Philippians | The Right Fight

Well come on, how's everybody doing today? Come on, keep your hands clapping for all those watching online at all of our campuses, in the jails. Come on church, show your love! So glad you're with us today, wherever you're watching from, or in this place today. Man, what a great day to spend in God's house, amen? Some of you were hoping that Tim Tebow started coming to church here and you get Thibodeau instead. Are we gonna pass a good time? Yes, yeah! Hey, my name is Jordan, I'm just part of the team here at Bayside. Man, I love this place, and if you're just kind of checking things out for a little bit, man, we got we got so much happening here. You saw Kids Camp, a lot of y'all wanted to sign up for Kids Camp. You can to volunteer, we would love that, that'd be so good. So good, but sign your kids up for that. But man, all the things that are happening here, we just want you to know a little bit about us. Maybe you've just been coming for a little bit, or maybe you've been here for a little while, you just need a little bit of reminding about who we are. Well, let me just tell you three things. We love God like crazy around here. I mean, we love him. We want to prioritize his presence. We want to make sure that he is the center of everything that we're doing. Number two, we love you. Doesn't matter your story, doesn't matter where you came from, we're just so glad God brought you here to be a part of this crazy family. And we love you and we just are committed to helping you walk this thing out, this crazy thing called life and following Jesus. And number three, man, we love his word around here. Come on, we love the word. And listen, this is the foundation on everything that we teach and preach around here. We believe this book is so true, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. You can read it, but it'll read you. It'll mark you. It'll change you. It'll shape you. It'll make you into the man

or the woman of God that he's called you to be. It is the B-I-B-L-E. Yes, that's the book for me. Basic instructions before leaving earth. Come on, we need this and we need this truth in our lives because this is the foundation on everything which we stand. And with that kind of framework in mind, today we're starting a new series that we're studying one of the books out of this word, the book of Philippians. And for the next four weeks, we're going to just take it chapter by chapter, reading God's word, learning together and seeing what God's word would speak to us because it is alive, it is active, it is powerful. Now we also, as a church, God has given us two words for this year to come and that we would come into his presence. We would come after the things of God in our life. We would accept the invitation to follow Jesus. That's number one. But the second thing is to abide, that we would remain in him, that we would stay planted in him. And so as a church, we've developed a reading plan for every series that we're going to be going through. You can take your phone out. You can tap that sticker. That reading plan is right there. And you can follow along every day with us while we go through this next series. And I want to encourage you to abide in him, abide in God's word. No greater way to abide in him than being in his word. And so we're going to go through this and you might be wondering, okay, the Philippians, is that where all the Phillips of the world came from? A little ancestry.com maybe? No, but Philippians are those that come from the city of Philippi. The city was actually the first, what we would call a Jesus community, that Paul, the Apostle Paul, helped to get started in what we now know as Eastern Europe. It was a Roman city filled with a lot of Roman pride. There are so many records of a lot of retired soldiers

called this home. And so there was patriotism of Rome in Philippi. And so when Paul shows up and he starts preaching that Jesus is king, not Caesar, how many of you know that put a little pressure on some things? Paul kind of maybe found himself in some pressure-filled moments where he had to try to figure out, okay, am I committed to this? Am I going to stand for this? Are we as the church going to stand for this? Do we really believe what we are saying? And you know, because of his boldness of preaching that gospel, in which he believed, Paul is actually writing this message from a very uncomfortable house arrest. Now he didn't have what we picture today. He didn't have some ankle bracelet, little black box around his ankle, no government jewelry. No, he was literally chained. to a Roman soldier that was with him 24 hours a day, seven days a week, about 10 to 15 feet of chain between the two of them. But you see, Rome thought that they had chained Paul to a soldier, but Paul saw it like God had chained soldiers to him so that they can hear a gospel message. Now, I'm three minutes into this thing and I'm ready to preach. You know, this Paul is so confined, he's uncertain, he's under pressure, and the Philippians, now that he's in this house arrest, well, now they're experiencing the very pressure that Paul was, and the persecutions now come on them. So this letter written by Paul under house arrest to the Philippian church, who he wants to cheer on through this season of difficulty, through this season of overwhelming pressure,

