Philippians

Reader #3: It’s All Good!

Reading: Philippians 1:12-18, Genesis 50 (story of Joseph), Romans 8:28

In this ancient letter, we find Paul writing honestly to these early Christians about staying encouraged and focused in their developing faith in Jesus…about the importance of functioning with a sense of togetherness…about the remaining joyful…and always making the gospel of Christ central to their mission.  But in verses 12-18 we hear a different side of Paul.

As a missionary, Paul is completely unable to do his work because he’s stuck in prison.  His plans have been severely thwarted and he’s now having to “make due” despite really difficult circumstances.  Rather than give up, Paul decides to make the most of a tough time by sharing Christ with prison guards. 

However…being in jail isn’t Paul’s only problem.  There seems to be others who don’t like Paul, or who see his absence as an opportunity for them to make money from the gospel.  By being selfish and greedy, it’s discrediting the good guys like Paul.  Think about how frustrating and hurtful this must have been for a man who had given every effort to be genuine in his ministry!  Crushing!  Paul has every right to be bitter and to tell the church on the outside to put an end to these foolish men.  But he doesn’t.  His heart is humble and molded enough out of God’s grace that he knows God will deal with them and in the meantime…Jesus is still being preached.  It sounds cliché, but Paul’s example is one of those…”when life gives you lemons, make lemonade” moments.  We can all learn a lot from his gracious and Godly example!

Questions: 

What do you need most to be effective in your work?  If it was take away, how would you adjust to make the most of a difficult situation?

Have you ever worked with someone who had nothing but selfish motives?  How did they impact your work and life?  Did they get the best of you, or have you been able to overcome their deceit?

We’ve all experience pain from times when our life plans didn’t go the way we hoped.  Do you carry hurt or resentment from that, or have you allowed God to bring good from your pain and difficulty?

Resources:  Read ‘Disappointment with God’ by Philip Yancey / Watch Shadowlands starring Anthony Hopkins