Where is Your Confidence?

May 17, 2015

When a person loses their confidence it’s not a good situation. Confidence is having a belief or trust, in the power, trustworthiness, or reliability of a person or thing. The other night a friend was sitting in a chair in our kitchen when suddenly the chair collapsed. It was a new chair! That does not promote confidence. When an athlete loses their confidence, their performance suffers and it’s hard to get their confidence back.

In Phil.1:14 Paul mentions that because of his imprisonment, other believers became confident in the Lord and began speaking the gospel with boldness. Perhaps they reasoned, “If Paul can go to prison for Christ, surely I can step up for the Lord” I don’t know.

What I do know is that when it comes to living the Christian life confidence is very important. You see, confidence in God is necessary for living the Christian life

I. THE CHRISTIAN LIFE IS A SURRENDEDRED LIFE. 2:19-30

In the book of Philippians Paul goes back and forth between talking about his own circumstances and the circumstances of the Philippian believers. In 2:19 he returns to his own circumstances. And there is a sense in which v.19-30 are mundane. This is the stuff of personal letter writing. But I want us to see something that is commonly found in Paul’s letters.

Over and over again we find the phrase, “in the Lord.” In 1:14 he refers to confidence in the Lord. Notice in 2:19 he says, “I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy.” In v.24 he says, “I trust in the Lord that shortly I will come also.” In 2:29 he says, “receive him in the Lord.” In 3:1, 4:4, 10 he refers to rejoicing in the Lord. In 4:1 he says, “Stand firm in the Lord.” And In 4:2 he says, “agree in the Lord.”

If you are a Christian it is important to recognize that your life is lived in the Lord. You belong to the Lord. The Lord lives in you and the Lord cares about what happens to you. Every circumstance of your life is fully known to the Lord. You are never outside of his love and care, and provision. Of course, if you decide that you would rather live according to your own ways, disregarding the Lord’s ways, then by default you miss out on the goodness of God to his people.

When I speak of living a surrendered life, I am not implying that we live a passive life. The Christian life is never a life of sitting back and just letting things happen. No. The Christian life is an intentional life. No one can live your life for you. We must work out, live out our salvation. In our day to day living we are regularly making plans and setting goals with a view to obey the Lord. We must live our lives.

As Paul is in prison, awaiting his trial he is trying to look to the future. So in v.19 he says, “I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon.” In v.24, “I trust in the Lord Jesus that shortly I will come.” Why didn’t Paul just say, “My plan is to send Timothy; I hope that shortly I will come?” Why did Paul have to insert the phrase, “in the Lord Jesus?” Was he just trying to sound holy? This is more important than we think.

In Jms.4:13-15, we read, “Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit’–yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” This is why Paul often uses the phrase, “In the Lord.” It’s the same idea as is found in James. We live our lives in and with the Lord, recognizing that the Lord is ultimately in control of things.

Most of us like to have control. We make plans and we want things to go as planned. And when they don’t we are upset, frustrated, and disappointed. And if others do not respect our plans or our way of living, we are often angry and resentful. And let me add that our attempts to control our lives and the lives of others involve more than just our planning. It often involves our money. We try to have enough money so we don’t have to worry about unplanned circumstances. Don’t misunderstand. I’m not against money. But many people, many Christians, are really trusting more in their money than they are trusting in God. We try to control things by our knowledge and our ability to get a leg up on the other guy, and our position at work and status in life. In fact, for many Christians the only thing they are trusting God for is to go to heaven when they die. Otherwise, “I can handle things down here, Lord. If I need you, I’ll call you. Thank you!”

This is not how Paul lived his life. For Paul all of his plans were intentionally surrendered to the will and purposes of God. Now think about it, if we intentionally seek to have God in control of our circumstances and affairs then guess who is not in control? Yes, we make our plans but we commit them to God. We surrender our plans for each day to God. “Lord, my plans for today are such and such, but you may have other ideas, so help me to rest my confidence in your divine ordering of my day instead of my ordering of my day.” We never know what a day will bring forth. There may be great joy or sorrow in store for us. As much as we like to think we have things under control, we really don’t. It is wise to entrust our plans, our dreams and goals to God and when circumstances do not unfold according to plan, we are looking to God for his guidance and strength. If our confidence is in God, we need not be afraid or upset. Psalm.112:6-7 says, “For the righteous will never be moved; he will be remembered forever. He is not afraid of bad news; his heart is firm, trusting in the LORD.” Make your plans and be prepared to let them go as you trust in the Lord. The Christian life is a surrendered life.

