Philippians 1:15-18
~16 min read
TRANSCRIPT
hidden page for editing transcriptI greet all of you in the blessed name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. As we are preaching through the book of Philippians, we have come to Philippians 1:15-18. We often hear people say, "Remember the good old days," and we would readily agree with this statement, but to a certain degree, there are some untruths in this statement in terms of our human values, human aspirations, human feelings, human nature, and failures. The good old days were no different from our time.
Often, we hear people say that the early church was so good as though it was perfect. People will say, "Wouldn't it be amazing if the church today could be as in the days of the early church or the times of the early church?" Although the issues and challenges we face today may be of a different sort, and there are many wonderful testimonies and lessons we can learn from the early church, however there is hardly a problem in the church today that did not exist in some form in the church of the first century.
Take, for example, the church at Corinth. The Corinthians were deeply involved in sin and immorality. The people were divided, disorderly, chaotic in their worship. They fought with one another, sued one another. They had sexual sins with one another. They were proud. The usage of spiritual gifts was all mixed up. They were filled with jealousy, they abused their own marriages. False teachers had infiltrated into the church. They attacked the integrity of Paul and even questioned the resurrection of Christ. That was the first-century Corinthian church, and it is very similar to the churches of today.
What about the church in Rome? Well, in Philippians 1:15-18, the passage we want to consider for today's message, Paul said, "Some indeed preach Christ even of envy and strife; and some also of good will: The one preach Christ of contention, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my bonds: But the other of love, knowing that I am set for the defence of the gospel. What then? notwithstanding, every way, whether in pretence, or in truth, Christ is preached; and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice.”
The word “some” was a reference to the teachers or church leaders who preached the word of God. Here, Paul was not speaking about the truthfulness of their message but rather their motives, their motivations. In other words, the message might be right, accurate, and truthful, but the motivation was not sincere. So there was trouble in the church, which is the title of our message, and we want to learn how Paul perceived the trouble and his response to the trouble.
I. The Wrong Motivation
In the preceding verse 14, Paul talked about how his imprisonment had caused many of the believers in Rome to have far more courage to preach the word of Jesus Christ without fear. We have learned that in our previous message, and that was a good thing. But immediately after that, Paul said in verse 15, "Some indeed preach Christ even of envy and strife."
So Paul was still referring to the believers in Rome. He was not speaking about the heretics like the Judaizers in Jerusalem or the false teachers in Galatia who preached another gospel of a different kind. As we mentioned earlier, the issue was not with the truthfulness of their message or the way they handled the Word of God, but it was with their motivations. These believers in Rome, they were Christians; they were not anti-Christ. Perhaps we would say they were simply anti-Paul, for example, like the believers in Corinth, which was a divided church.
1 Corinthians 1:12 says, "Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ." In other words, some of the believers were supportive of Paul, but those believers who were supportive of Apollos might have some reservations about Paul or even be against him, and those believers who were supportive of Peter might be against both Paul and Apollos, and those believers who belonged to the Jesus group considered themselves to be the most spiritual and superior, and they considered all others as inferior. That division in the church was being condemned. But the point is that these people were not 'anti' the Lord Jesus Christ, but rather they were 'anti' the preacher, whether he be Paul, Apollos, or even Peter.
The word "envy" is to desire or to wish that others did not have what is rightfully theirs or to have it to a lesser degree. Envy is closely related to jealousy. One theologian explains it in a very interesting way: Jealousy is to desire what others have, while envy is to desire that others did not have what they have and to hate them for having the things they have. From the context, it seems that the people were envious of Paul. They might have envied Paul's spiritual gifts, his blessings, the effectiveness of his ministry, especially of him being highly respected in the church. Without any doubt, Paul's mind was one of the greatest in the early church. At home, he had fought boldly against the legalistic Jews in Jerusalem. On the mission fields, he was the one who brought the gospel to what is today modern Turkey. He was the first missionary to Greece. So some of the Roman Christians were envious of his spiritual success. Envy would inevitably lead to strife. To strive is to quarrel, to fight, and debate with hostility.
