Author: Lamar Austin

Paul was ever vigilant against legalism.  Having been born a Jew and raised under the Mosaic law, he knew what it was like to live under the law and have to perform well in order for God to be pleased with him.  In Philippians 3:1-3 Paul is concerned for the “safety” of the Philippians, concerned that they would be tripped up by putting confidence in the flesh and thus lose their joy.

Rejoicing in the Lord (v. 1) and glorying in Jesus (v. 3) is what keeps us from snapping back into the familiar legalism that we all grow up with.  Matthew Henry put it this way when he wrote:

“The joy of the Lord is a divine armor against the assaults of our spiritual enemies and puts our mouth out of taste for those pleasures with which the tempter baits his hooks…the taste of joy in our mouths makes the tempter’s offerings seem bland by comparison.”

Thus, the true way to obedience comes through making Jesus our greatest treasure and greatest pleasure.

Listen again to Paul’s words in Philippians 3:1-3…

1 Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord.  To write the same things to you is no trouble to me and is safe for you. 2 Look out for the dogs, look out for the evildoers, look out for those who mutilate the flesh. 3 For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh–

The positive command is to “rejoice in the Lord,” while the negative is “look out,” watch out for those who would cause you to revert to legalism.  To understand Paul’s strong warning against legalists in verse 2, let’s explore the historical background.

From the very beginning of the Christian age, the gospel came “to the Jew first” (see Acts 3:26; Romans 1:16), so that the first seven chapters of Acts deal only with Jewish believers or with Gentiles who were Jewish proselytes (Acts 2:10).  In Acts 8:5-25, the message went to the Samaritans, but this did not cause too much of an upheaval since the Samaritans were at least partly Jewish.

But when Peter went to the Gentiles in Acts 10, this created an uproar.  Peter was called on the carpet to explain his activities (Acts 11).  After all, the Gentiles in Acts 10 had become Christians without first becoming Jews, and this was a whole new thing for the church.  Peter explained that it was God who had directed him to preach to the Gentiles, the Holy Spirit had come upon the Gentiles just as he had upon the Jewish disciples in the upper room in Acts 2.  The matter seemed to be settled.

But not for long.  Paul was sent out by the Holy Spirit to minister especially to the Gentiles (Acts 13-3; 22:21).  Peter had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles in Acts 10, but Paul was called as an apostle to the Gentiles.  It did not take long for the strict Jewish believers to oppose Paul’s ministry and came to Antioch teaching that it was necessary for Gentiles to submit to Jewish rules, in particular circumcision, before they could be saved.  This was taken up at the council at Jerusalem in Acts 15.  The result of this council was an approval of Paul’s ministry to the Gentiles and an acknowledgement that salvation was by grace, not by works.  Gentiles did not have to become Jewish proselytes to become Christians.  They did not have to be circumcised to be saved.

But the dissenters were not content.  Having failed in their opposition to Paul and the gospel of grace at Antioch and Jerusalem, they followed him wherever he went and tried to steal his converts and his churches.  Most scholars call this group of people “Judaizers.”  The epistle of Galatians was written primarily to combat this false teaching.

When Judaizers invaded the new church in Galatia, Paul pulled out his verbal flamethrower:

“But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed” (Galatians 1:8, 9; cf. 3:1-14).

A gospel of works is an anti-gospel because it is not good news at all!

This is not merely an ancient problem.  Even in our day we find that people naturally default to a legalistic mindset, believing that they have to contribute something to their salvation.

Several decades ago a survey of 7,000 Protestant youths from many denominations asked whether they agreed with the following statements: “The way to be accepted by God is to try sincerely to live a good life.” More than 60 percent agreed.

“God is satisfied if a person lives the best life he can.” Almost 70 percent agreed. (Reported by Paul Brand & Philip Yancey, Fearfully & Wonderfully Made [Zondervan], p. 108.)

Counterfeit Christianity is a strong danger for all of us because we’re all prone to pride and self-reliance.  We all want to take for ourselves at least some of the credit for our salvation.  Oh, we’ll be generous and grant that most of the credit goes to the Lord, but we still want to reserve a bit of the honor for ourselves.

People will say, “I was saved by my own free will,” which implies, “I was smart enough or good enough to make the right choice.”  But the Bible knocks our pride out from under us by clearly stating that our salvation does not depend on our will, but on God’s sovereign mercy (Rom. 9:16). Or, people will say, “Christ died for me because I was worthy.” But Scripture is clear that He died for us when we were unworthy sinners (Rom. 5:8).

It these Judaizers, those teachers who were encouraging the Philippian believers that Jesus wasn’t enough, that they needed “Jesus plus…” that Paul wrote:

2 Look out for the dogs, look out for the evildoers, look out for those who mutilate the flesh.

Why does Paul speak in such strange, exaggerated, derogatory terms?

To show just how serious this issue was.  In Paul’s mind these were not people who were just mistaken or who wanted something positive for the Philippian believers.  They were vicious, evil and meant to harm them.

Paul actually makes use of alliteration to make it even easier to remember these description; all three titles, so to speak, because they all begin with the letter k – the Greek kappa –

• beware of kunas,
• beware of kakous ergatos
• and beware of katatomen

But far more striking than their acoustical effects was that they were freighted with ironic sarcasm, as each of the three insults took a virtue that the Judaizers claimed for themselves and reversed it.  Paul impaled the Judaizers on their own vocabulary.

Three rapid-fire, blunt, and offensive terms for the enemies of grace.  And it isn’t that Paul is slinging mud or calling names – he’s gravely concerned about the safety of the Philippian church and knows that these false teachers are extremely dangerous.  They were not to take these Judaizers lightly.

And so Paul doesn’t mince words or beat around the bush.

Paul knows that returning to the legalistic practices of Judaism, while seemingly the “safe” practice, would actually endanger them and sabotage their joy in the Lord.

In rapid-fire succession Paul says, “watch out…watch out…watch out…”  These function like warning signs along a treacherous mountain road.  “Slow down, do not pass, watch for falling rocks.”

Similar commands for watchfulness are found in other passages, like Matthew 7:15:

15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.

Also in Acts 20:28-31 Paul warned the Ephesian elders…

28 Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood. 29 I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; 30 and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them. 31 Therefore be alert, remembering that for three years I did not cease night or day to admonish everyone with tears.

Wolves come disguised, so be especially vigilant.  Notice Paul warns them of attacks not only from outside the church, but even from within.

What should they be looking out for?  Basically, anything that adds to what Jesus Christ has already accomplished on the cross—fueling any sense of worthiness and self-glory.

Because Christ said, “It is finished,” in other words, “paid in full.”  He did absolutely everything necessary for our salvation so that all we have to do is to receive it by faith.  We have only to trust in Him, to rely totally upon Him as our only hope.

Other religions are spelled, “D-O,” you have to do something to be saved.  Christianity is spelled “D-O-N-E.”  Done.  Nothing else is necessary.  “Nothing in my hand in bring, simply to Thy cross I cling….helpless look to Thee for grace.”

There are three characteristics of these Judaizers.  It sounds like Paul is trash talking here, but he’s just emphasizing the extreme danger they were facing.

First, he calls these Judaizers “dogs.”  This was a derogatory term that Jews usually used for Gentiles, but here Paul is using it to talk about Jewish religious leaders!

And he doesn’t have in mind cute, gentle pets, but rather disease-ridden, destructive wild curs.  You see, Jews didn’t have pet dogs in those days.

Dogs were coyote-like scavengers who fed on roadkill, carrion, filth, and garbage — they were vivid images of the unclean.

They were first of all unclean, but secondly vicious.  Wild dogs generally attacked those who were weak and alone, reminding us of the importance of Christian community.

In the Old Testament, a dog came to represent all that was unclean and filthy (Exodus 22:3; 1 Kings 14:11); the term “dog” was used as a derogatory term for someone evil and dangerous.

Isaiah the prophet wrote that false prophets were greedy unsatisfied dogs (Isaiah 56:10).

You can go all the way to the end of the New Testament, in the very last chapter, the term dog appears as a general term for the unrepentant, obstinate, evil unbeliever unable to enter heaven (Revelation 22:15).

In the gospel of Matthew, Jesus went to the region of Tyre and Sidon, a Gentile region, and this happened…

22 And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon.” 23 But he did not answer her a word.  And his disciples came and begged him, saying, “Send her away, for she is crying out after us.” 24 He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” 25 But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” 26 And he answered, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” 27 She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” 28 Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith!  Be it done for you as you desire.”  And her daughter was healed instantly.

Jesus was using the Jewish language of the day, referring to Gentiles as dogs, but in an ironic twist Paul was calling the very ones who considered themselves to be clean, unclean dogs.

So Paul is taking a slur that the Jews used against the Gentiles and turning back against these false teachers.

Second, Paul calls these Judaizers “evil workers.”  Again, this turns things upon its head.  They promoted the idea that Jesus was great, but you really needed the “good works” of the law to be saved.

Paul is not saying that these people were committing evil sins, but that they do evil by turning the gospel of grace into a religion of works.

As one author puts it:  Paul calls them evil workers “not because they do what is morally wrong, nor because they act out of malice, but…because their reliance on ‘works’ is in the end harmful both to themselves and to others” (G. B. Caird)

Again, Paul uses irony to point out that although they might have thought of themselves as doing “good works” because they promoted obedience to the Mosaic law and thus would see themselves as gaining God’s approval, they were in fact doing “evil works” because it was all based upon their own fleshly efforts and gave no glory to Jesus Christ, thus it did in fact gain God’s condemnation as “evil works.”

Paul told the Galatian believers that the law is like a tutor – an educator – which leads us to understand our total inability to please God and our total need for salvation through Christ alone (Galatians 3:24-25).

So these false teachers were actually diminishing and outright denying the sufficient work of Christ – and elevating human piety and effort which only leads to more pride and more evil.

Paul expresses the truth that our salvation is based on God’s gracious act in our behalf and all we have to do is to trust it, in passages such as Ephesians 2:8-10; Titus 3:3-5 and Titus 2:11-14.

John Calvin put it like this: “It is therefore faith alone which justifies, and yet the faith which justifies is not alone.”

The kind of faith that saves always produces good works.  But we never rely upon our good works to satisfy God, rather we simply cling to His work for us through Jesus Christ on the cross.

By emphasizing their own works, instead of leading people to God, they were driving people away from God.

Here’s the thing:  If salvation is by works, how do we ever know if we’ve done enough?  The best we can do is to hope that we have.  And that’s why we are destitute of joy.  There is no peace and no joy when we believe we are justified by works.

Warren Wiersbe wrote of a woman who was arguing with her pastor about the matter of faith and works as both necessary for salvation.  She said to him, “I think that getting to heaven is like rowing a boat – one oar is faith and the other oar is works.  And if you use both, you’ll get to heaven.  If you use only one oar, you’ll only go around in circles.” The pastor replied, “There is one major problem with your illustration – nobody is going to heaven in a rowboat.”

Yes, we will do good works, we will be obedient, but not to gain God’s approval.  We do good and we are obedient because we already have God’s approval through Christ.

Beware of the dogs – they will spiritually harm you; Beware of the evil workers – they will spiritually mislead you.  One more – Paul writes in verse 2, beware of the false circumcision.

Literally, beware of the “mutilation.”  Paul plays upon the word for circumcision, but indicates how dangerous it is.  The word for circumcision is peritome, to “cut around,” while the word used here is katatome, “to cut off.”

Paul is using hyperbole here to show how something that was once a positive thing for the Jews under the Mosaic covenant, had now become a dangerous and destructive thing during the age of grace.  Instead of including someone in the covenant community, it would actually serve to cut them off from it.

This, of course, was the key issue for the Judaizers.  If they could get the Gentiles to submit to circumcision, then they would be in reality Jewish proselytes (and thus not genuine Christians).

Paul is warning them that circumcision will doing nothing to help them spiritually.  Instead, it would only hurt them.

Again, what Paul is trying to do is to keep the Philippians safe and to keep them rejoicing in the Lord and glorying in Christ, rather than glorying in themselves and depending upon the flesh as these Judaizers were encouraging.

We face the same pressures today.  Some churches are very legalistic, usually focusing on minutiae while ignoring more important issues, but all the while we focus on these do’s and don’ts we are losing our joy.

For a helpful chart showing the distinctions between law and gospel go here.  For a video explanation by American Gospel, see.

A wife asks her husband to make her some ice cream.  “OK,” he says, and turns to go into the kitchen.  “Are you sure you don’t want me to write that down?”  “No, I can remember.”  “Oh,” she asks, “can you put chocolate syrup on it?”  “Sure thing.”  “Do you want to write that down?”  “No, it’s only two things.  I can remember two things.”  “One more thing, she adds, “could you put some whipped cream on top of that…And are you SURE you don’t want me to write that down for you?”  A little perturbed, he says, “My memory is fine.  That’s ice cream with chocolate syrup and whipped cream.”

He goes into the kitchen.  She hears drawers open, the rattle of pots and pans, the sound of frying.  It’s taking some time.  After a while he comes in with a plate…an omelet and some hash browns.  She looks at the plate, looks up at him and says………“You forgot the toast.”

Forgetfulness, sometimes innocent, sometimes tragic.

When it comes to spiritual issues, forgetfulness needs to be remedied…and fast.  That’s why Paul starts off Philippians chapter 3 with these words…

1 Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things to you is no trouble to me and is safe for you. 2 Look out for the dogs, look out for the evildoers, look out for those who mutilate the flesh. 3 For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh—

There are some things that we need to be reminded of over and over and over again.  The primary thing we need to be reminded of is the false confidence we place in the flesh, or, in other words, legalism.

I think we default to legalism because our life is so immersed in the idea that we have to earn our way.  We are required to study to earn good grades, make ourselves popular to win friends, work hard to earn a living.  Everything in life involves working to earn something.

That makes grace foreign to us and causes us to regularly slip into the mindset that we have to perform in some way to be acceptable to God.

There are those, Paul is saying in these verses, who profess have true religion, but Paul is saying that true religion, or genuine Christianity, puts no confidence in our flesh to win God’s approval.

Paul wants them to have joy and be safe, both of which are in peril when we put confidence in the flesh.

Now, Paul begins this section with the word “finally,” which has occasioned a lot of humor at the expense of preachers, as, for example when the little boy whispered to his father, “What does the preacher mean when he says ‘finally’?” To which his father muttered, “Absolutely nothing, son.”  Paul, here, says, “finally” and then “rambles on” for two more chapters.

