12 Now I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel. 13 As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ.14 Because of my chains, most of the brothers in the Lord have been encouraged to speak the word of God more courageously and fearlessly.
15 It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. 16 The latter do so in love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. 17 The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. 18 But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice.
Yes, and I will continue to rejoice, 19 for I know that through your prayers and the help given by the Spirit of Jesus Christ, what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance. 20 I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. 21 For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. 22 If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! 23 I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; 24 but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. 25 Convinced of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith, 26 so that through my being with you again your joy in Christ Jesus will overflow on account of me.
27 Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel 28 without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved—and that by God. 29 For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for him, 30 since you are going through the same struggle you saw I had, and now hear that I still have.
Philippians 1:12-30.
A few days ago someone very close to Pam and I found herself, quite unexpectedly, in highly stressful and potentially tragic situation. It was not the kind of thing anyone could really have prepared for. It was just one of those things that happens in life. No matter how well we plan, how good we try to be as people or how careful we are, things sometimes just happen.
In the midst of this confusion and fear, Pam (who is a pretty wise lady!) reminded this person of something Pastor Dan preached about a couple of months ago -- although in a somewhat different context -- and that is that life is a vapor. Or more to the point, that our life on earth is a brief time of preparation for something much bigger; something much better.
That is not, of course, to say that what we do in our time on earth is unimportant. Quite to the contrary, what we do in our limited time here is eternally important. But, while I think that having an eternal perspective is always important, I don't see how people can get through the toughest times in life without one. And, in fact, Pam's reminder proved to have been the best thing anyone could have said to this person. And that brings me back to Paul's letter to the Philippians.
There are several things that strike me as I think about the first part of Paul's letter to the Philippians. The first is rather obvious -- actually, I guess they are all rather obvious! But the first is that Paul is rejoicing even though he is writing from prison. While Paul describes himself as being "in chains for Christ", he was literally and physically in chains, and he found himself in that predicament precisely because of his belief in Christ. And yet he rejoiced.
The second thing that struck me was that there was a part of Paul that was ready to give up and go home to be with the Lord. We have all been there -- haven't we? He knew that something better was waiting for him. Hmmmmm. Prison or heaven? Decisions, decisions. Which would you chose?
But Paul also knew that God might have more for him to do on earth. And, he was willing to defer the freedom that would come from physical death and continue to endure confinement for the sake of the Gospel.
And finally, Paul could see his present circumstances in the context of the bigger picture. Paul could see that God was using his circumstances -- as personally painful as they might be -- for His glory. Paul could see that his imprisonment was causing others to preach the Word of God more courageously; more fearlessly.
I personally think that Paul's eternal perspective, and indeed that of most of the apostles and countless other Christians, was the major force used by God to cause this new little religion founded by a nobody in a remote corner of the Roman Empire to become the greatest institution the earth has ever known. I believe that it was the God-given ability of these early Christians, filled with the Holy Spirit of God, to hold firm to their beliefs during this time of immense persecution that caused Christianity to spread like wildfire.
I know that it is not always easy to hold on to an eternal perspective during the most difficult and challenging times in our life. In times like these, it's not always easy to put aside the all-too-real fear and worry that waits for us every morning, and instead to focus on a promise that depends entirely on our faith. But, the promise is there -- we just need the faith to believe it.
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