this is why Philippians is really one of the most encouraging books, most affectionate books that we see Paul actually write to a church. And so, if you came in today feeling a little under pressure, it's pressing down on me, pressing down on your, no, I'm mad, that's far. Bowie is not in the Bible, I'm just gonna go ahead and clear that up, but he probably needed to hear this message too. Maybe today you came in, and your life is a little bit under pressure. Money's tight, marriage is tough, mind is tired, maybe your future feels unclear, maybe you feel trapped, and it's something that you didn't even ask for. Maybe you're waiting on God and wondering, hey, what are you doing up there? Just wondering if you're ready to kind of make some changes, and you're here because, if we're honest, a lot of us would like to have some clarity, clarity in our life, clarity in the midst of pressure. I challenge you though with this thought as we kind of dive into this together, that pressure is not what you think it is. There was this man named John Cavanaugh, he was a famous ethicist who desperately wanted to meet Mother Teresa. I mean, he was a big fan. He thought the way that she's kind of lived her life was such a model for the rest of us, and he wanted so badly to meet her

that he actually carves out three months because he doesn't know how he's gonna find her, but he gets a ticket and flies over to Calcutta for the sole purpose of meeting her. And so he's there, and he's trying to figure out, he's rehearsing how and what he's gonna say asking Mother Teresa, how do I spend the rest of my life and let it be the best of my life? And so he finally gets to meet her, and he's so excited, he forgets all the things that he rehearses, and he just goes, Mother Teresa, would you pray for me? She smiled at him, and she just said, well, what would you want me to pray for? And then he shared this request that he carried thousands of miles with him, and he said, Mother Teresa, pray that I have clarity. Clarity is what I need. And she kind of had this scornful look come on her face, and she pointed her finger at him, and she says, I will not pray for that. And he thought, I don't understand. Did I do something wrong? Do you misunderstand what I'm saying? And is there something that I'm missing here? He was so confused, and she told him, clarity is the last thing that you are clinging to, and you must let go of. But Mother Teresa, it seems like you've had clarity your whole life, he said. I mean, it seems like you were so clear

on everything that you're doing. She smiled and laughed at him and said, I've never had clarity. What I have always had is trust. So I will pray that you trust God. You know, if we're honest, most of us would ask the same thing, though. We want clarity. God, tell me what's next. God, tell me how this is gonna work out. God, explain why this happened. God, tell me when this pressure is gonna let up. But what if God is doing something deeper than we can understand? Maybe the question today is not, how do I get out of pressure? Maybe the better question is, do I have the right perspective of pressure? And so let's read Philippians 1 and see if we can't learn something from it today. Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, to all God's holy people in Christ Jesus at Philippi, together with the overseers. and deacons, grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 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. It is right for me to feel this way about all of you since I have you in my heart and whether I'm in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God's grace with me. God can testify how I long for all of you with affection of Christ Jesus. 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 maybe pure and blameless for the day of Christ filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ through the glory and praise of God. Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually 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. And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear. It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. The latter do so out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble

for me while I'm 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. Yes, I will continue to rejoice for I know that through your prayers and God's provision of the spirit of Jesus Christ, what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance. 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. For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am going on to living in this body, that will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know. I'm torn between the two. I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far, but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. 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 so that through my being with you again, your boasting in Christ Jesus will abound on account of me. 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 the one spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel 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, for it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him. Since you are going through the same struggle you saw I had and now hear that I still have. This is the word of the Lord. Amen. Y'all have a great weekend. What else can we say? What an amazing letter. This first moment of this letter, so much love, so much joy. We see at first that Paul, knowing his condition, being chained under house arrest, and yet the first thing that comes out of his mouth is not bitterness, it's not self-pity, it's not complaints, but words expressing his gratitude, his joy, his thankfulness. We look at verse three. He says, I thank my God every time I remember you. He says, I always pray with joy. He says, 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. You know, he doesn't express anxiety, fear, worry, doubt.

No, he expresses thankfulness. and trust. You know, Paul is teaching us that this pressure does not reveal what is around us, it reveals what is in us. Come on, somebody. So if you're discouraged, maybe you came in, you feel like some things are unfinished in your life, you're frustrated because maybe you're not as far along as you thought you would be come May. Maybe you thought your marriage would be stronger by now. Maybe you thought your healing would be deeper by now. Maybe you thought your child would be walking with the Lord by now. But here's the thing, church, unfinished doesn't mean abandoned. You know what unfinished means? It means God's not finished. It means he's got a plan. He's got something that he's doing. He's got change that he's wanting to bring in you. He wants to shape you. He wants to create in you something that you can't see or understand. Just recently in our home, our 15-year-old son, he's a big baseball guy, loves the game. And two weeks before baseball tryouts, he broke his tibia. Yeah, 15-year-olds, it got really dramatic. He thought his life was over. He thought his career was over.