This word might be better translated as a transitional particle to introduce a fresh point in the progress of thought and could well be translated, “Well then, my brothers, rejoice” or “And so, my brothers, rejoice.”  This is a turning point in the epistle.

Paul is addressing believers, his “brothers,” and encouraging them to “rejoice in the Lord.”  Only true believers in Jesus Christ can “rejoice in the Lord” and be truly happy.

But that joy was in danger of being stolen from them…through legalism.

Notice that, like in Philippians 4:4, Paul commands them to “rejoice in the Lord.”  As a command it is something we can will ourselves to do.  I don’t know if we can will ourselves to be happy, but we can will ourselves to rejoice in the Lord.  We can make ourselves happy in the Lord—not in the circumstances of life, but in the Lord.

Many distinguish that happiness is dependent upon happenings, happenings in my favor.  Joy, however, is rooted more in unchanging truths, thus I can be joyful no matter what happens.  Our joy is rooted in Christ and the gospel through faith.

Notice the varying circumstances, indeed often negative circumstances, that we as Christians can go through, yet still maintain joy.  We find these words of Paul in 2 Corinthians 6:4-10…

4 but as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: by great endurance, in afflictions, hardships, calamities, 5 beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger; 6 by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, the Holy Spirit, genuine love; 7 by truthful speech, and the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left; 8 through honor and dishonor, through slander and praise. We are treated as impostors, and yet are true; 9 as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold, we live; as punished, and yet not killed; 10 as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, yet possessing everything.

What does it mean to “rejoice in the Lord?”  It means to experience Jesus as your deepest and most satisfying treasure and then enjoy all the good things He gives to you.  But even when those things are temporarily taken away, you can still rejoice in Jesus, who can never be taken away.  Jesus is primarily the object of our joy.

Rejoicing is the action that produces joy.  When we rejoice we verbalize—often to other people, to the Lord or just to ourselves—our joy in something—like a good book, an amazing movie or a mouth-watering meal.  It completes our joy by rejoicing in it AND it fuels our joy by rejoicing in it.

We rejoice in the Lord when we tell Him and others how much we treasure Him above all else.  True and lasting joy is found only in Him, all else is temporary and shallow.

Corrie Ten Boom once said, “We don’t know that Christ is all we want until He is all we have.”  In other words, sometimes it is through losing the possessions, or even loved ones, in this life that we come to seek and savor Jesus alone, and then we find that He really is enough.  He really is deeply satisfying.

Martha Snell Nicholson expresses it this way in her poem Treasures:

One by one He took them from me,
All the things I valued most,
Until I was empty-handed;
Every glittering toy was lost.

And I walked earth’s highways, grieving.
In my rags and poverty.
Till I heard His voice inviting,
“Lift your empty hands to Me!”

So I held my hands toward heaven,
And He filled them with a store
Of His own transcendent riches,
Till they could contain no more.

And at last I comprehended
With my stupid mind and dull,
That God COULD not pour His riches
Into hands already full!

Asaph expresses it like this after he had initially been envious of the wicked for their rich, lavish, healthy, care-free lives:

Psalm 73:25 Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. 26 My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

It glorifies God when we experience God as our desired portion so deeply, so sweetly, that other desires are as nothing in comparison.  Nothing else satisfies.

Now, the prophet Jeremiah warns us how easily it is for us to seek our joy outside of the Lord.  In Jeremiah 2:13 he warns…

13 for my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water.

Two evils—forsaking God as our satisfaction, and seeking satisfaction elsewhere.  And here’s the sad thing, we are giving up the “fountain of living water” for the brackish, lukewarm, quickly disappearing water kept in “broken cisterns.”  It is unsatisfying and momentary compared to the deeply satisfying and continual satisfaction we could find in the Lord.

John Piper describes it in these words:

Evil is the Creator of the universe, who loved us enough to send his Son to die in our place, holding out infinite satisfaction in the fountain of living water — and we taste it and go, “Eh, don’t think so.”

And we start digging — digging and digging in the world.  “I will find it.  I will find it here, not there in God.”

And evil is: “No thank you,” or “No, I will find my way, and do my thing, and I will dig my wells, and my cisterns, and I will suck on this dirt till I’m dead.  And then I’ll go to hell, and I will hate you forever.  No regrets.”

And yet God is saying “I know what satisfies your soul.  I made your soul.  I know what it needs, and I’m it.”

And Jon Bloom reminds us how Jesus reversed this in his interactions with the woman who came to the well (the cistern) to find water, and ended up finding a deeper, long-lasting satisfaction in Jesus Christ.

He goes on to say…

The core evil of the original sin was believing the forbidden knowledge of good and evil would yield more satisfaction than God.  The core evil of ancient Israel was believing idols would yield more protection and prosperity than God.  The core evil in all our sins is believing some broken cistern will give us greater life and joy than God.

Which means the fight between good and evil in the human heart is a fountain-fight: Which fountain do we believe will really satisfy us — right now, in this moment of temptation?  The struggle to discern good from evil is a joy-struggle: Which well has the most real and longest-lasting joy in it? (https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/what-sin-will-never-quench)

Which is what the Fountain of living water holds out to us.  He offers us the deepest satisfaction, the sweetest refreshment, and life forever (John 4:15), and he offers to fully pay the wages of our sin, the appalling evil of our futile broken-cistern hewing (Romans 6:23).  And as with the man who found a treasure in a field or the merchant who found the pearl of great price (Matthew 13:44–46), what he essentially requires of us is almost unbelievably wonderful: to forsake what will lead us only to misery and despair, and to choose the greatest joy.

Now verse 1 encourages us to rejoice in the Lord, but it also shows us that there is never a time in our Christian lives when (1) we don’t need to be reminded about the dangers of legalism and (2) we don’t need to be concerned about our safety, from legalism.

They would remain “safe” if they kept their joy in Jesus and remembered not to put their confidence in the flesh.

You see, our minds don’t stay focused on the truth.  Our flesh, the world and Satan and his demons keep us distracted and deceived more often than we realize.

Thus the importance on repetitive reminders, teaching the same basic gospel truths over and over again.  In fact, it is important that we realize that the gospel of grace—the forgiveness comes by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone—is needed throughout our Christian lives.

Not just at the beginning, to encourage our faith and to enter into a saving relationship with Jesus.  I know I’ve mentioned this before, but I really appreciate (and need to be reminded myself) of what Tim Keller said in his article, The Centrality of the Gospel.  He writes:

We never “get beyond the gospel” in our Christian life to something more “advanced.”  The gospel is not the first “step” in a “stairway” of truths, rather, it is more like the “hub” in a “wheel” of truth.  The gospel is not just the A-B-C’s but the A-Z of Christianity.  The gospel is not just the minimum required doctrine necessary to enter the kingdom, but the way we make progress in the kingdom.

We are not justified by the gospel and then sanctified by obedience, but the gospel is the way we grow (Gal. 3:1-3) and are renewed (Col. 1:6).  It is the solution to each problem, the key to each closed door, the power through every barrier (Rom. 1:16-17).  It is very common in the church to think as follows.  “The gospel is for non-Christians.  One needs it to be saved.  But once saved, you grow through hard work and obedience.”  But Col. 1:6 shows that this is a mistake.  Both confession and “hard work” that is not arising from and “in line” with the gospel will not sanctify you-it will strangle you.  All our problems come from a failure to apply the gospel.  Thus when Paul left the Ephesians he committed them “to the word of his grace, which can build you up” (Acts 20:32).

The main problem, then, in the Christian life is that we have not thought out the deep implications of the gospel, we have not “used” the gospel in and on all parts of our life.  Richard Lovelace says that most people’s problems are just a failure to be oriented to the gospel-a failure to grasp and believe it through and through.  Luther says, “The truth of the Gospel is the principle article of all Christian doctrine. . . . Most necessary is it that we know this article well, teach it to others, and beat it into their heads continually.”  The gospel is not easily comprehended.  Paul says that the gospel only does its renewing work in us as we understand it in all its truth.  All of us, to some degree live around the truth of the gospel but do not “get” it.  So the key to continual and deeper spiritual renewal and revival is the continual re-discovery of the gospel.  A stage of renewal is always the discovery of a new implication or application of the gospel-seeing more of its truth.  This is true for either an individual or a church.

Paul wasn’t “troubled” to repeat these truths to them, and we shouldn’t be either.  We should value the gospel and make sure that our counseling, our preaching, our teaching, our evangelizing, indeed our own spiritual disciplines and living must be gospel-driven.

Like a loving father Paul is a faithful, patient instructor.  He knew that all might be lost if he reminded them of gospel truth 39 times, but not the 40^th time.  It is the responsibility of every teacher to continually remind us of the supreme importance of the gospel and its application to every issue we face in life.

You might sometimes here the parental voice saying, “If I’ve told you once, I’ve told you a thousand times” as showing irritation.  That’s not the way Paul felt about it.  It was “no trouble” for him to repeat these things over and over and over again because he knew that it was key to keeping them safe from legalism.

We need to continually encourage one another to “rejoice in the Lord,” to rejoice in the gospel truth that He is an all-sufficient, all-supreme, all-satisfying Savior so that nothing else is our hope but Him.

John Newton, who gave us the wonderful hymn “Amazing Grace” continued to preach as long as he was able. When his eyesight began to fail, a servant stood behind him in the pulpit with a pointer to help him follow the words on his manuscript.

In one sermon Newton said the words “Jesus Christ is precious,” and then repeated them. His servant, thinking he was getting confused, whispered, “Go on, go on; you said that before.”  Newton, looking around, replied loudly, “John, I said that twice, and I’m going to say it again.”  And then he thundered, “Jesus Christ is precious!”

As he died at age eighty-two, he whispered to a friend, “My memory is nearly gone.  But I remember two things: that I am a great sinner, and that Christ is a great Saviour.”

This is what we need to preach to ourselves, day after day, hour by hour, that we have an all-sufficient, all-supreme, all-satisfying Savior.

We are safe when we hold onto that truth, in danger when we forget it.

Last week we looked at the amazing example of Epaphroditus, a young man who had risked his life completing the mission he was given—to bring a gift to Paul from the Philippian church.  He did that faithfully, despite the fact that he was very sick and almost died.

Paul pointed out how valuable Epaphroditus had been to him and also the Philippians, because he intended to send him back to them and wanted the Philippians to esteem him and welcome him with open arms.

When we left off last week we noted that Epaphroditus had been very ill, near to the point of death, and Paul tells them two things:  First, that all the while he was sick his mind was more upon the emotional distress they would be feeling rather than his own physical distress.

Second, Paul indicates how dependent they had been upon God for Epaphroditus’ revival.  Listen to these last few words of Philippians 2:

27 Indeed he was ill, near to death. But God had mercy on him, and not only on him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow. 28 I am the more eager to send him, therefore, that you may rejoice at seeing him again, and that I may be less anxious. 29 So receive him in the Lord with all joy, and honor such men, 30 for he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was lacking in your service to me.

We who have the benefits of modern medicine may easily read right past “but God had mercy on him.”  But in Paul’s day few people drew back from death’s door.  Many sick people eventually died.

This wasn’t a matter of the young man’s simply getting better but of God’s direct healing—“the sovereign merciful act of God himself” (O’Brien).  Even though we have the benefits of modern medicine (and should avail ourselves of it), it is still God who brings healing.  In this case, medicine wasn’t available.  Evidently Paul did not have the ability to heal everyone he wanted to be healthy, even his fellow workers.  Divine healing has always been subject to the will of God, and not something that someone can force whenever he or she wants (cf. 1 Tim. 5:23; 2 Tim. 4:20).

Only God could have done this.  And Paul lets them know that this was the case.  If God had effectively brought him back from “death’s door” then he must have a purpose for him.

Epaphroditus had been spared death by the merciful intervention of God himself.  And, as the apostle was quick to mention, the mercy extended further, to Paul himself — “and not only on him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow” (v. 27b).

Like Christ, Paul was “a man of sorrows” due to his calling (cf. Isaiah 53:3).  He was also a man who, amidst sorrows, experienced a fountain of joy, as we note from the sixteen instances of forms of the word joy in Philippians.

Among his present sorrows in Rome was the selfish rivalry of some Christian leaders.  How thankful he was that the sorrow of Epaphroditus’ death was not overlaid upon those sorrows. How grateful he was for the sovereign will of God and for divine mercy.  But what Paul wanted the Philippians to know was that when they received Epaphroditus back again, they were receiving a man who, as it were, was back from the dead.  So this was likewise a mercy to them.

For all these reasons — Paul’s esteem for Epaphroditus as a brother, a fellow worker, a fellow soldier, an apostle, and a messenger who desperately longed for home and was distressed at their distress and who almost died carrying out their assignment — because of all of this Paul says, “I am the more eager to send him, therefore, that you may rejoice at seeing him again, and that I may be less anxious” (v. 28).

When Epaphroditus arrived, the Philippians would be relieved to know he was safe, Epaphroditus would be relieved to be home, and Paul would be “less anxious” about him.  Nothing would please Paul more than a proper reunion.

Paul will urge the Philippians to regard Epaphroditus highly (“hold men like him in high regard”), and to welcome him back wholeheartedly (“with all joy”).  Perhaps Paul sensed that they would undervalue him.

Paul now urged, “So receive him in the Lord with all joy, and honor such men, for he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was lacking in your service to me” (vv. 29, 30).

During the long separation between Paul and the Philippian church (and especially since his imprisonment in Rome), the Philippians had been unable to fully express their fellowship/partnership in Paul’s ministry — especially since they lacked a way to supply his needs.

He had daringly exposed himself to danger.  It was while he had labored for his absent Philippian brethren, to make up their deficiency in this sense (4:14-18; cf. 1 Cor. 16:17), that he had become dangerously ill.

Epaphroditus’ heroics enabled them to complete their gospel obligation to Paul.  He was the key link that did not fail in his mission.  They owed the young man big-time.

In effect, single-talented as Epaphroditus was, he was like Christ.  Paul makes this very clear in the Greek because the phrase that tells us that Epaphroditus “nearly died” in verse 30 is exactly the same as the phrase in 2:8, which describes Christ coming “to the point of death.”

Epaphroditus’ near death for Paul echoes Christ’s real death for us.  This young man had the mind of Christ.  He was not only willing to lay down his life for the sake of others, he almost did!

He clearly wasn’t thinking of himself and his own desires or needs.  His heart was focused on finishing his mission to Paul, of helping Paul on behalf of the Philippian church.  Thus, he made possible for the Philippian church to be partners with Paul in the gospel.  The Philippians, Epaphroditus and Paul would all be rewarded for their part in making the gospel known in Rome.

