Sharing the Gospel Clearly--Life with God Series

            In some ways, communicating with other people is easier than ever these days. If I need to get a hold of you about something, I have close to ten different ways to do that. I can meet with you in person, send you a letter, send you an e-mail, or call your home phone. If you’re not at home, that’s no big deal, because I can call your cell phone or text you or video chat with you or send you a Facebook message.

            But ironically, communicating about important matters is just as hard as ever. One of the keys for good communication is to have your message crystal-clear in your own mind. If you’re confused about what you want to say, then there’s very little chance that you can make your point clear to someone else.

            With that thought in mind, we’re going to take a look today at what the message of the Gospel truly is. Last week, we talked about finding the boldness to tell others about the Gospel, but the truth is that we will never feel very bold until we have the essence of the Gospel clearly defined in our own minds. So first, let’s talk about what the Gospel is not, then we’ll look at a passage that tells us clearly what it is.

What the Gospel is NOT

1. It is not the entire story contained in the Bible

            As Christians ourselves, we know that Christians are familiar with the story of the Bible from Creation all the way to the Book of Revelation. The Gospel is not that entire story, however—it’s a much smaller slice of that story. When you’re sharing the Gospel, then, it’s not necessary to tell the whole story of the Bible. That’s nice to know, because it makes the thought of sharing the Gospel a little less daunting.

2. It is not an explanation of how Christians think or behave

            Sometimes we get in conversations about why Christians do or do not do certain things, and while those are good conversations to have, we need to realize that talking about some part of a Christian lifestyle is not the same as sharing the Gospel. So if you explain to someone why Christians don’t use the Lord’s name in vain, that’s good—but it’s not the same thing as sharing the Gospel.

The Heart of the Gospel—1 Corinthians 15:1-8

            So what is the Gospel? The Apostle Paul reveals the heart of it in 1 Corinthians 15:1-8 [READ].

            These verses present two main claims about Jesus, which form the heart of the Gospel. For each claim, there is also a piece of evidence or proof given that establishes the truth of the claim. The first claim is that Christ died for our sins. The proof of this is that he was buried. The second claim is that He was raised on the third day. The proof of this claim is that he appeared to many different people.

            It is the claims mentioned here that form the heart of the Gospel. The proofs are important, of course, because they tell us that the claims are true, but when you are sharing the Gospel with someone else, it’s not entirely necessary to emphasize the proofs unless the other person asks for some reasons to believe the claims. And so, it is these claims about Jesus—that He died for our sins and then was raised—that form the core of this message that we call “the Gospel.”

            Notice two other details from this passage—details that also form a central part of the Gospel. Paul stated in v. 3 that it was Christ who died for our sins. This little word reminds us of what people must believe about Jesus in order to be saved.

            Remember that the word “Christ” is not Jesus’ last name. In fact, it’s not part of His name at all; rather, it’s a title that describes who Jesus is. The title “Christ” means “anointed one” or “chosen one,” so Paul’s usage of the title here reminds us that it wasn’t just a mere man who died for our sins—it was God’s chosen one. And why was Jesus God’s chosen one? Because He was in fact the Son of God—fully divine, just as God the Father is divine.

            So this truth must also be communicated when we share the Gospel. The only reason why Jesus’ death had any benefit for us at all is because He was the Christ—God’s own Son, designated (or anointed or chosen) to be the Savior of the world.

            And how is it that we receive the benefits that Christ’s death and resurrection have provided for us? That’s what Paul told us in vv. 1-2—“which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved.” We receive forgiveness for our sins simply by receiving it from Christ—accepting Him for who He is, and resting in what He has done for us.

            This picture of “standing” upon the Gospel is a helpful one for explaining what it means to accept Jesus in faith. As far as my confidence of being forgiven is concerned, I take my stand entirely upon these facts—that the Son of God died for my sins and was raised on the third day. I stand on that foundation and no other. I don’t have one foot on Christ and one foot on my own good works—no, I have both feet planted firmly on Christ.

