‘Not that I have already grasped it all or have already become perfect, but I press on if I may also take hold of that for which I was even taken hold of by Christ Jesus. Brothers and sisters, I do not regard myself as having taken hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. ‘ Philippians 3:12-14
Where does your mind go when things do not seem to go your way?
Does it go to the people that are involved? And what do they need to change for it to be right with you?
In our difficulties, God will reveal where our hearts are with Him. If one thing has shown itself repeatedly, it is in our struggles and trials that we seem more inclined to reach out to God for help. When things appear to be going smoothly for us, why do we need God? Right? Wrong…
Paul was a man who knew trouble and trials, yet he penned these words while in prison, falsely accused:
”Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that my circumstances have turned out for the greater progress of the gospel, so that my imprisonment in the cause of Christ has become well known throughout the praetorian guard and to everyone else, and that most of the brothers and sisters, trusting in the Lord because of my imprisonment, have far more courage to speak the word of God without fear. Some, to be sure, are preaching Christ even from envy and strife, but some also from goodwill; the latter do it out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel; the former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition rather than from pure motives, thinking that they are causing me distress in my imprisonment. What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in this I rejoice. But not only that, I also will rejoice, for I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayers and the provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, according to my eager expectation and hope, that I will not be put to shame in anything, but that with all boldness, Christ will even now, as always, be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death.“ Philippians 1:12-20
Here, he is in prison, falsely accused, but he is telling everyone he comes in contact with about the Gospel while in chains.
He has people preaching with two intentions: One group out of pure motives and another out of selfish ambition. I find this interesting; he does not put down one group over the other but is filled with joy that Christ is being proclaimed regardless of the intentions.
I don’t know about you, but I find it hard to be joyful when I am falsely accused while others are envious, causing me strife. But not Paul; he knows that when the name of Jesus is proclaimed, lives will change.
In the”Christian” community, we spend a lot of time pointing fingers at others and arguing with each other over our interpretation of scripture. Some post videos that get tons of views daily, pointing out the flaws in what others are saying or not saying. People are called out as being false teachers every day online.
There is a place to call these people out, but I don’t think it is behind a microphone and video camera. I would be more impressed if that time were spent helping their neighbors. They would encourage me to do the same.
But these videos are done to get views on YouTube. If you accumulate enough views, you can earn money. Again, I would be encouraged if this person took all that money they made and helped their neighbors.
“But if not, I would put these folks in the “selfish ambition” category.
But here is the good news, as Paul would want us to understand it: if the name of Jesus is being proclaimed, we are to rejoice despite its intention.
The power is in the name of Jesus. It is the most divisive name ever proclaimed. Both believers and unbelievers know the name. The faith that God puts in the individual’s heart determines the course of their lives.
I will try to explain this as I see it: I do not believe there is anything to be gained from the “Prosperity” gospel, but I think God can use the name of Jesus to affect the heart of someone sitting in their church. When that person listens to what is being said and hears the name of Jesus, God stirs in their heart; they start to research scripture on their own. God continues to work through the Spirit, who reveals the revelation of God’s word.
They realize that where they attend isn’t right by the prompting of the Spirit. And they find a place that is faithful to the Word of God and continue their walk with Christ. They gently instruct those they know from the previous church, and God will use that to save even more.
I find it funny that we think we can get in the way of God. It’s prideful to believe so.
“Some will hang on every word you say, just to say, “I gotcha!!” As if there is a reward for finding fault with others.”Some will hang on every word that you say, to say, “I gotcha!!” As if there is a reward for finding fault with others.
”The Lord’s bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, skillful in teaching, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.“ 2 Timothy 2:24-26
Let’s break down this instruction from Paul, inspired by the Holy Spirit, to us:
The Lord’s bond-servant must not be quarrelsome
When the Lord calls us into His flock, we become slaves to Him and how He lived while He walked on this earth. We are to die daily to our desires and take on the desires of our Lord and Savior.