Thomas Constable has an interesting side note:

Aphrodite (Venus) was the goddess of gamblers. When a pagan Greek threw the dice he would cry out “epaphroditos!” meaning “favorite of Aphrodite.”  Epaphroditus’ name may have connections with this custom.  If so, Paul may have written that Epaphroditus “risked [gambled] his life” as a wordplay on his friend’s name.  Paul made a more obvious wordplay with Onesimus’ name, which means “useful” (cf. Phile. 10-11).

Epaphroditus gambled with his life and won because God was with him and had mercy on him.

David Guzik shows how Epaphroditus’ example influenced other risk-takers in the early church:

In the days of the Early Church there was an association of men and women who called themselves the gamblers, taken from this same ancient Greek word used in not regarding his life.  It was their aim to visit the prisoners and the sick, especially those who were ill with dangerous and infectious diseases.

Often, when a plague struck a city, the heathen threw the dead bodies into the streets and fled in terror.  But the gamblers buried the dead and helped the sick the best they could, and so risked their lives to show the love of Jesus.

Paul doesn’t chide Epaphroditus for taking a foolish risk, but exalts him because he had taken a faithful risk.  He was completing his mission.

Now, it is possible that Epaphroditus was sent not only to bring a gift to Paul, but also to be his attendant.  It may be that Epaphroditus fulfilled the first, but because of his sickness was unable to be of much help to Paul.  Perhaps the Philippians believed his mission had failed.

But Paul wants them to know that this was not the case.  Epaphroditus had proved himself very valuable to Paul and despite his extreme illness had accomplished his mission.  Why?  Because he had the mind of Christ, a selfless willingness to expend himself in every way to put others first and minister to them.

And Epaphroditus did this to fulfill what was lacking in the Philippians service to Paul.  We, likewise should have the heart that there is something lacking in our service until the job is done.  We should not be satisfied with good intentions or a half-done job.

And we should be willing, like Epaphroditus, to help others complete the job, even if it wasn’t our job to begin with.

That is why Paul is so proud of Epaphroditus.  In every way he showed himself to be a humble, others-centered man.

Epaphroditus represents a category of people who are to be honored.  If we have read Paul correctly, it is not only the up-front people, those with the more public gifts, who are to be honored but also those who regardless of their gifts live out the example of Christ.

By holding up Epaphroditus, Paul contradicted the Greco-Roman culture’s, and also our modern culture’s, rewarding those who seek prestige and position.

Markus Blockmuehl explains:

Once again, those who stake their ambition on the example of Christ in 2.6-11 will find themselves in conflict with the values and presuppositions of the secular path to power.  By saying that it is people like Epaphroditus whom the Philippians should hold in honour (entimous), Paul at once contradicts Graeco-Roman society’s pervasive culture of rewarding the upwardly mobile quest for prestige and public recognition (philotimia).  The Church instead will prize and value those who aspire to the mind of Christ.  (The Epistle to the Philippians , p. 17)

In other words, real honor should go not to those who seek honor, but to those who serve in humility, even behind the scenes, but who do so faithfully.

This ought to lay the ax to those of us who define success in the evangelical community as a kind of lordship: sitting in the honored seat, being the feted guest at luncheons, speaking to vast throngs, building monuments, naming buildings after ourselves, collecting honorary titles.

Over the course of chapter 2, Paul had taken great pains to get the Philippians outside themselves, beginning with the command in verses 3, 4:

“Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.”

Paul knows that for true partnership in the work of the gospel to exist, there must be unity among the workers. The key to achieving unity is for each believer to adopt the humble mind of Christ.

Paul had held up the supreme example of Christ in verses 5-11.  He had raised the example of his protégé Timothy in verses 19-24, as a man who looked out for others’ interests.  He had lifted up the layman Epaphroditus as an unforgettable example in verses 25-30.

But what about Paul himself?  As we would expect, we see that the great apostle practiced what he preached as he put the interests of others above his own in sending Timothy and Epaphroditus back to Philippi, leaving himself alone and unattended in Rome.

Was Paul thinking about himself during those dark days in Rome?  Hardly!  He was willing to sacrifice his own interests for the well-being of others.  Paul, the theologian, lived out every aspect of his theology in the most practical ways.

The magnitude of Paul’s humility and benevolence toward Epaphroditus can be seen by contrasting Paul’s words in our text to what someone of lesser stature might have made out of this same situation.

Let’s suppose Paul was a very insecure and threatened leader, who had to keep reminding others of his position, power and prestige, a petty fellow, who found it impossible to praise others.  What could this kind of man have done with the circumstances at hand?  Let me suggest one very fictional scenario:

“From Paul, the esteemed apostle of God’s choice, to all those under my charge in Philippi.  As you know, missionary work is very demanding, and only the strong of heart can endure under conditions such as I am presently experiencing.  Unfortunately, Epaphroditus is not a strong man physically.  His trip to Rome with your generous gift was too much for him, and he almost succumbed to his illness.  It was fortunate that I was able to nurse him back to good health.  Epaphroditus is not a strong fellow in spirit, as well as in body.  He simply could not hold up under the stress of the situation.  He became so homesick that he was of little help to me here, and so I have sent him home.  His return should serve as a warning to the faint of heart.…”

Rather, in our text (verse 29), Paul actually commands the saints at Philippi to give him a hero’s welcome home.  Paul encouraged Epaphroditus and prepared the way for a triumphant reunion with his friends, family, and fellow believers.

By multiplying the examples of Christ-minded, others-centered men Paul is encouraging the Philippians (and us) that we can be like them.  Oh, we might not want to think of ourselves as like Christ, or even Paul, maybe not even Timothy.  But Epaphroditus is normal, just like us in our weaknesses, yet still able to put others ahead of himself.

What about us?  We know that public ministry gifts must be used to glorify Christ in looking out for the interests of others.  We know that God sees all and will hold his leaders responsible.

But what about the quiet, perhaps single-talented Christians like Epaphroditus?  Will they get a pass?  No!  Rather, they should fear that if they bury their talent (thinking “it won’t matter”), God will certainly see and hold them accountable.

They should read what the master said to the lazy servant in Jesus’ parable in Matthew 25:14-29.

14 “For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. 15 To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. 16 He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. 17 So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. 18 But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master’s money. 19 Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. 20 And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here I have made five talents more.’ 21 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 22 And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here I have made two talents more.’ 23 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant.  You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 24 He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, 25 so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ 26 But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? 27 Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. 28 So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. 29 For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance.  But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.

So don’t hide your talent.  Even if you have only one ability to serve God with (and some may think they have none), use what God has given you to minister to others.  Ask him how to use the talents and abilities you have to minister to others.

Epaphroditus certainly wasn’t Paul or Timothy.  He was a “brother,” a “fellow worker,” a “fellow soldier,” a “messenger [apostle],” a “messenger” — that’s all!  He had the mind of Christ — that’s all!  He is honored today by both man and God — that’s all!

During these last few months of coronavirus, I think we all have come to a deeper appreciation of the value of fellowship.  We genuinely miss one another.

As we have seen, fellowship in the Philippian church was not of the ice cream social variety but was rather the fellowship of people bound together by a great spiritual quest.

The Greek root word for fellowship occurs six times across the brief chapters of Philippians, rendered variously as “partnership” (twice), “partakers” (once), “participation” (once), and “share” (twice).

And each occurrence emphasizes a different aspect of the Philippians’ fellowship or participation with one another: 1:5 emphasizes “partnership in the gospel”; 1:7 describes the Philippians as “partakers . . . of grace”; 2:1 lists their “participation in the Spirit”; 3:10 records Paul’s desire to “share” in Christ’s sufferings; and 4:14, 15 employ the words “share” and “partnership” to stress fellowship in giving — “Yet it was kind of you to share my trouble. And you Philippians yourselves know that in the beginning of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church entered into partnership with me in giving and receiving, except you only” (4:14, 15). So fellowship involved participation in the gospel and grace and the Spirit and suffering and giving.

In 2:25-30 we learn that the Philippians had decided to express and confirm their fellowship with Paul by taking up an offering for him and dispatching an envoy to make the 800-mile trek to Rome and pay Paul’s prison expenses and minister to his needs. This was crucial because the Roman prison system didn’t provide for food, clothing, or medical care.

So young, strong, healthy, godly Epaphroditus was chosen and was entrusted with a considerable sum of money.  This meant that he was not traveling alone when he fell ill because Paul had established apostolic precedent in sending large gifts by group (cf. 2 Corinthians 8:16-22).

The most likely scenario, therefore, is that when Epaphroditus fell ill, one of his traveling companions (or an acquaintance passing the other way) returned to Philippi with the alarming news, while another, or others, stayed with Epaphroditus and nursed him along so that he finally made it to Rome, very much worse for the wear.  But ever-faithful Epaphroditus delivered the goods and set himself, as he was able, to caring for Paul as the Philippians’ surrogate.

However, it wasn’t long until Paul decided that the young man should return to Philippi for reasons that the apostle would later explain.

What is at once apparent from what Paul says here is that he was concerned that the Philippians give the young man a proper welcome.  It was very possible that the little church, preoccupied with surviving in Philippi’s obtrusive, oppressive, “little Rome” culture, coupled with their surprise at Epaphroditus’ early return and the fact that he didn’t remain with Paul as long as they expected, could have worked to make his “welcome” to be little more than a perfunctory acknowledgment of his return, without the church truly engaging him and hearing and valuing his story and expressing genuine appreciation, kinda like when our young soldiers returned from Vietnam.

A church (like a culture) that does not recognize the sacrifice of its own for the sake of the gospel makes a big mistake.  And the wise apostle simply would not let that happen.

Moreover, Epaphroditus’ selfless conduct was a living example of the mind of Christ in his serving the interests of others.  So in verses 25-28 Paul prepares the way for a proper homecoming upon Epaphroditus’ return to Philippi.

25 I have thought it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus my brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier, and your messenger and minister to my need, 26 for he has been longing for you all and has been distressed because you heard that he was ill. 27 Indeed he was ill, near to death. But God had mercy on him, and not only on him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow. 28 I am the more eager to send him, therefore, that you may rejoice at seeing him again, and that I may be less anxious. 29 So receive him in the Lord with all joy, and honor such men, 30 for he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was lacking in your service to me.

Unlike Timothy, Epaphroditus was not very well known outside of Philippi.  Epaphroditus is mentioned only here in Scripture, but Paul makes certain that the Philippians (and we) recognize him and honor him for his example of selfless service.

Paul began with an unusually complimentary introductory fanfare.  There was no drum roll, but it was definitely “Here’s Epaphroditus!”

Epaphroditus’ introductory resumé had five entries, three from Paul and two that referenced the Philippians.  Paul called him “my brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier.”

In a world of imitations, “my brother” referred to the real thing — the theological reality that two who were truly brothers shared the same spiritual bloodline.  “My brother” resounded with affection, the love of believer for believer — “my dear brother.”

“Fellow worker” is intentionally elevating.  Jesus would say of the church in Ephesus, “I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary” (Revelation 2:3), and this was singularly true of Epaphroditus.  He worked, but more, he was Paul’s “fellow worker,” the great apostle’s coworker.  Paul was the public, up-front apostle, and Epaphroditus was the behind-the-scenes servant.  Yet the two were equally coworkers — one in work and dignity.

Next, the image that “fellow soldier” evokes lifts Epaphroditus high.  Paul says elsewhere, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12).

This was the battle they were fighting.  It is a spiritual battle, but nonetheless a real battle.

The two fought shoulder-to-shoulder in Rome.  Perhaps Paul had in mind the trademark imperial soldiers’ battle ethic of standing side-by-side, dug in with shields locked solid, swords drawn.  The truth is, young Epaphroditus was a battle-tested warrior who had been wounded in combat and was being sent home for a rest.  This man was no weekend warrior.  He had proven himself with distinction.

Now, let’s apply this to our church life today:

These three titles for Epaphroditus serve also to tell us what the church is like:  It is a community (fellow-brother) that works together (fellow-worker) for a common cause—to advance the kingdom (fellow-soldier).

So the church is a community, a corporation and a cause.  Some people are more oriented towards one than the others and we have to learn how to approach people with different “hats” on.

Why is this so important to grasp?

If you are in community with someone, then you are a family.  If you are in a cause together, then you are an army.  If you are in a corporation together, then you are a business.  These three dimensions are vastly different from each other in more than just metaphor – they have different core values, different key persons, different ways of entrance and exit, and varying ways of payback.

Consider values.

In a community, the greatest values are, arguably, love, loyalty and mutual support.  In a cause, the greatest value is winning.  In a corporation, it is effectiveness.  Could there be some tension between love and winning, or love and effectiveness?

Or think about roles.

In a community, the roles fall into such things as father, mother, brother; in a cause, it would be general, lieutenant, or sergeant.  In a corporation, one thinks of a CEO, a president, or an employee.  You relate to someone as father in a vastly different way than you do as either general or CEO.  Approaching someone as an employee is not the same as approaching them as a brother.

And think of the tension between these three when it comes to key people or heroes.  In a community, the key people are often the ones the community rallies around, meaning the weakest.  Think of the way a family revolves around a newborn.  In a cause, the heroes are the ones who are the most committed.  In a corporation, the most honored are usually the most productive.

And perhaps most tricky of all, think of how you exit each of these dimensions.  In terms of leaving a community, well, you don’t.  You are part of a family, or family of origin, forever.  You can’t ever really leave.  When it comes to a cause, you have to desert or, if honorable, die in the effort.  In a corporation, you either quit, are fired or retire.

Starting to get dizzy with the complexities?

Sorry to pile it on … but we haven’t even arrived at the tough part.

Think about knowing which hat to wear.  Someone is not performing well at all, but you know that part of it is based on personal issues in their life.  Do you wear the corporate hat of performance or the community hat of concern?  In truth, it might be both.  They may need a word from you as their general to pick up their pace for the cause and also need a father-figure at a moment of weakness.

Paul knew the value of all three relationships and was able to partner with Epaphroditus in all three areas.  May we have the flexibility and grace to do that too!

[The above information about community, cause and corporation is from James Emery White, but I originally heard it from Jim Dethmer.]

Now let’s get back to the text of Philippians.

Beyond all that Epaphroditus meant to Paul, he had served the Philippians themselves in a twofold manner, as “your messenger and minister to my need” (v. 25b) —two titles of honor that rightfully belonged to the great Apostle Paul himself.

“Messenger” is literally “apostle.”  And though Paul did not use apostle here in the full technical sense of one who had seen the resurrection and had a special commission to preach the gospel (cf. Acts 1:21-23; Romans 1:1; 1 Corinthians 15:7), it was, nevertheless, a designation of intended dignity.

