⁹ The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world. ¹⁰He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. ¹¹He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.

Our picture of the Word continues to grow here. We ended the last post with v9, which hinted at the coming of the Word into the world. v10 picks up immediately on this, almost out of place. I say ‘out of place’, because in v14 John deploys the really blunt news of the Word’s incarnation. It’s almost like there are two ‘comings of Jesus’ in the prologue. I’m led to conclude then that John will present two different aspects of the coming of the Word into the world. In vv.9-13 here before us, it seems that John presents to us a view upon the reception of the Word in the world.

v10 – He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him.

I have a pet bird named Kermit. He’s been my pet for 7.5 years now. There are lots of strange things to be said about him, but the one thing you can’t miss is that he and I are tight friends. He knows me well, he trusts me lots, he relies on me lots, he talks with me lots, he even laughs with me lots, and he lives off every word I say – he’ll sit and listen to me talk to him for at least an hour before getting bored or hungry. I cannot imagine how distraught I would feel if one day I woke up and found him unwilling to look at me, listen to me, trust me, talk to me or sit with me – if he acted as though he didn’t even know me. If you have a pet, you can probably relate – imagine if the creature that you had invested so much of your creative and relational energies into, one day just acted as though they never even knew you. What a daft, thankless, hurtful and arrogant thing that would be for that creature to do.

But that’s just a pet, big deal. Imagine though, if you had created that creature – from nothing. Imagine if you were the one who had formed all its features, designed all its parts and faculties – how much more would that rejection hurt? And imagine further if it was not just one created creature which was rejecting you and ignoring you – but the whole world which you had created? That is an unimaginable evil on the part of the world. What a daft, thankless, hurtful and arrogant thing that would be for that world to do!

And yet, that is exactly what we, the world, has done. ‘World’ in John’s thought refers not so much to all of God’s creation that resides within the blue globe we call earth – but more specifically to collected humanity, and more specifically again, to the collected humanity that is evil. It is pretty much always a negative thought in John’s Gospel and Epistles. 1 John 2:15-17 is a nice window into John’s thought on ‘the world’, though we are going to see throughout the gospel that it is Jesus who has instilled this evaluation of the world in his disciple’s mind.

So, v10, though the Word was in the world, and though the world was made through him – yet the world did not know him. This is shocking sin. Atheists and the like often say, in the words of Woody Allen, ‘If God came down to earth and pulled a giraffe out of his nose and said, ‘I am God’ – I would believe in him’. Don’t buy this claptrap for a second. The Word, who is God, has already been amongst us. Further more, those whom he came amongst – collected humanity – were made through him. The instrument of creation was in the thick of his creation. And yet, that collected humanity did not know him. They didn’t recognise him. It’s not a passive ignorance, but a stinging and arrogant blindness. For there is simply no excuse for this kind of action. God has been here amongst us. The person by whom you exist and breathe and live and enjoy and experience everything you ever had enjoyed or experienced came and said, ‘I am God’. And he did a lot more than pull a giraffe out of his nose. To reject this Word, to not know this Word – is not another lifestyle choice among many. It is universal treason and unthinkable sin. It is inexcusable.

But it is common. v11 – He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.  Not even the Jews, those who had waited hundreds of years for their God to come amongst them in the Messiah, those who had the Scriptures pointing to his identity, those whom God had cared for and made promises to – not even they received him. Israel, as we will see throughout John,  for the most part rejected the Word.  Jews who show signs of recognition, like the 12 disciples, and Nicodemus or Joseph of Arimathea, are the very rare exceptions, not the rule. This is a shocking failure on the part of God’s people. These are the Word’s very own people. And yet even they did not receive him – they didn’t welcome him, they didn’t celebrate his arrival. No, they nailed him to a cross, and all the world joined in.

A preacher at college once said, ‘Given the opportunity, we would all crucify our creator.’ The evidence for that is pretty obvious.

Matt.

⁶There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. ⁷He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. ⁸ He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.⁹ The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.

We speak a lot about Christ being ‘sent from God’, and rightly so. Jesus says on numerous occasions that he was sent by his heavenly Father – look no further than John 3:16. But Christ was not the only one sent from God. Indeed, throughout the OT, prophet after prophet was sent by God to speak His words to His people.

Isaiah 6:8-13 is an incredible passage;

And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.” And he said, “Go, and say to this people: “‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’ Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and blind their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.” Then I said, “How long, O Lord?” And he said: “Until cities lie waste without inhabitant, and houses without people, and the land is a desolate waste,  and the LORD removes people far away, and the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land. And though a tenth remain in it, it will be burned again, like a terebinth or an oak, whose stump remains when it is felled.” The holy seed is its stump.

It’s not easy being a prophet! Isaiah boldly put his hand up, ‘Pick me God! Send me to your people!’ – and God said, ‘Ok, go harden their hearts lest they repent and turn and be healed.’ Isaiah asks, ‘How long do I do that for?’ – God’s answer? ‘Till they are utterly destroyed.’

John the Baptist is the last of the OT prophets. We’re going to read a lot about him in John chapter 1. The first thing we read is that like Isaiah, and all the OT prophets before him, he was sent from God; ‘There was a man sent from God, whose name was John (v6). Now, this has come out of the blue hasn’t it? If you were reading this for the first time, I don’t think you would have picked it. Having spoken about the mysterious Word, about his all surpassing greatness and divinity, suddenly…we’re talking about a mere man.

But this is no irreverent sidetrack by John (the disciple and author), for we would be foolish to overlook the importance of John the Baptist. For one, the very fact that he is ‘sent from God’ should stun us. We should be always careful not to follow the folly of Israel – and what they did very often in the OT was overlook the importance of those who were sent from God. This is not to say that I’m proposing that the modern church is in any danger of undervaluing John the Baptist – but it is striking how flippantly we might read this phrase – ‘there was a man sent from God’. We must be very careful to listen to what this man has to say – because the men sent from God generally have something very important to say.