When you look at the example of Jesus, you will find that He called out the religious leaders of the day when confronted by them. Other than that, He spoke the truth, healed the sick, helped the blind see, and cast out demons. He did much more as written in the Gospels. But His primary focus was to find the lost and die for the sins of the world to give us freedom from our sins.
but be kind to all
Jesus was kind to everyone, especially to the marginalized people. The “written off” people. He was even kind to the religious leaders of the day, speaking the truth in love. Several of these leaders, I believe, came to the saving knowledge of Christ; Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea are a couple that come to mind. I’m sure there were more that were not written about.
skillful in teaching
There was no better teacher on the face of the earth than Jesus. I believe that Jesus spoke in parables so that the people being taught had to research the teaching further to understand it. I believe that if Jesus talked to us plainly about salvation, we would have had no other choice but to accept what He said at face value, negating the free will that God has provided us.
Paul is another example of a great teacher; God revealed knowledge that filled three-quarters of the New Testament to Him. The Book of Romans thoroughly explains the doctrine of the saving grace provided by God through Jesus Christ. And the rest of his epistles that give us practical instruction on how to live out our faith.
We are called to be able to teach. One of the key components of teaching is to have knowledge of what we are to teach which requires study of the subject. If you claim that you are a Christian and do not spend any time reading and studying God’s word, it is time to reexamine your heart before God. This is a spiritual discipline that can not be short cut.
patient when wronged
The question here is, how do you respond when people treat you wrong. Do you fly off the handle and demand apologies and respect? Or do you leave it in God’s hands? The world would have us believe that we deserve respect, but what we really deserve is hell. It is only by what Jesus did on the cross that makes us right before God, and that only if we willingly long for the grace that He provided us. And this faith can only come by God’s hand as well.
The example that Jesus provided was that He went to the cross without argument in order to make us right with God. Would we do the same?
”Greater love has no one than this, that a person will lay down his life for his friends.“
John 15:13
”Love is patient, love is kind, it is not jealous; love does not brag, it is not arrogant. It does not act disgracefully, it does not seek its own benefit; it is not provoked, does not keep an account of a wrong suffered, it does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; it keeps every confidence, it believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.“ 1 Corinthians 13:4-7
If you want a neat exercise, take the verses above from 1 Corinthians 13 and replace the words, “love” and “it” with your name, amazing and eye opening exercise. I fail all the time, which is why we can only be saved by what Jesus did on the cross for us.
with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition
Sometimes, we used the Word of God like a sledge hammer. We examine the world around us with God’s Word as if it is a magnifying glass. But the Word God is supposed to be used as a mirror for us to examine our lives against.
Not understanding this brought me to great dispair to the point where I wanted to end my life. By God’s grace, he made this clear to me. And I am thankful for this every day. When I realized this, my understanding took on a different trajectory. I began to become gentle in my dealing with others around me, bringing them back to God’s Word for instruction.
if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.
This is the most important part of this passage, it is God who grants the repentance, not me. My job is to “gently” instruct those, with patience, around me. That is what I am to be faithful to. God will handle the rest.
Let’s circle back to the folks calling out others, I do know this, God is in control, sovereignty. This does not absolve me from doing what He has called me to do, which is to “make disciples.” This requires me to evangize, witness and to love those around me, whether I agree with what they belive, their lifestyles, etc. But we are not doing our Lord any favors by hanging on every word that another says, looking for that “gotcha” moment.
”Let all who are spiritually mature agree on these things. If you disagree on some point, I believe God will make it plain to you. But we must hold on to the progress we have already made.“ Philippians 3:15-16
Let’s agree on this, “God will make it plain to us.” And as He does let us work with what we have up to this point.
Heavenly Father, thank You for Your Word.
I pray for my brothers and sisters in Christ, that they continue to seek You out in the Word You have provided. I pray that You give us the strength to examine our hearts against Your Word, more than looking at the world through the lens of the Bible.
I am thankful for those You have placed in my life, I pray that every thought that I allow into my mind, and every word that passes through my lips glorifies You. And beg for Your forgiveness if they don’t.
In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray, Amen!!