Dear friends, faithfulness in the ministry must include these two important things: We must have the right doctrines; that is important, but we must also have the right motivations. There are believers in the church who may serve actively, they may have the right understanding in doctrines, but they have this desire to exceed others, to compete with others. They are envious of others; they cannot stand to hear and say that others are better than them. They are resentful of those believers who are doing well. They have a contentious spirit, and they would even fight against those who are in the ministry. They may be preaching the same message, singing the same hymns, and worshiping the same God, but their concern is who is better—who can preach better, who can teach better, who can sing better, who can serve better? Am I better than you, or are you better than me?
As believers, we should never have that kind of attitude. Although the Bible does not tell us exactly who they were envious of and who they were striving against, but verse 16 gives us the clue that they were targeting Paul. Look at verse 16: "The one preached Christ of contention," which means for his own selfish ambitions, similar to the word "strife," "not sincerely," which means not with pure motives. Again, it was not their doctrine that was at fault;they were preaching Christ, but they were not preaching Christ for His glory and honour. They were seeking to fulfil their own selfish ambitions, and they did it at the expense of Paul's imprisonment.
How do we know? Paul says, "supposing to add affliction to my bonds". Think about this: To be imprisoned for the sake of the gospel was already painful enough, and these brethren were adding more pain to Paul's imprisonment. Some theologians believe that they were using Paul's imprisonment to discredit him and to promote themselves.
Perhaps they claimed that Paul's imprisonment was God's punishment for some secret sins; otherwise, God would have immediately freed him, or Paul was imprisoned because he was weak, he lacked the victorious faith to secure his release; or the fact that Paul was in prison was proof that his spiritual power was inferior to theirs, they were better than him; or Paul must have compromised his faith and made a deal with the Roman authorities. If not, he would have been martyred long ago and would not have received special treatments like living in a private house and even given the privilege to have visitors. While all these might be just speculations, but they provide for us an idea that whatever was said about Paul had added so much pain onto his imprisonment, on top of his imprisonment.
Dear friends, in the church, there are some people who love to fight—not in a good sense, of course. We will never say to them, "Praise be to God." As believers, we are called to be soldiers for Christ. We belong to the Lord's army. But the sad reality is that sometimes the church is the only army that shoots her own soldiers, and there are some people who do not care about shooting their own soldiers. It is so sad.
One of the most devastating experiences is to be attacked by fellow believers, especially co-workers in the church or fellow workers in the gospel work. We all know that to be attacked by an unbeliever is expected, but to be attacked by another believer is not only unexpected but unbelievable. It cannot be fathomed, and because it is not only unexpected but unbelievable, it cuts very deep when we are being attacked by fellow believers, fellow co-workers, fellow labourers in the gospel work. When our ministry is being slandered by the people who profess to stand alongside us, misrepresented, unjustly criticised by fellow preachers and teachers of the gospel, it cuts most deeply.
That was precisely the situation Paul was facing in Rome. If it can happen to Paul, it can also happen to us here at Bethel BP Church. That is why we must be careful of those people who are promoting their own interests rather than the interests of the church, the body of Christ. We must be careful of those people who try to discredit others in order to promote themselves. We must be careful of those people whose motivation is not to preach Christ for His glory and honour but for their own selfish ambitions. We must be careful of those people who love to fight and divide. For ourselves, we must always examine our hearts. We must be right in our doctrines, but we must also have the right motivations.
II. The Right Motivation
But Paul went on to say that there were some believers who had the right motivations, they preached Christ out of good will. The word "good will" refers to a positive motive which desires what is best for others. These people are always thinking about what is best for others. They not only did not criticise Paul but instead they zealously supported him and appreciated his work. Their motives were sincerely pure. They were grateful to Paul for his faithfulness in preaching the gospel and for his loving ministry toward them. They learned a great deal by observing Paul's life. They followed his example and preached Christ out of good will, always considering what is best for others. Their attitude is: it doesn't matter who gets the credit, it doesn't matter whether they are being appreciated or not, as long as others would benefit from their ministry.
When people have this kind of attitude, they are not envious. They do not have a contentious spirit because they are always thinking and desiring the best outcome for the people. Take a moment and consider our Sunday School ministry. Probably we have about 20 Sunday School teachers by God's grace and mercy. Surely some are more gifted than others, right? Some are more effective in their teaching abilities than others. Some are more well-received than others. If you are less gifted, less effective, and not so well-received, are you envious? Do you preach and teach Christ out of good will, always thinking about what is best for others, for the children whom you are ministering to, for the fellow teachers working alongside you, always considering the best outcomes for the people you work with? That should be our attitude.