And this man John is no different. v7, ‘He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him.’ That is no small job description! Sent from God, John was to be a witness. A witness is someone with a testimony, they testify to a reality that others perhaps do not have access to. The point it out for all to see. John was to bear witness about the light. That in itself is not a small task. For this ‘light’ has just been identified as the life that was ‘in the Word’ – and this light of life was the ‘light of men’. What is more, the purpose of his testimony about the majestic light of life was so that ‘all might believe through him’. Does that mean, ‘so that by John’s testimony, all might believe through the Word’? I don’t think it does – I think the ‘him’ is John – John bears witness about the light, so that all might believe (in the light) through John.

But do we really need John’s witness? I mean, someone can believe the gospel and be saved without knowing a thing about John the Baptist! Surely ‘all’ do not need to believe through John!? Well, John the author is pretty blunt in what he says, and so it stands. But do note that it does not go as far as to speak of ‘conversion’ through John, but simply that we might believe that the identity of the light is found in the one whom John bears witness to. No-one else in the 4 gospels comes close to matching John’s testimony to the identity of the light, except Jesus himself.

Therefore, I’m led to conclude that we have all come to understand the identity of the light through the witness of John. And the gospel writers all seem to concur on this. Perhaps our picture of John the Baptist is too small. Matthew, Mark and Luke all have accounts of the witnessing of John. He called on Israel to repent, for the Lord was coming. He was the voice in the wilderness preparing the way of the Lord as prophesied in Isaiah. He pointed at Jesus and said that this was he who he spoke about coming. He baptised him, and at that moment, God shouted to all the world, ‘This is my Son’! Without John, without his witnessing – there remains a vacuum of testimony regarding the light. But that’s just hypothetical. God did send John. And we are left with his testimony, that all might believe through it. And do we not all believe through it? Whether we individually have heard of John or not, we can trace back the testimony we have to John’s witnessing. We believe in the identity of the light, we know it is reliably true, because someone sent from God bore witness and said, ‘This is him’. It’s not the only basis of belief in the true identity of Christ, but that doesn’t mean we don’t all ‘believe through him’. Anyone who says ‘Jesus is the Christ’ is in some way believing through John the Baptist.

So, let us not undervalue the work and testimony of John. It is epic in and of itself. But John (the writer) keeps us from overvaluing the work and testimony of John.  ‘He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.‘ (vv.8-9) John (the writer) seems very careful and intentional with his double insistence that John’s job was to bear witness only. He is not the ‘light’ itself. Perhaps this is just to help us qualify the statement ‘that all might believe in him’ – I’m not sure.

v9, where we will end today, states the positive. John is not the light (negative) (v8), but the true light…was coming (positive) (v9). John (the author) doesn’t give too much away here. It is just a hint of what is to come. But note the change of focus – the light is being personified much more than a few verses back. And this trend continues massively in the next few verses we will look at in the next post. In the Word there is life, and this life is the light of men. Now, that light is coming into the world, and v10 starts, ‘He…’. The Word is the light. The light is the Word. He is the Word, the life of men, the light of men – and John came to assure us that he is just this one.

So much is being hinted at, and yet we are only 9 verses in. I’m getting excited, I think that in part is the point – John (the author) is lifting our eyes to the wonder and majesty of the drama that is about to be unfolded before us in the next 21 chapters. This is universe shattering stuff, we’ve got to snap to attention at this news.

It is good news after all,

Matt.

⁴ In him was life, and the life was the light of men. ⁵ The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.⁶There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. ⁷He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. ⁸ He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.⁹ The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.

In yesterday’s post on John 1:1-3, we were faced with the scandalous revision of Genesis 1:1 – at least, it was scandalous for the Jewish or Greek reader. For the Word –  a he, not an it – was with God in the beginning, and more than that – he was God. And yet, there were two distinct persons. Moreover, this Word figure was the instrument and means of the creation of all things. Without him, nothing you currently rest your eyes on would exist – and neither would your eyes. I am eager for more info.

v4, ‘In him was life, and the life was the light of men.’

This sentence is hurting my brain. The Greek behind it is very simple – even I, a lowly 1st year student can read it. It says exactly what the ESV says. In him, the Word, was life, and that life was the light of men. It’s strange to me, because in the first half of the sentence, ‘the Word’ is the subject. We find that in the Word, that was where life could be found. I get that. But in the second half of the sentence, ‘the life’ is the subject, and we discover that this ‘life’ was the ‘light’ of humanity. The mixed metaphors and the past tense factor doesn’t help me understand what exactly this verse is talking about. Harder still is to read on from this verse and find that John takes up the light as the subject, and not the Word or the life that is in the Word, even though there is obviously a lot of overlap between the ideas.

To start with, I guess we can render v4 like this – In him was the light of men, (which was life). That helps. Now, what does ‘light of men’ mean? Does it mean, light over men, that is, it enlightens them – or does it mean, light to men, that is, they see it and go to it – or does it men, the men’s light, that is, the light that is theirs? The verses following v4 suggest the first option. For, v5, it shines out into the darkness like a torch, and v9, there is talk of ‘enlightening’ – flooding and covering the people with light. So, when John says that this light is the ‘light of men’, I would hazard a guess that this light is the ‘light over men’ – that which becomes their light, in so far as it transfers them from being covered in darkness to light. Think of a road works crew working late at night – you know how they have those big ‘daymaker’ lights – they would obviously refer to them as ‘our light’, even though it is not of their making. It’s that which ‘saves’ them from darkness.

Now the mixed metaphor is starting to come together in my mind. We know from v4 that this ‘light’ is humanity’s life. So, this ‘life’ is that which ‘saves’ them from darkness. It removes them from the place of darkness – a place with overtones of evil, blindness, and even death itself – and floods them in light, a place with overtones of goodness, sight, and joy. Humanity can say, ‘This life is my light’.

The next question is, what kind of ‘life’ is John talking about? We know already that it is to be found in him – that is, the Word. But, there are a few options in my mind. We found from vv.1-3 that by the Word, all things were created. So it could mean that, ‘In him, the instrument of creation, humanity has life’ – for nothing existed, or has life without him. In this sense, the light coming from the Word is the symbol of our physical existence and breath – only in the Word do we continue to breathe.

