Sermon Brief
Date Written: August 12, 2011
Date Preached: August 14, 2011
Where Preached: OPBC (AM)
Sermon Details:
Series Title: A Series from Philippians
Sermon Title: How Can We Honor God
Sermon Text: Philippians 2:12-18 [ESV]
Introduction:
When you were young, what was your parent’s constant request for you to make them happy? If you had siblings, I can almost tell you what it was in ALL of your houses when you were growing up… I know this because it was what I wanted as a parent when our children were growing up…
What I wanted most was for our children to get along with one another, and listen to and obey their mother and me. That was it… it was really simple. This is because I knew that if they could get along, there would be peace in the house and what Michelle and I wanted to get done would get done much easier if there was peace in the house. Get along with one another and listen to what we teach you and ask you to do… it was really simple!
And here in this passage Paul is painting that same picture, but this is NOT Paul’s desire for the church, this is Paul relaying God’s desire for His church. It is God’s desire that believers get along with each other so that there is peace in the house… peace in the fellowship. And it is also God’s desire that we listen to and obey His Word… and having peace in the fellowship leads to us being able to submit in obedience to Him.
Now over the past few weeks in the book of Philippians we have been looking at how Paul challenged these Philippian believers to “Walk the Talk” or live out their faith in Christ so that it is readily evident in their lives! Today we are going to look at several more verses that play to that same sentiment and even give us teaching on how we can live out what God desires.
Let’s read Phil 2:12-18 and see what Paul is saying…
Show verses 12-18 here…I will read
12Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure. 14Do all things without grumbling or questioning, 15that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, 16holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. 17Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. 18Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me.
There was once a little boy who was in a play at church and he forgot his lines. His mother had sat in the front row to prompt him in case this happened. When her son forgot his line he looked helplessly at her and she gestured to him and silently formed the words of his line with her lips, but it did not help.
The young man’s memory was blank. Finally, she leaned forward and whispered the line to him, "I am the light of the world." Instantly the little boy smiled and with great feeling and a loud clear voice said, "My mom is the light of the world!!"
Now as believers we know that JESUS is the true light of the world, but as His followers we are ALL called to let His light shine in this world so that others will see Him, and accept Him as Savior and Lord of their life. This is exactly what Paul was telling the believers in our passage this morning, and in the first 2 verses of our passage, Paul gives a gentle warning to these believers to be the light God has called them to be…
Paul’s Cautions the Philippian Believers (v.12-13)
Show verses 12-13 here…I will read
12Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.
In v.12 we find Paul actually giving the Philippian church a complement in that they were Christian in their living, no matter who was present. They have ‘always obeyed’ meaning obeyed God’s commandments and God’s calling in their lives! They were faithful in that obedience and it was something they held fast to and did not waiver in…
There are many believers today, who LIVE OUT THEIR FAITH in public and when others are around, but when they are alone or when they are in a place where they are not known, their faith takes a back seat. The one thing we must realize about living for Christ is that it is a 24/7 thing, we cannot live FOR Christ one moment and then the next put Him on the shelf… The Christian life requires a full time commitment and these believers had it and Paul recognized that commitment in their lifestyle!
Then Paul utters a statement that many have taken out of context and tried to tie it to the believers salvation experience. Paul says, ‘work out your salvation with fear and trembling…’ which many have taken to mean that we are the ones who can affect salvation and we are the ones who are in control of retaining that salvation…
First we have to understand that Paul would have NEVER preached such heresy. Paul’s statement would have never gone against the Gospel and the words of Jesus… I want us to ALL understand what Paul WAS saying, but first I want us to all understand what Paul was NOT saying! He was NOT saying that we could work to earn our salvation… and Paul was NOT saying that we could work to RETAIN our salvation! That goes against every teaching in Scripture that teaches us about receiving Christ as our Savior!