II. THE CHRISTIAN LIFE IS A SELFLESS LIFE. 2:19-24

Timothy was a co-worker with Paul. He was a young man from the town of Lystra in the province of Galatia. His grandmother, Lois, and mother, Eunice were Jewish Christians, while his father was a Gentile. Paul planted a church in Lystra during his first missionary journey. At some point Timothy came to Christ and when Paul returned to Lystra on his second missionary journey he met Timothy and saw that Timothy knew the scriptures and was a committed follower of Christ. Paul recognized that Timothy could be greatly used in the Lord’s work. Timothy became a traveling companion with Paul and they developed a father-son relationship. Timothy learned much from Paul and Paul relied heavily on Timothy in his work with the churches. In fact Timothy would have been with Paul when Paul planted the church in Philippi.

In v.19-24 Paul writes that his plan is to send Timothy to Philippi as soon as he knows the outcome of his trial. Timothy would be able to bring the believers in Philippi up to speed about Paul and also assess how things were going in the church. But look at how Paul describes Timothy. In v.20 Paul says, “I have no one like him who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare. And in v.21 Paul continues by saying, “For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.” Who is Paul referring to? We don’t really know. There were others who travelled with Paul. Luke and Silas travelled with Paul. But Paul is probably not referring to them. As Paul was writing about Timothy, obviously, he was reminded of some people who put self before Christ. In chapter 1 Paul referred to some in Rome who preached Christ out of envy and rivalry. And we know there were some in the church at Philippi who had selfish ambition and were filled with conceit. Paul is holding Timothy up as an example of a Christian whose ambition was not self-centered but Christ-centered. Timothy was someone who took a genuine interest in the welfare of the believers in the various churches. According to v.22 the believers in Philippi were well acquainted with Timothy. They had seen his selfless service up close.

Now we all have our own interests. We all have obligations that need to be fulfilled. That is not the issue. In 2:4 Paul says, “Look not only to your own interests but also to the interests of others.” If we are going to be responsible people we must look to our own interests. But what happens is that because our hearts are naturally self-centered, life becomes all about us. We are concerned about our security. We worry about the security of our family. We are concerned about our health. We are concerned about job security and retirement. We have career goals and financial goals. And then we feel that we need to take some time for ourselves and it isn’t long before Jesus Christ is just another aspect of our full and busy lives.

Selflessness is an attitude that begins in the heart. Selfless behavior flows out of a heart that is filled with and focused on Christ. Selflessness is directly related to the strength of our confidence in God and Jesus. If I believe that God has my back and that God will provide and that God is caring for my life, then I do not have to worry about securing my present and my future.

When a ruler came asking Jesus about eternal life, Jesus asked him if kept the commandments. The ruler said that he had kept all the commands. Then Jesus told him that he lacked one thing, and that he should sell all his possessions and give to the poor and then follow Jesus. Well, the ruler became sad for he was very rich and that was one interest he could not let go of.

Timothy was confident that God was looking out for him. He knew that his life was safe in Christ. So he could be selfless. He could give of himself. He didn’t worry about his life. Instead he focused on the things that Christ is interested in. He tended to the church.

Do you have in mind the things of Jesus Christ? Jesus lived a God-centered, God-directed life. His heart and mind were set on things above. He called people to follow him in living such a life. Those who follow Jesus put him first in their heart and mind. The reason we struggle to do this is because we are more self-centered than we realize. The more we look to Christ and have our hearts and minds filled with Jesus through the Holy Spirit, the more selfless we will become.

III. THE CHRISTIAN LIFE IS A FAITHFUL LIFE. 2:25-30

While Paul was hoping to send Timothy and hoping that he himself would be able to return to Philippi, his immediate plan was to send Epaphroditus back to Philippi. As we see from v.25, Epaphroditus was part of the church in Philippi. He had come to Rome to bring to Paul a gift of money from that congregation. Look at how Paul refers to Epaphroditus. He calls him his brother, a fellow worker, and fellow soldier. In others words, Paul counted Epaphroditus as a co-worker in the cause of Jesus Christ.