The other option is that ‘the life’ is some kind of metaphorical or spiritual life. That is, in the Word was life for humanity, who were already alive physically, but needed some kind of ‘deeper life’. If this is the case, then also note that the past tense might infer that the light has not yet been seen by the humanity for which this is their light. Just because this life is that which will remove them from darkness, doesn’t mean that it has been shone on them yet, or perhaps that they have found it yet. But this obviously doesn’t work if the ‘life’ refers to physical life, because otherwise, no-one would be alive.

But to add to the confusion, when John uses the past tense, he is not necessarily referring all the way back to creation – but perhaps only to the light’s entry into the world, which v9 alludes to. And yet even then, it is only the situation where the light was coming into the world, which, ambiguously, in the English could refer to someone observing the event halfway through, or the anticipation of a soon to be fulfilled event.

Confused? So am I. Having burst my brain for a while, I’ve decided to seek Don Carson’s help on v4, I listened to a sermon of his on 1:1-18. Needless to say, it was extremely helpful.

Having listened to his exposition of vv.4-5, I should have pressed on – I was so close! Carson pretty much says, (very concisely), everything I just blubbered on about in the above paragraphs – he highlights the two readings that are possible – this is either creation life, or spiritual life being found in the Word. I was seeing it as a dichotomy, one or the other. But he says pretty persuasively that it is both.

Someone reading John 1 for the first time is undoubtedly being led to see creative life being sourced in this Word – it flows directly on from v3. ‘Nothing exists without him…in him was the life, their light.’ The light idea in this sense draws back on Genesis 1. But someone reading John 1 for the second, third or tenth time, knows more. They know that throughout John, when ‘life’ is spoken of, it’s all about eternal life. And when darkness is spoken of, it’s talking about the evil and sinful world. Indeed, the Word is the light (8:12). Indeed, the Word is the life (14:6).

So, with Carson giving me an encouraging pat on the back to follow my prior thoughts through to their logical conclusion, let’s sum up.

⁴ In him was life, and the life was the light of men. ⁵ The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

The Word – eternally residing with God, and being in himself God and the one through whom all creation exists (vv.1-3) – this Word must therefore be, the source of created life. All creation breathes because of this life bringing Word.  This is humanity’s light. And like the beam of light which shot through the dark universe in Genesis 1:3, this light of life is not overcome by darkness, that is, death. No, his creation life stands strong, darkness has not overcome (κατελαβεν, seized, attained, caught) it. Stand in awe and reverence at this Word. This is where your life is found, your breath, your everything. Darkness, the void of decay and un-creation, is kept from you because of this shining light of life. Worship this Word in thankfulness!

And yet Christian, you who have read the old gospel story before – you can see far more in this verse can’t you? The Word is your spiritual life. And you will breathe for all eternity because of this life bringing Word. And death cannot overcome it. No, this eternal life within you stands strong, and the darkness of this world, sin, evil, Satan and all his minions cannot seize it from you. They can’t ‘get on top of it’, it’s beyond them. Stand in awe and reverence at this Word. This is where your life is found, your spiritual breath, your everything. Darkness, sin and the void of eternal hell is kept from you because of this shining light of eternal life. Worship this Word in thankfulness!

God achieves all his creative purposes through this Word. God achieves all his new-creation purposes through this same Word.

Our picture of him is too small,

Matt.

Well, it’s official. I failed to post 201 times in 2010. You might not remember (it was 369 days ago), but that was kind of my goal for last year. I did however, post 51 times, and I’m thankful to God that I got that many in, considering how blisteringly insane some of my year was.

But this year is going to be different. Sure, sure, I hear you say. New years resolutions, blah blah. Yeah, OK, you’re right. But I am still certain this year will be different, because this year, is the year of John’s Gospel. Erica and I have just finished reading through John, and for much of it, I felt we were just skimming the surface. I kept thinking, ‘There are depths to be explored in there’. On top of this, John is also the book we’ll be doing in NT2 at College this year. On top of this, I have to translate some sections of John 1-5 in the next three weeks.

But on top of all this, in the cherry on top position – I think the biggest reason John needs to be done is because it’s our weakest link out of the four gospels – at least it is for me. Perhaps you need to make the ‘John confession’ too;

I hereby confess that I, someone familiar with most of the narrative stories in Matthew, Mark and Luke, have very little to no familiarity or understanding of the majority of John’s gospel (except chunks of chapters 1-3, the crucifixion and a few bits in between). I confess that much of the language in John is very complex and confusing to me, and I have not tried to get my brain around it, nor have I wrestled with John’s overriding structures, Christ’s extensive teaching, the depths of the theology in the book, etc. etc. Having said all this, my gut feeling tells me that it would be exceedingly rewarding for my faith were I to put in the hard yards and wrestle with it. I confess therefore, that I need to read it carefully this year, 2011. Signed, _________.

I’ve signed it. And by God’s good grace, intend on blogging on John regularly throughout most of the year. Whether we get to the end or not this year is unimportant. I just want to do it once and do it well. Mark my words. (So you can further disgrace me when I fail).

Helping me through the Gospel will be;

Don Carson, John (Pillar New Testament Commentary)

A.J. Kostenberger, John (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament)

Bruce Milne, John (Bible Speaks Today)

(The first two are in the post). I will always make note of when I have sought their assistance. If I don’t, you can safely assume I’m going out on a limb myself.

***

John 1:1-3

¹ In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ²He was in the beginning with God. ³ All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.

Gen 1:1 – Ἐν ἀρχῇ…  (LXX – Gk OT)

John 1:1 – Ἐν ἀρχῇ…  (Gk NT)

‘In the beginning…’ – You can’t miss it. The OT begins with the words, ‘In the beginning, God.’ The gospel of John begins with the words, ‘In the beginning, Word’. The parallelism would have been very intense indeed for the Jewish mind to handle. This ‘Word’, this ‘ λογος’, pre-existed creation. And it isn’t an ‘it’, but a ‘he’. This is a scandalous revision of Genesis 1! YHWH, the one and only, besides whom there are no other gods, the Lord your God, the Lord is one! (Deut. 6:4) – to say anything other than, ‘In the beginning, God’ – what could be more inconceivable to the Jew than that?