What Paul WAS saying here was directed to those who were already saved. This letter was written to the church in Philippi and Paul was speaking to who he believed were maturing believers and followers of Jesus Christ… so we can know from elimination that Paul was NOT saying that these people could actually work to gain their salvation!
Second, we can know that Paul was not speaking about retaining salvation… many interpret the ‘…in fear and trembling…’ part of this verse to mean we need to fear falling away from God, but that is NOT what Paul is saying.
What Paul IS trying to say to these believers is that it is UP to them to LIVE OUT THEIR FAITH! They must make the voluntary choice to obey God! They must make the voluntary choice to follow God’s calling! It is NOT going to happen on its own! Paul is telling them that LIVING OUT YOUR FAITH has to be YOUR choice and has to be put into action by YOUR decisions!
But we are human so how can we do this? Paul has just detailed how Christ was fully human in His service to God, but understands that NONE of us are Jesus and we cannot ever think we could do what He did, but because of God’s Holy Spirit that indwells each believer, it can be done! Look at v.13 with me… [show v.13 here]
In these 2 verses we find Paul gently cautioning these believers to live their faith out loud and to be a shining example of Jesus to the world around them.
He challenged them to be this shining example at ALL times and NOT just when someone was around to watch, but even when NO one was watching. He challenged them to live out their faith… but to do so in full submission to God and fully understanding God’s role in them living out their life for God. God is our power source and the rock we anchor our souls to… without Him we could NOT live out our faith!
Paul understood that living out our faith could cause problems if it was not accomplished thru allowing God to shine thru us, and so Paul takes time to reveal to these believers one negative example and one very good example of how one lives out their faith…
Paul’s Continuing Instruction on Christlike Living (v.14-16)
Show verses 14-16 here…I will read
14Do all things without grumbling or questioning, 15that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, 16holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain.
v.14 is very short and very much TO THE POINT! Paul knows the human condition and human nature! What Paul is saying here is that if you are to live out your faith so that the world can see it, and others come to know Jesus Christ thru your example… then DON’T GO THERE!
Grumbling, complaining and questioning the authority of those whom God has placed over you will bring about nothing more than division and strife within the body and this will reveal itself to the world around you and will not be the example they need to see…
Now I want you to fully understand that Paul is NOT saying that you blindly follow or blindly obey the leaders placed above them, but what he is saying is that if you disagree, and we will always have disagreement in our walk because we are all different and see things from different perspectives… if we disagree we are not to do it in a public manner or in such a way that it disrupts the unity of the body.
The word Paul uses for ‘grumbling’ here is the Greek word Gongoosmon which is a secret complaining… an in the shadows type of bickering that causes dissention and distrust and cast doubt on the unity of the fellowship and from the outside, casts a bad light on the church itself.
There is NOTHING more damaging to the fellowship of a church than a disgruntled and complaining member or members… whether that grumbling is done in secret or in open rebellion… This type of behavior and attitude establishes an ‘us against them’ mentality and destroys any unity that does exist.
This is totally the opposite of what Jesus prayed for the church… we are meant to be UNIFIED under the banner of Christ and any grumbling and complaining is leads to discord which in turn leads to a damaged witness. So what Paul is telling the Philippian believers here in this verse is … DON’T GO THERE!
In v.15 Paul explains WHY they don’t need to ‘go there’ and it is to keep them pure and blameless. Now Paul uses v.15 to share with his readers that when they are grumbling and complaining… they cannot be the light to the world that Christ has called them to be… so they are to NOT grumble!
And this goes for us today, just as importantly as it did for the believers in Philippi… we can disagree with each other, but it needs to be done in a loving and Christ-like manner where we are not grumbling or complaining in a manner that destroys the fellowship of the church. What Paul is saying here is that this only breeds discontent and discord in the body and that is a definite breakdown of what Christ desires the church to be…
But Paul does not only focus here on the negative… he also gives them a positive action that they can perform that will enable them to LIVE OUT LOUD their faith in Christ! Paul tells them in v.16 [read v.16 here]
16holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain.
