Letters From Prison
The Buddy System
Introduction:
Sometimes, I wish I could just get a glimpse of God’s planner for my life. I do not like dealing with uncertainty. In leadership, uncertainty can be tough. It can lead to fear, withdrawal, and loss of focus. Vision can become smaller and smaller and the individual inward focused. Left unchecked, feelings of uncertainty can paralyze.
Common Ground:
Have you ever faced uncertain times? In your family? In your school? With your children? In the church? If you are like me, you have faced uncertain times in your life.
Maybe you are waiting the results of blood tests or that MRI; it could be cancer. How will my kids and my wife cope if it progresses? What will happen if I die?
Maybe your child or spouse is in the military and is being deployed and the questions keep hounding you. Will he be safe? Will she make it home healthy and whole?
We he make it home at all?
Maybe your company is downsizing and the job market isn’t good.
When the future is uncertain, it can be hard just to make yourself take one step forward. It can feel like we are standing in the midst of a minefield. We can be afraid of a single misstep. Sometimes, we feel desperately alone. But as one author said, "despite it’s uncertainty, noone can flee the future." How do we go about facing life and making choices when the future is so unclear?
Turn with me to the book of Philippians 1.
As we look at this letter over the next several weeks, we will better understand the message by understanding the historical context.
The Apostle Paul is the author of this letter. He is writing to the Christians in the city of Philippi (Map). Paul had planted the church on an earlier missionary journey and now he is writing this letter to them. Paul cannot visit them pesonally. He is under house arrest in Rome for preaching the gospel –
His future is anything but certain. And the church he planted is obviously concerned about his situation.
So listen to Paul’s words that he pens.
Philippians 1:1 (The Greeting)
1 Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, To all the saints in Christ Jesus at Philippi, together with the overseers and deacons:
Paul addresses ALL the Saints. This is a letter intended for ALL the believers. Together. There is strength in numbers. Certainly there was greater risk of capture and persecution, but there was also greater strength as each part supported the others. With the word, "together", Paul gives a subtle reminder that it is easier to face an uncertain future as part of something greater than oneself. Paul doesn’t want the believers in Philippi abandoning ship and going it alone. So he addresses them as a group. TOGETHER!
Then he specifically mentions the overseers and deacons. That’s a strange quirk. As I went back over the other letters that Paul wrote to other churches, I realized something. This is the only one of Paul’s letters where he specifically mentions the leadership structure in his salutation. Why this letter? Where is Paul writing this letter from? (Prison). Why is he in prison? (He has been preaching the gospel).
Folks, it is tough enough to find leadership and to do leadership when things are going right. When trouble comes and/or when leadership has a target on their backs, it becomes much more difficult to find leaders who will continue leading. It can be tough to find leaders who will make tough choices. Uncertain times can lead to uncertain leadership.
So at the very beginning of his letter, I think Paul wants the leaders in Philippi to know that he is thinking about them as they also face an uncertain future. He doesn’t want them to be paralyzed by his situation; he doesn’t want them to be afraid; he doesn’t want them to be focused inwardly just trying to survive. So he greets the leadership structure of the church specifically.
And he prays a blessing on them and the believers.
Philippians 1:2 (The Blessing)
2 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Illustration:
Whenever I watch a movie there is a line that always sends chills up my spine. It usually happens when the main character is headed off to do a dangerous and urgent mission. During this time, another character will turn to them and say “God’s speed to you.” Literally “May God grant his speed to you.” May what you have to accomplish be accomplished quickly with God’s help. That’s a pretty cool blessing. I hear it and I wonder what I could accomplish if I was granted GOD’S speed.
Do you hear what Paul is doing? May God grant his grace and may God grant his peace to you. Paul uses a form of this greeting in every one of his letters. And it is HUGE! It is the foundation of his theological view.
The first part of the blessing is Grace. God’s unmerited favor to you.
Illustration:
I like to eat out and when I am served by a waitress or waiter, I always leave a tip. I have a philosophy: the better the service, the larger the tip. If there is an exceptional waitress she usually gets a larger than normal tip. Bad service earns an average tip. Consistent poor service earns a below average tip. (So I don’t lose our waitresses, I want you to know I’ve never NOT left a tip. We all have bad days after all.) But folks grace is like God receiving NO service from us at all and leaving on the table a $1000.00 bill.
We did not earn it. Grace to you.
The second part of the blessing is peace. This is not in the sense of absence of conflict, (there was certainly conflict taking place in Paul’s life and certainly in the lives of the believers in Philippi), but rather the fullness of well being and harmony in God. The blessing: May God grant His grace and His peace to you. Paul wanted the church in Philippi to know right off the bat what their mission was rooted in.
Grace and Peace.
Isn’t that amazing that even when under persecution by Rome, even when Caesar is acting disgraceful, ungraceful, that the Christians in Philippi had the assurance of Grace from God? And even as conflict swirled around them, even as every knock on their door would cause their hearts to skip a beat, that God had granted peace. THAT’S the blessing that every follower of Jesus experiences!
When we face uncertain times as believers we still have the blessing of God’s grace. It has not been removed. When we are unsure what will happen tomorrow we still have the blessing of peace for the long haul.
Grace and peace are hard to find when the future is uncertain. But not from God’s perspective. Without even getting to look at his planner, we have the assurance of grace and the assurance of peace.
Paul finishes this introduction and the next words are just as amazing. Paul has been praying for the believers in Philippi.
Philippians 1:3-5 (The Joy)
3 I thank my God every time I remember you.
4 In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now,
He’s PRAYING for THEM in the midst of his OWN uncertain future. (I guess Paul believed in the power of Prayer). And his prayers are filled with joy in what was probably a very depressing situation.
