Summer Sermon Series Week 4

Philippians 1:27-30

Only, live your life in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that, whether I come and see you or am absent and hear about you, I will know that you are standing firm in one spirit, striving side by side with one mind for the faith of the gospel, and are in no way intimidated by your opponents. For them this is evidence of their destruction, but of your salvation. And this is God’s doing. For he has graciously granted you the privilege not only of believing in Christ, but of suffering for him as well— since you are having the same struggle that you saw I had and now hear that I still have.

Read through the short letter Paul wrote to the Philippians. What themes are emerging for you as you read this letter each week?

What insights from this week’s worship and the sermon do you particularly want to remember?

Phil 1:27 “Only, live your life in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ…”

“Manner of life” is from the Greek politeusthe, which can mean “your life as citizens” as well as your personal life. Earl Palmer says: “Paul addresses the Philippians as people who have inescapable individual responsibilities but who also have a common social responsibility to live out the results of the good news in their community…. ‘The Christian faith is personal but it is not private.’” (75-76)

“Worthy” is a translation of axios, which expresses the concepts of equilibrium, congruence, and integrity. “It is not so much a command to love as it is an exhortation to share the love we have received (from God) and to live under the influence of that good news…. It is not a perfectionist mandate, it is a mandate to live out our daily lives in the integrity of the gospel.” (75-6) ISBN: 1573831816

We are disciples who will always need the good news of forgiveness, and it is this recognition on our part that keeps us modest and teachable—and protects the world from people who perceive themselves as innocent and without ambiguity. (76)

(Some) imply that forgiveness produces a kind of newfound innocence in which I now can live, an innocence like Adam’s before the Fall. But I have sinned, and my sins have caused real harm to people who were the victims of my sin. I also am the victim of my own various bad choices. Then I realized that the gospel of amazing grace offers forgiveness, not innocence. Forgiveness does not produce innocence; forgiveness produces reconciliation...it makes me safe, it sets me free, it resolves my sin, it calls me to gratitude, it fills me with love. It also makes it possible for me to find equilibrium, to find integrity. When I live my life under the gospel, the first mark of integrity is that I have no false illusions about my own perfection.” (77-8)

These quotes are from Earl’s book “Integrity in a World of Pretense, IVP, 1992. Regent College, Vancouver BC has re-published this excellent book if you wish to read more: Earl Palmer, Integrity, A Commentary on the Book of Philippians, Regent Publishing (2000) ISBN: 1573831816.

For further reflection, answer these questions from Phil 1:27-30:

• What do you learn about God?
• What do you learn about people?
• What do you learn about how God relates to people?
• What is God’s word of grace and truth to you in this passage today?

Summer Sermon Series Week 3

Philippians 1:27-30:

Only, live your life in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that, whether I come and see you or am absent and hear about you, I will know that you are standing firm in one spirit, striving side by side with one mind for the faith of the gospel, and are in no way intimidated by your opponents. For them this is evidence of their destruction, but of your salvation. And this is God’s doing. For he has graciously granted you the privilege not only of believing in Christ, but of suffering for him as well— since you are having the same struggle that you saw I had and now hear that I still have.

It’s All Greek...

“Manner of life” is a translation of the Greek politeusthe, which can be translated “your life as citizens.” Earl Palmer says: “Paul addresses the Philippians as people who have inescapable individual responsibilities but who also have a common social responsibility to live out the results of the good news in their community…. ‘The Christian faith is personal but it is not private.’” (75-76)

“Worthy” is a translation of axios, which expresses the concepts of equilibrium, congruence, and integrity. “It is not so much a command to love as it is an exhortation to share the love we have received (from God) and to live under the influence of that good news…. It is not a perfectionist mandate, it is a mandate to live out our daily lives in the integrity of the gospel…. We are disciples who will always need the good news of forgiveness, and it is this recognition on our part that keeps us modest and teachable—and protects the world from people who perceive themselves as innocent and without ambiguity.” (Palmer, 75-6)

(Some) imply that forgiveness produces a kind of newfound innocence in which I now can live, an innocence like Adam’s before the Fall. But I have sinned, and my sins have caused real harm to people who were the victims of my sin. I also am the victim of my own various bad choices. Then I realized that the gospel of amazing grace offers forgiveness, not innocence. Forgiveness does not produce innocence; forgiveness produces reconciliation...it makes me safe, it sets me free, it resolves my sin, it calls me to gratitude, it fills me with love. It also makes it possible for me to find equilibrium, to find integrity. When I live my life under the gospel, the first mark of integrity is that I have no false illusions about my own perfection.” (Palmer, 78)

To keep this text in context, read through the short letter Paul wrote to the Philippians. What themes are emerging for you as you read this letter each week?

• What insights from this week’s worship and the sermon do you particularly want to remember?
• And for further reflection, answer these questions from these four verses:
• What do you learn about God?
• What do you learn about people?
• What do you learn about how God relates to people?
• What is God’s word of grace and truth to you in this passage today?

Summer Sermon Series Week 2

Philippians. 1:20-26:

"It is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be put to shame in any way, but that by my speaking with all boldness, Christ will be exalted now as always in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, living is Christ and dying is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labour for me ; and I do not know which I prefer. I am hard pressed between the two: my desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better; but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for you. Since I am convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with all of you for your progress and joy in faith, so that I may share abundantly in your boasting in Christ Jesus when I come to you again."