So these verses in 1 Corinthians 15 give us the heart of the Gospel. Christ, God’s chosen one—the very Son of God—died for my sins and was raised on the third day. I receive forgiveness for my sins simply by receiving Christ—in other words, taking my stand upon what He accomplished for me. That is the heart of the message that we desire to share with others so that they can be saved. But how might approach the actual act of sharing that message?

How Can We Share the Gospel?

            Obviously, there are many different ways that we can share this message. The variety is just as wide as the variety of people we meet and the variety of conversations that we have. Perhaps in your life you have memorized certain ways of sharing the Gospel, such as the Romans Road. These can be good and helpful, but above all, it is most important to simply have the heart of the Gospel clearly defined in your own mind so that you are free to share this message in a variety of ways.

Telling Your Own Conversion Story

            Today, though, I would like you to think about how you could share the Gospel in the context of telling your own conversion story. I’d like to suggest this thought for two reasons.

Why share your story?

1. Our culture places a high value on a person’s life story/personal perspective.

            Now, our culture does take this respect way too far by saying that I can decide what’s true for me from the context of my life story, and you can decide what’s true for you from the context of your life story. That’s going too far, but nevertheless, our culture does consider it a virtue to show respect for another person’s life story or personal perspective, so we can use that fact to our advantage.

2. Sharing your conversion story is less intimidating and is not directly confrontational

            It is less intimidating in part because it is a more natural conversation. We talk about our lives with lots of friends and acquaintances all the time. We talk about what we did over the weekend, where we grew up; we talk about our hobbies. So when we talk about our conversion stories, it’s a pretty natural step from the kinds of conversations that we have all the time.

            It’s also a less intimidating approach because it’s easier to remember. We can all remember our conversion stories because we lived through them. If you’re trying to rely on a memorized presentation, though, there’s always that fear that you might forget the next verse you’re supposed to quote!

            Also, sharing your story is not directly confrontational. Someone might dismiss your story, but they can’t really argue with it. They might say, “I’m glad that’s worked for you,” but they can’t honestly say, “You’re lying! You didn’t find comfort in the Gospel during that hard time in your life!”

Two Ways to Structure Your Story

            Even though you know your own conversion story well, it can still be helpful to think about how to share your story. If you have even a very simple outline in mind, it can help you share clearly and make sure you emphasize the Gospel. Let me suggest two different outlines that might be a good fit for your story.

1. For an older conversion or dramatic conversion

            If you were saved a little later in life or you had a very dramatic change when you were saved, you might structure your story like so. First, share what life was like for you before you were saved. Highlight some of the problems that the Gospel solved for you. Perhaps you dealt with a lot of hopelessness or shame, or your lifestyle was very destructive toward yourself and others.

            Then, talk about when you accepted Christ. At this point, you would be careful to mention those claims that form the heart of the Gospel—that Christ died for our sins and was raised on the third day.

            Finally, you would describe how your life has changed since you accepted Christ. At this point, you could touch on how Christ has made all the difference for the problems you mentioned before—He has given you hope, He has taken away your shame, He has empowered you to change in ways you never thought possible.

2. For a younger conversion or less dramatic conversion

            For some of us, we don’t have much to talk about when it comes to our pre-conversion years because we were saved at a young age. Yes, maybe we lived like horrible heathens, but then we turned six and got saved! There’s not much for us to share about our life before Christ, so what we want to emphasize is how life with Christ has made all the difference.

            Here’s how we might approach our story, then: talk first about the grand sweep of your life. You might highlight some particular highs and lows, joys and sorrows. If the person you’re talking to is going through a struggle that you’ve faced, then naturally you might want to highlight that fact.

            Then, bring it all back to Christ and the Gospel. Explain to them that through it all, what Christ did for you has made all the difference. And of course, this is where you would emphasize the core claims of the Gospel about Christ’s death for your sins and His resurrection.