To the Greek mind, the scandal remains just as powerfully. The λογος, the wisdom and reason by which things were created, the ‘plan’ and ‘source’ of the universe, is, and will be further on in the chapter even more so, identified and personified. Indeed, John’s placement of  λογος alongside God, and then his claim that the λογος was God – would have had most Greek philosophers of the time scoffing. That just wasn’t how it was.

But to the Christian, there is no scandal. The Word was there in the beginning. The ‘utterance’ was there. Should we think of this abstractly? That God’s ‘Word’ was there in the beginning? For the clear revelation of Genesis 1 is that God created the heavens and the earth by His Word – He spoke, and it came to be, again and again. Yes, it works abstractly, in the beginning was the Word of God.

And then you hit the next part of the sentence. Yes, the Word was with God indeed, but the Word was God. And v2, he was in the beginning with God. v2 is a repetition. John has already stated that fact. It really does hammer it home. This is not an abstract utterance of God by which things were created, this Word of God is a person. And while being a person, he is surely still in some way intimately linked with God’s words. v3 is right onto it – ‘All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.‘ You can easily replace ‘him’ with ‘the Word of God’ and the sentence is a true and proper witness to Genesis 1. All things were clearly made through the Word of God, and without God’s Word, was not anything that was made. And yet John forces us to shift our framework of thinking in order to accommodate the separate personhood of this Word – he is distinct from God, and yet is in himself, God.

And yet, he is still called ‘Word’, and not Bob or Jill. Whoever this divine being is, an important part of who he is seems to be speaking, communication. At this point, we must conclude that, in part at least, this communication concerned  the creation of all things. He is the instrument of creation, for all things were made through him.

Whoever this λογος is, he is spectacular. His importance and significance cannot be overstated. He resided eternally with God, YHWH – in such a way that did not compromise YHWH’s singular divinity, and yet, in such a way that it is entirely appropriate to call him ‘God’. The Word was God. This Word, he deserves our full recognition, worship, adoration and obedient servitude, just as much as the God of the OT – indeed, as the God of the OT. You can’t begin to fathom the complex depths of ‘God’ which these three verses present for us! We need more, we want more!

And indeed we will get it – for this is just the beginning of the account of the divine Word. The Word by whom you exist, by whom your eyes with which you read this sentence were crafted, by whom the minerals which have been combined to create your computer were formed.

Your picture of him cannot be too big. He is God. And yet he was with God in the beginning.

This is the bold and unflinching scandal of John 1:1-3, and it’s just the start,

Matt.

P.S – A note on Jehovah’s Witnesses whose New World Translation renders 1:1, ‘In [the] beginning the Word was, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god.’ They will tell you that this is a good translation, because in Greek, when a noun lacks the definite article (‘the’), it should be translated ‘a’. Thus, they translate, και (and) θεος (God) ην (he was) ο (definite article) λογος (Word), ‘and (a) god was the Word’. Over to Daniel B. Wallace, an evangelical Greek expert/nerd on this little phrase και θεος ην ο λογος;

‘We know that ‘the Word’ is the subject because it has the definite article, and we translate it accordingly, ‘and the Word was God’. Two questions, both of theological import, should come to mind: (1) why was θεος thrown forward? and (2) why does it lack the article? In brief, its emphatic position stresses its essence or quality: ‘What God was, the Word was’ is how one translation brings out this force. Its lack of a definite article keeps us from identifying the person of the Word (Jesus Christ) with the person of ‘God’ (the Father). That is to say, the word order tell us that Jesus Christ has all the divine attributes that the Father has; lack of the article tells us that Jesus Christ is not the Father. John’s wording here is beautifully compact! It is, in fact one of the most elegantly terse theological statements one could ever find. As Martin Luther said, the lack of the article is against Sabellianism [Father = Jesus]; the word order is against Arianism [Jehovah’s Witnesses, Jesus is not divine].

To state this another way, look at how the different Greek constructions would be rendered;

και ο λογος ην ο θεος – ‘and the Word was the God’ (i.e., the Father, Sabellianism)

και ο λογος ην θεος – ‘and the Word was a god’ (Arianism)

και θεος ην ο λογος – ‘and the Word was God’ (Orthodoxy)

Jesus Christ is God and has all the attributes that the Father has. But he is not the first person of the Trinity. All this is concisely affirmed in John 1:1.’

⁵ Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. ⁶ Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. ⁷ And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

We continue on from the previous post in looking at what I think are the four possible purposes of the little phrase ‘The Lord is near’ (v5b). The first two options linked the phrase back to the start of verse 5, and also centred around the two possible meanings of ‘near’;

Option 1. Let your gentleness be evident, for the Lord is near (spatially)

That is, be gentle because Christ is with us presently.

Option 2. Let your gentleness be evident, for the Lord is near (temporally)

That is, be gentle because Christ is returning soon.

I explained why I liked option 2 over option 1, but also hinted that I don’t really like either. That’s because I think it is either option 3 or 4;

Option 3. The Lord is near (spatially), therefore, do not be anxious about anything…

That is, Christ is not far off or disinterested in your life – but close. Therefore, cast your anxieties on the one who cares for you in prayer. Interestingly, were this the thought in Paul’s mind, we are left with the interesting mix of; 1. Jesus is near, so 2. Pray to God – reflecting I would think, not so much the divine nature of Christ, but the interceding work of Christ on our behalf – ‘Our intercessor is near, so be quick to pray’.

But we must add to the mix the glorious promise of verse 7 –  ‘And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.’

This phrase has now tantalisingly appeared 4 times in 7 verses.

v1 – …that is how you should stand firm in the Lord…

v2 – …I appeal (them) to agree in the Lord…

v4 – …rejoice in the Lord always…

And now verse 7 too.