Verse 17: "But the other of love". They had another vital characteristic, and that was love. Obviously, they loved the Lord Jesus Christ and the brethren, but here the emphasis was their love for the Apostle Paul. They deeply cared about Paul. They were concerned for his welfare as well as for his ministry. They knew he was imprisoned not because of sins or shortcomings but for his faithfulness in preaching the gospel. That was why Paul went on to say, "knowing that I am set for the defence of the gospel." In other words, 'they knew that I was appointed by God for the defence of the gospel.'
When was Paul appointed by God for the defence of the gospel? In Acts 9:15-16, the Lord Jesus appeared to Paul on the road to Damascus and said, "But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel: For I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name's sake." They believed his testimony. They knew God had called him, appointed him, and that one-day Paul would even present the gospel to the authorities. And that day had come.
Therefore, they saw his imprisonment not as an accident, not by chance or coincidence, not by the decision of men, not even because of Paul's decision to appeal to Caesar. They saw his imprisonment as a sovereign appointment by the Almighty God. So Paul said, "knowing that I am set for the defence of the gospel."
Dear friends, last week I shared with you about our missionary, Reverend Biak, and his team. They wanted to go to Ngalti BP Church in Chin State, but they had to postpone the trip. They wanted to go there to conduct a Bible Conference, but because on the way to Ngalti BP Church in Chin State there was intense fighting between the military government and the opposition, many people were killed. So they had to postpone the trip. Two days ago, after our prayer meeting, Reverend Biak said that they prayerfully decided to go ahead with the trip this coming Friday.
We do not know the future, what is lurking ahead of them. We do not know the circumstances that led them to prayerfully decide to go this coming Friday. We do not know whether their lives will be endangered, for all you know they could be killed. But one thing we do know is that their desire was to preach Christ out of good will, always desiring what is best for the people in Ngalti. They wanted the people in Ngalti to benefit from their ministry, from their teaching and preaching, and they wanted to preach Christ with love, love for the Ngalti BP Church members. And because of that, they prayerfully decided to go ahead.
Dear friends, whether you are an elder, a preacher, a deacon, a Sunday school teacher, or a fellowship leader, God has placed you in that position, and it is your responsibility to fulfil this duty to preach Christ, to glorify Him out of good will, always desiring what is best for others, and out of love—a love for God, a love for the brethren, and a love for the people whom you are called to minister to.
So, there were believers who preached Christ out of envy, strife, and contention. They were not sincere, and they were adding more pain to Paul's imprisonment. There were some believers who preached Christ out of good will and love. They were sincere, and they believed that everything happened for the sovereign purpose that God had appointed Paul for the defence of the gospel. Even his imprisonment was appointed by God.
III. The Larger Picture
Now the last thing we want to learn is the attitude and response of Paul—how he was able to see the larger picture. That is our third and final point. Look at verse 18. Paul said, "What then? notwithstanding, every way, whether in pretence, or in truth, Christ is preached; and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice".
“Whether in pretence” means to put on a show; “in truth” does not mean the accuracy of their message but rather the truthfulness and integrity of their hearts. Both of these characteristics speak of their motivation. Although their motivation was not primarily to glorify Christ or to win souls but to exalt themselves and at the expense of Paul's imprisonment, yet he was not bitter, for he said, "Rejoice, and yes, I will rejoice."
Why did he say that? It does not mean that Paul was agreeable or supportive of such wrong motivations. In fact, all these negative characteristics—envy, strife, contentions, pretence—have been condemned throughout the Bible. Essentially, Paul was saying, "I do not know the hearts of men. Certainly, I am not the judge of the hearts of men. God is the Judge of the hearts of men, and every man is accountable to Him and Him alone, not only in the things they do, even in the intentions and motivations behind their actions. In the final analysis, they would have to stand before the Almighty God, and God alone will judge their motivations."
1 Corinthians 3:12-15 tells us, "Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is. If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.”
Dear friends, do we really know the motivation behind the preacher, why he preached what he preached? Do we know the motivation behind the one who serves, or the one who worships, or the one who sings, or the one who plays the piano, or the one who gives of his tithes and offerings? No, we don't, and it is not our concern. It is not our business to know the motivations and intentions of men.