            However you share it, the Gospel is a message worthy of being proclaimed, because it tells of a Savior who is worthy of being praised. As the Scripture says, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach good news (Romans 10:15)!” And good news is precisely what we have!

            So let us never be ashamed of the Gospel! Whether others realize it yet or not, it is good news for their souls. And how will they realize it if we do not tell them?

Talking Boldly About God to Others--Life With God Series

            When you find someone in life that you love, it’s just natural to want to tell other people about that person. We all know this is true with romance. We can become downright annoying to our friends when we fall in love because we just go on and on talking about that person.

            We do the same thing with lots of other relationships, too. If you find an author you just love, you want to tell people about his or her books. If you find a hairdresser you love, you’ll be handing out her business card anytime someone says they’re thinking about a little trim. If you find a mechanic you love, you’ll be offering to help people get their car in to his garage when they need service.

            Certainly, in our relationship with God, because we love Him, we want to tell other people about Him. We want to tell people about Jesus and all that He has done to save them. We love God, so it’s only natural to want to talk about Him.

            I would venture to say, however, that most of us don’t share our faith with others as much as we would like or as much as we feel we should. We know it’s important—we know that it’s honoring to God, and we have a message that all people need to hear. But perhaps more than any other factor, we feel like we lack boldness to speak up about our faith in Christ when opportunities present themselves.

            Today, we’re going to take a look at the ministry of the Apostles to discover how they found the boldness to continue to proclaim the Gospel despite heavy opposition—even life-threatening opposition! What did they remind themselves of, and how did they pray in order to boldly speak up for Christ? We’ll find our answers today in Acts 4.

“A Good Deed Done to a Crippled Man”

            Let me briefly set the stage for what we’re going to study in Acts 4. Back in Acts 3, Peter and John were entering the Temple in Jerusalem when they encountered a beggar who could not walk. They healed the man in the name of Jesus, and the man’s celebration and loud praise to God drew a crowd of spectators.

            Peter took advantage of that opportunity to preach to the crowd about the resurrection of Christ. Well, the religious leaders got wind of this, and Acts 4:3 says they were “greatly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead.” So they arrested Peter and John and put them on trial.

            In the trial, their main challenge to Peter and John is recorded in verse 7—“By what power or by what name did you do this?” Peter’s response to them is a true model of boldness [READ Acts 4:8-12].

That’s quite the bold response, and now at this point in the chapter we will begin to see the keys to their boldness.

1. Know God well, and speak about your relationship with Him (v. 13; v. 20)

            Notice the statement of v. 13 [READ v. 13]. The leaders were astonished because Peter and John were nothing special. They had no credentials, no fancy education like the religious leaders had. Peter and John were just blue-collar guys who had made their living on fishing boats in the Sea of Galilee.

            The only thing special about them was that they had been with Jesus. They knew Him well through their relationship with Him, and that was all the qualification they needed to be bold witnesses. Notice in vv. 19-20 how they point out that they were simply taking about the things they had experienced with Jesus. After being told by the religious leaders not to speak about Jesus any more, Peter and John answered [READ vv. 19-20].

            Take note of that final declaration—they were speaking about what they had seen and heard. They had lived with Jesus, heard Him speak, saw His sinless life, then they saw Him crucified and then living once again after He had died. They were simply telling people all that they had experienced with Jesus.

            I love that statement in v. 20 because it reminds me about what God desires from us—simply to tell other people about our relationship with Jesus. Witnessing is not about being a debater or a fancy orator or being anything that you’re not. It’s simply a matter of telling other people about your relationship with Jesus—how He has saved you, and how He can do the same for them.

            To put it another way, witnessing is just a matter of saying what you know. The best example of this is the blind man who was healed by Jesus in John 9. The religious leaders brought that man in for questioning, too (they must have been paid by the trial!), and they peppered him with questions about Jesus—“Who do you think He is? Is He a sinner? Is He from God?”

