewing things from God's perspective. APPLICATION: Is love more than maudlin sentimentalism to you? Does your love find its source in God's viewpoint. Does your love have content? Are you in love with people who are advancing the gospel? How are you expressing that love? Philippians 1:18"What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretence or in truth, Christ is preached; and in this I rejoice, yes, and will rejoice."Verse 18 is the conclusion to the paragraph dealing with motives. Two more motives are treated: "pretence" and "truth." "What then?"A conclusion is drawn. We would say, "so what?" "only that in every way"Paul did not care much about form or methods. His heart was to elevate the gospel. Paul did not concern himself even with motives as along as Christ was preached. God can even use carnality to advance the gospel, as here--"pretence." "whether in pretence or in truth Christ is preached""Pretence" means to cover the real motive and present others with a false idea. This is an attempt to disguise true motives. They used Christ as a cover for their lust for power and "selfish ambition." Paul did not condone their cunning. However, he did approve of their preaching Christ. Notwithstanding their motive, they were preaching the gospel. He had a single eye for his purpose (appointed) on earth. Salvation of souls were more important to him than some perceived rivalry with him. "Truth" is to preach without false motivation in this context. What you see is what you get. A person whose motive and message are the same is a person with integrity. This is a person with no ulterior motives. "and in this I rejoice, yes, and will rejoice""I rejoice" is present tense. "While I sit in jail I am rejoicing over the fact that Christ is preached." "Will rejoice" indicates his purpose to continue to rejoice no matter what may come his way. Paul's point is that the people who were trying to hurt him were contributing to his joy! Paul had such deep appreciation for the work of Jesus Christ upon the cross nothing could alter his focus. Christ's death upon the cross, his resurrection, ascension, and glorification were so dominant in this thinking that nothing tawdry daunted him. PRINCIPLE: God turns cursing into blessing. Paul's foes were out to compete with him, to diminish him. Instead, he was blessed. APPLICATION: Are the people who are attempting to make your life miserable succeeding? Are they controlling your happiness or unhappiness? Is it possible for you to be independent from your antagonists? Paul was. Paul did not concern himself with their motives. That is why cursing was turned into blessing in his life. Philippians 1:19"For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayer and the supply of the spirit of Jesus Christ"Now Paul turns to the subject of his attitude toward imprisonment and death. He viewed everything from the viewpoint of his purpose on earth from God's Word. That gave him stability and strength. A person who is stable has courage and confidence. Paul is about to face trial. If he is found guilty he will face death. Yet in the face of such ominous circumstances he is calm. Verse 19 gives three reasons for Paul's confidence for his deliverance from prison. "for I know that this will turn out for my deliverance"The "this" refers to the preceding section, "Christ is preached." "Deliverance" means, in this context, deliverance from prison, not the salvation of the soul. The preaching of the gospel with new intensity both by him and the Romans will contribute to his release from prison. This is the best way to conquer social problems--win people to Christ. "through your prayer"This is the second reason for Paul's confidence that he will be released from prison. Prayer from the Philippian church is one thing upon which Paul could rest. Can our Christian leaders count on us to pray for them? If you are a leader, can you lean on the prayers of people in your organization? Do people think enough of you to pray for you? It is a wonderful thing to trust people enough to pray for us. It was obvious that the Philippians loved Paul. They cared enough for him to send Epaphroditus over hundreds of hazardous miles. He almost lost his life in the process. and the supply of the spirit of Jesus ChristThis is the third reason why Paul felt he would be delivered from prison. The "supply of the Spirit" means the Holy Spirit. This is a functional title for the Holy Spirit (what he does). The Holy Spirit will move providentially upon the authorities in Rome so that they will be disposed to release him. The word "supply" was used for a wealthy person who bore the expenses of a city-state drama choir. These productions were very expensive. It took someone very wealthy to pick up the tab. God, who is incalculably wealthy, provided the "supply" of the Spirit so that Paul could continue living. PRINCIPLE: Paul was a person of confidence because he placed that confidence is something solid-- truth. APPLICATION: Do you place your confidence in truth? Adversity is where we find whether we have that confidence in God's truth. Having poise in setbacks has its root in God's Word. Philippians 1:20"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."In verse 20 Paul reveals how he establishes his poise and bearing in hardship. "according to my earnest expectation and hope""According to" means according to norms. This is a norm by which he lives. This is his spiritual aspiration. "Earnest expectation" is an intense compound term of three words in the Greek: away from, head, look. Literally it means to stretch the head away from the body to look; the head bent forward to see something; a looking away towards something. It is an intense term for concentration. It means to anticipate by watching very carefully for something. This word is used for a sentry watching in the dark. He strains to see the enemy. He is waiting to see the slightest movement. What is Paul intensely concentrating upon? He wants to magnify Christ in his life. He is ardent when it comes to that. This is the focus of his whole being. He is attentive to anything that even slightly reflects poorly upon the Lord Jesus. Very few people have the ability to focus and concentrate for long periods of time. One major reason why we do poorly in our jobs, school and other enterprises is lack of concentration. A quality Christian life takes concentration. A football player who does not listen to the play in the huddle will break up the play. A Christian who does not focus upon orienting every aspect of his life to Christ will live with short-term, short-sighted