Welcome to Day 2315 of Wisdom-Trek. Thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Philippians-2 Confident Enough to be Joyful – Daily Wisdom

Putnam Church Message – 11/12/2023 Joy in Living – Confident Enough to be Joyful   Last week, we began a new series in the letter to the Church in Philippi, where our focus for this month will be Joy in Living for this Thanksgiving season. We explored some insights and background into this letter, This week, we will begin walking through Philippians as we delve into Joy in Living, specifically, how we can be Confident Enough to be Joyful. Let’s read Philippians 1:1-11, on page 1825 in your Pew Bibles. Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, To all God’s holy people in Christ Jesus at Philippi, together with the overseers and deacons^[a]: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Thanksgiving and Prayer 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 am 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 the 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 may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God. Ours is a frivolous age with lots of shallow, empty laughter…like the laugh tracks on a sitcom…but very little absolute joy. Most people stumble around in perpetual confusion—darkness, really. As they seek genuine joy, they satisfy themselves with only occasional glimpses of light—artificial light. Occasionally, it’s sad to say, that some of the light they’re attracted to is a consuming fire. It destroys their lives rather than illuminating their minds or warming their hearts. Paul would have understood this plight as he, too, groped around in darkness until that glorious day when the light of the gospel of Christ shone brightly into his life (Acts 9:1–19). Although he often experienced suffering from that day, he rarely let the darkening fog of discouragement cloud his mind or drive out the light of joy. His letter to the Philippians, embossed with unfading joy on every page, proves that. For Paul, joy was more than a fleeting emotion; it was part of his ingrained character. How could that be? Paul was confident that God was at work, in complete control, and allowed all things to occur for one ultimate purpose—God’s greater glory. Paul understood that joy doesn’t depend on our circumstances, possessions, or other people. Joy is an attitude of the heart determined by/ confidence in God. Paul knew he had no control over the struggles and strife of life. But by yielding to the Spirit’s work in his soul, Paul’s trust and hope in God could guide him like an inner compass, keeping him on joy’s course regardless of how strong the gale-force winds blew. Poet Ella Wheeler Wilcox put this idea beautifully in her poem: “The Winds of Fate” One ship drives east, and another drives west With the self-same winds that blow; ’ Tis the set of the sails And not the gales That tells them the way to go. Like the winds of the sea are the winds of fate, As we voyage along through life; ’Tis the set of a soul That decides its goal, And not the calm or the strife. In the first chapter of Paul’s joy-filled letter to the Philippians, we come face-to-face with his bold, joyous confidence, setting the trajectory for more to come. He extends a warm greeting to the Philippians in 1:1–2, offers joyful thanksgiving in 1:3–8, and lifts them up in prayer in 1:9–11. 1:1–2 As in all his letters, Paul begins with a customary gracious greeting. When the Philippians took the scroll from the hand of Epaphroditus and unrolled it (see 2:25; 4:18), the first words they would have seen in the Greek text were “Paul and Timothy” (1:1). These were not strangers, not remote leaders governing impersonally from a distance through go-betweens—these were loving shepherds and beloved friends. Though sometimes including multiple names could indicate a coauthorship (e.g., 1 Thessalonians), in the case of Philippians, Timothy probably was just a scribe and wasn’t involved in the actual composition of the letter itself. Throughout the letter, Paul uses the first-person singular, indicating that he’s personally the source of the words. Why is Timothy included, then? Because the Philippians would have had fond memories of that wet-behind-the-ears “intern” who had just joined Paul and Silas before their original arrival in Philippi (see Acts 16). Timothy had been there when Paul shared the gospel with Lydia as our praise song reminded us at the place of prayer by the river, or when Paul cast the spirit of divination out of a slave girl and caused a great upheaval among the pagans of Philippi, or when Paul and Silas were dragged off to prison as a result, and when the fledgling church grew despite their founding apostle and prophet being beaten and jailed. No doubt Timothy had been forced to step up and begin to lead the best he could in the absence of Paul and Silas. Now, over a decade later, Timothy was still at Paul’s side as a “kindred spirit” of “proven worth” (Phil. 2:20, 22). Today, icons, statues, and paintings of apostles tend to portray people like Paul and Timothy as larger-than-life heroes. If they aren’t bulked up and