(004) Philippians 01: A Good Work

Philippians I: A Good Work

Philippians 1:1-6

October 21, 2007

Q: How are you with “thank you” letters?

·         Have you ever sent a thank you cards for thank you cards you’ve received?

·         Or has been over ten years you’ve sent one?

I’m not that bad – it’s only been seven and a half years since my last thank you card. I remember that because Marilyn and I have been married eight and a half years.

They say you have one year after your wedding to send out all of your thank you cards. Marilyn was done within a month, but I took full advantage of the grace period.

Something about hand writing out anything is painful for me. Mom always had to force me to write thank you cards to grandma and grandpa, and I would stretch three sentences out to two hours.

·         If you have seen my handwriting, you might understand why.

·         And you would also know that it is painful to read.

My love letters to Marilyn lost some of their romance, because I had to stand over her shoulder to translate them.

But for some people, the art of handwritten notes comes naturally. Some people, like my wife, can make these beautiful, handmade cards. When ever I get ones like that I feel guilty. I am lucky just to get something scribbled out on a Post-It note.

Paul’s long thank you letter

Today we are beginning a series on the book of Philippians. Philippians is basically a thank you note from the Apostle Paul gone awry.

·         He probably looked at it after he was done and thought, “Wow – that went a little long.”

The Philippians had sent Paul two gift, a support for his ministry and a man named Epaphroditus to help him. Paul was thanking them for their gifts and took the opportunity to say a great deal more.

·         Judging from this book, Paul seemed to have a warmer relationship with them than any other church.

Let’s turn there if you have a Bible. If not, there are some in the pews, or the verses will be on the screen.

Here is a little trick for finding Philippians, because it always gets lost in the book like Galatians and Ephesians: “Go Eat PopCorn.”

It’s just paul

Right from the beginning you sense an ease and familiarity. Most of Paul’s letters begin with statements like:

Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God... 1 Corinthians 1:1 NIV

Paul, an apostle – sent not from men nor by man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father... Galatians 1:1 NIV

Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God... Romans 1:1 NIV

But then we have Philippians.

Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus... Philippians 1:1 NIV

In most of his letters, Paul needed to either inform his readers of his position (as in the book of Romans) or forcefully remind them of his authority (as with the wayward church of Galatia).

·         But to those who truly knew him, Paul could simply be Paul.

Using Titles

I think this has implications about the use of titles in churches, especially the title of “pastor.”

Titles are useful tools. They can inform people of someone’s position or skill. It like a man shoving through a crowd to an injured person by saying “Let me through, I am a doctor.”

Titles can also be a sign of respect. But by the same token, the title of “pastor” can also separate, as if to indicate that I’m something other than everyone else.

And to many people, both Christians and non-Christians, pastors are not regular people. I can literally watch a person’s demeanor change the moment they find out I am a pastor.

·         I don’t particularly like it.

Their defenses go up and they become very cautious and conscious about what they say or do. Rather like how I feel when I find out I am talking to speech therapist.

For that reason, I’m very judicious about how and if I tell people I’m a pastor. I’m also intentional about communicating that there’s nothing special, nor strange, about me.

I once did a “house blessing” for a couple, which meant that I prayed over their new house at their house warming. I quickly realized that the hosts and I were the only Christians there.

We all got in a circle and talked shortly and then prayed, and as soon as I was done, you could feel the tension in the room as these folks didn’t know how to act around a pastor.

In front of everyone, the host asked if he could get me some tea or coffee. I looked around and saw that pretty much everyone else was holding wine, though they weren’t quite sure what to do with anymore.

So I said, “I’d love a glass of wine.” And immediately the tension broke. One guy came over to me and slapped me on the back and said “That’s my kind of pastor!”

And I had many enjoyable, normal conversations that evening, some of which took on a spiritual tone. One glass of wine was all it took for me to be “normal.”

·         Well, I don’t know about normal, but...

Obviously, every situation is different, and as I pastor I have to be very wise, being cautious not to injure a person with a drinking problem, or not hinder my witness. And obviously drunkenness is wrong.

·         The point is: I have to take steps to be seen as a person, rather than just a pastor. 

So titles are a necessary evil. There’s specific situations were it is a useful thing to be introduced as “Pastor Josh,” such as informing visitors. But overall, I am happier just being “Josh.”

So Paul used his title of “apostle” when he needed to, but when he didn’t, it seems he was happy to just be “a servant of Jesus,” as he could be with the Philippians.

Dear Philippians

The letter to the Philippians begins in the customary way for ancient Greek letters.

We have a customary way of writing letters: Date, then “Dear so-and-so,” then a greeting (such as “How are you?”), then the body of the letter, then a closing and signature, and perhaps a P.S.

Greek letters likewise had a standard format. They began with the signature, which was nice, because it meant that you didn’t have to look at the end of the letter to know who was writing.

Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus,

Paul gives “writing credits” to Timothy, which is interesting as we know that Timothy didn’t write any of it, because for the rest of the letter he only says “I,” not “we.”

·         Perhaps he includes Timothy because he was well-known and loved in Philippi.

Next, Greek letters gave the “dear so-and-so,” formally called the salutations:

To all the saints in Christ Jesus at Philippi, together with the overseers and deacons:

“Saints” means “holy ones,” anyone who is “in Christ” – Jesus is the lord of their life and their sins have been forgiven.

Paul also draws attention to the “overseers” and “deacons,” perhaps because these leaders of the church would be responsible for the implementation of this letter.

