PLACES TO FIND JOY: In relationships with other believers
Philippians 1:1-8
Philippi was located in the area of Macedonia –now the northern most province of GREECE/ bordering Albania In ancient times it was in a gold mining area.
After 400 B.C., Philip II of Macedon seized the mines, fortified the city, and named it for himself.
1) Philippi, along with the rest of Macedonia, came under Roman control after
200 B.C./ Philippi became an official Roman Colony
Paul journeyed there on his 2nd missionary journey –
Philippi was the first Church Paul started in the Continent of Europe
One of the main themes the book of Philippians is JOY The word "joy" is found in one form or another 15 times in the 104 verses of this short letter.
When Paul writes about joy he is not writing dry theory . . .he writes from experience. He writes from a place of imprisonment.
1:1 Paul and Timothy, bond-servants of Christ Jesus, To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, including the overseers and deacons:
1:2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
1:3 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you,
Paul wrote the book of Philippians while locked in a Roman prison.
While there awaiting trial, he thought much of the believers at Philippi.
No doubt he thought back to the events that unfold in Acts 16.
He thought of the conversion of Lydia and her household, the poor slave girl that had been demon possessed, and the Philippian Jailer.
He thought of each of the dear Christians at Philippi and the work God had done there. He thought of their friendship and companionship through the years. It had been ten years since he had seen them, and in his dark, damp and dreary prison cell memories flooded his soul.
1. APPRECIATION! I thank my God in all my remembrance of you
Robert Louis Stevenson wrote, "The man who has forgotten to be thankful, has fallen asleep in life." George Herbert once said, "Thou who hast given so much to me, give one thing more, a grateful heart."
A. He often thought of them. all my remembrance The word speaks of recollecting, being mindful, thinking of something or someone. They were ever on his mind and in his thoughts.
How forgetful we are of what God has done in our life. How forgetful we are of those God has put in our life. How forgetful we are of the blessing of each.
Max Lucado - Despite having sold 15 million books, a one-minute radio show in 900 markets, and a church of over 3,000 in weekly attendance, Lucado has not always been so “angelic.”
From his sophomore to senior year in high school, in his words, he "walked the path of the prodigal." He hid it, for the most part, from his mother by faking religion.
"I spent three years drinking and partying…. During that stretch, I probably abandoned every single value that I’d been taught. I’d go to church, but I would not listen. I wouldn’t sing. I led a dual life."
Max could down a six-pack of beer without feeling anything, and his drinking quickly led to womanizing and worse. His carousing upset Max’s father Jack who came from a family of nine siblings, some of whom were alcoholics, Max’s drinking was "the ultimate act of rebellion."
How did Max Lucado, the one-time prodigal become a famous writer/author/preacher?
IT’S CALLED GOD’S GRACE!
Max Lucado is no better or no worse than us. But he has been blessed and gifted with spiritual insight and writing ability by God’s grace. It’s a gift of God’s grace.
All the good things that come to us in life: physical, material, spiritual, etc. are a gift of God’s grace.
There are some things we should never forget and some people should we never forget. These should be on our mind continually.
Much too often we find ourselves saying, "You know, I haven’t thought of that in years," or "I haven’t thought of him or her in years." Paul had never forgotten what God has done at Philippi, nor had he forgotten the people he had met at Philippi.
B. How Thankful He Was For Them.
Each time that he thought of them, he thanked God for them. Each time they came to his mind, his heart was filled with gratitude.
I am told that our word "thank" evolves from our word "think." The ideal is that if we think it won’t be long and we will be thanking.
When Billy Graham was driving through a small southern town, he was stopped by a policeman and charged with speeding. Graham admitted his quilt, but was told by the officer that he would have to appear in court. The judge asked, "Guilty, or not guilty?" When Graham pleaded guilty, the judge replied, "That’ll be ten dollars -- a dollar for every mile you went over the limit."
Suddenly the judge recognized the famous preacher. "You have violated the law," he said. "The fine must be paid, but I am going to pay it for you."
He took a ten-dollar bill from his own wallet, attached it to the ticket, and then took Graham out and bought him a steak dinner! "That," said Billy Graham, "is how God treats repentant sinners!" And I might add, it’s called God’s grace!
Paul could not say that of every church.
A man asked the preacher, “How many active members do you have in your church?”
The preacher said, “They’re all active. Half of them are working with me and half of them are working against me.” AND THIS DOES HAPPEN IN SOME CHURCHES.
Galatians he wrote, "O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you?"
Corinth he wrote, "I could not write unto you as spiritual, but as carnal."
In some cases, when we think of others, it brings sadness.
We think of those who have hurt us, who disappointed us, who are no longer serving God. Unkind word they spoke, thing they did or the thing they didn’t do.
When Paul thought of these it did not bring sadness to his heart, but gladness.
When was the last time that you gave thanks to God for other who blessed you?
We get so caught up in our own lives, become so busy and preoccupied, that we are not thoughtful thus are not thankful.
As one has written, "’Though right it is to give thanks, true gratitude will live thanks." There are some we should write, call, tell, and show we are thankful for them.