Man, it was a rollercoaster ride of emotion, just feeling that this is it. They're gonna just not let me on the team. They're just gonna overlook me. There's just no place for me. And yet he felt chained as he kind of wore this boot on his leg. It wasn't a chain like Paul had, but he did have a boot that he was in for eight to nine weeks. You know, he'd just be hobbling around. You know, just kind of. And I was like, man, you got some swag with that walk. You must get that from your mama. And we tried to make light of it, but man, it was so discouraging for him. And yet he got encouraged by some people in the church, guys who either were on his team, his high school team, or guys that are now in college playing college ball that used to come here that he knows, or maybe even actually even some ex-professional ball players all encouraged him and said, hey, bud, you're gonna get through this. So this is just temporary. Keep going. And he kept hearing the same thing over and over and over again. You're gonna be a better person and a better teammate after all of this. So you know what he did? He just chose to take the season

and just think of it differently. Take his season of healing and he began serving. He began just thinking about how grateful he is and all that God has done for him on his own. He started to just show up to practice. He would help other guys just in their batting practice. He would hobble around the field and just pick up stuff at the end of practice. He didn't miss a practice. He showed his dedication. He showed his team effort. And in all of that, people were watching him navigate through this. And what originally felt like imprisonment, God was using it for empowerment. Let me just brag on him a little bit. He came back, fourth game of the season. He just played lights out. Such a great team member. Such a great ball player. But you know what I'm most proud about? Is the character that was built through that season. Amen. What about the character that God's building in you in your season? Because Paul says, he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion. You know what that tells me? Even when I don't see it, God is still working.

Even when I can't understand what he's doing, God has a plan that he is working out. If God started this, then he is going to finish it. Our part of the process is to submit to the process, to trust in the process. When it looks slow, guess what? God's still gonna be faithful. When you're out of control, guess who's still on the throne? He is, not you. So stop judging God by what is incomplete and start trusting him by what his word says is true. Because if he began it, he is going to finish it. So even when I don't see it, God is still working. Let's move to verse nine. And this is my prayer. That you, 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 for the day of Christ. filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ through the glory and praise of God. So Paul starts praying that their love would grow for one another, that their discernment would deepen for one another. Now let me just stop right here and say, I've heard people say before, I've got a strong gift of discernment. And yet I look through Scripture and the only gift of discernment that I see

is actually found in 1 Corinthians 12 where it talks about the gifts of the Holy Spirit. And in that gift of discernment, it actually is a gift to discern evil spirits. And sometimes when we say that we have a gift of discernment really what I find out is we have a gift of judgment. What Paul is talking about here, don't confuse it because this word discernment actually means wisdom. What Paul is praying for is that they would have wisdom, not their own judgment, not their own will, not their own best idea, but wisdom from on high, that their wisdom would deepen and that their lives would bear fruit. Paul knows what God wants from pressure is formation for all of us. He wants to develop in you just things that are much more important than everything that you have and you're trying to build in your life to try to make yourself something and try to advance yourself. God's not worried about the outside of the cup, God's worried about the inside of the cup. See, that's what Paul is teaching us and trying to show us about this. And what he's praying for us is he's praying that God would have our hearts. Proverbs 4.23 says, above all else, guard your heart,

for out of the heart flows the wellspring of life. See, the heart, your heart, who you are, that's who you really are. It's as unique as your thumbprint. There's only one you and God is after that heart. He's after who you really are. He is after your devotion. So let us evaluate our hearts. Are you abounding in love when pressure hits? Are you remembering that Christ is with us, that Christ is in us, that Christ is all around us when things get hard? Are you starting to remember that God has been faithful all your life to lead you to this place? And do you think that he's gonna ruin his reputation on you? I think not. So what would happen if you let God take over the inside? What do you think might happen to the outside? And so verse 12, Paul says, now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel. And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear. Listen, if you focus on your circumstances, you will only ever see a setback. But what if the setback is a setup from God?

