Philippians overview - being joyful under pressure
Paul’s letter to the young Philippian church was written as they faced much pressure, much as churches in the United Kingdom are facing problems today. Just as the Arctic ice cap is melting away, so are many churches in the west as they face an increasingly secular and hostile society.
The church at Philippi was the first Christian church in what is now Europe. Paul here demonstrates what a great pastor he was. Paul had first visited Philippi and established the church there in 51 AD. The letter was written in 61-62 AD.
The influence of godly, yet passionate, leaders can be immense.
Isobel Kuhn was to become a very effective and influential missionary to the Burmese Lisu people in China. In 1920 she attended a conference and had to share a room with the speaker whose husband had recently died when they were working in China. Isobel herself was still suffering from a broken engagement. What most touched Isobel was the way Edna longed to live for and please the Lord Jesus. The two studied the book of Philippians together, using the marginal notes in her late husband’s Bible.
Joy is a recurrent them in Philippians, the word ‘joy’ comes five times with ‘rejoice’ a further six times. The theme of joy pervades all four chapters. Isobel saw this joy being lived out in front of her by a lady who was facing difficult circumstances. Edna, the widow, clearly understood the verse:
“I can do everything through him who gives me strength.” Philippians 4:13
It was obvious that for Edna knowing the Lord Jesus meant more than anything else. She could say with Paul,
“I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things.” Philippians 3:8
Knowing Jesus, meant everything to Edna, as it did for Paul,
“I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death.” Philippians 3:10
This surely means facing suffering and even death with the same attitude that Jesus had, knowing that something much better is to come. For Paul, this prospect kept him on course.
“But one thing I do. Forgetting what is behind, and straining towards what is ahead, I press on to the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenwards in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:13-14
Suffering is a recurrent theme in the New Testament. Peter’s first letter, written as he faced probable execution in Rome is a plea to Christians, in what is now modern Turkey, to stand firm in the faith in the face of suffering.
The ‘grace of suffering’
In Paul’s letter to the Philippians there is a key but strange verse,
“For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe in him but also to suffer for him; since you are going through the same struggle you saw I had, and now hear that I still have.” Philippians 1:29-30
The word used for ‘grant’ is based on the Greek word charis, which means grace or gift. It is a gift of God that we want to be one of God’s people when so many around us couldn’t care less about God. Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, the Russian writer won both the Nobel Prize for Literature and the Templeton Prize. He spent many years imprisoned in the Russian Gulag camps in Siberia and subsequently wrote about what had gone wrong in Russia since the revolution and subsequently what is going wrong in the West, In his Templeton Prize acceptance speech he summarised the problem,
“Men have forgotten God.”
Significantly Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn’s faith came alive when he suffered in a Gulag prison. He came to ask, as every Christian does,
“Why should I be concerned about God and my salvation when so few others bother at all?”
Paul reminds us that to have faith in Christ is a gift of God. God chose us to be his representatives in a fallen world. But surprisingly he goes on to say that suffering for Christ is also a ‘grace gift’. ‘It has been granted to you’ is saying that the suffering they were facing was a gift.
Sometimes it is only when we face suffering that we begin to consider, ‘What is the purpose of life?’ and ‘Where will I go after we die?’ Unfortunately this is all too rare. People who have lived without God tend to die without God and don’t ask these essential questions. However, there are some wonderful exceptions, as facing suffering can focus our minds on what really matters.
In this letter Paul acknowledges that the Philippians were, ‘going through the same struggle you saw I had, and now hear that I still have.’ This must refer to what happened when Paul first visited Philippi as described by Luke in Acts 16:11-40. After Lydia became a Christian there, a slave girl was miraculously healed. There was a riot against Paul, instigated by the girl’s owners, and he was subsequently stripped, flogged and imprisoned. After God’s remarkable intervention, through a violent earthquake, the jailer and his family became Christians. The magistrates then released Paul after realising he was a Roman citizen but told him to leave the city. Such problems dogged Paul and he writes, ‘and now hear that I still have.’ He was writing this letter when he was again imprisoned, this time in his own lodgings but chained between guards. However even this did not stop Paul explaining the gospel to all around him. The guards could not escape from hearing what he had to say! He wrote,
“Now I want you to know, brothers that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel. As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for the gospel. Because of my chains, most of the brothers in the Lord have been encouraged to speak the word of God more courageously and fearlessly.” Philippians 1:12-14
Oh that most Christians would follow this example. Paul can write,
“Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ.” Philippians 1:27
Whether Paul is to be released or not, what matters is that all Christians make the advance of the gospel their priority. This is a repeated theme in this book:
“I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.” Philippians 1:5
“. . . for whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God’s grace with me.” Philippians 1:7
“ . . . what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel.” Philippians 1:12
“It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of good will.” Philippians 1:15
“Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel.” Philippians 1:27
“. . . in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life . . .” Philippians 2:16
I was asked to speak at the funeral of Jack, a man who had become a Christian. What a joy it was to hear him say before he died,
“Please make sure you make the gospel clear as many of my friends and family do no know it.”