poised for epic action, their faces glow, halos orbit their heads, and miracles flow from their fingertips. What a contrast to Paul’s own humble, self-demoting label “servants of Christ Jesus” (1:1)! The term Paul uses, Doulos, means “one who serves another to the disregard of his own interests.” Paul then identifies those to whom he writes: both the membership of the church in Philippi (“God’s holy people in Christ Jesus”) and the leadership (“overseers and deacons”). The Greek word translated as “overseers” (episkopos) refers to a group of leaders keeping a watchful eye over those in their charge. In the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testament), an episkopos served as judge, treasurer, or supervisor of the priests and the Levites serving in the temple. Elsewhere in the New Testament, Peter calls Jesus the episkopos of our souls (1 Pet. 2:25). In this sense, the church official designated by this term is someone charged to “shepherd” (poimainō) the church, to serve as an undershepherd to the Lord, leading His flock on His behalf and under His authority. Paul listed the qualifications of an “overseer” in a letter to Timothy, who served in Ephesus then (1 Tim. 3:2–7). The deacons, in turn, assisted the overseers in various ministry-related tasks. The term diakonos carries the idea of serving obediently, willingly, and submissively from a heart of humility. The Latin translation of the Greek term diakonos is minister, from which we get this particular title. In the New Testament, diakonos can refer to a servant with a specific mission (Rom. 15:8), a personal assistant (Matt. 22:13), or a person in the office of “minister” in a local church (Phil. 1:1). Acts 6:1–6 recounts the appointment of the first deacons in the church. Paul uses the term for “minister” in the general sense of a self-sacrificing servant in the kingdom of Christ. We are all ministers in building God’s Kingdom. The church in Philippi, of course, had multiple people appointed to both offices—overseers/elders and deacons/ministers (Phil. 1:1). They were tasked with the “Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ,” (Eph. 4:12). From the youngest to the oldest, from the recently baptized believers to Philippi’s first converts, from followers to leaders, Paul calls them all “saints” (Phil. 1:1) and blesses them equally: "Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ,” (1:2). Though this was a standard greeting in Paul’s letters, it’s a profoundly deep theological statement. Grace and peace are essential blessings for living the Christian life, especially for carrying out Christian ministry. These things can’t be conjured from within; they are gifts of God through Jesus Christ. 1:3–8 Paul’s fond memories of the Philippians prompted him to follow his gracious greeting with joyous thankfulness and prayer (1:3–4). He had no regrets, ill feelings, or unresolved conflicts regarding the Philippians. His heart was filled with joy as he reminisced on the times he had spent with them—their first meeting over a decade earlier when the church was planted (Acts 16) and another gathering during his third missionary journey (Acts 20). But his thankfulness and joy were not inspired by mere nostalgia. Paul indicates in Philippians 1:5 that the Philippians, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. Their commitment to Christ and the proclamation of His word never let up, not for a moment. Like most of us, Paul experienced great disappointments, from churches and individual brothers and sisters in Christ. But not from the Philippians. The thought of them didn’t make his stomach churn; instead, it prompted him to thankfulness, joy, and prayer. Because of the Philippians’ past perseverance and present passion, Paul was confident in their future faithfulness (1:6). He did not doubt that God was at work in Philippi, that He had plans for that church, and that He was in control /and would see them through to the end. The Greek verb translated as “completion” in 1:6 is epiteleō, which means “to bring about a result according to plan or objective.” God had begun the work of spiritual growth, ministry participation, and faithful Christian witness among these believers. And He would stay at it until He called them home or until Christ stepped back into this world to reward them for their Spirit-enabled labor. Paul exposes his deep feelings in 1:7–8. Far from being a cold, get-it-done apostle, Paul didn’t hesitate to share his deep emotions. He always had the Philippians: “I have you in my heart” (1:7). G. Walter Hansen unpacks the meaning of this phrase nicely: “When Paul tells his friends that he has them in his heart, he is expressing more than a sentimental feeling; he is stating the commitment of his heart to give his life for his friends.” Their commitment to him through thick and thin and their participation in the gospel ministry only strengthened his heartfelt commitment to them. They were more than friends. They were lifelong partners in Christ. Because of this, Paul wrote, I long for all of you with affection (1:8). Notice how many times Paul repeated the word “all” in 1:1–8:

