INTRODUCTION
* God’s sovereignty: he is in control of all; clearest demonstration of God’s sovereignty is making good come out of bad
* How God demonstrated this in Scripture:
- Joseph’s life (innocence - sold into servitude - rises in power in Egypt - incident with Potipher’s wife - official in Pharaoh’s court) // Joseph’s response = Gen. 50:20
- Israel: their apostasy led to captivity, but God raised up some “good” during that time (i.e., Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther)
- The trial and death of Jesus Christ: salvation (good) came from his death (bad)
* God’s expertise in making good come from bad = Rom. 8:28
- Not all things are good, but everything works for our good
- Not everyone enjoys this privilege, but those who love God and are called by God
* Our familiarity with pain, suffering, and trails (not a new experience)
* The early church, with all the excitement and good, was familiar with pain
- Chapters 4, 5, 7, 8, and 12 reveal persecution and pain
- The result of their pain: expansion and growth (good from bad)
* Our text reveals what God does with the pain we experience in life...
- Paul’s ministry in Europe gained footing in the city of Philippi
- Paul, Silas, Timothy and Luke evangelized a group of women, one of which was Lydia
- Her conversion (and that of her household) began the Philippian church (v. 14-15)
* In this city and in the midst of this “good,” Paul and Silas experience pain and persecution
* From their experience we can see what God does with pain as we move through three stages of watching God make good come from bad
STAGE 1: We experience pain (v. 16-24)
* Paul and Silas experienced paid: (1) physical; (2) emotional; (3) spiritual
* Their pain was the result of someone else’s decisions and choices (seems unfair)
* There is a need for us to face the reality of pain in this life
- No “Pie in the Sky” theology
- John 16:33 (emphasis on “you will,” not “you might” or “you could”)
- James 1:22 (emphasis on “whenever,” not “if”)
* Not facing this reality skews our view of God; we falsely assume that if you’re good to God, God will be good to you
* What we CAN assume: pain and trials are a part of our existence
* What we CANNOT assume: WHY we experience some of the pain we do
- Some pain might be our own fault
- Some pain might be the result of the actions of others
- Some pain might be the result of living in a fallen world
* God does not take pleasure in our pain. But we must accept the reality of pain if God is going to do something with it.
STAGE 2: We choose to praise in the midst of pain (v. 25-32)
* Paul and Silas had two choices: (1) complain about their pain; (2) praise in the midst of their pain
* Their choice to praise reveals several things to us...
A. Praise can occur at the darkest hour of our lives (v. 25a)
- Paul and Silas are in the inner cell (v. 24) at midnight (v. 25), yet their praised God
- How they were able to praise: their praise centered on their God, not their circumstances
- They praised because God was in control of their darkest hour
- They did not base their theology on their circumstances, but evaluated those circumstances in light of what they knew to be true of God
- They knew that their darkest hour was nothing compared to their bright, eternal future
- 2 Cor. 4:16-17
B. Praise in pain gets the attention of others (v. 25b)
- Their praise pointed others to the God they trusted
- C. S. Lewis, “God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world.”
C. Praise summons the presence of God (v. 26)
- Something about suffering brings us into God’s presence in a way we can’t experience otherwise
- Why Paul had a certain desire = Philippians 3:10
D. Praise always opens the door for the Gospel (v. 27-32)
- Satan’s goal is to stop the Gospel (hence the persecution Paul and Silas experienced); God accomplished just the opposite!
- Our pain is an opportunity for us to show the world the truth of the Gospel: that belief and trust in Christ enables us to face any pain or trial
STAGE 3: As we praise, God provides (v. 33-40)
* Because Paul and Silas understood the reality of pain, and because they chose to praise God in the midst of pain, God provided exactly what HE knew they needed.
* How that works for us: God does something in us, for us, and through us when we praise, even if we face pain.
* What God did in his provision for Paul and Silas...
A. God met their physical needs (v. 33-34)
- The pain caused physical needs, and God met those needs
- Psalm 37:25
- God meets our physical needs as he KNOWS them, not necessarily as we SEE them.
B. God provided protection (v. 35-39)
- Pain can be a tool of our enemy that is used to defeat us. When we praise, God provides the protection we need.
- 2 Thess. 3:3
- 1 John 4:4
C. God provided an opportunity to serve (v. 40)