Likewise, “minister” is also a title of dignity that was evocative of priestly service as Epaphroditus ministered to Paul’s needs. Paul may have been thinking of Epaphroditus’ ministry to him as similar to a priest’s.  He presented the Philippians’ offering to Paul as a sacrifice (4:18).

Gerald Hawthorne says:

“Epaphroditus was their envoy to him, their way of telling him that they cared enough to send their very best …”

Paul is confirming that Epaphroditus had performed a very valued service to him, just as they meant to happen.

Here’s the picture: Epaphroditus was a layman whom we would never have heard of were it not for Paul’s brief reference here.  But he was not a “mere layman.”

Epaphroditus served in no public capacity. He did not shepherd a flock, as did Timothy.  He did not take the gospel to an unreached area.  He did not receive special revelation.  And he wrote nothing.

All he did was faithfully discharge his duty by delivering a bag of money to Paul and then by looking after him.

Yet he is called by Paul “brother . . . fellow worker . . . fellow soldier” and was identified to the Philippians as “apostle” and “minister.”

Paul’s makes no distinction between the ministry of Timothy and the ministry of Epaphroditus, as though one ministry is “first class ministry” and the other is “second class.”

They are very different men, with very different ministries, but they are both a vital and valuable part of the body of Christ.

We must understand that to serve in some unnoticed, unrecognized place in the body of Christ is as much the work of Christ as is public ministry.  Paul teaches the same thing in 1 Corinthians 12 in his exposition of giftedness.  Paul believed this implicitly, and so must we!

And, of course, we know that Jesus tells us that ministry done in secret is rewarded by God.  So don’t disparage yourself or others if your ministry is behind-the-scenes or in the background.

Epaphroditus was remarkable.  He held himself responsible to God by the same standard of faithfulness that Paul used for himself.  No wonder Paul singled the young man out as an example to the church in Philippi, where so many were looking out for themselves rather than others.  Epaphroditus had put on the mind of Christ, taking on the humble life of an unsung servant.  The Philippians needed to see the young man for the man he was and receive him as such.

As a further motivation to properly welcome Epaphroditus back, Paul mentions Epaphroditus’ homesickness: “For he has been longing for you all and has been distressed because you heard that he was ill” (v. 26).

This was not a case of simple longing for a warm bed and some Aegean cuisine.  It was a complex tension going on in Epaphroditus’ heart. Paul had used the same term in the introduction to this letter to describe his own personal longing for the Philippians “with the affection of Christ Jesus” (1:8).

But what really distressed Epaphroditus was not the fact that he had been so ill, but the knowledge that news had gotten back to Philippi of how desperately sick he was.  He was distressed because he feared they were distressed.

This may be difficult to understand in this day of cell phones when while in England I can call a friend and have him answer on his cell as he walks out of a restaurant in France!  However, longtime missionary families understand Epaphroditus well and can tell you of quite different days when it took weeks to communicate.

How intensely Epaphroditus mentally suffered is seen in that the only other use of the Greek word here translated “distressed” is used to describe Jesus’ anguish in Gethsemane (cf. Mark 14:33).

The young man agonized as he imagined the prayers that were being offered for him by his brothers and sisters in the church.  Some of them, he knew, had lost sleep over his plight.  How he longed for them to know he was okay.

What a sympathetic, empathetic soul Epaphroditus was!  Again, the young man was like Christ in his lack of self-interest and focus upon others. “You Philippians, receive him properly.”

If that wasn’t enough to convince them to give him a good welcome, Paul adds, “Indeed he was ill, near to death.  But God had mercy on him, and not only on him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow” (v. 27).

The gravity of Epaphroditus’ trauma was such that it suggests that his fellow travelers had given up hope that he would live.  Again the example of Christlike servanthood is repeated.  Just as Christ had died as a servant, just as Paul had faced death serving the gospel, so Epaphroditus had come near to death in Christ’s service.

So here again is a good example of Christ-mindedness.

Throughout Paul’s letter to the Philippians he has been encouraging them to adopt the mindset and attitudes that would lead to unity.  It seems that some interpersonal conflict was in danger of spreading and causing strife within the Philippian church.

In chapter 2, after encouraging the Philippians to give up rivalry, conceit, griping and arguing, he puts forth several examples of men who “did it right,” men who were worthy of emulation.  First, Paul reminded them of how Jesus Himself had given up the true glory and rightful authority of being God in heaven, to take on a human nature in order to serve and sacrifice for us sinners.  Paul goes on in this chapter to indicate how he was doing the same for their behalf (2:16b-17) and finally he turns to the examples of Timothy and Epaphroditus.

Here is what he says about them:

19 I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be cheered by news of you. 20 For I have no one like him, who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare. 21 For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. 22 But you know Timothy’s proven worth, how as a son with a father he has served with me in the gospel. 23 I hope therefore to send him just as soon as I see how it will go with me, 24 and I trust in the Lord that shortly I myself will come also.

25 I have thought it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus my brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier, and your messenger and minister to my need, 26 for he has been longing for you all and has been distressed because you heard that he was ill. 27 Indeed he was ill, near to death. But God had mercy on him, and not only on him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow. 28 I am the more eager to send him, therefore, that you may rejoice at seeing him again, and that I may be less anxious. 29 So receive him in the Lord with all joy, and honor such men, 30 for he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was lacking in your service to me.

Notice how they both served and sacrificed for the sake of others.  It is this other-centered, willingness-to-sacrifice attitude that Paul was confronting them with, urging them to follow these examples.

So Paul gave them a description of the submissive mind in the example of Jesus Christ (vv. 6-8), explained the dynamics of a submissive mind in his own experience (vv. 16b-17) and now introduces us to two more examples.  Warren Wiersbe points out that it was necessary for Paul to add these two examples, because he knew his readers might be prone to claim: “It’s impossible for us to follow such examples as Christ and Paul!  After all, Jesus is the very Son of God and Paul is a chosen apostle who has had great spiritual experiences.”

You might feel the same way.  Thus, Paul introduces them to the attitudes of two “ordinary saints” who were unspectacular and normal.  Just like us.

“He wanted us to know that the submissive mind is not a luxury enjoyed by a chosen few; it is a necessity for Christian joy, and an opportunity for all believers” (Warren Wiersbe).

Timothy (Philippians 2:19-24)

Apparently Timothy was a favorite of the Philippians, and Paul deems it necessary to explain to them why he had not already sent Timothy.

Paul probably met Timothy on his first missionary journey (Acts 14:6ff), at which time, perhaps, the young man was converted (1 Cor. 4:17).  Apparently, Timothy’s mother and grandmother had converted first (2 Tim. 1:3-5) and they had quite a positive influence on Timothy’s conversion and beginning discipleship (2 Tim. 3:14-17).

Timothy was the son of a Jewish mother and a Gentile father, but Paul always considered this young man his own “dearly beloved son” in the faith (2 Tim. 1:2).  When Paul returned to Derbe and Lystra while on his second missionary journey, he enlisted young Timothy as one of his fellow laborers (Acts 16:1-4).

Apparently Timothy took the place once held by John Mark, whom Paul had refused to take on this second missionary journey because of Mark’s previous abandonment to the cause (Acts 13:13; 15:36-41).

Paul begins with Timothy: “I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be cheered by news of you” (v.19).

Remember, Paul is under arrest in Rome.  And as always with Paul, there is no presumption in his planning as he hopes “in the Lord Jesus” to send Timothy their way.

This is not a glib cliché.  This is the way Paul lived, as other outtakes from his letters make clear: “if the Lord wills” (1 Corinthians 4:19) and “if the Lord permits” (16:7) — Deo volenti.

It is Paul’s way of saying, “If it be the Lord’s will.”  It shows that he did not make decisions based simply on common sense or on what he thought was best, but he submitted everything to the Lord and His will.

When he mentions how Epaphroditus got well from his illness, he doesn’t say, “Thank goodness he got better!” but rather, “God had mercy on him, and not on him only, but also on me.”

When he instructs the church to welcome Epaphroditus, he tells them to “receive him in the Lord with all joy.”  Clearly, the Lord was the focal point, source and goal of all of Paul’s life and ministry.

Paul bows to God’s will, but at the same time he longs for Timothy to make that round-trip to Philippi and back to Rome because he felt sure that cheerful, heartening news would be coming from Philippi as the Philippians read his letter and took it to heart.

Paul deeply loved this little church, as he said in the introduction of this letter: “I hold you in my heart . . . how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus” (cf. 1:7, 9).  As a result, Paul had hitched his emotions to the ups and downs of the church.

Certainly the apostle was a happy man, but his was not an unclouded happiness.  The ministry brought new joys, but with those joys there were also new sorrows.

As he had earlier written to the Corinthians, “And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches. Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant?” (2 Corinthians 11:28, 29).

Similarly, he wrote to the Thessalonians, “When I could bear it no longer, I sent to learn about your faith, for fear that somehow the tempter had tempted you and our labor would be in vain” (1 Thessalonians 3:5).

Paul’s heart rose and fell with his people.  His greatest pains were heart pains over his people.  But his greatest joys were heart palpitations over their advances.  Paul anticipated that news from the Philippians would do his heart good.

The reason Paul wanted to send Timothy is clear in verses 20-21:

20 For I have no one like him, who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare. 21 For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.

Timothy’s heart for others was unique—there was “no one like him” in this way among the Roman believers and other compatriots of Paul.  Literally Paul said, “I have no one equal in soul.”  He was truly a “kindred spirit,” one whose heart beat like Paul’s—a heart that was truly tied to the welfare of others.

What Paul means, then, is that Timothy has the same love and concern for the Philippians as he himself does.  They are “equal-souled” in their concern for the welfare of the Philippians and the furtherance of the cause of Christ.

This seems an astonishing statement, but the rest of what Paul said will make it clear.  Paul’s assessment was that there was no one like Timothy “who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare” — that is, one who, when he arrived on the scene in Philippi, would give the active interest and practical care that Paul desired be shown—the kind of care he himself would give them if he were present with them.

The word translated “genuinely” here in v. 20, “genuinely concerned,” is the word gnesios.

The related adjective gnesios occurs four times.  It can refer to children born in wedlock, i.e., they are legitimate and “genuine” children.  It is also used to qualify teaching as being genuine or accurate, and love as pure and sincere (2 Cor 8:8).

Interestingly enough, it is used by Paul in 1 Tim 1:2 and Titus 1:4 to refer to Timothy and Titus as “true” sons (of the apostle) in the faith (cf. Phil 4:3).  Though the stress in Phil 2:20 is on the idea of sincerity, Hawthorne is probably correct to note that the root idea of “legitimate children” should not be overlooked.  Thus Timothy is genuinely interested in the Philippians because he is a genuine son of Paul, and thus “equal-souled.”

Timothy is genuinely concerned for others.

Ironically, the very self-centeredness that Paul had just warned the Philippians about in 2:4 (“Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also the interests of others”) was part of everyday life in Rome —“They all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ” (v. 21).

It is said that when Henrietta Mears, one of the most effective American Christian educators of the twentieth century, would walk into a room, each person often had the feeling that she was saying to him or her, “Where have you been?  I’ve been looking all over for you.”

Miss Mears’s genuine concern for others marked and elevated a whole generation of remarkable leaders.

Timothy stood in stark contrast to others there in Rome, who “all seek after their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.”  This must be a general statement.  Paul had many fellow workers whose commitment to Jesus Christ was complete at this time, one of whom was Epaphroditus. Paul would commend him shortly (vv. 25-30).

More likely Paul had in mind those believers in Rome who were so engrossed in promoting them own ministries (Phil. 1:15-16) that they had no time for the real work of the Lord.  In contrast, Timothy served with Paul in the furtherance of the gospel (2:22). Christ and the gospel were at the center of Timothy’s life.

Like Timothy, we also live in an age of unprecedented self, of weightless souls consumed with their own gravity.  And today many Christians actually believe that it is “Christian” to pursue self-fulfillment as an ultimate goal in life.  It is often believed that salvation is all about me, rather than about God.

But Timothy’s example trumps such self-delusion. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote:

We must be ready to allow ourselves to be interrupted by God.  God will be constantly crossing our paths and canceling our plans by sending us people with claims and petitions.  We may pass them by, preoccupied with our more important tasks, as the priest passed by the man who had fallen among thieves, perhaps — reading the Bible.  When we do that, we pass by the visible sign of the Cross raised [in] our path to show us that, not our way, but God’s way must be done.

It is a strange fact that Christians frequently consider their work so important and urgent that they will allow nothing to disturb them.  They think they are doing God a service in this, but actually they are disdaining God’s “Crooked yet straight path.”  They do not want a life that is crossed and balked.  But it is part of the discipline of humility that we must not spare our hand where it can perform a service and that we do not assume that our schedule is our own to manage, but allow it to be arranged by God. (Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together (San Francisco: Harper San Francisco, 1954), p. 99)

The Philippians were well aware of Timothy’s worth, having observed him serving with Paul, and developing their own affection for him.  So Paul says…

22 But you know Timothy’s proven worth, how as a son with a father he has served with me in the gospel.

Warren Wiersbe notes:

“The submissive mind is not the product of an hour’s sermon, or a week’s seminar, or even a year’s service. The submissive mind grows in us as, like Timothy, we yield to the Lord and seek to serve others.”

Timothy had a track record of observable worth in the gospel ministry.  Paul did not add him to the team on his first missionary journey, but left him in Derbe and Lystra where he grew in his faith and got involved in ministry so that when Paul returned years later young Timothy was “well spoken of by the brothers at Lystra and Iconium” (Acts 16:2).

Timothy had served as Paul’s envoy to Macedonia a decade earlier (cf. 1 Thessalonians 3:2; Acts 17:14; 18:5; 19:22), to Corinth on several occasions (cf. 1 Corinthians 4:17; 16:10), and also to Ephesus (cf. 1 Timothy 1:2ff.).

Hawthorne observes, “Timothy was a young man with exceptional potential for missionary statesmanship and church leadership.”

• He is left behind in Berea to continue the work after Paul is forced to leave because of threats against his life (Acts 17:14).
• During a time of persecution he is sent to Thessalonica to strengthen the believers in their faith (1 Thessalonians 3:1-3).
• He is sent to Macedonia from Ephesus with a similar mission (Acts 19:22).
• He is sent as Paul’s emissary to bring teaching and healing to the troubled church in Corinth (1 Corinthians 4:17-21).
• He is apparently sent to Philippi and perhaps returns with a monetary gift from that church for Paul (Philippians 2:19; 4:15-16; Acts 18:5).
• He is instructed how to appoint elders and deacons in the churches (1 Timothy 3).
• He accompanies Paul on his last trip to Jerusalem (Acts 20:4).
• He is at his side during his imprisonment.