Now what did Epaphroditus do? Well, from the text, all Epaphroditus did was to bring the money. We don’t read that he was preaching or teaching. He didn’t do any miracles or, anything, really. It could be that in bringing the money he also spoke words of encouragement to Paul, but I’m reading into the text. What is more, it seems that while on his way to Rome he became very ill. One scholar points out that Epaphroditus was probably not traveling alone since it would not have been safe. When he became ill, someone in the group returned to Philippi to bear the news while Epaphroditus and the others continued on to Rome. According to v.27, the illness was very serious. He was at death’s door.

Paul goes on to tell us that in his mercy, God spared Epaphroditus. We don’t know how he recovered, but I am sure people were praying and his recovery was an answer to prayer and a miracle of God’s grace. After all, there were no hospitals and medicine was primitive compared to what we know today. Paul was so relieved. He wrote this letter and sent it back by way of Epaphroditus so that the believers in Philippi would have this servant of God back in their midst.

In v.29 he encourages the believers to receive Epaphroditus with joy. They should honor him. In v.30 Paul says, “he nearly died for the work of Christ.” Wait a minute; he was just a messenger, bringing a gift of money to Paul. This is what you call dying for the work of Christ?

What qualifies as the work of Christ? We have some volunteers who count the offering every Sunday. It is a time consuming task. Are they doing the work of Christ? Tom Hartshorn usually deposits the money at the bank. Is he doing the work of Christ? What about those who serve as ushers? What about Derrick who runs the sound? What about those who straighten up the sanctuary after the service? Are they doing the work of Christ?

In my understanding, any act of service that is done out of one’s commitment to follow Jesus, any act of service that is done from a desire to glorify God and honor Christ and strengthen his church is doing the work of Christ, no matter how mundane or thankless the task may seem. The key is in the motivation. Our desire is to serve the Lord.

One of the marks of someone who does the work of Christ is faithfulness. We don’t know exactly how the events surrounding Epaphroditus’ illness occurred but what we see is his faithfulness even in suffering. Faithfulness is a mark of the Christian life. But in order to be faithful, one must be confident in God. The very idea of being faithful implies struggle. And it’s not just the struggle of illness and opposition. Sometimes it’s the struggle of being faithful in the monotony of routine. Prayer, worship, Bible reading can often feel routine. But because we are confident that God is faithful to his word and too his people, we seek to be faithful day in and day out no matter the circumstances.

The believers in Philippi were experiencing persecution. They were suffering for their faith in Christ. Paul commends Epaphroditus as an example of a Christian who was faithful even in suffering.

No matter who you are, or where you are, no matter the circumstances of your life, if you are a Christian, you are going to seek to be faithful to Christ, faithful in service, and faithful in suffering.

Now again, I must first ask if you are a Christian? Are you trusting in Jesus Christ as your Savior, Lord and King? Have you given your life to Jesus? Have you made it your ambition to follow the way of Jesus in your day to day living? And if so, do you trust in him? Is your moment by moment confidence in God or only in yourself and those you can see? Confidence in God is necessary for living the Christian life. If your confidence is in God then you can be surrendered, selfless, and faithful. Amen

Are You Living the Christian Life

May 10, 2015

What kind of life are you living? Are you living the high life? According to the Cambridge Dictionary online, the high life is, “an exciting way of living in which rich and successful people enjoy themselves by spending a lot of time and money in fashionable places."

Are you living a low life? According to Wikipedia, a low-life “is a term for a person who is considered morally unacceptable by their community.” Or maybe you are living the good life. According to anthropologist, Ted Fischer, the good life is a journey that “entails having realistic aspirations to direct that journey, sufficient opportunity to realize those aspirations, a sense of dignity and being able to pursue a life with purpose.”

Well, this is all well and good, but this morning as we continue in Philippians, I want to ask, “Are you living the Christian life?”