            I paraphrase here, but essentially the man said, “I can’t answer all of your questions about Jesus, but this is what I know—I was blind, now He has made me see.” This is a great summary of what God desires from us in witnessing—just say what you know! Perhaps someone will ask a question that you can’t answer; if so, don’t worry about it—you can look into it later. If you’ve simply shared what you know from your relationship with the Lord, you can be confident that you’ve done what the Lord desires to see from you.

2. Know that God is in control (vv. 24-28)

            After Peter and John were released, they took two actions that will also help you sustain boldness for witnessing. First, they got together with their brothers in Christ [READ v. 23]. When you undertake something challenging—as sharing your faith can be—it is all the more difficult when you feel like you’re all alone. Coming together with your Christian family is imperative. With a church family, you can know that you have a place where you belong, which is especially important since we sometimes face rejection from other people when we share our faith.

            The second action they took was to pray together with their friends. The content of their prayer teaches us that in order to have boldness, it is necessary to remember that our God is in control of all things. He made them all, and He controls them still [READ vv. 24-27].

            Then what did the Apostles say in v. 28? Did they say, “Lord, we know you tried to keep them from crucifying Jesus, but it just couldn’t be done?” Did they say, “Lord, we know you did your best, but it was too hard even for you?” No, they said [READ v. 28]. Even in the very moment in which it may have seemed that God lost all control, He was still in full control over all that took place.

            God was in control over the people who crucified Jesus, and He’s in control over the people that we share our faith with today. We don’t need to be intimidated by other people because they’re not running the show—God’s running the show! Now you might say, “Pastor Tim, that still doesn’t seem very comforting, because He was running the show back then and He allowed His Son to be crucified! What if He allows something to happen to me?”

            If He does allow us to face rejection or even persecution, our comfort is this—we know that such things are not out-of-control events, but part of a larger plan that comes from the heart of a kind Father. So however we look at it, His control can give us great boldness and confidence for sharing our faith.

            During the Civil War, Confederate General Thomas Jackson became famous for his fearlessness in battle. He was given the nickname “Stonewall” because it was said that during battle, he was as immovable as a stone wall. You may have heard of Stonewall Jackson, but you might not know that his courage came from his deep faith in God. He had a firm belief in God’s control over all things—including every bullet fired on a battlefield. He believed that not a single one of those bullets would hit him unless God allowed it, so he faced the challenges of battle with great courage.

            We may not be in a war, but we are in a spiritual war when we try to share our faith, aren’t we? We face a frontal assault from a whole battalion of doubts and fears. What if my friend gets offended and doesn’t want to be my friend anymore? What if my family stops talking to me? What if my co-workers think I’m silly or old-fashioned and I get overlooked for a promotion or a raise?

            We don’t have to let those doubts stop us when we remember that God is in control. The results are up to Him, and He is kind, all-knowing, and all-powerful. So we can act, knowing that it’s all in His hands.

So the first key for having boldness is to know God well, then simply speak about your relationship with him. The second key is to know that God is in control. And finally, the third key is this:

3. Know that God will work through you and with you by the power of the Holy Spirit (vv. 29-31)

            In verses 29 and 30, we see a wonderful balance between doing what we can do – which is, speak the word – and trusting God to do what only he can do – which is, to work in miraculous ways. Notice their prayer here [READ vv. 29-30].

            Don’t overlook the balance in the Apostles’ request—“Lord, help us do what we can do, and we’ll trust you to do the things that only you can do.” When you share your faith with someone, you are merely part of the whole process. It is not all on your shoulders!

            We can get very intimidated by evangelism at times because we let ourselves think that a person’s response is all up to us. We think, “This person’s eternal destiny is hanging in the balance, and it’s all up to me! If I can’t answer every question they may have, they’re going to reject the Gospel and it’s going to be all my fault.”