So Paul is referring to more than 10 years of ministry side-by-side in the spreading of the gospel.

Harry Ironside noted:

“Youth is often exceedingly energetic, and impatient of restraint.  Age is inclined, perhaps, to be over-cautious and slow in coming to conclusions, and it often is a great difficulty for two, so wide apart in years as Paul and Timothy, to labor together happily.  But where the younger man manifests the spirit that was in Timothy, and the elder seeks only the glory of God and the blessing of His people, such fellowship in service becomes indeed blessed.” (51)

Furthermore, his devotion to the Apostle Paul was remark-able: “as a son with a father he has served with me in the gospel” (v. 22b). Paul was Timothy’s spiritual father because Timothy, like so many others, had come to Christ under Paul’s ministry.

In vv. 23-24 Paul indicates that he would be sending Timothy to them as a gift, but that this meant a sacrifice on his part, again for their sakes.

23 I hope therefore to send him just as soon as I see how it will go with me, 24 and I trust in the Lord that shortly I myself will come also.

The Philippians had always been generous with Paul (see Philippians 4:14-16), and now Paul wishes to be generous with them.  His “gifts” to this church are Epaphroditus and Timothy.  Paul is here telling the Philippians that he is sending them the best gift that he has to give.

Paul’s gift of Timothy to the Philippians is at Paul’s expense.  How easy it would have been for Paul to ask Timothy to stay there with him, at his side, to minister to him.  Instead, Paul indicates an eagerness to send Timothy as soon as possible.

We must remember that Paul was being confined until the outcome of his trial was over.  Men like Timothy and Epaphroditus were Paul’s hands and feet.  They did for him what he could not do himself.  To send men like this away is something like a blind man loaning his Seeing Eye dog to a friend.

However, as much as they desired a visit from Paul or Timothy, Paul would be sending Epaphroditus back to them at this time.  They were not to think of Epaproditus as “second rate,” however, as Paul will explain in vv. 25-30.

On the contrary, Paul considered him his “brother,” “fellow-worker,” “fellow-soldier,” and “their apostle and servant” (2:25).  Indeed, they were to honor men like him because of his work in the gospel on their behalf which almost cost him his life (2:27-30).

Throughout Paul’s letter to the Philippians Paul has been encouraging them to pursue unity, and the primary attitude that fuels unity is self-abasing humility, which allows us to listen to and find common ground with others.  Early in chapter 2 Paul pointed to the ultimate example of humility in Jesus Christ, that although He really was fully divine, He cloaked Himself with humanity, became both a servant to others and a sacrifice for others.  That kind of attitude should percolate within the minds and hearts of every believer.

Having focused on Christ’s example, Paul exhorted the Philippians to “work out” their corporate salvation by not griping and arguing against one another.  He then ends this chapter by pointing out three other examples of self-abasing, self-giving men who were worthy of honor and imitation…Paul, Timothy and Epaphroditus.

14 Do all things without grumbling or questioning, 15 that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, 16 holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. 17 Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. 18 Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me. 19 I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be cheered by news of you. 20 For I have no one like him, who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare. 21 For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. 22 But you know Timothy’s proven worth, how as a son with a father he has served with me in the gospel. 23 I hope therefore to send him just as soon as I see how it will go with me, 24 and I trust in the Lord that shortly I myself will come also. 25 I have thought it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus my brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier, and your messenger and minister to my need, 26 for he has been longing for you all and has been distressed because you heard that he was ill. 27 Indeed he was ill, near to death. But God had mercy on him, and not only on him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow. 28 I am the more eager to send him, therefore, that you may rejoice at seeing him again, and that I may be less anxious. 29 So receive him in the Lord with all joy, and honor such men, 30 for he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was lacking in your service to me.

Today we’re going to look at Paul’s example of humility, expressed in vv. 16-18.

Paul speaks of his ministry among them using three metaphors, ones that he uses often:

1. Running a race
2. Working a project
3. Sacrificial worship

Paul’s ministry among the Philippians was first of all like “running” a race.  This is a metaphor that Paul uses of his own spiritual life, most particularly in 1 Corinthians 9:24-27, Philippians 3:12-14 and 2 Timothy 4:7, but it also a metaphor for his ministry among others (cf. also 2 Timothy 2:5).

Paul wanted to run the race in a way that he would win the prize, the crown, the imperishable stephanos, “in the day of Christ,” or at the judgment seat of Christ.  Winning requires agonizing training (1 Corinthians 9:25), straining towards the finish line (Philippians 2:14) and playing by all the rules (2 Timothy 2:5).

In 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 the potential of winning is dependent primarily upon one’s own diligent efforts.  But here in Philippians the potential of winning is tied to whether others were running well.  It’s like a relay race which is won through the combined efforts of several.  Paul had run well, but he was passing the baton to the Philippians and wasn’t sure they were going to run well.

In 1 Corinthians 9:26 Paul says, “So I do not run aimlessly…”  He did not run recreationally, but with a clear purpose.  He wanted to win!  But what did a win look like as far as his ministry?  His goal is declared in such passages as Colossians 1:28, “to present everyone mature in Christ” and Galatians 4:19, “until Christ is formed in you.”

Paul’s aim for the Philippians and all his converts is that they would display greater and greater likeness to Jesus Christ.  For the Philippians that particularly meant living with humble, other-centered attitudes, as illustrated in the example of Jesus in vv. 5-8.

It would be possible for Paul to “run in vain,” not so much with regard to his own personal life, but with regard to the Philippians’ lack of imitation of Christ in this way.  If they persisted in conflict, entrenched in their own ways, allowing that conflict to divide them, then Paul feels like his race among them would have been for nothing, that all his efforts would have been ultimately useless.

The idea that his work might somehow end up to be in vain was a troublesome thought to him, as it would be to any serious pastor.

This is the true heart of a shepherd: to have few burdens for one’s self, but many for others; to not be content with one’s own relationship with God, but also longing to see others walking with the Lord.

Paul enriches this metaphor with one drawn from Isaiah.  In Isaiah 49:4 the Servant of the Lord expresses dismay that he appears to “have labored to no purpose,” to “have spent [his] strength in vain for nothing”; but he also expresses his confidence that his reward is in the Lord’s hands.  Later the prophet promises that in the final day, when God creates new heavens and a new earth, his people “will not toil in vain (Isa. 65:23).

This second metaphor of laboring may call to mind that we labor like a farmer, faithfully planting the seed of God’s Word into people’s hearts through preaching and teaching, hoping that it will be fruitful.

Jesus told His disciples that fruitfulness depended upon the condition of the soil, or the condition of a person’s heart.  Some hearts are hard and will not receive the Word of God; others are shallow and while they show initial excitement, eventually wither away under persecution; then there are those who could have borne fruit but their lives were so filled with cares and comforts of this world.  Only a few, Jesus said, would hear the Word and bear fruit in their lives.

Paul draws upon this imagery in Galatians 6 when he says…

7 Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. 8 For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. 9 And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.

Sowing seeds and harvesting crops require a lot of hard work.  It is easy to get discouraged.  It is easy to grow weary of doing good and give up.  But God wants us to realize that although we may not reap today, we will eventually reap and we will only reap what we sow.  So we have to be careful what we sow.

It is also possible that the laboring metaphor came from Paul’s experience as a tent weaver.  In that context, hard work, resulting in being able to hand over a finished product, meant what we would call a “paycheck.”

Laboring in vain would be like putting all your effort into a superior or artistic product and having it rejected as badly woven.

Both metaphors stress not so much the honor and dignity of the apostolic calling, but rather the need to toil and take pains to reach full potential.  Paul was putting his heart and soul, his energy and endurance, into making sure they would fully work out their corporate salvation and be a loving, united congregation.

Was all of that in vain?

Paul had sown the seeds of gospel joy into the hearts of the Philippians.  Many of them had come to faith in Christ, but the full fruitfulness of the gospel—expressed in humility and others-centeredness—was in danger of not appearing and Paul felt that his labor might have been in vain.

Paul wanted to hear a “well done” with regard to his ministry among the Philippians when he stood before God’s tribunal.  So he is expressing his desire by reminding them just how much energy and hard labor he had poured into their growth.

The third image that Paul uses is the pouring out of a drink offering as a sacrifice to God.

17 Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. 18 Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me.

This may be a reference to his own death, which would turn out to be a few years later, but he did not know that at this time.  Or it could simply point out his sufferings.

Paul uses the exact phrase again in 2 Timothy 4:6, where he says, “I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come.”

It was possible that Paul’s trial would go against him and he would be executed.  But this did not rob Paul of his joy.  His death would be a willing sacrifice, a priestly ministry, on behalf of Christ and His church, and this would give him joy.

The grammar of I am being poured out is in the present tense.  With this Paul indicated either the possibility that his execution may be imminent, or that his sufferings for them were ongoing.

Here Paul compares his present life to the pouring out of a “drink offering” in Israel’s worship (cf. 2 Tim. 4:6; Num. 15:1-10; Num. 28:4-7).  After the priest offered a lamb, a ram, or a bull as a burnt offering, he poured wine beside the altar.

This was the last act in the sacrificial ceremony, all of which symbolized the dedication of the believer to God in worship.  The pouring out of the wine pictured the gradual ebbing away of Paul’s life, that had been a living sacrifice (cf. Rom. 12:1) to God since his conversion.

The ancient Greek word translated service is leutrogia.  It meant, “Service to God or His cause… any priestly action or sacred performance” (Muller).  Therefore, in this verse we have a sacrifice, a priest, and an accompanying libation that makes the sacrifice even more precious.

Since the sacrifice and service were connected with the faith of the Philippians, it is best to see Paul’s picture describing them as the “priests” and their faith as the “sacrifice,” to which Paul added (and thereby enriched) his martyrdom as a drink offering.

Gerald Hawthorne writes:

“To the degree that his sufferings are for the sake of the gospel, for the sake of the church in general, and for the sake of the church at Philippi in particular, they act as a seal on whatever sacrificial service the Philippians may make, just as a libation completes the offering made to God.”

The purpose of all Paul did among them and all his sufferings was for their “faith.”  He wanted them to fully trust God and His promises so that they would fully experience the spiritual blessings and empowerments available to them.

Paul wasn’t suffering for himself.  He was suffering for their sake, to help their faith develop.

So Paul is expressing his confidence in the Philippians, that they would offer their bodies as living sacrifices through faith, and his sufferings would seal theirs.  He was also confident that whatever he (and they) suffered now, would result in greater reward in heaven.

Listen to Paul’s words to the Corinthians in 2 Corinthians 4:8-18

8 We are experiencing trouble on every side, but are not crushed; we are perplexed, but not driven to despair; 9 we are persecuted, but not abandoned; we are knocked down, but not destroyed; 10 always carrying around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be made visible in our body. 11 For we who are alive are constantly being handed over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus may also be made visible in our mortal body. 12 As a result, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you. 13 But since we have the same spirit of faith as that shown in what has been written, “I believed; therefore I spoke,” we also believe, therefore we also speak. 14 We do so because we know that the one who raised up the Lord Jesus will also raise us up with Jesus and will bring us with you into his presence. 15 For all these things are for your sake, so that the grace that is including more and more people may cause thanksgiving to increase to the glory of God. 16 Therefore we do not despair, but even if our physical body is wearing away, our inner person is being renewed day by day. 17 For our momentary light suffering is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, 18 because we are not looking at what can be seen but at what cannot be seen; for what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal (2 Corinthians 4:8-18, emphasis mine).

And that is what leads Paul to express his joy.  Literally he said, “I rejoice and co-rejoice with you all.”  Could his ministry among them be in vain?  Yes.  But Paul expresses an even greater confidence that the Philippians would respond to his exhortations to humility and unity and that ultimately his ministry would not have been in vain.

Notice that Paul said in verse 17, “I am glad and rejoice with you all.”  This means they were already rejoicing, at least somewhat.  Paul wants to encourage more.

John Piper notes:

What are they rejoicing in?  He just said, he “poured out” his life for their “faith.”  How does Paul think about the relationship of their faith and their joy?

Here is what he said in Philippians 1:25.  Though he is in prison, he expects there to be a season of life to minister to the Philippians, and he describes it like this: “Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith [literally: joy of faith].”  For Paul, joy and faith are inseparable.  When you have saving faith, you have tasted the joy that belongs to faith — the joy of faith.

The sacrifices and sufferings that Paul expresses in these three metaphors are marks of the submissive mind that was present in Christ’s example back in vv. 7-8 and it will be present in the examples of Timothy (vv. 21-22) and Epaphroditus (v. 30) as well.  Through these consistent examples of the same humble, other-centered, self-giving love Paul was encouraging the Philippians to adopt the same.

And God was working in the Philippians to give them the same desire and then the power to live that way in their relationships with each other.

So Paul invites them to join his double-dose of joy with a double-dip of their own: “Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me” (v. 18).

The Philippians would not “rejoice” over the prospect of Paul’s death, of course, but over the knowledge that they, as Paul, had offered themselves as acceptable sacrifices to God (Rom. 12:1).  The apostle urged them not to sorrow over their own trials and his, but to rejoice as they worked out their own salvation, adopting his attitude toward their situation in life and believing in God’s present and future grace.

Paul has just said that his joy was the joy of being poured out for the sake of their faith — the joy of dying so that they could have the joy of faith.  And now Paul says, rejoice with me as I die for your joy of faith.

Piper again says:

Ten verses later, Paul is going to say that his precious friend Epaphroditus almost died for Paul.  And he said, “But God had mercy on him, and not only on him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow” (Philippians 2:27).  Paul would have wept if Epaphroditus had died.  But he would not have stopped rejoicing in Epaphroditus’s joy in dying for Paul.  We know this because in 2 Corinthians 6:10, Paul says he is “sorrowful, yet always rejoicing.”

So there are three facets of the diamond of Christian joy in Philippians 2:17–18.  Let me name them in the order that they actually occur in life:

1. 1. The joy of faith (verse 17, at the end).
   2. The joy of pouring out your life for the sake of the joy of faith (verse 17, at the beginning).  There is no Christian mission without the surrender of safety.
   3. The rejoicing with those who joyfully die for the sake of other people’s joy (verse 18).

This threefold joy is an invincible force in global missions.

Philippians is an epistle which emphasizes joy.  One of the things that brought Paul great joy was his relationship with the Philippians.  However, at least some of the people in the church there were fighting.