Paul's concern was not in the motivation of men, for God is the one who knows the hearts of men, and He alone will test every man's work, including their motivations—whether it be gold, silver, and precious stones which will stand the test, or whether it be hay, wood, and stubble which will be burned up. His concern was not whether the gospel was preached by jealous and hurtful preachers or by faithful and loving preachers. His concern was that the gospel was accurately preached and souls were saved and they produced fruits for the glory of God. That was Paul's concern. His eyes were focused on Christ and Christ alone.
And when he saw that souls were saved, fruits were produced, what happens? He could only do one thing very spontaneously: rejoice. Nothing could steal Paul's God-given joy. Even though he was imprisoned, being falsely accused and unjustly criticised, he said, "Rejoice, and yes, I will rejoice." He saw the larger picture as in God's Word is so powerful. God's Word is always powerful, whatever be the motivation of the one who preached.
Take a moment and consider this: remember the prophet Jonah. The last thing he wanted was for the people in Nineveh to repent through his preaching. But he preached the message anyway, and in spite of his reluctance, hesitance, and unwillingness, his message was right, accurate, and truthful. And God used it to produce the fruit of repentance.
In other words, do not fix your eyes on the preacher. Fix your eyes on the message of the Almighty God and the glory of Jesus Christ. God always honours His word, and His Word always bears fruit when it is preached rightly, accurately, and truthfully. Isaiah 55:11 says, "So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it."
Dear friends, to all those people who say, "Remember the good old days, remember how Bethel BP Church was started, remember how we served the Lord faithfully, how we preached the gospel, how we taught the children, how we brought the church thus far”—if we really search our hearts and examine our motivations, so often we are just like Jonah who was so reluctant, hesitant, and unwilling. So often we are just like the believers in Rome who were envious, contentious, always striving, fighting with one another, and pretentious.
The truth is that it is not about us. It is not about the preacher, no matter who he is. Preachers come and go. Some are faithful, others are not. The truth is, it is in spite of us that God is able to use His Word to save souls, to produce fruits, to flourish the church, in spite of us. We are just instruments. At the end of the day, we have to stand before Him and be accountable for all our actions, our motivations, our intentions. We want to be faithful. We do not agree nor support all these negative characteristics: strife, envy, a contentious spirit, and being pretentious. But the focus is on our Lord and His glory.
If we really understand this important truth, then we'll be able to see the larger picture. We will be able to see beyond the façade of men. We will be able to see beyond the preacher, the teacher, the elder, the deacon, the pastor. We will be able to see Christ and His glory. And it is all that matters at the end of the day. It is only Christ and His glory. It is all that matters.
When that happens, you and I will be able to say like Paul, "What then? notwithstanding, every way, whether in pretence, or in truth, Christ is preached; and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice." (Philippians 1:18). My Lord Jesus Christ, be glorified. That is all that matters. That is all that matters.
Let us pray. Our Father in Heaven, we thank Thee for Thy precious Word, for the opportunity for us to consider this portion of Scripture. We acknowledge that it is not by chance nor coincidence that we have come to this passage. Help us always to focus our eyes on Jesus, the Author and the Finisher of our faith. Our focus is on Him, and Him be glorified. We want our Lord Jesus to be preached faithfully. Indeed, we do not know the hearts of men. We do not know their motivations nor intentions, and it is not our concern. Our concern, our only business, is to fix our eyes on Christ and His glory.
We love our Lord, and we love Him because He first loved us. We want our Lord Jesus to be glorified, and that is all that matters. Help us, O Lord, that as believers we will always live our lives for this one purpose: to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever. Remind us, because as humans we always forget, and we always look to the circumstances and the people around us. Help us to look to Christ and not take our eyes away from Him. This we pray in Jesus' name. Amen.