At the cremation service later he even paid for copies of the evangelisic book ‘Cure for Life’ to be given to those attending.
The Pressures
We do live in a world full of suffering. We will all suffer at times. Yet the joy of living to please our God and Saviour supersedes all these problems.
External pressures from the world
There will be fierce opposition from the world. What Christian has not been openly ridiculed in conversation, ‘I thought you Christians would/should . . .’ Discrimination against colour is disapproved of but discrimination against Christians is becoming increasingly common in our society, yet few speak against this. We must determine not to be frightened, or to weaken, but to press on living with and for Christ.
“ . . . I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you.” Philippians 1:27
Paul himself was under immense pressure. He was imprisoned, with the risk of execution. Rival preachers were making his life a misery, particularly as he felt so strongly that the church must remain true to the gospel and apostolic priorities.
Internal pressures from within the churches
All churches will face divisions within both their denomination and within the local church. Locally there will always be tensions, often based on personality clashes and different priorities for the church. Such things are nothing new:
“Do everything without complaining or arguing . . .” Philippians 2:14
How many denominations have openly turned against the teaching on sexuality taught in the Word of God. This again is nothing new. The early churches faced much pressure from Christians who longed for the church to follow Jewish laws and not the apostles. Paul was outspoken against such heretical leaders because he knew that there are certain areas on which no compromise can be entertained:
“Watch out for those dogs, those men who do evil, those mutilators of the flesh. For it is we who are the circumcision, we who worship by the spirit of God, who glory in Jesus and who put no confidence in the flesh.” Philippians 3:2-3
Today there are many within the church who want to move us away from apostolic priorities. We must be on our guard against those whose agendas are not those of Christ.
“For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things . . .” Philippians 3:18-19
In the Philippian church there were the usual internal factions too. Two key gospel minded ladies in the church were at loggerheads:
“I plead with Euodia and Syntyche to agree with each other in the Lord. Yes, and I ask you, loyal yokefellow, help these ladies who have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel . . .” Philippians 4:2-3
These interpersonal disputes do not mean that individuals are not Christians because Paul continues,
“Whose names are written in the book of life.” Philippians 4:3
The early church was not all sunshine, it was beset with just the same problems that we face today. The way to resolve tensions is not to take sides but to decide what path will most benefit the advance of the gospel.
Persecution
In the television series ‘Dad’s Army’, the farcical Corporal Jones keeps finding himself in trouble. However his repeated catchphrase, ‘Don’t panic, don’t panic’ has an underlying sense. We are called to be in the world as Christ’s representatives, but that is precisely where the problems are. We must learn not to panic but act in ways that will please God.
If a Christian in Philippi was invited out to dinner, the toast at the end would often be to the emperor and everyone was expected to say,
“Our Lord and Saviour,”
Obviously a Christian couldn’t say that so it is no surprise that people began to gossip about the Christian’s loyalties to the state! The same is increasingly happening in the west. If a Christian affirms what the Word of God teaches, that marriage can only be between a man and woman, he can be accused of going against the state and the way society is moving. Yet Paul says something very striking:
“For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe on him but also to suffer for him.” Philippians 1:29
It is so easy and very common for people to think that when problems or hostility comes our way it is because God is displeased with me. But look again at this verse. Just as our faith in Jesus is a gift of God, so is the gift of suffering for him! When a Christian looks back to when he or she first turned to Christ, many ask, ‘Why me? Why did I, from all my friends feel the need for Christ?” It is certainly not because we are special. The Bible simply answers, ‘Because God chose you.” (John 15:19, Galatians 1:6, Ephesians 1:4,11, 1 Peter 2:9, Amos 3:2)
If a person loses his job because of his commitment to Christ or is ridiculed in some way, then similarly it is not the result of God’s anger but must be seen as a privilege. If a Christian is having a smooth ride through life it could mean they are not speaking up for Christ as they should. To be a Christian is risky. Didn’t Jesus say after telling people that he was going to Jerusalem to be killed,
“Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.” Mark 8:34-38
Paul has this same longing for the next generation of Christians in Philippi. Paul himself was deeply committed to Christ. He could say,
“For me, to live is Christ, to die is gain.” Philippians 1:21
What better motto can anybody have? There is a time when we should stand up for what is right. Early in Queen Victoria’s reign a dinner was held in a luxury house in the west end of London. After the ladies withdrew the conversation became crude and vulgar. One man said nothing till he suddenly asked the servant to call his carriage. With great courtesy he turned to his host and apologised for his early departure, adding,
“. . . but I am still a Christian.”
That young man had much to lose, so acting in such a way could have been costly. He had obtained double firsts at Oxford in both classics and mathematics, had become a Member of Parliament when only 21 years of age and was already recognised as an up and coming politician. He needed friends at this stage in his career. His name was Robert Peel. He was later to become a very popular Prime Minister. His action at that dinner was not done to make himself look better than others but to remind his friends, at a huge potential cost to himself, that God is not to be trifled with.
BVP