And the joy is this. He tells them he rejoices because they have partnered in the gospel with him. TOGETHER!
(Illustration)
Do you remember the Buddy system? Whenever we would go to the river or the pool; or whenever we would go to the store and leave the protection of my parents, my mom and dad would tell my siblings and me to ____________ (stay together.) Did you ever receive the same admonition? Don’t go wandering off alone. Stick together.
The buddy system was for the security of everyone; every person has a partner in the buddy system. Buddies look out for one another – They share in the risks and the rewards.
Paul is telling the church at Philippi that he and they are joined in partnership in a spiritual buddy system. They are partners (buddies) in the gospel.
What does that mean? It means they are working right alongside him in sharing the good news of Jesus. Paul knew he was not alone – even as he was sitting in prison and facing an uncertain future Paul knew that the gospel in Philippi was advancing because the Christians there were sharing the message of Jesus. They were partners in the good news.
Did you realize its the same for us? By accepting the good news of Jesus and by making the decision to follow him, we become partners in the Gospel.
The gospel makes us partners in the work of the Church
We share risks; we look out for one another; we are spiritual buddies.
Can I be real for a minute? There is a model in American small church culture that suggests a church needs a paid minister. I interviewed with a number of these churches before I came to FCC in Onawa. Churches without a minister at the pulpit often struggle with an uncertain future. During the interview process with several of these other struggling smaller churches they told me, “We think we are going to be okay once we have a preacher.” Then they expressed everything their last minister wasn’t doing. The interviews bothered me. And here’s why.
The problem was they had completely stopped ministering because the pulpit was vacant. They had spiritually closed their doors even as the continued to meet together. These churches had missed the point that there should be a partnership in the gospel taking place. You see the work of the church should NEVER shut down because there is no one hired to do ministry. The gospel isn’t about hired guns / it’s about a partnership.
Application:
So partnering in the gospel means that the mission of the church (grace and peace) does not stop when popular leaders leave through choice or through death. When we partner in the gospel in means that the work of the gospel does not end because we get older. It does not end when the church is smaller. We still have a role to play and we are still useful because we remain as partners in the gospel
Back to Text:
Paul rejoices in the idea of partnership even while sitting in chains. He writes, “I thank God / I pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel.”
DeeAnn and I have friends in paid ministry. We all agree that there are few things that bring more joy to those in paid minister than others who would partner with them in the gospel. Those who work with youth, or deliver meals on wheels, those who faithfully give, those who host events or greet at the doors, those who help with music or prepare communion; those who lead and/or teach; those who clean and take care of the facilities; you are partners. And we thank God continually in our prayers for you.
Those of you who are partners have taken on the spiritual buddy system. It makes facing an uncertain future so much easier.
Now we pray this is not for the sake of John Sears or Dee Sears; not for the sake of the elders or the deacons; not for the sake of appearances of First Christian Church; but because of the gospel – the good news of Jesus Christ.
Today, those who have partnered with us in the gospel, we want you to know that the work being done is important. God sees the work. And listen to the assurance that Paul gives about the future that is unclear.
Paul writes in Philippians 1:6 (The Confidence)
6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
Do you see it? It was God who began the work and God who will see it completed. The mission of the church has eternal value. The work of the church has eternal value because it is rooted in the gospel and the eternal nature of God himself. It’s the value of the gospel. The good news of forgiveness and the promise of eternal life offered in Jesus Christ. And Because God is eternal and because it is God doing the work, the work of the gospel will be completed in us.
That’s a pretty cool promise isn’t it? If the Bible is true and I believe that it is, God finishes what he starts. He doesn’t stop building the house half way through. The work of the gospel does not retire. I am moved by this passage. The work of the gospel will continue even after we are gone. We don’t have to worry about the uncertain future.
If Paul is correct, these words give us confidence to step forward and to explore the minefield of life. We no longer have to be paralyzed by fear of a mistep. The promise frees us from the fear of the unknown. God’s partnership allows us to take risks for God knowing that God is there to finish the work of the gospel. That’s good news isn’t it? An uncertain future cannot hinder the gospel. We can face an uncertain future with joy because of the good news of Jesus Christ.
And Paul points to the finish line. “Until the day of Christ.” The day Christ returns.
The finish line isn’t death. The finish line is new life in Jesus Christ on the day of his return. That is the day the good news is completed in us. Do you see the joy we can have in new life in Jesus?
Our purpose statement is L.I.G.H.T. the way to life. We believe it has eternal value.
God is faithful to his promise that the gospel (the good news of Jesus) that is alive in us will be completed. God has given us a spiritual buddy system in which we share in the risks and rewards of following Jesus. That’s one reason having a permanent church home is so important. It’s a place where we partner in the gospel. It’s also the place where, as we share life together, we bond. Listen to what Paul writes.
Philippians 1:7-8 (The Feelings)
7 It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart; for whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God’s grace with me. 8 God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.
Paul takes them back to the root of the gospel. Not everyone of them shares in Paul’s circumstances – not every one of them is sitting in chains for Christ.
Application:
The statement is true for all of us. We all face different circumstances in life. We all have a different life story to share. We are each different in some way. But we share common ground; we too share in God’s grace even as we face different circumstances and uncertain futures.
God’s grace has secured our future and God’s peace secures us.
So when fear of an uncertain future has a paralyzed, we can REJOICE as Paul does. We can rejoice in God’s grace / we can find security in God’s peace/ we have hope as we partner in the gospel knowing that God will carry the work on to completion in us until the day that Christ returns.
Conclusion:
Do you ever wish you could look into God’s planner for your life? That’s not the promise when we choose to follow Jesus. We may never get a glimpse into God’s daily planner for our lives, but because of Jesus our future is anything but uncertain.