THE BOOK OF PHILIPPIANSThe Church at PhilippiThe Church at PhilippiPhilippians 1:1-2
The Joy of A Spirit-Filled Life (Part 1)The Joy of A Spirit-Filled Life (Part 1)Philippians 1:3-5
Elements of True JoyElements of True JoyPhilippians 1:3-6
The Joy of a Spirit-filled Life (Part 2)The Joy of a Spirit-filled Life (Part 2)Philippians 1:6
What are the Things Most Important to Us?What are the Things Most Important to Us?Philippians 1:7-8
Growing in GodlinessGrowing in GodlinessPhilippians 1:9-11
Message 5: Praying for the ChurchMessage 5: Praying for the ChurchPhilippians 1:9-11
Growing in GodlinessGrowing in GodlinessPhilippians 1:9-11
Are All Things Really Working For Good?Are All Things Really Working For Good?Philippians 1:12-14
In Times of AdversityIn Times of AdversityPhilippians 1:12-18
Trouble in the ChurchTrouble in the ChurchPhilippians 1:15-18
For to Me to Live is Christ, to Die is GainFor to Me to Live is Christ, to Die is GainPhilippians 1:19-26
To Live is ChristTo Live is ChristPhilippians 1:19-26
Living Worthy of the GospelLiving Worthy of the GospelPhilippians 1:27-30
Live your life worthy of the GospelLive your life worthy of the GospelPhilippians 1:27-30
The Motivation for Spiritual Unity (Part 1)The Motivation for Spiritual Unity (Part 1)Philippians 2:1-2
Let's Have FellowshipLet's Have FellowshipPhilippians 2:1-4
Essential Principles of Spiritual Unity (Part 2)Essential Principles of Spiritual Unity (Part 2)Philippians 2:3-4
The Ultimate ExampleThe Ultimate ExamplePhilippians 2:5-8
The Ultimate ExampleThe Ultimate ExamplePhilippians 2:5-11
What Is Christmas?What Is Christmas?Philippians 2:6-11
The Greatest NameThe Greatest NamePhilippians 2:9-11
Living a Sanctified LifeLiving a Sanctified LifePhilippians 2:12-13
Work Out Your Own SalvationWork Out Your Own SalvationPhilippians 2:12-18
Moving Forward Not BackwardMoving Forward Not BackwardPhilippians 2:13-14
Stop Murmuring and ComplainingStop Murmuring and ComplainingPhilippians 2:14-16
The Exemplary Example of a Spiritual Servant: PaulThe Exemplary Example of a Spiritual Servant: PaulPhilippians 2:17-18
The Exemplary Example of a Spiritual Servant: TimothyThe Exemplary Example of a Spiritual Servant: TimothyPhilippians 2:19-24
The Importance of Spiritual DiscernmentThe Importance of Spiritual DiscernmentPhilippians 3:1-2
True Believers Worship God in Spirit and in TruthTrue Believers Worship God in Spirit and in TruthPhilippians 3:3, John 4:4-30
Nothing to Boast OfNothing to Boast OfPhilippians 3:3-6
What Is Gain To Me Is LossWhat Is Gain To Me Is LossPhilippians 3:7-9
The Power of Christ's ResurrectionThe Power of Christ's ResurrectionPhilippians 3:10-11
What are Your Spiritual Goals?What are Your Spiritual Goals?Philippians 3:10-11
Pressing Toward The MarkPressing Toward The MarkPhilippians 3:12-14
Pressing Toward the MarkPressing Toward the MarkPhilippians 3:13-14
Morning Devotion 2: God’s High Calling for YouMorning Devotion 2: God’s High Calling for YouPhilippians 3:13-14
How to Know the Will of GodHow to Know the Will of GodPhilippians 3:15
Who Are You Following?Who Are You Following?Philippians 3:16-19
Heavenly Or Earthly MindedHeavenly Or Earthly MindedPhilippians 3:20-21; 1 Corinthians 15:50-57
How Do You Stand Fast?How Do You Stand Fast?Philippians 4:1
How to Maintain Christian UnityHow to Maintain Christian UnityPhilippians 4:2-3
Having Peace in Times of Trouble [Part 1]Having Peace in Times of Trouble [Part 1]Philippians 4:4-7
The Cure for AnxietyThe Cure for AnxietyPhilippians 4:6-7
Message 6: Praying for the TroubledMessage 6: Praying for the TroubledPhilippians 4:6-7
Having Peace in Times of Trouble [Part 2]Having Peace in Times of Trouble [Part 2]Philippians 4:8-9
Learning To Be Content [Part 1]Learning To Be Content [Part 1]Philippians 4:10-12
How To Be An Overcoming ChristianHow To Be An Overcoming ChristianPhilippians 4:13
Learning To Be Content [Part 2]Learning To Be Content [Part 2]Philippians 4:13-19
My God Shall Supply All Your NeedsMy God Shall Supply All Your NeedsPhilippians 4:19
Living By Grace and For God's GloryLiving By Grace and For God's GloryPhilippians 4:20-23