            If that’s what we think, it’s no wonder why we find evangelism to be so intimidating. We know full well that we can’t change someone’s heart, but I’ve got good news for you – that’s not your part of the process anyway! I can share the Gospel, but only God can save someone; only he can change their heart.

            The illustration of a witness in a courtroom trial is a good illustration for our responsibility in evangelism. When a witness is called to the stand, he simply shares what he knows. It’s not his job to make the entire case – the witness just shares what he knows. It’s the attorney’s job to make the whole case and press it home on the minds of the jurors.

            In this picture, you and I are the witnesses and God is the attorney. We simply share what we know, and we trust that God will press it home on the mind and the heart to the person that were talking to. We do our part, and we trust God to do his.

            In verse 31, we read again about the Holy Spirit working through his people [READ v. 31]. Look again at verse 8 and notice this – how was Peter able to speak with boldness? He was filled with the Holy Spirit. We read the same thing again in verse 31 – they were filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.

            When we take the simple step of obeying God, He’s not going to leave us on our own! He won’t leave us unassisted! His Holy Spirit will empower us to do what we have chosen to do for the Lord.

            So to find the boldness to share our faith, we must know God well, and then simply speak about our relationship with Him. We must know He’s in control—that all things and all people are in His hands. And we must know that God will work through us and with us by the power of the Holy Spirit. May we be bold witnesses for the Lord as we face this task unfinished—the task of making disciples of all the nations.

"Lights in the Darkness"--Philippians 2:14-18

Contemplating an individual’s last words has always been very fascinating for some people. Obviously, not everyone has the opportunity to say some last words before they pass away. Many people die suddenly and unexpectedly, so they don’t have an opportunity to gather friends and family around them and offer any last words. But some people do get that opportunity, and many people have found it fascinating to study their last words. Last words seem to offer a glimpse into the heart of another person, because we tend to think that they represent the thoughts and emotions that were most important to that individual.

This fascination with last words was captured well in the movie Citizen Kane. This movie follows the life of a fictional character named Charles Foster Kane, who made a fortune in the newspaper industry in the early 1900’s. The movie actually begins with Kane’s death inside the gaudy mansion he had built for himself called “Xanadu.” In the opening scenes, we witness Kane passing away, and on his death bed he is holding a snow globe and he utters a single word—the word “rosebud.” The rest of the movie follows a reporter as he tries to uncover the meaning behind the word “rosebud,” and we see a series of flashbacks that tell us about Kane’s life as the reporter interviews some of Kane’s closest associates. Ultimately, the meaning behind this word does in fact give us a window into the heart of this wealthy and powerful man.

Think about this idea of last words with me, if you will, in the life of Jesus Christ. I don’t think we should elevate any of Jesus’ words as being more important than anything else that he said, but on the night before Jesus’ died, we do find that he had a particular burden on his heart for those who would become his followers through the witness of the disciples—in other words, for you and for me. He had a repeated request that he mentioned in his prayer to the Father in John 17—namely, that we would live with each other in unity. Notice what the Lord asks for in John 17:20–23 [READ John 17:20–23]. There in the span of just a few verses, Jesus repeatedly prays that we would live in unity.

If this desire was in the forefront of Jesus’ mind on the night before he was crucified, then we shouldn’t be surprised to find the disciples emphasizing it in their writings. As we continue on in our study of Paul’s letter to the Philippians, we will find again today that the apostle instructs them about living together in peace and harmony. This call for unity might start to sound like a broken record since we have already heard it before, but the reasons that Paul gives in Phil. 2:14–18 make these verses a helpful addition to Paul’s instructions. In these verses, we will see that…

We should avoid petty arguments for the sake of our witness to the world and for the sake of our mutual joy.

Let’s read these verses, and then we’ll take a look at the two parts of this lesson [READ 2:14–18]. We find the first part of this lesson in verse 14 down through the first part of verse 16.