2. ADMIRATION! 1:4 always offering prayer with joy in my every prayer for you all,
Paul not only had them in his mind, he also had them in his prayers.
He not only lifted his heart in praise, he also lifted his heart in prayer.
A. He Prayed Purposefully for Them.
Paul prayed for them and prayed with a purpose. He prayed for the needs that he knew of in their life.
There is no doubt that the area of our greatest failure is our prayer life.
Someone has said, "The popularity of a Church is measured by its Sunday morning attendance. The popularity of a preacher is measured its Sunday evening attendance. However, the popularity of the Lord is measured by the prayer meeting attendance."
POPULARITY OF PRAYER IS MEASURED BY OUR PRAYER CLOSET ATTENDANCE
Aristotle said, "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence is not an act. It is a habit."
So what kind of habits have you developed in your life? PRAYER?
Even greater a failure is how we fail to pray for others. Personal concerns stand far ahead in line than our prayers for the needs of others.
Warren Wiersbe said: "Talking to God about His people is certainly as important as talking to His people about God."
A little child traveled alone from Scotland to London to have a series of operations for her twisted body. Because of the distance, she had to leave her family behind.
A sympathetic nurse tried to condition to the child to the routine of the hospital, introducing her to the doctor and different ones. When everything was explained, the nurse asked, "Do you have any questions?" The child answered, "Yes, who is going to pray for me?"
B. He Prayed Particularly. for you all
These words indicate that he prayed for each of them. He did not pray, "Lord, bless the saints at Philippi," but prayed, "Lord, bless Joe, Bill, Mary, at Philippi."
One of the greatest lessons that we could learn about prayer is not only that of praying specifically for something but praying particularly for someone.
C. He Prayed Perpetually. in my every prayer
He prayed for them continually. Every time they came to his mind, he prayed for them. Every time he prayed he called their name out of God.
I Thessalonians 5:17, "Pray without ceasing."
D. He Prayed Pleasurably For Them. offering prayer with joy
When he thought of them it was with thankfulness. When he prayed for them it was with happiness. His prayer for them was not with a troubled heart, but a thrilled heart. It was with joy that he prayed as he thought of the work they were doing for God:
1:5 in view of your participation in the gospel from the first day until now.
When heavy rain flooded the homes of several residents the minister sent his son down to the basement to check for damage. His father asked, “Did the water destroy my files?” “No.” “How about my books?” “No, they’re okay.” “And that special file cabinet where I keep my sermons, are they wet?” “NO, DAD, THEY’RE DRY AS EVER.”
your participation in the gospel We have members who are willing to do the work of the world… But not the work of the Lord! *
The job calls them and they go ...An outside organization calls them, and they are
ready and willing! * The Lord calls them, the church calls them, and they’re too busy!
A man said one time, "I don’t come to church on Sun. nights because, that’s the only time I have for my family." * Why?
Because he gave all the other nights to his social life and pleasures!
Now he felt that he could give God’s night to the family!
1:6 For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.
3. AFFECTION! 1:7 For it is only right for me to feel this way about you all, because I have you in my heart(on my nerves), since both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel, you all are partakers of grace with me.
In 1886 Nevada had a State Fair. They decided to have a mule team pulling contest.
The first place team pulled 14,000 pounds. The second place team pulled 13,000 pounds.
Someone said, “I wonder how much they could pull together? Could they pull 27,000 pounds?”
They hitched up both teams and together they pulled, not 27,000 but 35,000 pounds!
Together we can always accomplish more in life than we can by ourselves.
Thank God for things that go together and work together to make beautiful things happen in life!
A. The Deep Love.
There was the love Paul felt for them but also felt from them. Paul had felt and experienced their love while he was in prison and all through his ministry of spreading and sharing the gospel. They had been one with him, for him, and to him.
One of the great commandments of the Bible is to "love one another." One of the evidences of genuine conversion is our love for one another (I John 3:14).
All too often our love is nothing more than words.
B. The Divine Love Paul Had. 1:8 For God is my witness, how I long for you all with the affection(bowels) of Christ Jesus.
The deep love he expressed was because of a divine love he had experienced. It was Christ’s love in him that enabled him to love so deeply. When God’s love has been experienced it gives us a capacity to love as never before.
Paul had memories of the believers at Philippi in his mind, prayers, and heart. We learn from his example to always be thinking of others, always be praying for others and to always be loving to others.
Story of 3 prospectors who found a rich vein of gold in California during the gold rush days.
They realized what a great discovery they had, & decided, "We’ve a really good thing going here as long as no one else finds out about it." So they each took a vow to keep it secret.
Then they headed for town to file their claims & get the equipment necessary to mine the gold. True to their vows, they didn’t say a word to anybody. They filed their claim, bought the equipment, & headed back to their mine. But when they did, a crowd of people followed them.
And the reason was because the expression on their faces had given them away. Their faces were aglow in anticipation of the wealth that soon would be theirs. People knew that they must have found something very special. So a crowd followed them out of town.