and limited ends in view. "Hope" in the Greek means more than "wish." It carries the idea of confidence in the ultimate outcome. Paul is taking a look at his entire life to the very end. At the end of his life he does not want to be ashamed of how his life reflected upon the Lord Jesus. He did not want to have any regrets at the end of his life. Up to this point he had no regrets. Now he wants to finish strongly. PRINCIPLE: Paul lived his life with an ultimate regulative life principle. APPLICATION: The focus of many Christians is pleasure, sensual indulgence, money, selfishness, power, flattery. People who live like this simply mark segments of time. They live with no ultimate orientation in view. We need to live with eternal values in view. The first phrase of verse 20 indicates Paul lived his life with the future in mind. At the end of his life he wanted to look back and say that he lived his life to the glory of God. He had a suspicion about himself, however, a vulnerable kink in his armour which might diminish his passion. He knew that he had a temptation to be ashamed of Christ and the gospel. "that in nothing I shall be ashamed"Paul is looking at shame from the viewpoint of the rest of his life. He is evaluating the future. He does not want to waste his time losing opportunities because of shame. He wants to finish strong. No matter how many times we have failed in the past, we should not look back with regret, focus on the past. We should use our lives at the moment to set a platform for the future. We may be permeated with regrets: "I should have studied more in college and I would not be such a flop right now;" "If only I would have been more faithful to that relationship;" "I have failed as a person and I have failed as a Christian." This thinking is futile. The past is the past, it cannot change. We can change the future, however. There is our hope. Our lives can have purpose and definition if we look at our "expectation and hope." "but with all boldness, as always""Boldness" is the antithesis to "shame." Boldness means to speak your mind, a frankness of speaking which amounts to an intrepid communication, fearless candour. Paul had fearless candour when it came to sharing his faith. "As always" indicates this was his pattern. He never had to regret not sharing his faith with forthrightness. He maintained that openness throughout his life. Years earlier he said, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek" (Ro. 1:16). Remember verse 14, "much more bold to speak the word without fear." We fail to witness not only because of fear but because of shame. "Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord..." (II Ti. 1:8). If we stand foursquare without apology, God will use us. Like Paul in jail we need to go out on a limb and risk our "reputation" as a Christian. PRINCIPLE: Our focus should be future oriented, not past. That future should have goal orientation: a vulnerability with fearless candour about the one we love. APPLICATION: Is your life tepid or intrepid? Are you willing to orient your life around sharing Christ with fearless candour? The passion that exercised the great apostle Paul most was that Christ would be made big in his life. "so now also"Now when he is in prison he wants Christ to be magnified in his body. "Christ will be magnified in my body,"In verse 18 says, "Christ is preached" but this verse is an advance on that, "Christ will be magnified." Christ preached has to do with words; Christ magnified has to do with works. It is not a question of either/or but of both/and. We can get out of balance either way. We can speak the gospel but not live the gospel; we can live the gospel but not speak the gospel. The word "magnified" means to make great, enlarge, praise. We get our English word "megaphone" from this word. A megaphone makes your voice big. A magnifying glass makes print big. We are to make Jesus big with our lives and lips! The Greek in the word "magnified" means that Christ receives magnification by our actions. There are two types of magnification: microscope and telescope. The microscope makes the little seem big. That is not the picture here. The telescope makes the actually big loom big. Our task as Christians is to bring the proportions of who Jesus truly is to the fore. Mary used this word when she said, "My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Saviour" (Lk 1:46,17). It is easier to magnify the Lord in your soul than in your body. No one sees your soul but people can see your body. Paul wanted Christ to be magnified in his "body." The soul and spirit shines through the body (i.e., what the body does). "Foods for the stomach and the stomach for foods, but God will destroy both it and them. Now the body is not for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body" (I Co. 6:13). God is concerned with the body as well as the soul. We should exercise care for the body as well as the soul. If we change oil and tune the engine but do not wash or wax the exterior of our automobile that is imbalance. If we wash and wax the car but do not care for the motor that is distortion. If we care for our body but not our soul, that will warp our spirituality. If we nurture our soul but do not tend to our body activities that will distort our testimony. Jesus should be magnified in spirit, soul and body. "For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's" (I Co. 6:20). "whether by life or by death." Here are two alternatives. If Paul should die at the hands of an executioner, he wants to make Jesus big in that situation. If Paul should continue to live, he wants to make Jesus grand to everyone he meets. PRINCIPLE: God's purpose for the believer is to make what is truly magnificent about the Lord Jesus loom magnificent. APPLICATION: Do you want your body to be a magnifying glass for the Lord Jesus? Do you want to make him big to the world? Not life-size but King-size. If we magnify Jesus people will be attracted to him and embrace him as their Saviour. Folks will sit up and take notice of him. By this we will enhance the world's estimation of the Lord. ---------- Copyright © 1995, Dr. Grant Richison. All rights reserved. There is no charge for Grace Notes Materials. You can help further this work by your prayer and by sending a contribution to: Grace Notes 1705 Aggie Lane Austin, Texas 78757 wdoud@bga.com Grace Notes Web site: http://www.realtime.net/~wdoud/ Anonymous FTP site: ftp://ftp.bga.com/vendors/wdoud/ Grace Notes is a ministry of Village Missions International. |
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