I. We should avoid petty arguments for the sake of our witness to the world

Let’s read these words here one more time before we start to break this down [READ v. 14–16a]. As we look at what Paul says here, it seems clear—especially in the Greek words that he selects—that he is drawing from the Old Testament records of Israel’s wanderings under Moses. You may remember from the Old Testament that after God delivered the nation of Israel from slavery in Egypt, He led them up to the land that He had promised to give them, between the Mediterranean Sea and the Euphrates River. But the people at that time refused to trust that God would help them conquer the peoples that already lived there, and so as an act of discipline, God caused the people of Israel to wander around in the desert for 40 years until the generation that refused had died off. And you might remember that during that entire ordeal—from the time they left Egypt until they eventually settled in the Promised Land—the Bible says that the people were grumbling and complaining about various things. At one point, it says that they complained because they had no meat, even though God was miraculously providing bread for them every day (Num. 11). At another time, some of them complained about the fact that Aaron and his family had been chosen by God to do all of the priestly work around the tabernacle (Num. 16). These individuals wanted to do part of that work, too. Time and time again they complained about various things and said that they wished they were back in Egypt.

It seems that Paul in these verses is subtly drawing on that history to instruct us not to act the same way. The word “grumbling” here calls up thoughts of petty complaints and divisions, and the Greek word translated “disputing” focuses on the way of thinking that lies behind those arguments. So we are not to get caught up in petty disputes, and we’re not even to allow our minds to remain in that frame of mind.

And the purpose of this command is stated in v. 15, “so that you will prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent.” You might remember when we talked about the idea of being blameless back in chapter 1—its not the idea of being without sin, it’s the idea that no one can raise an objection against the way that you live. And the idea of being “innocent” here speaks of our inner motives and attitudes, that they would be pure and godly.

But then Paul goes on to mention that living in unity without grumbling and disputing is very important for our witness to the people around us. Continuing in v. 15, Paul says that such a way of living will show us to be “children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life” (or we might say, “by holding fast the word of life”). Paul really brings this issue to a head here by telling us that unity matters not just for our life inside the church, but for our witness outside of the church as well. He paints our mission here in stark terms, saying that we are “children of God…in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation.”

Now Paul isn’t trying to insult non-Christians here; he is simply offering an assessment from God’s point of view. By God’s standards, those who are not his children are crooked and perverse—they are crooked because they are not “level” with his standards; like a picture that isn’t hanging straight. And they are perverse because they have taken his true standard of right and wrong and exchanged it for a false standard.

But according to this passage we have the opportunity to point out the way back to God. Paul says that among the unbelieving world we “appear as lights in the world by holding fast the word of life.” Some translations read “stars” here, and that gives us a good picture of Paul’s meaning.

Back when Paul was writing, the “lights” in the sky were used for navigation. During the day, people could watch the course of the sun and get their bearings from it, and at night the stars allowed people to chart a course and follow it to their intended destination.

So what Paul is saying is that in the spiritual realm, we can function in that way for the people around us—we can point out the path to God by holding fast (or holding forth) the word of life. But our effectiveness in this depends so greatly upon how well we carry out the command in v. 14—do all things without grumbling or disputing! If you remember what we heard from Jesus in John 17, He stated that our unity would add credence to our witness. In John 17:21 he prayed for us and asked “that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.” Then in v. 23 He says, “I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me.”

The reason that such unity adds legitimacy to our witness is that it is supernatural—it is not the norm in our world. Because of the selfishness that is in all of us, the norm in relationships is disunity—fighting and bickering and complaining against each other. So if we show the people around us that it is possible to live in harmony with each other, our witness to the world will be clothed in a spirit that is attractive and desirable, a spirit that will convince people that our message is true.

But if we fight and bicker with each other, we will do great damage to our witness in this community. As one author put it, “How will the world ever discover church again if what they see… is, in reality, people no different than themselves, living in what appears to be a fantasy?”* And that’s exactly what Christianity will look like if we can’t live in unity—a fantasy! We can talk all day about being brothers and sisters in Christ, but if we don’t live it out then we’ll simply be one more dysfunctional family, and many people already have that at home! They won’t want to join another dysfunctional family by coming to church!