Something much bigger than you can even comprehend or understand. See, every time that there's a setback in my life, as I look back over my life, I see that it was a setup by God the whole time. The setback is always God's setup for something bigger, something greater, exceedingly, abundantly, above anything that we could ever ask or imagine according to His power and His work within Christ Jesus. The setback is God's setup. So when we see a setback, God sees something different. What chained Paul didn't chain the gospel, it advanced the gospel. Your prison might feel like a delay or a promotion or a deal that you're waiting on. Your prison might be a betrayal from a family member or a friend right now. It might be a disappointment of a diagnosis. You would have never picked this. This is not the story that you would have written for your life. But could it be that God has something bigger in store out of all of this? Because it is painful. It is hard. It's not to neglect those things, but it is to understand that God is bigger than those things. The pressure is real. But listen to me, so is the purpose. And if we're not careful,

we'll start calling every pressure point. Punishment from God. We'll start to believe that God's punishing me because of all of my sin, I've just, all that time I've just messed up, that this is my punishment. This must be why I'm going through this. Punishment. Is God punishing us? You know, that's exactly what I thought when our little girl was one year old, one years old, and she was diagnosed with leukemia. And that season is still the most pressure-filled season that I've ever experienced in my life. Watching her lay in that hospital bed, helpless to help her, and it made me question, is God punishing me? Is that why he's allowing this? Is this because of all of my sin that has accrued up until this point? This is what I get? What a poor and twisted thought about our God. He's not punishing you. He's not punishing you. And if you ever have thought that before, let me just tell you this right now and make it very clear. That is a lie from the pit of hell. Because the truth is, is that Jesus took my punishment and your punishment on a cross. And because of that, now we get to walk forgiven and free.

The pressure is not punishment. And if you've ever been lied to about that, then it's time for you to say, shut up, devil, and allow the truth of God's word to start ringing louder than any lie that he might be speaking to you. See, I just forgot it. When the pressure got heavy, I felt like our family was in prison on that seventh floor of John Hopkins All Children's Hospital. I missed that the setback was a setup. And it's a setup for God to heal our little girl. And now we're celebrating 10 years cancer-free. Come on. This is our God. He's not afraid of a setback. It is a setup that we are gonna share this testimony of what he's done in and through our little girl and our family for the rest of our lives. It's a setup, a setup that God would use it to also heal my heart in areas that I didn't even know I needed to be healed in. You know what pressure does? Pressure exposes what comfort keeps hidden. Pressure reveals what you really trust. Pressure shows where you're growing and where you are still immature. I'm sorry if your toes are hurting. Didn't mean to step on them that much. But let's go back to Paul as he encourages us.

Verse 15, it is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way Christ is preached. And because of this, I rejoice. You know, Paul, in this moment, the Philippians were concerned that he didn't know that there was others out there that were preaching Jesus, but that were assassinating Paul's character while he was under house arrest. And so Paul is addressing this moment from others who were teaching Christ, but also just downing his word, destroying his character. And so Paul just says, hey guys, it's not that big of a deal. He could have easily fell into the trap of comparison and feeling the pressure of comparison and people pleasing. But you know what? When you get focused on everybody else's world and how much greater their life is, you forget how wonderful God is to you in your life. And so Paul then corrects him. He says, you know what? Let them preach Christ. Let them preach it. Let them preach it. And then he redirects them to the verse that is the center of this whole first chapter. He says in verse 21, Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death,

for to me to live is Christ and to die is gain. To live is Christ and to die is gain. If I live, it's Christ. If I die, I gain Christ. Either way, Christ wins. This is a win-win. There's no losing here because Christ is everything. Christ is enough for us no matter what we're going through. Come on, if we're gonna praise, let's praise him. Come on. You know, I think a lot of us love Jesus, but our peace still depends on our comfort. A lot of us, as long as life is manageable, I'm good. A lot of us, as long as the future feels clear, I'm fine. But you know what fine stands for? Freaked out, insecure, neurotic, and emotional. So if somebody tells you they're fine, you better start praying for that sister or brother. When my 15-year-old says I'm fine, I'm rebuked at in Jesus' name. As long as people understand them, they're okay. As long as the outcome looks favorable, we're happy. But yeah, you can almost hear Paul smiling as he writes this. Smiling, living with the view of what can the world do to a person who has already decided my life is Christ. If you let me live, I'm his. If I die, I'm with him. If you pressure me, I will still praise him. And if you chain me, I will still preach him.

The goal of the Christian life is not self-preservation. The goal is Christ's exaltation. Because when you give your life to Christ, you realize Christ really is enough. In every situation, in every circumstance, through every storm, Christ is enough. This whole first chapter of Philippians confronts a version of Christianity that only works when life is working. And look, you may be under pressure. You may be going through a lot. This world is crazy right now. But let me tell you something. If Jesus were here and he was speaking to you and you were looking at him in his eye, he would say, you're not without purpose, though. I'm working something out for you, through you. You may not have clarity, but I'm glad that we have Christ. No matter what you're facing or what pressure you're feeling, God is still working. God is still using you. God is still more than enough. Paul started this letter of Philippians in thankfulness, gratitude. And maybe that's been far from how you would write your letter right now. But today we want to encourage you. I wanna challenge you to start writing a new letter from this day forward, a line in the sand,

