About ten years ago a movie came out called “Courage Under Fire”. The plot of the movie was to demonstrate that people will respond differently when they find themselves in adverse and difficult situations.
In the movie these people had some sameness about them:-
· they all had military training.
· they all had an ethos to serve.
· they were all committed to the cause.
But when each character was placed in a situation of pressure some could not handle it and crumbled, while others rose to the occasion.
Whether we are believers, or not-yet-believers we all face a life which is full of adversity, difficulty and struggle. Indeed, I think it is fair to say that quite a few of us are going through these sorts of issues right now. So there are two questions I want to explore this morning.
What sort of people will we be, when we face adversity, difficulty and struggles?
When it comes to the crunch will we crumble, or will we rise to the occasion?
Can we equip ourselves to stand firm when we face adversity, difficulty and struggles?
Is there are way to be better protected as we go through life?
To help us answer that question we are going to have a look at a passage in Philippians.
Reading
Philippians 1:12-30
Paul’s situation is described for us in verses 12-18. From these verses it is pretty evident that, at the time of writing the book of Philippians, Paul was in prison … in fact he was in prison as a result of preaching about Jesus I am in chains for Christ says Paul in verse 13.
Well how bad can that be?
Being in prison is bad at the best of times. You are not your own person. You are separated from loved-ones. You are together with others who have been cut off from society. Even modern day prison is difficult. In the days of Paul it was much worse.
Prison was basically a hole in the ground.
To keep you secure you were constantly chained to a guard. You would have no privacy what-so-ever, and no times of peace. If the guard wanted to make your life miserable he could do all sorts of terrible acts.
In addition there was no such thing as prison food, or the provision of needs. Each prisoner had to rely on the support of family and friends to provide the basic needs such as food and clothing. You wouldn’t get a bath unless they brought water - and you remain hungry until they bring food.
And remember, Paul is in chains because of his religion. Those who came and helped him would also become suspects - so visiting Paul while he was in prison was quite dangerous.
When we have this perspective we can see that Paul’s life was pretty miserable - full of adversity, difficulty and struggle. But here is the amazing reality. Paul does not need to be here. You didn’t have to go to prison for being religious.
At the time the Roman’s were in power. They allowed a lot of freedom when it came to the locals following their own religions. In fact the Romans accepted that there were many deities.
If you wanted to avoid getting into trouble and follow your own religion all you had to do was acknowledge that the religion of the Roman Empire was also an acceptable religion. To do this all you need to say was “Caesar is Lord”.
That doesn’t seem to difficult does it. If you were asked you could just say “Caesar is Lord” - even if you didn‘t mean it. You know in your heart that Jesus is Lord, so why not just play the game. That is what Paul could have done - but it would have been a compromise. Paul is in prison because he is not willing to compromise. In fact Paul is in prison because he knows that compromising on your faith - even a small compromise - can lead to disaster.
Most of us have heard of the Titanic, even if it is only because we have seen the movie with heart-throb Leonardo Dicaprio. In 1912 this 300m “unsinkable” luxury liner sank on its first voyage, from England to New York. 1500 people died.
The most widely held theory about this disaster was that the ship hit an iceberg, which opened a 100m gash in the side of the liner. In 1997 an international team of divers and scientists discovered that the damage was surprisingly small.
Peering through the mud with sound waves, the team found the damage to be astonishingly small. Instead of a huge gash they found a series of six thin openings; the total area of the damage being about 1.2 square meters.
It was only a small compromise in the hull of the ship, yet the great ship sunk anyway. In the same way, When we are under pressure in times of adversity, difficulty and struggle a small compromise can cause us to crumble under pressure.
One method many people use is to try a distraction.
Shopping is a good for that. Get out. Spend some money. Buy a few things to make yourself feel better. Now there is nothing wrong with shopping … unless we start using it to try and avoid the realities of life.
Socialising, and all that comes with it, can be used as a distraction. There is nothing wrong with a few parties and getting out. It becomes a problem when you use this as a way to avoid life.
Here is one that many men are good at … the distraction of work. Again hard work is good. But there can be a very fine line between working hard and being a workaholic. Allowing your work to define you and consume you so you can avoid the difficulties.
They are all distractions - and they can cause us to begin to compromise our faith by making us rely on the distraction, rather than God.
Another road that leads to distraction is misplaced guilt. It is one I struggled with for many years as I thought about the choices I had made in life.