Conflict is a very common problem in any relationship.  Whenever you get two people together, there is friction.  Add more people, and you get more conflict.  Every family is a testimony to that.

Paul, throughout this short epistle, directs the attention of the Philippian congregation to those mindsets and attitudes that lead to unity and thus “work out their common salvation.”  He takes great lengths to help them see the presence and value of humility in the life of Jesus, and then will later point out the same in himself, Timothy and Epaphroditus.  On the other hand, Paul also points out that the inner attitude of “grumbling” and its verbal cohort “arguing” will only lead to deeper conflicts.

In Philippians 2:14-18 Paul wrote:

14 Do all things without grumbling or questioning, 15 that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, 16 holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. 17 Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. 18 Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me.

Today we’re going to focus on verse 15.  All that Paul has been saying from v. 27 of chapter 1 has been leading up to verse 15.  It is the goal or purpose of living a life of humility and unity…

15 that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, 16 holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain.

All that Paul has been commanding in this chapter (2:3-4, 12-14) all lead up to this one purpose—that (hina) they might become (genesthe) better people than they are—that they might grow up.

Whereas what was characterizing their lives was assertiveness (“rivalry,” eritheia, v. 3), conceit (kenodoxia, v. 3), grumbling and argumentativeness (v. 14), it was still possible for them to become “blameless,” “innocent” and “without blemish.”

How?  How is that possible?

Well, it is because they were “children of God.”  Yes, everything else around them was “crooked and twisted,” but that is not what formed them or secured their ultimate destiny.  Instead, God was working in them “both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”

As they cooperated with God’s work within them,  instead of being conformed to the “crooked and twisted generation” around them, they would be transformed into people whose lives were blameless, innocent and without blemish, shining as lights in a dark world.

That word “blameless” comes from the verb memphesthai, along with a negative prefixed to it, so it means to “stand above accusation or blame.”  The word could apply to standing before God or men.  It means that people have no grounds upon which to incriminate or criticize us.

That’s a pretty high standard.

The word “innocent” here comes from the verb kerannumi, along with the negative prefixed to it, meaning, “unnmixed.”  It was used to describe undiluted wine or unalloyed metal; in other words something that was pure through and through without impurities, or something that was simple rather than fragmented.

This word occurs only three times in New Testament.  In Matt 10:16 Jesus wants the disciples to be as wise as serpents and as “innocent” as doves.  In Romans 16:19 Paul says that he wants the Romans to be wise about what is good and “innocent” about what is evil.

Taken together, these two words would describe a person against whom no criticism or blame could stick.

Both of them call them away from the selfish behaviors of rivalry, conceit, grumbling and arguing.

If the Philippians continue to grumble and complain they will give occasion for outsiders to find fault with them and their gospel.

The “purity” that Paul has in mind in Philippians is broad and covers every area of their lives, but it specifically has in focus the need to refrain from in-fighting and divisive behavior.

Paul’s final descriptive phrase here is “faultless.”  This was a word used to describe the perfect sacrifice, that had nothing broken and no blemish.  Only such unblemished animals were used for sacrifice (cf. Hebrews 9:14; 1 Peter 1:19).  Thus, when “spotless” or “holy” (Romans 12:1), we can present ourselves as a “living sacrifice” to God.

The phrase “faultless children of God surrounded by a crooked and perverse people” (v. 15b) actually comes from Deuteronomy 32:5, but in that case it was Israel, the children of God, who were in fact “blemished” and “crooked and perverse.”

Paul meant that modern Christians should not be like rebellious Israel, who were constantly complaining and disputing with God during the wilderness sojourn.

In Deuteronomy 32:5, in the song of Moses, in referring to the grumbling and unbelief of the children of Israel in the wilderness, Moses says, “They have acted corruptly toward Him, they are not His children, because of their defect; but are a perverse and crooked generation.”

Paul turns that around and says that we are God’s children, living in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, and thus we must be careful not to grumble and dispute, as Israel did in the wilderness, because as God’s people we are supposed to shine forth in this dark world as lights, holding forth to people the word of life, the gospel of Christ.

Paul adds here that these things are to be true even in the difficult environment of living in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation.

But how is this even possible?  All of us know we are far from blameless, pure and spotless.  All of us know how difficult it is to live above the pull of the world around us.

What chance do we, in this life at least, have of being blameless, pure and spotless?

The key is found in the words “children of God.”  Because we are born of God as His children, we will exhibit His character more and more throughout life, just like a young child begins to show the physical characteristics of its mother and father.

Through regeneration God gifts us with a new nature, a nature aligned with his.  1 John 3:9 says…

9 No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God.

John is not saying that Christians never sin again, but that they don’t “make a practice of sinning.”  They keep short accounts with God.  Whenever we sin, we confess our sins and renew our repentance.

This new nature within us inclines us towards righteousness.  The old nature inclined us towards sin.  It was exceedingly hard to keep from sinning then.  But now we have a new nature and that new nature is inclined towards righteousness.  When Christ lives His perfectly righteous life through us, then we will be blameless, pure and spotless.

Notice that 1 John 3:9 emphasizes that the reason we don’t go on sinning is because “God’s seed abides in him” and “he has been born of God.”  Just like children take on the physical characteristics of their parents, so we will begin more and more to take on the spiritual and moral characteristics of our heavenly Father.

When we live in that new nature we will “shine as lights in the world,” in that “crooked and twisted generation.”  The concept here is not merely “light,” the shining luminescence which projects from a star, but the “lights” themselves, the heavenly bodies.

God isn’t calling us to give, or do, something that we are not equipped for.  Our very nature now is “light,” and He is merely calling us to live up to what we already are.

Jesus, who came as the Light of the World (John 8:12), told His disciples that they were the “light of the world” (Matthew 5:14).  We shine because Jesus, the light, lives in us.

Impure lives will shade, or hide, the light.  Paul wanted his readers to bear a strong witness, rather than having their light shaded by sin or uncleanness (cf. Matt. 5:15-16).

Back in Matthew 5 Jesus had said:

14 “You are the light of the world.  A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

Light is our new nature, where once darkness reigned.

Paul may also have had Daniel 12:3 in mind…

3 And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.

Thomas Constable relates:

I read about a woman who felt very much alone at her place of employment because she was the only Christian.  To make matters worse, she was often ridiculed for her faith and accused of being narrow-minded.  Finally, she became so discouraged that she considered quitting her job.  Before doing that, however, she sought the counsel of her pastor.  After listening to her complaints, the minister asked, “Where do people usually put lights?”

“In dark places,” she replied.  No sooner had the words passed her lips than she realized how her answer applied to her own life.  She quickly recognized that her place of work was indeed a “dark place” where “light” was vitally needed, so she decided to stay where she was and become a stronger influence for Christ.  It was not long before a number of her fellow employees—13 of them, in fact—came to know Christ as their Savior.

God has placed you in a dark place, in a crooked and twisted generation, where indecency, immorality and inhumanity rule the day, or the night.  The words crooked and twisted speak of being perverse and deformed, as we know this world to be.

But He has made you to be a light, to shine in the darkness.  When we live out what God is working in us, we will shine in a darkened world.

There are typically four ways that we can respond to the dark, twisted, perverted world around us:

• We can isolate ourselves into little holy huddles and have very little contact with the world.
• We can indulge ourselves in the world and become just like those around us.
• We can incinerate lost people with our judgmental words and behaviors.
• Or we can illuminate the darkness by shining with righteous lives and sharing God’s Word.

Have you ever seen the Northern lights?

It is a stunning display of beauty made from highly charged particles of energy in a cloud known as a solar wind.  As the solar wind interacts with the edge of the earth’s magnetic field, some particles collide with the gases of the ionosphere and begin to glow.

According to the Encarta Encyclopedia, “These particles then collide with gas molecules in the atmosphere, thereby exciting the molecules and causing them to emit electromagnetic radiation in the visible portion of the spectrum.”

In order to have a positive impact upon the culture around us and shine our light, we have to “collide” with citizens of the earth, bump into them and excite them about the truth.  As Joe Aldrich liked to say, “Evangelism is what spills over when you bump into someone.”

According to Isaiah 42:6-7 and 49:6, this is what ancient Israel was supposed to do, to be a light among the Gentiles so that God’s salvation might be brought “to the ends of the earth” (Isa. 49:6).

But they failed in the task, becoming like the crooked and twisted peoples around them.

The Philippians, and now you and me, have inherited this vocation.  And we live up to it by living out of our new nature, rather than in indulging our old selfish nature.

Grumbling and arguing is not attractive.  Neither are being judgmental and uncaring about people whose behavior we don’t agree with.

1 Peter 2:12 says,

12 Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.

Not only are we to work on our speech and our shining, but we are to work from the Scriptures.

Verse 16 says…

16 holding fast to the word of life,

The “word of life” is the objective truth.  While our subjective lives give some light, it is the Scriptures themselves that have the greater potential to open blinded eyes.

“Holding fast” translates a word that means hold your position or hold your gaze.  In 1 Timothy 4:16, it’s translated, “Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching.”  In Acts 3:5, it’s translated, “He fixed his attention on them, expecting to receive something from them.”  In Acts 19:22, it’s translated, “Paul himself stayed (held his place) in Asia for a while.”

So the idea is holding fast with your attention or with your person. Holding your gaze, or holding your position. So now back to Philippians 2:15: “you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life.”  Holding your gaze on the word of life. Holding your position with the word of life.  Not leaving the word of life.  Staying with the word of life.  Fixing your mind on the word of life.  Giving yourself to the word of life.

We grow tired too quickly.  We grow weary in doing good.  We read God’s Word and truthfully sometimes we get nothing out of it.  But we have to stay with it.  We have to abide in truth.

Along with our nature as being lights, the Word of God provides light which in turn gives life.

The way you shine as lights in a dark culture is by holding fast to the word.  Hold your gaze on it.   Stay with it.

Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (John 6:68).  We’re not leaving your word.  We’re staying with you and your words.  We’re holding our position here.  We’re holding our attention on your word.  This is life.

We cannot shine in this dark world unless we hold fast to the truth of God’s word.  His word brings life in a dead world, a dead culture.

Don’t let go of the word of life.  You need it; a lost world needs it.

Grumbling and complaining, isn’t that the order of the day?  We, who live in one of the greatest nations in history, gripe and complain at the slightest inconvenience.

Someone has said…

“Some people are always grumbling; if they had been born in the Garden of Eden, they would have found much to complain of.”

In fact, someone has said:

God created the world in six days.

On the seventh day, He rested.

On the eighth day, He started getting complaints.

There is a poem that starts like this…

I knew a man whose name was Horner
Who used to live in grumble corner;
Grumble corner in crosspatch town
And he never was seen without a frown.

He grumbled at this, and he grumbled at that,
He growled at the dog. He growled at the cat. [sounds like Dr. Seuss wrote this]
He grumbled at morning. He grumbled at night,
And to grumble and growl was his chief delight.

He grumbled so much at his wife that she
Began to grumble as well as he.
And all the children, wherever they went,
Reflected their parents’ discontent.

That’s one thing about grumbling, it spreads.  People have a ready ear for griping and love to pass it on.

Mary Bachelor was that kind of chronic complainer.  She was a minister’s daughter, and a housekeeper and helper to her brother, who also was a clergyman.  Day after day she unloaded her troubles on him.  One evening, as they were talking together, she finally realized what she was doing to him.  Turning to the window in remorse, she saw some tall poplar trees framing the setting sun and casting their shadows across the lawn.  I’m like those trees to my brother, she thought.  I’m always casting shadows.  Why don’t I bury my sorrows by leaving them with Jesus?  She went to her room and found relief in tears, after which she wrote these lines:

Go bury your sorrow, the world has its share;

Go bury it deeply, go hide it with care;

Go think of it calmly, when curtained by night;

Go tell it to Jesus, and all will be right.

That’s what we ought to do…give it to Jesus.

Grumbling is a common problem.  We all do it at times.  Some people do it incessantly.  Sometimes I think it is one of our favorite pastimes.  In fact, in some churches it is the most loved thing to do after the worship services.  There’s always something to complain about.

One of the passages I often read to my hospice patients is Psalm 103.  The first two verses state:

“Bless the Lord O my soul, let all that is within me bless His holy name.  Bless the Lord O my soul and forget not all his benefits.”  Then the last verse of that Psalm also says, “Bless the Lord O my soul.”

You will notice there that David is talking to himself.  He’s talking to his own soul and directing his soul what to do—to bless the Lord, to remember what good things God has done and thank Him.

Griping and complaining, they come quite naturally.  We don’t have to remind ourselves to do that.  But we do have to commonly challenge our souls to give thanks to God.

Well, Paul speaks to that issue in our study of the book of Philippians chapter 2.

14 Do all things without grumbling or questioning, 15 that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, 16 holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. 17 Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. 18 Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me.

First of all, in v. 14, Paul directs us to work on our speech.  Our speech reflects our heart.

Paul has just told them to “work out your salvation” and that is a corporate command.  He ended the previous section by saying that God works for “good pleasure,” both His and ours.  When God is continually working for our good, what logic is it to complain?

Paul commands us to “do all things without grumbling or questioning.” Which will be stated positively in verse 18, “rejoice and be glad.”

Now Paul’s mention of murmuring and questioning conjures up the pathetic grousing and whining of ancient Israel in the wilderness (cf. Exodus 16:12).  And his words are intentionally vivid.

The word “grumbling” is goggusmos, which is an onomatopoeic word that sounds like what it means.  This is a word that expresses displeasure either internally through murmuring or externally through whisperings to someone.

Although the word doesn’t occur regularly in the New Testament, it did occur very frequently in the Greek translation of the Hebrew narratives about Israel’s years of wandering in the desert.

This word was used in Acts 6:1, where it is translated with the word “complaint.”

1 Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution.

Even the idyllic early church had its share of grumblings.

Of course, in that context, the complaints led to something positive being done.  I don’t think Paul is saying that any voice of dissent should be silenced.  There are times (and ways) to disagree and dialogue and ask questions.

I don’t think Paul is trying to stop the free exchange of ideas in love and a spirit of unity. He’s not so much against disagreement as disagreeableness.

It would seem to me that grumbling often begins with one (or just a few) malcontents, who gain a hearing, and whose grumbling multiplies.  This takes place until sufficient “support” has been generated, and then leadership is confronted.

An illustration of this may be seen in the New Testament when Mary anoints the feet of Jesus with expensive perfume.  In Mark’s Gospel (14:1-9), we are simply told that “they” murmured against her.  But in John 12:4-6, we are told that it was Judas who first raised the objection.