While I’m not sure what to make of this, I think we should make something of this, and something significant at that. At the very least, it confirms Paul’s framework of thinking in Philippians – that the Christian life is all about life with Christ as Lord, Christ as King. But I also think it is in some way bringing together the idea of peace in 4:1-9. He is being presented as the location of peace in our lives. We stand firm in him, agree in him, rejoice in him, and receive God’s peace through him.

Does v7 bear any weight in the 4 option debate? It says that by praying, the peace of God will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Our anxious hearts will be guarded, watched over, quieted, quelled, by the incredible and overwhelming peace of God. The phrase ‘which transcends all understand’ speaks of this peace being the peace which will blow.your.mind. And this is all occurring in Christ Jesus.

If option 3 is correct, we’re left then with; 1. Jesus is near, 2. So Pray, 3. And through Christ you’ll receive God’s peace.

For me, that is a compelling little series of phrases. There is something about Christ’s spatial presence that both leads to prayer, and gives us a sense of God’s peace. We are one with Christ – therefore we pray with boldness. We are one with Christ, therefore we have the assurance of peace with God. My vote is going with option 3. But there’s still one more to consider;

Option 4. The Lord is near (temporally), therefore do not be anxious about anything…

This too, I think, is a good option. The certainty and nearness of Christ’s coming should certainly lead us to not be anxious, but to pray. Part of prayerfulness is an awareness of the time we live in. We need not fret about the outcome of our lives, for our eternal outcome is secure. More than that, the outcome of the whole cosmos is secure, Ephesians 1 – all things will be brought under Christ. And it is his second coming which will mark the inauguration of his rule. And so, it sounds quite proper for Paul to use the nearness of Christ’s return to call us not to be anxious, but prayerful. Could it also be that Paul’s call to pray with thanksgiving is linked back to the nearness of the Lord? That is, we are thankful for the peaceful and certain resolution that Christ’s return will bring? Perhaps. In any case, eschatological certainty should certainly lead us to calm hearts and confident prayers in the sovereignty of God.

Were only the temporal meaning of the word ‘near’ on offer for us to consider, this would be a good option to go for. But compared to option 3, it lacks both the intercessory flavour, and the peace that flows from our spatial unity with Christ, expressed in v7. There could be more options, there really might be no connection between v5b and its context. But I’ll stick with option 3 for the moment.

In any case, we must be careful not to get lost in this discussion from the real and pressing command of verses 6 and 7.

Do not be anxious about anything – That, as you may have noticed, is fairly strong language. It is entirely normal to be anxious. Christ was anxious in the garden of Gethsemane. But you’ll do well to remember what one thing that time in the garden was marked by – prayer. When anxieties fills our heart, we are to make it our ambition to rid ourselves of them. We don’t get rid of them by pretending they don’t exist. We don’t get rid of them by trying to solve all the problems as quick as possible – no – do not be anxious about anything, but instead, in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving present your requests to God. We are to get rid of our anxieties by lifting them off our hearts and entrusting them to God in prayer. The way to be anxious about nothing, is to be prayerful about everything. Let that roll around in your head. And don’t forget, this is a command, not a suggestion. Our anxious hearts do not testify to the greatness of our relationship with our heavenly Father. But we are to be a people marked by peace. Anxiety is the opposite of peace. 4:2-9 has been all about the life of peace.

We do not receive a promise that things will turn out the way we want them to turn out – our anxiety doesn’t go away because we’re promised that God will fix the situation just the way we want it – no, we can let go of our anxieties when we know that our heavenly Father knows our situation, knows our concerns, has heard our requests – and loves us. When you trust that, you can stop worrying about it. You really can. When you know God knows, you can stop being anxious about it. The way to be anxious about nothing is to be prayerful about everything.

Is this going to be easy? Of course not! But the Christ Revolution calls for a change in the way of our hearts that is radically different from the world around us. When Christ is our King, we are to rejoice. We are to remember that he is near (spatially, I think), and therefore we are to not be anxious but prayerful. The command comes with a wonderful promise and encouragement. We’ve already looked at it a little, but read it again – if we do this, verse 7 – the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. You simply cannot beat that. What else do we want?

Do not be anxious, but pray, holding onto the nearness of Christ our intercessory – and you will receive God’s unbeatable and guarding peace through Christ our Lord who is near,

Matt.

⁵ Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.

The Christian life is to be marked deeply by peace – that is what is becoming clear from looking at Philippians 4:1-9. This is just one aspect of the life lived ‘standing firm in the Lord’ (4:1). Those who stand in solidarity with Christ live lives marked by peace, and that should be of no surprise to us whose very life, hope and joy rest solely on the spiritual peace won by Christ. You need only look at Romans 5:1 for good evidence of this; Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.

Accordingly, those reconciled and at peace with God through the Lord Jesus Christ, should be reconciled and at peace with each other through that same Lord Jesus Christ (4:2-3)

And just as the mention of the peace won by Christ in Romans 5:1 led Paul to speak of rejoicing in 5:2, so also in Philippians 4, he calls upon the church to rejoice in the Lord always (4:4). I proposed in the last post that Paul might have naturally linked verses 3 and 4, in the sense that he knows the best response to fractures in church fellowship is to call warring parties to both rejoice in the Lord. In any case, I think it can be easily argued that to call someone to rejoice in the Lord is to call them to be awed and dominated by the overwhelming greatness of the peace that we have in Christ. For as we noted, to rejoice in the Lord is to remember that he loves you, and while I can’t put my finger right on it – the overwhelming vibe of all this ideas is one of peace. It is difficult to rejoice in the Lord and his peace-bringing love, and at the same time, not be marked by peace.

I think v5, which we’ll focus on today, also has strong links back to verses 2-3. It is a natural antidote to the warring women – gentleness. And particularly, this gentleness is to be evident to all – In other words, I think Paul has relationship building on view here, i.e.,  ‘Let your gentleness be evident to all….as you relate to them’. Demonstrate to people that you are not entering into relationships with self-interest or a domineering spirit – but rather, make it clear that you are humble, meek and seeking the best of the other person. Gentleness is one of the most covert (as opposed to overt) characteristics you can encounter in a person. It can be confused for shyness, or more commonly, it can simply be overshadowed by that which is not gentle – i.e., boisterousness, aggressiveness, loudness.