Paul is aware of increasing antipathy towards Christians in Nero's Rome and his own vulnerability as a prisoner of the em­pire. Here, he models perspective and courage for the Philip­pians who may well face the same persecution all too soon. •"With exquisite grace, he prepares them for any eventual­ity. " (Moffett, 24)

20th century martyr Dietrich Bonhoeffer stated in his own way the same... perspective when he wrote to friends in 1943, 'we live each day as if it were our last and each day as if there
were a great future.'" (Palmer, 721)

Read through the book of Philippians in a new translation this week. See www.biblegateway.com for different options.

• Then focus on this text:
• What insights from worship and the sermon do you particu­larly want to remember?
• What do you learn about God?
• What do you learn about people?
• What do you learn about how God relates to people?
• What is God's word of grace and truth to'you in this pas­sage today?
  

Summer Sermon Series: The Invitation

The Invitation

Our summer sermon series is from the book of Philippians, a book Eugene Peterson describes as “Paul’s happiest letter.” (the Message) Paul wrote it as a thank you note to the church at Philippi for their gifts to him while he was in prison (Moffett, 12). Just that juxtaposition makes it worth reading—happiness in prison??

It is a short book with four chapters. When copied into a Word document, it turns out to have 2258 words on four pages of 12 pt type. Compared to a feature article in the Sunday Seattle Times, this is a good deal! Last week’s paper ran an article that was 2410 words long on 5 pages of 12 point type. I read every word of it during just one cup of coffee.

So here’s the invitation: read through the entire book of Philippians once a week while we are working on this series. It is meant to be read all at once. “It is not an essay, like Romans or Hebrews. It is pure letter—warm, personal, (and) repetitious.” (Moffett, 12) With every reading, add to a working list of words or phrases that stand out to you, noting your thoughts about them. You may have a question, a new understanding, notice repetitions, etc. You might use a different translation some weeks, to see what new things strike you. Over time, you will begin to be able to answer the question, “What is God’s word of truth and grace to me, from this part of the Bible, during the summer of 2007?”

The Background

Scholars believe that Paul was writing from Rome, or possibly Ephesus, some time around 65 A.D., “only thirty years after the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, and halfway through the reign of the Emperor Nero (54 – 68 A.D.).” (Moffett, 9) To refute charges that Nero himself started the great fire that nearly destroyed the city of Rome in July of 64 A.D., “Nero … blamed the small but growing band of Christian believers in Rome for the arson and meted out to them some of the most horrible punishments that have ever been chronicled in a civilized society.” (Palmer, 18)

Imprisoned by Rome, having given detailed witness to Christ at each of his trials (Acts 23 – 26), “Paul’s safety is very precarious and the conditions of his imprisonment have become harsher as the situation in Rome itself has become more chaotic and ominous.” (Palmer, 19) And yet, joy is the theme of his letter! When Paul says, “rejoice in the Lord always”, he has earned the right to be heard.

He is writing to the church in a Roman colony called Philippi, “a city of soldiers and their families chosen by the Emperor as a home for veterans of Rome’s wars…. Note how often he uses martial language in the letter.” (Moffett, 9)

Acts 16 tells the story of the founding of the Philippian church early in Paul’s second missionary journey. Finding closed doors throughout Asia, he senses the call of God to cross over into Macedonia where Philippi became the first church in Europe although “the distinction did not mean as much then as it does now.” (Moffett, 11) (see also 2 Corinthians 2:12-13) A businesswoman named Lydia becomes the city’s first convert when Paul and his companions join what Earl Palmer calls the “Riverside Bible Study Group.” (26) Evidently, Philippi does not have the requisite 10 Jewish men needed for a synagogue, so on the Sabbath, a group meets down by the river at ‘a place of prayer.’ “The Lord opened (Lydia’s) heart to listen eagerly to what was said by Paul,” (A 16:14) and she and her household are baptized as Christians. It is an encouraging beginning to what very quickly becomes a chaotic and dangerous situation for Paul and his friends. Read the rest of Acts 16 to see the unfolding of “the unlikely beginnings of the church in Philippi: a wealthy Greek woman, an excited, enslaved mystical seer, and a badly shaken Roman guard.” (Palmer, 27)

Palmer says of these three:“I know business people like Lydia who are seriously disillusioned with the gods of their life some of which may include money, success, power…. I know people like the Roman guard, with responsibilities that make unreasonable demands upon their lives… The ‘priestess’ who tells fortunes on street corners is, in my city, an exploited human being in addictive bondage to a person or chemical…. Time changes many of the forms in which human exploitation shows itself, but the essential need for human wholeness, integration and personal liberation remains constant.” (29)

Do you resonate with any of these? We all have good reason to hear the words of encouragement that Paul writes to the Philippians.

Resources: Sam and Eileen Moffett, Joy For an Anxious Age. Board of Education, UPCUSA, 1966. Earl Palmer, Integrity in a World of Pretense. IVP, 1992. Eugene Peterson, The Message. NavPress, 2002. http://www.pbs.org/wnet/secrets/case_rome/ (on the Great Fire in Rome)