Putting all the details of the Gospel accounts together, we can see that Judas was the first grumbler, and that he soon had stirred up the others, so that they joined with him in his grumbling.  Grumbling is indeed contagious.

Again, what Paul is speaking to is the attitudes of the Philippians which are leading to disunity.  Jesus was an example of someone to subdued his selfish desires and gave himself for others, without a complaint.

Grumbling is not denying pain or difficulty or suffering or even disagreement, but grumbling is a mindset that focuses almost entirely on the negative.

Two characters in literature that seem to have a problem with grumbling are A. A. Milne’s Eeyore—who thought everything could go wrong and he could count on it.  He could cover the sun with clouds.  Remember his “it’s my birthday, but nobody noticed”?

Then there is C. S. Lewis’ Marshwiggle in his story, The Silver Chair.  When he sets out with the two children to rescue the lost prince, he says, “We can count on it.  We will get lost.  We will start to attack each other.  We will probably end up killing each other.  There is no way we can succeed in this venture anyway.”

Grumbling stays focused on the negative and isn’t willing to look at the positive.  It believes the bad news even when others are trying to open their eyes to good news.

When we look back at ancient Israel, we find that grumbling not only sabotaged their future (they died in the wilderness), but it tends to falsify the past.  Israel actually told themselves that they had had better days in Egypt!

The other word here, translated “questioning” in the English Standard Version, is dialogismos.  While we get the word “dialogue” from this word, in this context it means “disputings” or “arguings.”

The first of these words (“grumbling”) looks at the initial activity, and the second (“disputing”), what results from the first (cf. 1 Cor. 10:10; Phil. 2:2; 4:2).

While grumbling can be kept internal (to ourselves), disputations are definitely between two people.

Arguing happens when grumbling spills over into our conversations.  We first look at things negatively, then we want to argue about it with others.  In our misery we want others to comply to our complaints.

Max Lucado tells of a man who came home one day and immediately his wife started complaining which led to an intense argument.  Arriving at 6:30 in the evening, he spent an hour trying to make things right.  Nothing worked.  Finally, he said, “Let’s start over and pretend I’m just getting home.”  He stepped outside and when he opened the door, she said, “It’s 7:30 and you’re just now getting home!”

She found something new to gripe about.

When you have a heart that is focused on the negative, then it is easy to go on the attack.  Grumbling can often be detected by the pronouns we choose to use.  If you are saying, “he” or “she” or “they” more than “we” and us” you are probably a grumbler.

If you are using “you” statements more than “I” statements, then you are arguing.

Throughout this epistle Paul has been emphasizing humility, which puts others needs ahead of our own.  Notice in these passages how pride leads to arguing.

Proverbs 13:10 says “By insolence [pride] comes nothing but strife…

Galatians 5:26 warns us, “Let us not become conceited, provoking one another…”

If grumbling is discontent over not getting what we want; arguing is the attempt to get what we want.

Both are poison to community—to any relationship, the marriage relationship, churches.

Whenever two people get close enough, there will be friction, there will be conflict.  It is a given.  But if we operate from a position of believing the best in others, like 1 Corinthians 13:7 says) and a position of humility—putting others first, then we can deal with our needs and our differences in a more positive way.

Now the first word of verse 14 is “do all things” or “do everything.”  First, notice that the word “do” means that this is work; it will take effort.

Like I said earlier, we don’t have to work at grumbling and arguing, they come quite naturally.  We do have to make a conscious effort to live a life of trust and gratitude that produces better responses than grumbling and arguing.

And secondly, notice the word “all.”  The word order is literally, “all things do without” these two attitudes.  This inclusive word means there really is no place for grumbling and arguing in Christian community.  There are no situations in which grumblings and arguings are commendable.

So how do we stop griping and complaining?  How do we stop arguing with one another?

First, admit that complaining and arguing are sins.  They are not just “bad habits,” but a sin that needs to be put to death.  Oftentimes the most difficult part in learning how to change our complaining is to recognize it and admit it within ourselves.  It’s easy to see in others, but we are often blind to it in ourselves.

Second, accept personal responsibility for your tendency to complain and argue.

Third, work on the attitude of gratitude (1 Thess. 5:18).  Make it a habit of thanking God and others for what they have done and are doing for you.  Look for the positives.

Fourth, identity God’s hand of providence in your negative circumstances.  He is working all things for your good.  When you gripe and complain, you are saying challenging God’s wisdom, doubting God’s grace and forgetting God’s goodness to you.

Fifth, develop a habit of speaking positively, staying focused on the positive.  Just like complaining can be a bad habit, speaking positive, encouraging words can be a new habit.  Be kind and positive, even if you have to force yourself at first.

But what do we do in a circumstance where we have been truly wronged?  Here is where Jesus’ instructions in Matthew 18:15 apply:

15 “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother.

This passage assumes that someone has wronged you or hurt you in some way.

First, we are to keep it to ourselves.  We are not to murmur to others.

Second, we should approach the offender with an attitude of trying to find a positive solution.  We are not aiming to win, but to find a mutually agreeable solution, just like the early church did in Acts 6.

Galatians 6:2 tells us we should go with a meek and humble spirit.

Also, fourth, we should give the other person the benefit of the doubt.  Maybe we misinterpreted his or her words or actions.

Fifth, make sure you are quick to hear, meaning that you are willing to listen to their side as well.

Sixth, the next two verses in Matthew tell us not to give up on the other person.  If they don’t respond to your initial confrontation, then bring a witness and try again.

Paul’s prohibition against “complaining or arguing” should be interpreted primarily in light of the interpersonal conflicts that were going on at Philippi.  Paul knew that the unity of the church was a precious and fragile thing and we all have to work at it to keep it.  Christ prayed for it and the Spirit provides it, but we have to maintain it.

Unfortunately, the Philippians, like you and me, were doing those things that generated unfriendliness towards each other.  They were focusing on the negative in their situation and each other and they were more than willing to argue with each other.  These attitudes were stoking the flames of the tensions they already felt towards one another.

Critical, complaining spirits are the historic bane of the church from Philippi to Peoria, Illinois to Philadelphia.  They are found in every culture, like the nineteenth-century Scots who went to church to see if the gospel was preached.  Or today’s McChurch worshippers who leave their church to go down the street to find a church more to their liking.

If we are reading Paul correctly, “do[ing] all things without grumbling or disputing” is a watershed state of the soul.  Those who persist in such murmuring are not obedient to Christ and his gospel and are rejecting the divine call to “work out your own salvation” (v. 12).  They impede their own souls and the souls of their brothers and sisters in this matter.  They are undertows to the Body of Christ.  So if you are one of these people, understand that when you finally stand before your Savior, you will answer with shame.

Our unity is what makes the world sit up and take notice.  When they can see us loving one another despite our differences and forgiving sins committed against one another, it is by far the best example, the shining example, as Paul will say in verse 15, of Christ living in us.

Unfortunately, what the world usually takes notice of is our fighting.  And that grieves the heart of our Lord who prayed for, and died for, our unity.

Last week we began looking at this wonderful expression of how we are sanctified—that it is a synergistic cooperation between God’s grace and our determined effort.  We find it in Philippians 2:12-13

12 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

We saw last week that Paul is encouraging them to obey his commands to fight for unity and to live selflessly like Jesus did.  He tells them to “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling…” and we saw that this is a determined and continuous action on our part.  We also noted that this is a corporate action.

But what does Paul mean here?

Well, to be clear, Paul is not talking about working for our salvation.  Our justification is complete and secure.  We cannot lose it or improve upon it.  Paul is not telling them to work for their salvation, as if it depended at all upon them.

We should not even consider this as an option, because we know how dogmatic Paul is about the fact that men are saved by faith in Jesus Christ, apart from works (Romans 3:19-30; Galatians 2:20-21; 3:1-29; Ephesians 2:8-10; Titus 3:4-7).  Paul expects his readers to understand that while we are not saved “by our works,” we are saved “unto good works” (Ephesians 2:8-10).

Rather, Paul is telling them to work out the practical implications of being saved.  He is not saying that there is something deficient with their justification, but that they needed to keep working on their sanctification.  Salvation can be compared to a huge gift that needs to be unwrapped for one’s thorough enjoyment.

We are justified by God entirely as an act of His grace, with absolutely no effort or earning on our part.

Again, this command is plural.  They were not told to work for their salvation but to work out the salvation God had already given them.  Because of the apparent problems of disunity and pride among those believers, this interpretation seems correct.  Some were not doing their work selflessly and with the interests of others ahead of their own (cf. 2:3–4).

A fourth comment on this statement is that it should be done “with fear and trembling,” indicating just how seriously we should take this command.  It is not optional.

Now, we don’t usually associate “fear and trembling” with God’s gracious provision of salvation.  Usually, we consider these words to be more appropriate to the old covenant and God’s wrath against sin.

“Fear and trembling” are words that speak of being “exceedingly afraid” and “quaking with fear.”  These are not tame words!  But then, our God is not a tame God.

The Scriptures call us to love God and to trust God.  But the call to fear God occurs more times in the Scriptures than both of these put together.  Even the New Testament calls us to fear God in passages like 1 Peter 1:15-17; Hebrews 12:28-29; 2 Corinthians 7:1; 2 Corinthians 5:10-11.

But I don’t think Paul is calling us to “work out our salvation” because we are afraid we might lose it.  Rather, we are to fear the possibility that we might lose out on opportunities for growth, on the opportunity to gain rewards, on the possibility we might lose ground spiritually or lose our testimony.

It seems to refer to the idea that we should be afraid that we might miss out on all that God has for us.

I think that basically what Paul is trying to do here is to get us to take our spiritual lives and spiritual growth more seriously than we do.  We need to realize that there is a spiritual battle going on, that people’s eternal destinies are at stake, that every day we are faced with opportunities to sow to the flesh or to the spirit, and every day we have only so many opportunities to make an impact on the lives of those around us.

We can waste our lives away, or be serious about spiritual growth.  Paul is telling us to work at it as though it was the most important thing in your life, as though your life depending upon it.

This seriousness is expressed in such passages as 2 Peter 1:10-11,

10 Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to make your calling and election sure, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. 11 For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Do you want a rich entrance into the kingdom?  Do you want to keep from falling?  Then “be all the more diligent” in your spiritual life.

Too many people would rather have a rich now than a rich forever.

Tragically, we in the church in America are very lazy when it comes to fulfilling God’s desires for our lives.  When we examine the lives of the men and women of Scripture and throughout church history we fall tragically short of their legacies.

Will you run with all your might, stretching towards the finish line?

Now, in verse 13, we see that we are to work out what God is working in us.

work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

We work out what God is working in us.

Believe me, spiritual formation is only possible because God is at work prior to us doing anything.  The word “for” at the beginning of verse 13 indicates that the very possibility of us “working out our salvation” depends upon God first working “in us.”

Every act of spiritual formation we take finds its initiative in the fact that God is already at work in us.

The good news is that we are not left to ourselves to accomplish higher spiritual goals, but God is working ahead of us and within us to make this possible.

Notice first of all that it is God who is working in us.  Paul emphasizes this by the way he puts it:  “it is God who works in you” rather than merely “God works in you.”

Most of the pagan gods were impersonal and removed from human interaction.  But the God of Christianity is involved with us…each of us…on a personal level as if we were the only person on earth.

And God has unlimited power and resources to give to us.  We should never attempt to excuse ourselves from pushing ahead spiritually.

Peter says, “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness” (2 Peter 1:3).

Second, the word “work” in verse 13 is different from the word that Paul used in v. 12.  Here Paul uses energeo, from which we get energy.  Literally, “God is the Energizing One in you.”

This word means to “work effectively,” to bring an action to an effective end.

He grants energy for the work we need to do.  He is our power supply—not an impersonal thing, but a loving supplier of all we need for life and godliness.

Third, this word is a present participle, indicating that God is always, in every instance, working in you.  You may not always feel it, but it is always present.

Fourth, notice where God is working…it is “in you.”  That is where the Spirit is present in our lives.  God always works from the inside out.  True spiritual formation is not first about our adopting spiritual practices, but about the working of God in us.

Charles Spurgeon says…

In a certain sense, the salvation of every person who believes in Christ is complete, and complete without any working out on his part, seeing that “it is finished,” and we are complete in Jesus.  Observe that there are two parts of our salvation, the one complete, the other as yet incomplete, though guaranteed to be brought to perfection. The first part of our salvation consists of a work for us; the second, of a work in us…

Fifth, note what God is working in us—“both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”

In other words, God puts the desire in us to say “no” to temptation and to move towards godliness.  And, he provides the enablement to do this.

Desires are, in many ways, the most important thing about us. “Desire is the powerful subtext of our lives.  It determines our decisions.  This is why we need to pay attention to it.  If we are to change, desire must change” (Jen Pollock Michel).

Without God putting the desire for godliness in our hearts, we would not naturally desire it.  Unless he gives us the power, we would be unable to do it.

We know from common experience that there are two aspects to every conscious action: the hidden will and the outward work.  But God does more than merely strengthen our willing and doing.  Paul’s explanation goes deeper.  “God himself is working in us both to will and to act: he works in us at the level of our wills and at the level of our doing” (Carson).  God works in us, not merely with us.

Pascal’s approving quotation of Augustine will help our thinking along.  Augustine wrote, “Our deeds are our own, because of the free will producing them, and they are also God’s, because of his grace causing our free will to produce them.”

And he says elsewhere, “God makes us do what he pleases by making us desire what we might not desire.”  The work that God does in us “both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (emphasis added) is expansive and complete.

Every time you desire to do something good and loving, guess who put that there…God!

Every time you successfully overcome temptation or accomplish a ministry that you wouldn’t have believed you could do, guess who gave you the strength….God!

Charles Williams says…

“The believer could not even desire the higher life of conquest over self and sin, and the sanctification of character and conduct, except as God through the Spirit works and helps him both to will and to work, to desire and do” (Charles B. Williams, A Commentary on the Pauline Epistles, p. 336).

Thomas Constable adds:

This verse is one of the most comforting in the New Testament.  Sometimes we want to do right, but seem to lack the energy or ability.  This verse assures us that God will help us.  At other times, we cannot even seem to want to do right.  Here we learn that God can also provide the desire to do His will when we do not have it.  If we find that we do not want to do right, we can ask God to work in us to create a desire to do His will. This verse gives us confidence that God desires both to motivate and to enable us.

Are you glad that God is working in your will?  Some people are uncomfortable with that thought.  Some would rather we keep our wills “free” and uninfluenced by anyone.