So our success at living together in unity will gave a tremendous impact on our witness to the world. And obviously it will have a great impact on the joy that we share with each other. That’s the second part of this lesson that we need to consider.

II. We should avoid petty arguments for the sake of our mutual joy

In v. 16, Paul goes on to add a personal perspective to this discussion. As if the Philippians didn’t already have reason enough to follow this command, Paul asks them to do it “so that in the day of Christ I will have reason to glory because I did not run in vain nor toil in vain.” Paul is looking ahead here to the day that he will stand before Christ to receive his rewards, and in that moment he doesn’t want his ministry among the Philippians to turn out to be fruitless. He wants to be able to rejoice in that day as he sees the fruit that came from his ministry.

Perhaps this sounds like an unusual thing for Paul to ask—that the Philippians would obey so that he could rejoice—but other verses also talk about this idea as a good motive for obedience. Hebrews 13:17 says, “Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with grief, for this would be unprofitable for you.”

You can think of obedience to the Lord like a gift that you can give to your spiritual leaders. Perhaps over the years you have heard about different gifts that churches have given to their pastors. I heard about one church that gave their pastor something like an “extreme makeover” on his house. They sent his family away on vacation and did some remodeling for him while they were away. I’ve always gotten a little chuckle out of the reserved parking spots that churches sometimes give to their pastors. In my sense of humor, I wonder if the church is trying to gently tell the pastor that he’s handicapped or something!

If you would really like to give me a gift that will be special and priceless, then do this for me—just get along with each other! That will keep the hair on my head a little longer, and probably keep me from getting ulcers! Just love each other, and work together to serve the Lord. I would enjoy nothing more than to see that my ministry here is bearing fruit and making a difference.

Paul goes on here in v. 17 to make an interesting statement about the relationship between his ministry and their service for God. He says [READ v. 17]. Paul is painting a picture here that’s based on the sacrificial system from the Old Testament. The drink offering consisted of a cup of wine that was poured out with certain burnt offerings. With these sacrifices it was kind of the icing on the cake, the final act of devotion, and it could be that with this picture Paul was thinking about the possibility that he was going to lose his life as a martyr in his imprisonment. And it seems that Paul is saying, “Even if my life and ministry among you is just the icing on the cake of what your service for God will accomplish, I will rejoice in that and I’ll share my joy with you.” Paul longs to see continued fruitfulness from the Philippians, and even he plays just a small part in that, that’s enough for him to rejoice, and to encourage the Philippians to rejoice, as he does in v. 18.

So we get such a great glimpse of Paul’s heart in these verses, both for the world and for the Philippians. So much joy, and so much potential for ministry awaited the Philippians if they could just serve together without complaining, without grumbling, without falling into petty disputes with each other. And the same things await us if we will conduct our ministry in this way. We can have a mutual joy that will become infectious and give legitimacy to the message that we preach to a watching world. How can we really claim to represent the Prince of Peace if we can’t live at peace with each other? But if we do, we can show the people around us the way to peace.

So I want to ask you today to think about the people who are sitting in the pews around you right now. As you think about your brothers and sisters in Christ, are you struggling through a strained relationship with any of them right now? Is there something between you that is keeping you from being at peace with each other? Do you need to ask their forgiveness for something? Have you pulled away from them because they’ve offended you in some way? I ask you today, not to let these things go, but to resolve them. Ask for forgiveness where its necessary; offer forgiveness where its necessary. Don’t settle for a cold relationship with a brother or sister in Christ when you could share joy with each other, and when restoration in your relationship could be just the thing that God will use to bring someone else to himself.


* Bob Lewis and Rob Wilkins, The Church of Irresistible Influence (Grand Rapids; Zondervan, 2001), pg. 25.