Philippians: Practical Counsel

 

STOP — Philippians 4:2-9

Summarize

Unity is crucial to a healthy church. Paul asked two women, Euodia and Syntyche, to work out their difference and to continue to work together for the Kingdom. 

Worshipping with joy and living with grace are to characterize the Philippians lives. Rather than worrying they are to pray and through their prayer God will give them confidence and peace so they will be able to stand strong with Jesus.

To live with joy, grace, and confidence they need focus on what is true and good, things that are morally excellency and praiseworthy, because that will shape their thinking. They are to continue to follow Paul’s example and teaching.

Truth

Pay attention to your thoughts because your thoughts shape your attitudes and actions.

Observations

1. Unity is crucial. Euodia and Syntyche were helpful in the mission of proclaiming the Gospel. Their disagreement was a hinderance, so Paul that it was important to address the issue. It is crucial that we do our part to work through the disagreements we might have, because they can be hindering the mission of the church to make disciples.
2. Worshipping with joy is an important spiritual discipline for us to have. It reminds us of the good things God is doing and takes our minds off the difficulties. Rejoicing helps us to remember that God is working all things for good for His people.
3. When we aren’t joyful it is easy to worry. There are plenty of things to worry about, but when we have joy it is easier for us to turn those worries over to God, because we are confident that He will provide for our needs. If we are not praying we are missing out on a huge blessing of what it means to follow Jesus.
4. The biggest blessing of prayer is the peace, the confidence, that resides is our our hearts, helping us in times of doubt, worry, and discouragement.
5. Our thought life is extremely important. We need to be intentional about what we allow our minds to dwell on. This is why all forms of media need to be consumed moderately and wisely. We want our thoughts shaped by the things of Heaven and not the things of this world.
6. In our spiritual formation, having someone who can serve as an example for us is hugely impactful. Paul told the Philippians to follow his example and teaching. Even if we haven’t had a good mentor whom we can follow, we need to be aware that we are examples for our children, friends, and others around us to follow.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, may I be intentional about my worship of You. I want the focus of my life to be on You and not the things of this world so I can continue to grow into the person you created me to be.

Tomorrow: Philippians 4:10-23

Philippians: Reaching Forward for God’s Goal

 

STOP — Philippians 3:11-4:1

Summarize

Paul’s goal was to experience the resurrection of Jesus. After he explained his lofty goal Paul wanted to make sure the Philippians wasn’t saying he had achieved it. He considered himself still in progress, forgetting his past and moving for forward. This is the attitude Christians should have in discipleship, to not believe you have attained it, but to keep making progress towards maturity. Part of it progress is following the example of those who have more mature than we are. This is important to have good examples because there are false teachers who are motivated by their flesh rather than the spirit. Instead, Christians should remember that their citizenship is in heaven and that they have their hope is in the Resurrection and when Jesus returns to make everything right.

Truth

Be intentional about spiritual maturity.

Observations

1. Paul is not passive in his spiritual formation. He said he made every effort to take hold of the resurrection life that was available to him. His motivation was because of the love Jesus had showed him.
2. We are not to be held back by our past. God has forgiven us, and so we need to move on from the sins we have done. We do that by focusing on the hope that we have in Jesus. The promise of resurrection, justice, and restoration provide us with hope to keep moving forward with Jesus.
3. It is crucial to have examples of faith in our lives. Paul urged the Philippians to follow his example. Seeing something done is much more helpful than just reading about how something is done. Real life examples help us to know that a life of faith is possible and provides us with ideas of how we are to respond to the various issues that come up in our lives.
4. We need to be on our guard against false teachers. These false teachers are more concerned with life in this world and meeting the needs of the flesh than they are about Jesus and his kingdom. This is why it is crucial that we have good solid people that we can look to and who can encourage us through life.
5. We are citizens, first and foremost, of heaven. This means Jesus and his kingdom are to have our allegiance and loyalty above all else. United States citizenship is a distance second to the reality that We are citizens of heaven, and this should be seen in our actions.
6. Jesus will return and transform us into the people God created us to be. People who are led by the Spirit rather than the flesh. This is our hope, to be conformed to the image of Jesus.

Prayer

Father, transform my hope so I long for the coming of Your Kingdom and resurrection of Your people. May I continue on the path of spiritual formation until that day arrives.

Tomorrow: Philippians 4:2-9

Philippians: Knowing Christ

 

STOP — Philippians 3:7-11

Summarize

For Paul everything that he put his confidence and value in prior to Jesus has lost its worth. What matters to him now is knowing Jesus and having his life conformed to the way of Jesus through faith. Through this Paul hopes to experience the power of the resurrection in his life and witness the resurrection when Jesus returns.

Truth

Knowing Jesus is the most important part of our lives.

Observations

1. Paul was at the top of his world before Jesus. He had every reason to be confident and boastful about who he was and what he had achieved. After Jesus the things he thought were the most important: his obedience to the Law, his ancestry, his identity as a Pharisee and Jew...all of it was worth nothing compared to Jesus.
2. Paul’s attitude towards knowing Jesus causes me to reflect on my relationship with Jesus and I am reminded how easy it is for me to value other things. I want that faith that Paul had to believe that knowing Jesus is the most important part of life.
3. Our righteousness is not based on our actions but on Jesus. Often we can feel like failures because we realize how we have fallen short of God’s will for our lives. That is why we need to be reminded that through faith we receive Jesus’s righteousness. We don’t have to be discouraged, rather we keep submitting to discipleship in the belief that God will transform our lives in the process.
4. Paul’s goal was to experience the power of the resurrection. First, he wanted to experience in his life, that it would transform his life as he did the will of God and suffered in that work. Second, he hoped to experience the resurrection when Jesus returned to restore the world, make everything right, and bring his people back to life. The resurrection was central to Paul’s hope.

Prayer

Lord God, help me to experience knowing Jesus as the most important part of my life. May I not be satisfied with lesser things, but have a growing hunger for the resurrection life that Jesus has for people.

Tomorrow: Philippians 3:12-4:1

Asking for a Friend: Can I Trust the Bible?

Everyone has questions. Some questions we can find the answer with a quick search on Google. Other questions are more intimidating. Questions that surround our faith can be scary because we worry about what the answer might be and whether or not those answer will affect our faith. What ends up happening is that we ignore the question, but that question still lingers in the back of our mind.

In Asking for a Friend we want to look at a few of these questions and see if there is a way to provide an answer to them that will not only strengthen our faith, but also help us see the world through a more Christian perspective.

In the first sermon we answer the question, “Can I Trust the Bible?” 

This is the foundational question that must be answered before looking at any of the other questions. As Christians we want our beliefs to be rooted in Scripture, and if we can’t trust what the Bible has to say then it will be impossible to have a Christian answer to the questions that we have.

Text: 2 Timothy 3:14-17

Big Idea: We can trust the Bible to give us the truth we need to live as God’s people.

Challenge: Study Philippians with me at www.paulsponderings.com