But the reality is, our will is never absolutely free.  It is always being influenced by someone or something.  Before we came to Christ our wills were heavily influenced by the world, the flesh and Satan’s forces (cf. 2 Timothy 2:25; Romans 12:2; Ephesians 2:1-3).

So I am glad that God is working in me, giving me new, holy desires and giving me the strength to be able to carry out those desires.

So notice how these two verses argue against both quietism (being totally passive, “let go and let God”) and pietism (doing all the work ourselves).  Philippians 2:12-13 argues that our sanctification depends upon diligent effort on our part, but the only possible way that happens is precisely because God has already been, and always is, working in us giving us the desire and the ability to put in diligent effort.

If we had only verse 12, we would conclude that spiritual maturity is all up to us.  If we only had verse 13, we would assume that it is all up to God.

But both verses together indicates that our sanctification involves our effort, but that it is God who initiates it and ultimately accomplishes it.

So how do we stay balanced?  We work hard at our sanctification with a conscious dependence upon God to provide both the desire and power to accomplish it.  It is a dependent discipline, not simply a dogged discipline on our part, but a discipline that depends upon God every moment, every step of the way.

The motivation for all this—for our sanctification—is “God’s good pleasure.”

Just like the exaltation of Christ is for the glory of God, so our sanctification and eventual glorification serves “God’s good pleasure.”

One might very well get the impression that God does everything to suit Himself, whether we like it or not.  There is a certain measure of truth here, which I do not in any way wish to deny. He is sovereign, and that means God can do what He wishes.  No one has said it any better than Nebuchadnezzar:

31 While the words were still in the king’s mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, “O King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: The kingdom has departed from you, 32 and you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. And you shall be made to eat grass like an ox, and seven periods of time shall pass over you, until you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will.” 33 Immediately the word was fulfilled against Nebuchadnezzar. He was driven from among men and ate grass like an ox, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven till his hair grew as long as eagles’ feathers, and his nails were like birds’ claws. 34 At the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High, and praised and honored him who lives forever, for his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation;

My concern is that we may get the impression that God pleases Himself at our expense.  Surely Philippians 2:5-11 would challenge this.  God does glorify Himself at the expense of His enemies.  But I am convinced that when God acts to please Himself, He is also acting in a way that is for our benefit, as believers in Him.  Is this not the point of Romans 8:28?  God causes all things to work together for our good and for His glory.  Our good (that is, the “good” of Christians) is what glorifies God.  This is part of the reason we do everything to the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31).

He works in us for sanctification because it brings him joy.

It is all for the pleasure of our God.  Not just pleasure, but good pleasure.

At the very least, I believe Paul is saying that we should be humbled to realize that God is the One at work in us to will and to work His benevolent purposes for us. It may even be that Paul has structured this verse in a way that implies that the goal of God’s working is for His pleasure and ours.

Further, his “good pleasure” is, by virtue of his love for us, our great good.  And here, in respect to the Philippian church, what pleases God is an end to the dissensions among them, which would also be for their good.

Paul’s magnificent “therefore” sentence of verses 12, 13 is meant to be sweetly motivational: “Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”

What an incentive this was to this beloved church to carry on!

How do we grow?  We grow when God works in us.  And we grow when we work out what God is working in us.

John Ortberg compares it to crossing the ocean.  If we set out in a rowboat by ourselves, we’ll never cross that ocean.  We don’t have what it takes.  But if we just drift, expecting God to blow us across the ocean, that won’t work either.

Neither trying nor drifting are effective in bringing about spiritual transformation.  A better image is the sailboat, which if it moves at all, it’s a gift of the wind.  We can’t control the wind, but a good sailor discerns where the wind is blowing and adjusts the sails accordingly.

God works, and then we work out what God is working in us.

This morning we’re going to talk about spiritual formation, or sanctification.  I know that the term “spiritual formation” is falling out of favor these days because it is linked to eastern mystical practices.

What I mean by spiritual formation is the process of becoming transformed into the likeness of Christ, that is initiated and sustained through a variety of experiences and relationships so that one might better glorify God and serve others.

Now, we could spend a whole morning unpacking that definition.  What we’re talking about is spiritual growth, growing in godliness, living in the Spirit.

The theological term for it is sanctification.

Now, when we think of sanctification, there are three phases of sanctification: definitive or positional sanctification, progressive sanctification, and final sanctification.

Definitive sanctification happens the moment I accept Christ as my Savior.  The Holy Spirit places me into Christ and God now sees me as having Christ’s complete righteousness instead of my unrighteousness.  This is why Paul called even the Corinthians saints.  They weren’t acting saintly but in God’s eyes, because they were united to Christ, they were holy and perfectly righteous.

Progressive sanctification is the moment-by-moment, step-by-step attempts we make to become more like Christ in our desires, our attitudes, our motives, our thoughts, our speech and our behavior.

Whereas nothing can happen to change our definitive sanctification—we will always be saints in God’s eyes, our progressive sanctification will face times of failure.  When we sin, we have to repent and confess our sins and get back on the right track.

Then there is our ultimate sanctification.  The moment we die or when Christ returns, we shall see Him and be changed into His purity.

Also, there are a variety of theories about progressive sanctification—how it occurs.  There are two unbiblical extremes—quietism and pietism.

Quietists believe that the will of the Christian is quiet, or passive in sanctification.  Concerning Quietism, John MacArthur writes, “Quietism tends to be mystical and subjective, focusing on personal feelings and experiences. A person who is utterly submitted to and dependent on God, they say, will be divinely protected from sin and led into faithful living. Trying to strive against sin or to discipline oneself to produce good works is considered to be not only futile but unspiritual and counterproductive” (John MacArthur, Philippians, p. 152).

A second extreme is Pietism.  Advocates of this approach to spiritual growth are “aggressive in their pursuit of correct doctrine and moral purity. Historically, this movement originated in seventeenth-century Germany as a reaction to the dead orthodoxy of many Protestant churches.  To their credit, most pietists place strong emphasis on Bible study, holy living, self-discipline, and practical Christianity….Yet they often stress self-effort to the virtual exclusion of dependence on divine power” (John MacArthur, Philippians, pp. 152-153).

Both Quietism and Pietism fail for the same reason: They place importance upon only one side of the process of sanctification.

• Quietism places more emphasis upon resting in God by faith.
• Pietism places more emphasis upon the diligent, unrelenting pursuit of holiness.

But growing in Christ requires both personal responsibility and dependence upon God in faith.  Jerry Bridges, who passed away just a couple of years ago, helps us understand the importance of keeping these two equally-true priorities in tension with one another.

In his first book, The Pursuit of Holiness (1978), he emphasized every Christian’s personal responsibility to be diligent in godliness.  God expects us to wage war against the remaining sin in our lives and run the Christian race with great effort.  We are not to flirt with sin, but fight against it.

In a later book, Transformed by Grace (1991), he wrote of the energizing power of God’s grace to transform us into Christlikeness.  In that book, he warned believers to beware of the “Performance Treadmill,” the never-ending tendency to base our relationship with God upon our personal, spiritual performance.

Then, in 1993, he wrote The Discipline of Grace, which combined personal responsibility and divine empowerment into one. The book’s subtitle says it all: God’s Role and Our Role in the Pursuit of Holiness. It’s these two truths which the apostle Paul lays, side by side, before us:

12 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

Now remember, this passage is part of the section that begin in Philippians 1:27, which said:

27 Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel,

Then Paul began to explain what a life “worthy of the gospel” was like by showing the example of Jesus Christ denying Himself and living for others.  Paul will go on to show through his own example (2:16-18), Timothy’s example (2:19-22) and Epaphroditus’ example (2:23-25) that our aim should be to live for the sake of others.  That is true love.

Thus, in order to become more and more like Jesus Christ, we have to put more and more of ourselves to death and live for His glory and the service of others.

So let’s take apart these two verses to see what they have to say about spiritual formation.

1. We are to “work out our salvation” both corporately and personally.

Notice that Paul begins verse 12 with the word “therefore,” and we should always ask, “What’s is there for?”  It is pointing us back to the previous section about the self-giving example of Jesus Christ.

We are to model our spiritual path after Christ Jesus.  He is our model, not some other Christian, no matter how spiritual or popular.

You are not to become like me (thank God!) but like Jesus Christ.

And our goal is not to accomplish some spiritual milestone (like fast for 40 days or memorize the entire New Testament), but rather being fully satisfied with Christ and committed to becoming more like Him in our attitudes, motives, feelings, affections, thoughts, words and behaviors.

We are to follow His leadership and His example.

Others can help us.  Paul says “Imitate me” (1 Corinthians 11:1) but the ultimate goal is to become like Christ.  Even Paul says “follow me as I follow Christ.”

Not only does the “therefore” refer us back to Christ’s example, but it also refers us back to the reason why Paul used Christ’s example in the first place—because it is the best example of self-denying humility and love, which in turn is the best antidote to conflict in the church.

You see, most of us believe that the ultimate end of spiritual formation is our own growth, and our own feelings of security and satisfaction in that growth.  But in reality, spiritual formation does not end with us and our feelings, but rather we become spiritually mature SO THAT we might serve others.  Otherwise, our efforts are spiritual formation become self-serving and self-promoting, leading to pride.

Notice that Paul addresses the Philippians as “my beloved.”  He is drawing upon the deep love relationship that they shared.  He is appealing to them as a friend, not as a military drill sergeant.

This should also remind them that they are God’s “beloved,” that He loves them deeply (as illustrated by Christ’s willingness to humble himself and die for them) and it is that love that motivates them to obedience.

Nothing motivates us to obedience like knowing that we are deeply and passionately loved by the one asking us for our obedience.

The first part of verse 12 reminds us that “working out our salvation” is largely an issue of obeying what God has asked of us.

Remember that Jesus is now and will one day be universally proclaimed as “Lord,” therefore He has the right to ask for our submission to Him.  No one makes Jesus, Lord.  He is Lord.  The response of saving faith is to recognize this reality and submit to His rightful rule over our lives.

And notice that future obedience becomes easier because of past obedience.  Paul reminds them that they had initially responded positively to God’s commands (cf. Acts 16:14, 32-33).  So he uses the “as then, so now” formula to say, “As you obeyed before, so continue to obey now.”

“Past action becomes a model and a motivating force for present and future conduct.” (Gerald Hawthorne, “Philippians” in Word Biblical Commentary, p. 98).  In other words, the capacity to obey God builds up over time.  Initially, it may seem difficult to obey God, but like most other activities, the more we do it the easier it gets.  So, don’t give up trying to obey God.

Spiritual formation happens best in community, when someone takes the responsibility to mentor us, encouraging us and challenging us to obedience, just like Paul had with the Philippians when he had spent time with them.

We will also see this corporate emphasis in the works “work out your salvation,” for the pronoun “your” there is plural.  Here in the South we would say, “work out ya’lls salvation.”

But, spiritual formation is also a personal issue (not so much private as personal), meaning that we ultimately have to take responsibility for our own spiritual growth.  We cannot delegate that to someone else.  And we don’t really have to depend on their continual encouragement or accountability.

Ultimately we have to take responsibility for ourselves.

Paul is telling them, “You need to learn to do this on your own.  You don’t need me to be there—just keep growing, keep maturing.”  It was even more important that they purpose to obey in Paul’s absence, since his “presence” among them provided a measure of external motivation for them.

Lutheran commentator R. C. H. Lenski notes:

“There is always a tendency to relax obedience when the spiritual leader is absent.”

It is possible to lose our momentum when we don’t have others checking on us.  It is also possible to blame others for not being there to encourage us and support us.

Yes, community is important to spiritual growth and it is vital that we have people in our lives to pray for us, encourage us, challenge us and hold us accountable.  But, we have to take responsibility for our own spiritual lives.

We should look for mentors, we should look for teachers.  But ultimately we have to learn to feed ourselves and hold ourselves accountable.

2. We are to “work out our salvation” with seriousness

The rest of verse 12 indicates our responsibility in sanctification: “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling…”

Let’s note several things about this statement…

First, it calls for determined action on our part.  The word for “work out” is katergazomai, a word that means “to put energy into an activity until you get it done.”  It focuses not merely upon the process, but the accomplishment of the intended goal.  “Work out this math problem” means to work at it until you solve it.

In Paul’s day, it was also used for “working a mine,” that is, getting out of the mine all the valuable ore possible; or “working a field” to get the greatest harvest possible.

Sophocles used katergazomai in the sense of overcoming all opposition, to accomplish something despite obstacles and difficulty.  It is a command for sustained effort, diligence and hard work, until the goal is achieved.

Other passages indicate this sense of using all our energies to accomplish our goal of becoming like Christ.

In 1 Corinthians 9, Paul told them…

24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize?  So run that you may obtain it. 25 Every athlete exercises self-control in all things.  They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. 26 So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. 27 But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.

And also in 1 Timothy 4:7 Paul says “train yourself for godliness…”

In both of these passages the emphasis is placed upon our personal responsibility to do everything we can for godliness.  It doesn’t happen without effort.  It requires discipline.  Discipline is very much a part of becoming more like Jesus Christ.

There is no such thing as drifting into godliness.  You can drift into sin.  Without effort we will just flow with the current of our culture.  We will be inclined to worldliness.  It will be easy for us to sin.

We need discipline.  We need to train ourselves.  We need to exercise ourselves toward personal holiness.  This is personal responsibility.

We tend to be lazy when it comes to our spiritual lives.  We don’t see the stress fractures right away.  That’s why Paul tells us not to be deceived, in Galatians 6, we will eventually reap what we sow.  But since we don’t reap immediately, we get discouraged that our discipline is not paying off.

But just like physical exercise doesn’t immediately make us healthier and stronger, so spiritual exercise takes awhile to show visible results.

In the context, the Philippians as a body are to work out their problems and come to unity.   They are to produce the fruit of their salvation, that is, peace, love, and harmony in the Spirit.

Another thing to notice about this command is that it is a continuous action.  We have to keep at it and never let up until our “salvation” is achieved.

Paul will express it this way in Philippians 3:12-14

12 Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. 13 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Too often we misunderstand that to live by grace means that we put no effort into the Christian life.  But grace doesn’t oppose effort, it opposes earning.  Grace means that we cannot possibly earn God’s favor, it has been freely given.

Rather, grace is the best motivation for passionate effort.  When we’ve seen God gracious God has been to us, we want to respond to Him and become like Him.

As Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15:10

10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain.  On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me.

Paul keeps that balance—he worked harder, but it was the grace of God with him that motivated him and enabled him to work hard.