One time we were in a small town and we parked next to a car. Amelia was only little and she opened her door a bit fast and it put a dent in the car next to us. It wasn’t her fault - it just happened. Being the honest upright citizen that I was I moved the car to a different spot. To this day I still don’t know why I did it. I should have been honest. I should have left a note.
I carried the guilt about my lack of integrity for a long time. As I did with many other little incidences. These responses were a small compromise in my faith because part of the foundation of my life was built on guilt, not grace.
When you put them all together it might seem like such little things. But these are the sorts of things which subtly eat away ay the foundation of our faith. And the reality is we will always crumble under pressure if we have the wrong foundation in place.
And that is what Paul wants us to do … he wants us to have the right foundation. And he encourages us to see this foundation in verse 15-18.
Some people are trying to make Paul’s life difficult. They want to stir up trouble for Paul while he is in prison. Instead of getting all upset Paul looks at this situation and sees the bigger picture. The most important outcome here is that Christ is preached. And because of this Paul rejoices.
Paul is not interested in motives of others, nor is he worried about his personal feelings. Paul looks past the adversity, difficulties and struggles to make sure that the right outcome is achieved.
Nothing else matters as long as we, and others, are in a real relationship with Jesus. That is Paul’s foundation and it enables him to get through even the most difficult adversity in live … the adversity of facing death.
For me to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body this will mean fruitful labour for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two.
That is what Paul says in verses 21-23. How do you feel when you read words like that? I think we have to admit that it is a very different view of life isn’t it?
When we think about death … and people who are in a position to think about choosing between life and death you usually think that it is old people who have to face that decision. But even in those situations the people that I have witnessed will often still keep fighting down tot eh last breath. Death is an adversity we naturally want to avoid.
Yet Paul’s approach is quite different. There is no fear of death. That seems strange, almost morbid, until we understand the bigger picture. Paul understands that this life, enjoyable as it can be, is just temporary.
There are people in this life who God puts onto our path who we really love. They have impacted us and made our life a real blessings. But it isn’t just the people. There is also the satisfaction which comes through our achievements and making a difference in this world. And let’s face it - this world is an enjoyable place. There are many reasons why we would like to be here.
So it is sometimes hard to remember the bigger picture. This life as we know it is only the beginning of the journey. In fact this life is only a small part of our life experience. Beyond this life is an eternity that is going to be spent with God. That is the bigger picture Paul keeps in mind. And it is a picture we can have when Jesus is central. Because Jesus has come to bring us to that place.
Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in Me. In My Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with Me that you also may be where I am.
John 14:1-3
Death, our greatest adversity, has been dealt with through Jesus. Which means we can face this greatest adversity without crumbling. And if that is the case, then we can also face any adversity, and difficulty, and hardship, and suffering that life is going to throw at us. As long as we keep Jesus central to our existence.
So where does that leave us?
If we don’t compromise on having Jesus as the foundation of our lives we will be able to have courage under fire.
Paul even lists some of the area where this courage will occur.
1) Confidence of salvation (vs.19)
There are times when we go through difficulties and our response is to shake our fist at God. For some reason we think that God is out to get us. But He isn’t. God doesn’t work like that. Rather God knows that these sufferings are going to be a part of life and He offers to give us strength. If God is for us who can be against us? That is the question Paul asks in Romans 8:31. God is on our side; even when it doesn’t feel that He is close. So we can have confidence … even under fire.
2) Not being ashamed (vs.20)
Life is full of disappointments. And many times we are the cause.
There will be times when we let others down.
There will be times when we let God down.
There will be times when we let ourselves down.
But in all of those God stands by us even though He knows exactly what we are like.
If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:8-9.
Even when we have been unfaithful there is a way for us to move forward so that we do not need to be ashamed … even when we are under fire.
3) Being a fruitful spiritual worker (vs.22)
We will have a purpose. When we allow our lives to be directed by Jesus we will see the impact on others as Jesus uses us to help bring about the change. It won’t be because we are perfect, or the best. But it will be because of the love of Jesus which has been planted in us. can have an impact on others because it is Jesus who brings about the change. We have this treasure in jars of clay to show that the all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. That is Paul’s reminder in 2 Corinthians 4:7 … and it what enables us to be fruitful … even under fire.
Let me get back to the original questions:-
What sort of people will we be, when we face adversity, difficulty and struggles?
We can be those who don’t compromise or give up always having courage under fire.
Can we equip ourselves to stand firm when we face adversity, difficulty and struggles?
Yes by making sure that Jesus, and nothing else, is the foundation of our lives.
Prayer