But Paul calls for us to be so gentle that it is evident to all that we are such a person. Are you known for your gentleness? I think that is the core question this verse asks of us. Ask yourself honestly – are you known for your gentleness? If someone were to describe you to me, would I get the clear picture that you are a gentle person? I find that a searching and rebuking question. We do not live in the age of gentleness – we never have, and never will. You are going to stick out like a sore thumb if you persevere in gentleness. You will risk being trodden on and forgotten. You will risk being used by those bent on self-gain. You will risk being misunderstood as non-assertive or weak. You will risk not getting your own way! But is that not the outcome of life promised to those who follow our gentle Lord and Saviour? Strive to be known for your gentleness – though paradoxically, the gentle people are often not known – but don’t let that stop you in your quest to be like Christ in this way. It is an essential element of the peaceful life lived standing firm with Christ as your King. When Christ is King, we are gentle. This is the Christ revolution once again at work to change us.

Now we have to work out what to do with the little phrase, “The Lord is near”. Though some would have it stand alone as a simple testament to the fact that the Lord is near (as though Paul were reeling off a list of exhortations that popped into his head) – don’t buy it! No-one, especially not the Paul I know, thinks or writes or speaks like that. Such a conclusion is the last resort when all else has failed.

But while I strongly believe that this little phrase links into what is around it, I’m not exactly sure how it does. That’s mainly because there are four quite plausible options, and hopefully as I write them (or as you read them), the best option will present itself as the true one! There is no linking word in the Greek, accordingly, the four options are based around which is inferred, combined with the two possible meanings of ‘near’.

Option 1. Let your gentleness be evident, for the Lord is near (spatially)

That is, be gentle because Christ is with us. We are in this way reminded of Christ’s presence, ‘Be gentle because Jesus is here’. The strength of this reading lies in the gentleness of Christ being an impetus for us to imitate him. He’s ‘in the room’, so to speak – if Jesus was in the room, you wouldn’t be self-serving and aggressive, but you would be humbled by his gentle example and imitate him. Carson argues for this reading, which is surprising, because I don’t like it very much at all. I don’t like it because it almost has a guilt-association to it – i.e., ‘Jesus is watching…you wouldn’t do that if Jesus were in the room would you?’ – which is true, but for me, doesn’t ring with NT language or ethics. Then again, I don’t usually like arguing with Carson. If you like this reading, or can think of other NT passages that speak like this – do try to persuade me!

Option 2. Let your gentleness be evident, for the Lord is near (temporally)

That is, be gentle because Christ is returning soon. We are in this way reminded of both the hope of the last day, and/or the judgement of the last day. Jesus is coming back soon, so be gentle. This fits better with regular NT ethical language, especially the day/night passages such as Romans 13 and 1 Thessalonians 5. Both link godly Christian living explicitly with the return of Christ, e.g., The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light (Rom. 13:12). If our little phrase links to v5 and gentleness, I prefer this option over the previous one. In these last days we are to be gentle. And perhaps there is an extra edge to the reminder of the Lord’s coming return – that is, we need not fret if our gentleness leads to us being trampled on, for Christ is soon to return, and he will restore everything by his perfect judgement. A kind of ‘Fret not o’ gentle one’ kind of sentiment. Maybe, maybe not.

But I’m now more persuaded that neither of these options is correct. I think it more persuasively links to verses 6 and 7 – as long as this is permissible in the Greek, which I have no idea if it does. But we’ll look at options 3 and 4 in the next post when we look at those verses.

Until then, resolve to be known for your gentleness (maybe because the Lord is near in a temporal sense!),

Matt.

⁴ Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! ⁵ Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.

As proposed in the last post, in 4:1-9, I think Paul is calling on his beloved Philippians – his joy and crown, his dear friends – to ‘stand firm in the Lord’ (4:1) by exhorting them to live lives of peace. I think the whole letter is about standing firm with Christ as Lord and King. But here in 4:2-9 in particular, Paul seems to associate such firm standing with peacefulness. He began, or perhaps was given the impetus to begin by, his exhortation to two co-workers, two women, to agree in the Lord. Peace was required for those who were to work together with one purpose in the cause of the gospel. Are we at peace with our brothers and sisters in Christ?

Now, in verses 4-5, Paul exhorts his readers to rejoice and be gentle. In my mind, both of these words are synonymous with peace. A rejoicing person will be gentle. A gentle person will be a peaceful person. A peaceful person will rejoice. To me, you can’t truly be living out one of these things but not the others.

Could it be, that having brought the division between the women to mind, Paul now thinks that these two things, rejoicing and gentleness, are the best remedy for a church with divisions? I think it’s entirely plausible that this is what is going on here. At the very least, I do not agree with those who would take this out of its context. That’s always a poor move. With the image of his two beloved co-workers disagreeing in the Lord, he exhorts the church to rejoice! And he’s already told us in 3:1 that it’s no trouble for him to remind them to rejoice again – so guess what? He says it again – I will say it again: Rejoice!

The two obvious things to note about this exhortation to rejoice are; 1. The object of our rejoicing is to be in the Lord – note the striking similarity with the previous exhortation to agree in the Lord – at the very least it certainly doesn’t discourage reading them together, 2. The time frame for our rejoicing is always.

So then, we are to rejoice in Christ our King all the time. This is what chapter 3 was all about! Don’t move on from Christ, but rather, treasure him more, press on to know him more, count all other things as rubbish – rejoice in him. Rejoice in the righteousness that we have by faith in Christ (3:9). That is the climax of the rejoicing in Christ verses, and I think it is the climax of our rejoicing in the Lord. For the basis of our rejoicing in the Lord is to rejoice in his love for us, demonstrated most pointedly in his atoning and substitutionary death for us on the cross by which we are righteous by faith. That death sealed Christ’s love and goodness towards us in all of life – it is the means by which we receive all things in Christ. So, rejoice in the Lord! While it is a very broad phrase, it can really be boiled down to – ‘Remember that Christ loves you”.