that you're looking at pressure differently. You're not perceiving it just as the end, but you know God is using it to move things forward, to grow something in you, to do something through you. And that could change the way in which our outlook of our circumstances will happen from here on out, just like Paul. When you came in, you received a piece of paper and it's an opportunity for you to start that letter, to have a new lens, to begin a new language, not focus on pressure, but the person of Jesus. So I wanna challenge you. This week, you got a little homework. Start writing that letter of gratitude, thankfulness. Maybe for some of you, it's what Christ has done, but maybe for some of you, you need to start to write thankfulness, believing for what Christ is gonna do. Regardless, I just wanna encourage us all that if we're gonna start somewhere, changing the way that we perceive pressure, let's start in thankfulness. Scripture says in Psalm 100, I enter his gates with thanksgiving in our heart. We enter his courts with praise. Let's be thankful. And listen, if you actually use that piece of paper to write notes on, it's okay, we got extras in the back. And that brings us to the deepest question in the room, whatever room you're watching from.

Not just the question of are you under pressure, but do you belong to Jesus? Because for some of you, if you're honest, that's the real issue. He doesn't have your heart. And you've tried to carry on your life and you've tried to go through the motions. you've tried to manage sin on your own, you've fought the battles as best you can, you tried to even save yourself. The truth is, is that you can't carry it all. You were never meant to. And that's why Jesus came. You know, sin had a cost, and that cost was death. And Jesus took up the cross to be the atoning sacrifice for all of our sin, our past, our present, and our future. All the mistakes covered by His blood that we sang about earlier. He went into the grave, and three days later, He rose again in victory, saying, that is why Paul can say, to die is gain. Because you know why? Because death has no more sting. Death no longer gets the final word. The cross gets the final word. So today, where we leave this moment, is an invitation not just to admire Paul's faith, but to receive Paul's Savior. With every head bowed and every eye closed for a moment, some of you need joy in your pressure.

Some of you need peace in your uncertainty. Some of you need purpose in your pain. But before all that, some of you need salvation. Jesus is here. Jesus loves you. Jesus sees you. And I just wanna invite you to make Jesus the Lord and Savior of your life. Nobody can make this decision for you. It's not passed down from someone in your family. No, you have to make it for yourself. And maybe you've been trying to do it all on your own, feeling pretty chained up, not really going anywhere. And right now, to allow Jesus to lead your life, to guide your life, to break every chain of your life, would be the greatest decision you could ever make. So simply on the count of three, I just want you to boldly and confidently lift your hands, just so we know who we're praying with. But more importantly than that, being confident that God has given you a portion of faith. And maybe you've tried to put your faith in other things and in other people and in other areas of this world, but you realize now that you wanna use that faith and actually put it in the one place that that faith was intended to go from the very beginning. And so put your faith and trust in Him. So right now, your heart's beating out of your chest and you've never made that decision to make Jesus Christ, your Lord of your life

on the count of three, lift it up boldly. One, two, three. Come on, yes, yes, I see that hand. Yes, in the back, yes. Praise God, yes, brother, yes. Praise God. If I didn't see your hand, God saw your heart. So church, let's all pray this together to encourage our brothers and sisters in here who are making the greatest decision of their life. Let's all say this. Jesus, thank you for what you did for me. You took all my sin on that cross. And now Lord, I confess with my mouth, I believe in my heart that Jesus Christ is the Lord of my life. Have my whole heart, Lord, it's yours. In Jesus' name, amen, amen. One more moment, one more moment. With every head bowed and every eye closed, if you're navigating a lot of pressure right now, if you're going through something, maybe it's a loss of a loved one, an illness, an accident. Maybe things are tight financially. Maybe you're looking for a job. There's a lot of pressure in that. I just wanna pray for you. Lord, for every person, every man, woman, child, every family represented that is feeling

this heaviness on them, a spirit of heaviness. God, as sons and daughters of God, we speak to a spirit of heaviness to get off of us in Jesus' name right now. Lord, that you're putting on us a garment of praise in exchange for that spirit of heaviness. And so Lord, I pray that. Your yoke is easy, your burden is light. And so, Lord, we turn our attention off of the pressure and onto the person of Jesus yet again. And God, we trust you. Lord, let us walk in trust. Let build our trust in you, God. Lord, so that we see that you're not finished, you're just getting started. And we trust you with where you're taking us and the outcomes that are ahead of us. In Jesus' name, amen.