I. CHRISTIANS WORK OUT THEIR SALVATION. 2:12-13

In Phil.1:27-28 Paul says that when Christians stand firm in the face of opposition, it is a sign of their salvation that comes from God. Salvation comes from God, through Jesus Christ. Many people today see no need for salvation. “Why do I need to be saved?” When we think about salvation we think about deliverance. A drowning person needs to be delivered or saved. The long and short of the good news of salvation is that every person is created by God and deeply loved by God and yet every person is alienated from God. Why is that? It’s because in our heart of hearts we want to direct our own lives and we disregard God and his good rules for living life. Because God is the source of life, He alone can give life at its best. We, on the other hand, regularly disobey God’s rules and rebel against God. A person who rejects God is separated from God and his life. To be separated from God is to ultimately choose eternal death. But God sent his son, Jesus in the form of a man to die in our place. He sent Jesus to bear the guilt of our disobedience and rebellion. The one who embraces Jesus as Savior, Lord and King receives forgiveness of sins, enters into the kingdom of God and receives a new eternal kind of living from God.

Do not assume that you are a Christian because you were baptized or because you attend church or because you are a good person. A Christian is someone who intentionally turns away from living a self directed life in rebellion against God, and by faith, embraces Jesus as Savior, Lord and King. A self directed life is not a God directed life. Christians have embraced a God directed life through Jesus Christ.

But what happens after we receive this eternal life given to us by Jesus? In v.12 Paul tells us to work out our salvation with fear and trembling. The sentence literally reads, “With fear and trembling, your own salvation work out.” You notice that Paul does not say, “Work for your salvation.” Salvation is not something that can be earned. Many people think that after they die their entrance into heaven will be determined by how well they lived. If the good outweighs the bad you’re in. Nothing else matters. But this is not the case.

Two thoughts: First, salvation cannot be earned because it is a gift from God. If it could be earned, Jesus would not have had to come. Second, Jesus did not come just so we could go to heaven. Jesus came so that we might know God and receive his eternal, resurrection life. Jesus came so that we can begin living in God’s kingdom now.

So what does Paul mean when he says work out your own salvation? He is saying, “Carry out, live out your salvation.” In other words, since it is the life of Jesus that is given to us, in our living we are to become like Jesus in character, conduct and speech. This is why Christians are called “followers,” “disciples,” “students” of Jesus. And in v.12 we see that the pathway to becoming like Jesus is obedience, obedience to all that Jesus commanded.

Sean is teaching a class called, “What did Jesus do?” If we want to know what Jesus would do, we need to know what Jesus did do. And the only way to know what Jesus did is to read the New Testament, especially the Gospels. As we read the Gospels we reflect on Jesus’ life. We seek to be like Jesus. There is no better model of godly living than Jesus. Jesus is God.

But why would Paul say we are to work out our salvation with fear and trembling? Well, salvation is not our own doing. It is God’s doing. What is more, our salvation cost Jesus his life. And now, Jesus, who died for us, has the name above every name, and one day everyone will bow before him. So as we are living out our salvation we realize God is not someone to trifle with. This is not a casual endeavor. The Christian life is not something about which we can say, “O I’ve got this. No problem.” Rather, the Christian life is life with the God Of the universe. It is a challenging life. We are often tempted and tried. We often fail. Living the Christian life calls for humble surrender to God, depending upon the Holy Spirit to help us. When we disobey the Lord we are grieved because we have sinned against his love and saving grace.

Now the good thing is that we are not alone in this effort. In v.13 we learn that God, who dwells in us, works in us. Through the Holy Spirit God is empowering us to live lives of obedience to Christ. God is for us, not against us. He wants the best for us, and isn’t that what we want? Don’t we want what God wants for us?

And let me also add that, this is not just an individual matter. This working out of our salvation is both individual and corporate. We are working out our salvation as we worship, serve, pray, and study together in the local church.

Every so often we meet someone who is really enthusiastic about cooking or sports, or cars or photography and we say, “O wow! You are really into that.” It’s what seems to occupy their lives. We might think they are going a little overboard. Well, there are Christians who think that being intentional about living a life of obedience to Christ is a little overboard. “Aren’t you taking this Christian thing a little too far? I mean, it’s good to want to be like Jesus, but really? In Eccl.7:16, it says, “Be not overly righteous, and do not make yourself too wise. Why should you destroy yourself?” Few of us will ever be too righteous. Living a Christian life is about being like Jesus. If you came into 50 million dollars, would that change your life in a significant way? I imagine it would. Well, receiving the eternal, abundant life of Jesus is far more life transforming than receiving 50 million dollars, isn’t it? When we receive Jesus we are saved from our sins and we are reconciled to God forever and we receive an eternal life of joy and peace now.