That’s the key to rejoicing. It sounds pretty simple doesn’t it? I mean, even the little kids know that, ‘Yes Jesus loves me…the bible tells me so’.

But we keep forgetting this truth. And so we lose our joy.

Because sometimes we just feel so sinful (usually because we are so sinful). We think to ourselves, ‘Am I really a Christian’? Because a real Christian whose been a Christian as long as I have would have stopped sinning like this. And so we despair and we doubt. We don’t feel like a Christian, we feel rotten! And we lose our joy. The reason we lose our joy is not because our Lord has stopped loving us, but because we have forgotten that he loves us. We must ask ourselves at this point – ‘Why did I become a Christian in the first place’? Because Christ loved me, a sinner. Still feeling like a sinner? Well I’m not surprised, you still are! Well, go back to Jesus like you did at first. Remember that he loves you, died for you, has forgiven you. You are a great sinner yes, there’s no denying it – but Christ is a great Saviour – so rejoice in the Lord!

Sometimes, we are just so bogged down by the trials and sufferings of day to day life, that we lose our joy. When nothing is going right. You’re lonely. Precious relationships have come to an end, sometimes in breakups, sometimes in death. Maybe someone lets you down, big time. You fail some exams. It can be the little things, like losing your wallet or stubbing your toe. Maybe you just feel depressed and blue and you can’t even explain why. And in all these times, the last thing we feel is joyful. But once more, the reason we lose our joy is not because our Lord has stopped loving us, but because we have forgotten that he loves us. If you are struggling in life, remember that Christ loves you. Remember that what are you are experiencing really is an expression of Jesus’ love for you (cf. Romans 8). That’s really hard to trust isn’t it. But it’s only hard to trust because we’ve forgotten how unstoppable and perfect and complete Christ’s love is for us. Rejoice in the Lord – he loves you!

So if you feel sinful, if you feel like the world is falling apart  – whoever you are and whatever is happening –now is the perfect time to rejoice in Christ your Saviour, to remember his perfect love for you and to delight in it. It’s always the perfect time. Paul says, ‘Rejoice in the Lord always’! Delight in the wonderful news that Christ has saved you, a sinner. Wonder and be enthralled by the news that God has forgiven your sins, and that heaven is promised to you. Rejoice in the Lord for he loves you! And never move on from that.

And I think that Paul hopes such rejoicing will mend broken relationships between church members, such as that between Euodia and Syntyche. For it is when we are most enamored by the love of Christ towards us in the gospel, that we are in the best position to agree in the Lord. It is when we are least concerned about selfish ambition and vain conceit, and most concerned about the love of Christ who was humbled even unto death, that we are in the best position to be one in gospel purpose together. It is very hard to rejoice in the Lord whilst simultaneously being divisive with your brother or sister in Christ whom that same Lord died for and has written in the book of life with his loving blood.

We’ll look at verse 5 on Friday or Saturday (I’m going away tomorrow for a brief hiatus), but till then, let’s strive to stand firm in the Lord together – let’s strive for peace – let’s strive to rejoice in the Lord always,

For he loves us,

Matt.

² I plead with Euodia and I plead with Syntyche to agree with each other in the Lord. ³ Yes, and I ask you, loyal yokefellow, help these women who have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.

We move now into the part of Philippians which every knows is full of gold, but have no idea how the separate bits of gold are joined together. Check out some of the attempts (and failures) of modern bible translations to put a good sub-heading over 4:1-9: (P.S – I hate bible sub-headings with a passion, along with the Message, which of course, is not a ‘translation’ by any stretch of the imagination)

NIV 1984 – Exhortations, TNIV – Closing appeal for steadfastness and unity, NASB – Think of Excellence, The Message – Pray About Everything, ESV – Exhortation, Encouragement and Prayer, CEV – Paul Encourages the Lord’s followers, Holman – Practical Counsel.

Is that really the best they can do? They either state the obvious (‘exhortations’), or focus exclusively on just one gold part of the section (‘Think of Excellence’) – There has seemingly been no attempt to wrestle with or link Paul’s thoughts together in any way. It wouldn’t be a problem if the verses really were just a jumble of unrelated exhortations – as I’m fairly sure O’Brien argues in his commentary. But I don’t buy it – the link is clearly peace.

Verses 2-3 I plead with Euodia and I plead with Syntyche to agree with each other in the Lord. Yes, and I ask you, loyal yokefellow, help these women who have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.

– Paul calls for there to be peace between two arguing sisters and fellow workers in the gospel.

Verse 4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!

This is the one bit that least fits the ‘peace’ argument – but it’s hardly an issue – the concepts of rejoicing and peace go absolutely hand in hand, especially in the Lord. When do people generally rejoice? When there’s peace. Could be a link with verses 2-3, calling on the warring parties (and everyone) to rejoice in Christ, not fight.

Verse 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.

Gentleness = peacefulness. ‘The Lord is near’ could link with this phrase, or the one to come. What is Christ bringing when he returns? War? Nup.

Verses 6-7 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Rather than be anxious at heart – be peaceful at heart through prayer – for through prayer, the peace of God will guard it.

Verses 8-9 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

Just when you thought it couldn’t get any clearer – rather than be depraved in mind – be pure in mind. The result? The God of peace will be with you.

So then: peace with other believers, rejoice, be gentle/peaceful, peace of heart, peace of mind. (I think it’s about peace, don’t you?) I was glad then, when I turned to Moyter’s BST commentary this morning, to find that he agreed with me! I think Carson overlooks it, he’s giving a sermon on all of chapter 4 and links everything under 4:1 – standing firm – so that, the exhortations to peace (though he doesn’t use the word much) are ultimately exhortations to stand firm in Christ – which I agree with, but I think the whole book is about how to stand firm with Christ as King! – so I don’t think he deals adequately with the cluster of ‘peace’ themes in these verses. Let’s give it a shot then shall we? Beginning then with verses 2-3;

I plead with Euodia and I plead with Syntyche to agree with each other in the Lord. Yes, and I ask you, loyal yokefellow, help these women who have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.