• He greeted all of God’s holy people. (1:1)
• He thanked God all the times I remember you. (1:3)
• He prayed for all of them. (1:4)
• He felt strongly about them all. (1:7)
• They were all fellow partakers of grace. (1:7)
• He affectionately longed for them all. (1:8)

From the family of Lydia to the Roman jailer’s household, from the elders and deacons to the new believers, the deep love Paul felt for the church in Philippi made his heart leap in his chest as he yearned to spend time with them again. 1:9–11 This profound thankfulness and love led to specific prayers for the Philippians, as it should for us. Christians shouldn’t just say, “You’re in our thoughts.” We should say, “You’re in our prayers”—and we should mean it! Paul certainly did. His deep, joyful contemplation of the Philippians prompted him to pray for specific things that can only come from God. First, he prayed that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight (1:9). I like to picture love like a river. It needs to be guided by the banks of knowledge and discernment. Paul isn’t telling the Philippians to let their love blind them to truth and righteousness, so they overlook sin and compromise holiness. That’s a false interpretation of “love” we often see in the world today. The best interest of others guides true Christian love. With true knowledge and discernment, love learns to spot the phony, the wrong, and the evil. It learns to “be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless” (1:10). This love, guided by wisdom, will preserve believers in righteousness until “the day of Christ”—the Second Coming, when the Lord Jesus will reward them for faithfulness. Second, Paul prayed that they would be filled with the “fruit of righteousness” (1:11). Don’t confuse this with self-righteousness, personal piety, or self-motivated works. Paul refers to the righteousness of Christ working in us by the indwelling Holy Spirit to produce fruit in our lives (see Gal. 5:22–23). The result of such good works empowered by God will be “the glory and praise of God” (Phil. 1:11)—not our own praise and glory. Jesus said essentially the same thing: “In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father,” (Matt. 5:16). What a solid basis for abiding joy! When Paul scanned the ten-year life span of the body of Christ in Philippi, he had every reason to rejoice in confidence, as expressed in thanksgiving, prayer, and praise. Application: Philippians 1:1–11 Setting Your Sails for the Harbors of Joy Let’s revisit Wilcox’s “The Winds of Fate,” which provides another reminder about setting our sails for joy: One ship drives east, and another drives west With the self-same winds that blow; ’ Tis the set of the sails And not the gales That tells them the way to go. Like the winds of the sea are the winds of fate, As we voyage along through life; ’Tis the set of a soul That decides its goal, And not the calm or the strife. While I don’t believe in random fate, I do believe in Biblical Faith that apart from confidence in the providential care of God, the winds of strife can quickly capsize our vessels and leave our souls drowning in despair. To set the course of our souls to experience genuine joy, let’s recall a few principles from Paul’s opening words in Philippians 1. First, confidence brings joy when we focus on the things we’re thankful for. Paul could have looked back ten years in Philippi and recalled the demon-possessed woman frustrating their preaching. He could have remembered his arrest and beatings. He could have dwelled on his imprisonment and expulsion from the city. Instead, he recalled the positives about the Philippians: their conversion, their faithfulness, their growth and participation in ministry, and their continued perseverance. Second, confidence brings joy when we let God be God. Paul had every confidence that the work God had begun in the past among the Philippians, God would bring to completion in the future. This meant God would continue to work in the present. Let’s make this personal. When we stop trying to play God in our lives and let Him accomplish our spiritual growth in His way, We’ll look differently at the winds of strife that blow through our lives. And while we’re at it, we need to stop trying to play God in other people’s lives through constant worry, anxiety, and manipulation. We need to pray confidently in every circumstance that comes our way and thank God for His promise to navigate us through it. Third, confidence brings joy when we keep love within its proper limits. Those limits are knowledge and discernment. Asking two questions can help us here: To whom should we direct our love? And how can we best express that love? I’ve learned that loving our children doesn’t mean giving them everything they want. It often means giving them what they don’t want. The same applies to spouses, friends, colleagues, and those we minister to. But that takes intimate knowledge of the person and their strengths, weaknesses, needs, and desires. It also takes discernment—how, when, and where to meet those genuine needs. Let’s conclude with a series of questions:

• How are your sails set today?
• Are your sails tattered and torn?
• Are your sails a casualty of relentless storms of strife?
• Are your sails in need of the mending that only Christ can provide?
• Have you lowered your sails in defeat, surrendering to the gale-force winds?
• Or have you confidently hoisted them to the top of the mast to open yourself to the Spirit’s wind guiding you where He wills?

Let me encourage you to take this step confidently: Set your sails and mark a course for the harbors of joy. Let us all be Confident Enough to be Joyful! …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. Next week, we will continue this month of Joy in Living as we...