Paul wants the believers to be the light of Christ in the world they are living in by living OUT their faith… first he tells them what NOT to do, but in v.16 he gives them a specific instruction on what they ARE to do… and that is “…hold fast to the word of life...” which is a reference to the word of God… which is an indirect reference to Christ Himself!
David wrote in Ps 119:110
11I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.
David understood that holding fast to the word of life would lead him down the right path and that he would find success in his walk with God if he would hold fast to God’s Word. Here Paul is encouraging these believers to do the same… and this should be encouragement to ALL of us here this morning to do just that as well…
Hold fast to the word of life so that you can LIVE OUT LOUD that faith you profess in Christ! Hold fast to the word of life so that when you are living your life out loud, you will have a solid foundation from which to live it… Stay in tune with God by staying IN His word… by holding fast to His word!
So Paul cautions these believers to remain faithful and to be intentional in their actions that reveal their Christian life… to Walk their Talk! To live their lives in such a manner that there can be absolutely NO doubt in about who they serve! Paul also cautions them that this can only be done by leaning on and trusting in Jesus as He is our source of strength and power in living out our faith.
But Paul also continued his instruction by warning them about a particular action that can destroy the unity and witness of the church, and that is a grumbling and complaining attitude and spirit… Paul tells them not to go that route!
But finally in this passage Paul commends the Philippian believers for their great faith…
Paul Commends the Philippian Believer’s Faith (v.17-18)
Show verse v.17-18 here…I will read
17Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. 18Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me.
Paul knew his outcome may not be what he wanted it to be and that he may NOT ever get out of prison but could eventually face death. But Paul wanted the believers in Philippi to know that he saw their tremendous faith!
You see here was the man who had started their church… he was mocked by fellow preachers, he was imprisoned by the religious leaders of the day and he was ridiculed by the Roman way of life…as we saw in Athens in Paul’s Mars Hill sermon where they scoffed at his faith in God and the coming resurrection…
Paul knew that this news had to be disconcerting to them, but Paul had seen time and time again where this fellowship had ministered to him and had grown in their faith even through all the troubles that Satan had cast their way! He was impressed by their spiritual maturity and ever growing faith…
Paul told them even IF I am poured out as a drink offering… even IF I do see death from this prison cell I know that YOU will go on… I know that God is working in you in a mighty way! And Paul went on to say, don’t worry about me… don’t fret over my potential demise… but rejoice with me in that we have seen the kingdom grow through all of this…
The message Paul was getting across to these believers was that God was in control, and even though things may look bleak, and even though you may NOT see a way out… God is in control and when you have faith in Him and place your faith in Him and ACTIVELY live your life for Him… there is call for nothing other than rejoicing because God will honor those who honor Him!
Conclusion:
If we are going to honor God we must first be intentional about living FOR Him! If we are going to WALK the TALK as Paul is challenging us to do, we have to make up in our minds and begin to make decisions that lead us down a path of righteous living… we have to make the decision to NOT be a stumbling block to the unity of the church and we have to make the decision to hold fast to God’s word, and God is going to provide the blessing!
Today life may be covering some of you up… you may feel as if you are drowning in your despair and problems… and in your trials and troubles! I am here to tell you that Paul understands where you are… He was there too! But how did he handle these trials? He placed himself in God’s hand and lived his faith out loud in spite of his situation and God honored him and blessed his work!
Today I challenge you to do the same thing… if the world is raining down trouble on your head, do what Paul said to do… dig in, make the choice to serve Jesus, and begin to live out your faith in spite of what the world is throwing your way… hold fast to God’s word and don’t poison the well by grumbling or complaining and God is going to bless you!
His blessings will come in HIS timing and will be HIS blessings… but He will lift you up, but you have to make that decision to live out your faith! Are you willing to do that today?
As Bro Ken comes to lead us in our hymn of invitation… Give invitation…