II. CHRISTIANS SHINE LIKE STARS IN THE WORLD. 2:14-18

Our desire is to be like Jesus in all that we do. This is what occupies our heart and mind. Our goal is to put into practice the ways of Jesus. But in v.14-18 Paul talks about shining like stars in the world. The church exists to show the world how wonderful it is to know God through Jesus Christ. Ever since Jesus ascended to the Father, the church is the light of the world.

In v.15 Paul refers to a crooked and twisted generation. He was referring to the unbelievers living in Philippi. And let me remind us that the believers in Philippi were experiencing persecution perhaps because they would not recognize Caesar as lord and savior. Some might say that their unwillingness to honor Caesar was a social and political mistake. Whenever Christians are unable to comply with society or government because of their faith in Christ, persecution is not far away.

The reality is that, from a biblical perspective, every generation is crooked and twisted. We live in a day when wrong is called right and right is called wrong. One can hardly express a biblical perspective about the sanctity of life or marriage or sexuality without being ostracized. Ours is a crooked and twisted generation in need of Jesus Christ.

So notice what Paul says in v.14-15. “Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish.” This is what Paul means in 1:27 when he says, “Let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ.”

Now brothers and sisters, because the world rejects life in Christ, it is going to hell. By rejecting the God who gives life, the world chooses death. But as believers we have the very life that the people of this world need. It would seem that in the church at Philippi some of the believers were arguing and disputing about things. They were not in agreement and their disagreement, their disunity, their selfish ambition and conceit was hindering the gospel. If the church is like the world why would we expect the world to be drawn to Christ?

Every congregation deals with issues in which we express different opinions and have disagreements. When we add the fact that we are redeemed sinners into our differences, the environment is ripe for grumbling, disputing, selfish ambition and conceit. The problem is not the disagreements. The problem is the way we handle the disagreements. When we malign each other, or talk unkindly about someone behind their back, when we criticize and harbor resentment, we are acting like people who do not know Christ.

When Christians come to the table of disagreement they must come as men and women who are learning to die to themselves and learning to honor one another above themselves. When Christians disagree they must be quick to apologize for any unkindness or manipulative use of power.

We are all broken people. We all sin. Somehow we must learn to be and choose to be a congregation that, on the one hand, seeks to be blameless and innocent before God and one another, while on the other hand seeks to be merciful and forgiving towards each other in our brokenness. We don’t promote gossip, drunkenness, pornography, adultery and homosexuality in our Christian lives and church, but when Christians struggle to leave these behaviors and experience failure, should we not be merciful and forgiving? In the church at Corinth, a man was sleeping with his stepmother, and everyone in the church was well aware of this. The man was flaunting it and the church wasn’t even grieved by it. It had to be dealt with. But that is completely different from the Christian who is seeking to be like Jesus and experiences failure.

How do we do this? In v.16 Paul says, “holding fast to the word of life.” This is the only place where Paul refers to the gospel as the “word of life.” Essentially he is saying we must hold on to the gospel. But the phrase, “word of life,” reminds us that the gospel is about receiving a new life to live. It is the very life of Christ himself. When we hold fast to the word of life, we begin to prioritize love for God and each other. When we hold fast to the word of life, we are anxious to forgive others as God in Christ has forgiven us. When we hold fast to the word of life, we are learning to be slow to anger and longsuffering with each other. When we hold fast to the word of life we are quick to seek forgiveness and confess our sins. The beauty of a Christ-like life must frame our witness to the world.

As secularism, pluralism and tolerance become the principles upon which our society functions, the church will be pushed out onto the fringe. Already the church has lost most of its influence in the world. Many believe we are a post-Christian society. While society promotes tolerance, there will be less tolerance for Christians. This should not surprise us. The question is, how will the church attract people to Jesus. The answer is that we must live like Christians. We must hold fast to the word of life. The reality of the life and love of God in Christ must be evident in our lives. And so I ask, “Are you a Christian?” And if so, “Are you living the Christian life? Amen.