Greetings!

Next, Greek letters gave a greeting.

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Philippians 1:1-2 NIV 

The Greeks would write “chairein” which means “Greetings!” but Paul wrote, “charis” which meant “grace.”

To that he adds the Jewish greeting, “Shalom!” which means peace and well-being. And these things can only truly come from God, through Christ’s death and resurrection.  

·         So Paul can even turn “Hi” into a mini-sermon.

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... Philippians 1:3-5 NIV 

In this verse we begin to get a sense of Paul’s personal closeness to the Philippians. His love for and pride in the Philippians was literally legendary among the early church.

The good kids

Q: What was it that caused such joy over the Philippians?

It was their partnership. In the coming weeks, we will see some of the ways that they partnered with him, including giving a financial gift.

·         As I said, this letter basically began as a thank-you letter.

But I think that the reason their partnership meant so much to Paul was that most all of his churches were problem children, so to speak – sucking up all of his energy. But the Philippians were the good kids, and gave him joy and energy.

sustaining hope

In verse six, Paul moves from the past to the future, and he pens one of the best known and loved promises of Scripture, one that has given hope to countless believers throughout the ages:

...being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6 NIV

Q: Have you ever felt unforgivable?

Q: Have you looked back at the stupid and hurtful things you do over and over again and felt worthless and hopeless?

I hate that feeling. I hate it when I am too ashamed to ask God for forgiveness, because I’ve asked so many times, and because I know I’ll just do the same thing again.

This passage reaches out to us in those moments and gives us the courage and the strength to keep on trying even in the midst of despair through hope.

·         Not a “I hope this happens” hope, but a “there IS light at the end of this tunnel” hope.

Hope that we will one day be free of the cycles of sin-guilt-repentance-sin. Hope that we are getting better, be it ever so slowly.

·         A solid and firm hope that God will not give up on us.

And how can we believe that God won’t give up? Because God is not a quitter. Paul says that what God started, he will finish.

And this hope is a sustaining hope. It can keep us going and give us strength, even when we feel worthless.

·         If God thinks we are worthwhile, who are we to disagree?

The good work

This good work that God promises to complete is our sanctification, meaning the process of removing our sin and making us holy, loving children, ones who act like our father.

BTW: It is easy to think of “sin” as a list of rules God has set up, but in reality it is a list of poisons that kill us. That’s what sin is, and that is why he wants us to be free from it.

·         Because we get frustrated with ourselves and our failings, it’s hard to image that God doesn’t get discouraged.

Fortunately, God has the long view in mind. He sees what we will be, not just what we are. We are his “works in progress.” Or as some guy I read on the internet said:

“You’re not what your going to be – but thank God you’re not what you used to be” Some guy I read on the internet

Because Paul knew that God is the one doing the work, he knew that it would be done and done right. There is great hope in knowing that it’s not up to me to make myself better.

The condition

There’s an important qualifier: I don’t believe that this is an unconditional promise. It’s interesting Paul said this to the Philippians, but not the Corinthians, who were very cardinal.

It’s not as if someone can say the sinner’s prayer, but not change at all, and still expect this promise to having meaning.

·         To be a Christian is to make Jesus our Lord.

That’s not to say that Christians can’t fail, but there’s a huge difference between someone who tries and fails, and someone doesn’t try and doesn’t care, and wants to see what they can get away with.

·         If we have no interest in God completing his work in us, we shouldn’t think that he will stay interested.

·         And that is just a “free will” thing.

Of course, in various times and seasons we falter, but the overall scope of our existence can either be facing towards a life submitted to Christ as Lord, or away from him.

As C.S. Lewis said:

There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, “Thy will be done,” and those to whom God says, in the end, “Thy will be done.”  C. S. Lewis, “The Great Divorce”

So to sum up this “qualifier,” our growth and perfection is God’s work in us, but it is a cooperative work, requiring a will submitted to him.

As Philippians says, “Continue to work out your salvation with fear and...”

·         Oh, wait – we won’t cover that until part 6.

Completion

The bad news in this passage is that our sanctification and growth isn’t magic. God isn’t going to touch us with a wand, and “poof,” we will be perfect.

...being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6 NIV

This is a process that will continue for some time, and won’t be complete until either we die or Jesus comes back, which ever happens first.

Q: Why is that? Why can’t it be easier or quicker?

I mean, Marilyn would love for me to perfectly loving and selfless some time before my funeral.

Because the process itself is part of our growth. As we cooperate with God, we gain more than just sinlessness – we gain him. We learn to depend on Him, we learn to seek him and trust him.

·         In short, he is teaching us to know and love him.

·         And that, I believe, is his greatest goal.  

Prayer:

Father, thank you that you don’t give up on us even when we give up on ourselves. We trust that you are taking us somewhere, and making us more like you.

·         Please help us cooperate with you and do our part.

·         Help us to submit your Lordship, obeying and serving you more and more.

·         We know the more we are what you want us to be, the more we will be ourselves. 

And remember from last week:

Let’s all work together to reach out to our community and bring them into this community: Invite people, welcome visitors, and include them.

·         Don’t forget to give your first five minutes after service to God by talking to a visitor or someone you don’t know!

Benediction (Numbers 6:24-26)

May the LORD bless you

And keep you;

May the LORD make His face to shine upon you,

And be gracious unto you.

May the Lord: Help you know the hope of His work in you!

May the LORD lift up His countenance upon you,

And give you peace.