Philippians: Portrait of a Mature Christian
Part 1
10th May 2014
One of the best pictures we have of a mature Christian is the unconscious self-portrait Paul gave us when he wrote his letter to the church at Philippi. I don't think he meant to talk about himself, but the way he wrote tells us so much about himself, and this gives us a vivid picture of what a mature Christian character is like.
No-one knows for sure when he wrote Philippians, but it was probably around AD 61-63. Paul was in a Roman prison - again - and his life was in danger, but he wrote:
Philippians 1v3-4
I thank my God every time I remember you.
In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy
because of your partnership in the Gospel from the first day until now,
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.
He had no self-pity; his own circumstances didn't prevent him knowing the joy of the Lord. He was happy and thankful to God for this church, hundreds of miles away. Although he was the first to preach in Philippi, and it was he who planted the church there, he calls them his partners. And he rejoices because God is at work in them, and will continue to be.
His own problems didn't take all his attention. They didn't stop him praying for his friends. He wrote:
Philippians 1v9-11
And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight,
so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ,
filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ - to the glory and praise of God.
His passion was not for his own comfort but for God's work. Think about these words:
Philippians 1v12-13
Now I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the Gospel.
As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains
for Christ.
Paul could see that it was God's purpose for him to be in jail. He was happy to do whatever work God was pleased to give him. His mission field at that time was the prison guards, and those asociated with them. Paul writes that "it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else" that the only reason he was in jail was because he loved Jesus Christ, and was prepared to tell other people about how wonderful it is to be a disciple of Jesus. I expect it became clear whenever a guard spoke to Paul; I'm sure he took every opportunity to tell the guards about the Lord. Paul accepted that if they would come to the point where they put their faith in the redeeming sacrifice of Jesus Christ, had their sins forgiven and were adopted as God's children, then it made his suffering in that jail absolutely worthwhile.
Then Paul said:
Philippians 1v14
Because of my chains, most of the brothers in the Lord have been encouraged to speak the word of God more
courageously and fearlessly.
Another way that Paul understood his imprisonment to be part of God's purposes was that it prompted other Christians to tell the world about the love of God in Jesus Christ. Paul led by example. His willingness to suffer for the Good News made other Christians willing to suffer too. And Paul then said:
Philippians 1v15-18a
It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill.
The latter do so in love, knowing that I am put here for the defence of the Gospel.
The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for
me while I am in chains.
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.
We can have far too rosy a view of how good other Christians are. Th church is full of sinners. We're forgiven but we're far from perfect. While Paul was in prison, other church leaders were preaching out of selfish ambition, more concerned for their own power and glory than God's. Thery were trying to stir up trouble for Paul while he was away. I think they were trying to entice some of Paul's churches and followers away from him and into their own sphere of influence. They'd forgotten that we're God's church, not theirs. Such people should beware of God's judgement. But Paul didn't mind. He wrote, what does it matter? For him The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached."
This is Christian maturity. If Paul's freedom would advance the Good News of Jesus Christ, then he'd gladly be free. If his imprisonment would advance the Good News, then he'd gladly be in prison. What matters is getting the message of salvation out to as many people as possible. Paul genuinely didn't mind how this was achieved, so long as it was achieved. He didn't mind how much he suffered, so long as others were saved into the Kingdom of God.
The mature Christian has got his priorites sorted out. He knows that what happens to him doesn't matter much, so long as the Gospel continues to prosper and people continue to be saved into the glorious kingdom of God.