Paul knew that these women, Euodia and Syntyche, were disagreeing. It must have been a serious and obvious disagreement for the apostle to be pleading with them in a public letter in this way. Paul’s pain over them is increased by the fact that these women are fellow workers in the cause of the gospel – indeed, they have contended at my side. While we can’t be sure what the details of the circumstances were, both in the disagreement or in the women’s relationship with Paul’s ministry – the importance of them agreeing is paramount. For two reasons;

1. Paul has just called for the Church to stand firm in the Lord  (4:1) – perhaps writing that reminded him of two key workers standing in division. Accordingly, it is significant that pleads with them both to agree in the Lord.

2. Their names are in the book of life – both the women, and those Paul calls to attend to the situation the best they can to help. It is a wake-up call to the preciousness of the Christian individual – people and relationships matter! Don’t let relational divisions fester and rot – no, help them, plead with them to agree in the Lord – for all our names are written in the one book, and it is the book of eternal life.

What will it look like for these divided women to ‘agree in the Lord’? Carson makes some very pastoral and helpful notes;

* Paul is not slipping into relativistic sentimentality here – he is not appealing for unity at the expense of truth – the Paul we know from the NT, the Paul of Philippians 3, would advocate for division, not unity when gospel truth is at stake.

* Paul is not calling for the women to reach perfect agreement on every subject. In light of 2:1-2, he is calling for a mental attitude that adopts the same basic direction – that is, ‘being like minded…being one in spirit and purpose’ – he wants to see the women (along with all the church), to share the purpose of the gospel – a theme so prominent in chapter 1.

* Therefore, while we don’t know the details of this disagreement, we should ‘agree in the Lord’ by identifying together what is of absolute first importance (the gospel). Get your bibles out and work hard over texts together – and with the right attitude, the peripheral matters will take care of themselves.

I like Carson’s advice, because he reveals that our arguments with other believers are rarely about the gospel itself. But he doesn’t call on us to treat periphery matters as of no importance – but rather, we are called back to shape the periphery by the gospel – and one of the disagreeing parties is going to be doing that better than the other – by God’s grace, that view will be adopted by both (if indeed we both have the same purpose). The church is to be characterised by peace – for all the members are partners together in the cause of the gospel of Christ (1:1-11) – we are not to divide with other gospel people – rather, we sharpen one another constructively, helping those who are disagreeing – bringing them back to first gospel-principles. Perhaps this is why gentleness is just over a verse away from being exhorted – we have to be so gentle in our gospel shaping of people.

So then, let the gospel of peace be the focus of our relationships – so that our relationships would be marked by a constructive and humble peace, as we all strive together as partners of the gospel of Christ.

1:27 is the key text in this regard – “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 one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel…”

Notice how there is an assumption that relational conduct worthy of the gospel = standing firm in one spirit. The link with 4:2-3, especially with the ‘standing firm’ language of 4:1 ringing in our ears, is powerful.

Is there someone you need to humbly or graciously make amends with? Do you need to say to someone – ‘We aren’t standing firm together in one spirit, in one purpose – that is, for the faith of the gospel – let’s humbly and graciously work this out’? It’s so important that you do so, because peace is an essential element of the life lived with Christ as King.

At least, that’s what 4:1-9 is shaping up to be saying in my mind,

Matt.

¹ Therefore, my brothers, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, that is how you should stand firm in the Lord, dear friends!

Having poured out his heart and soul to them through his personal testimony, and boldly called upon them to imitate him, and having starkly laid out the outcome of life of the false teachers and then himself – Paul steps back and with great love says;

Therefore, my brothers, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, that is how you should stand firm in the Lord, dear friends!

It’s easy to overlook the fact that over half the verse is made up of words expressing deep companionship – my brothers, you whom I love, you whom I long for, my joy and crown, my dear friends.

I take it he’s not flattering them – but aching for them. Remember, Paul is in prison, he doesn’t know how long he’s going to be there, he doesn’t know the outcome of his trial. He may never see his beloved Philippian church again. He knows how important his words are here. This may be the last correspondence he ever has with them. Imagine that you could only write just one 4 chapter letter to your beloved fledgling church – under incredible pressure from false teachers, under painful pressure from a persecuting world, and living with the looming possibility of their founder’s death.

That intense context, I think, is the reason for this intense release of emotion – whatever is being exhorted in 4:1, it is the expression of a deep-seated longing of a friend – I hear silently behind his words, please…please my beloved brethren…please listen…I love you…I long for your best…you’re my joy and crown – I’m saying these things because I have that last day in view when I can present you to Christ…dear friends…

Do you find the sentiment a little embarrassing to read?  Don’t! Would you find it a little awkward if someone exhorted you beginning with these expressions of love? Don’t! This is the love of Christ being imitated – this is the mark of Christians – not a cross, not a flame, not a dove, not a steeple – but love. Deep, raw, full, bleeding love. By this all men will know that you are my disciples; if you love one another (John 13:35).

We are a fledgling church. We are under incredible pressure from false teachers. While not under painful pressure from a persecuting world now, I expect to be during my lifetime – this loving, desperate exhortation has lost none of its power or relevance;

Therefore, my brothers, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, that is how you should stand firm in the Lord, dear friends!

The emphatic that is the key. It’s a pointing word. When you see someone do a mind-blowing reverse park in the inner city – into a space far too small for life to exist – you exclaim (and point) – “THAT is how you park a car!”. Paul is pointing back at what he has just written, and perhaps with tears in his eyes, cries out – “THAT is how you should stand firm in the Lord!”. It is his final plea that the Philippians do not move from Christ to place their faith in the works of the flesh which the false teachers were advocating. But what part of Philippians he is pointing to exactly? What is the that he is drawing our attention to?

My one Philippians commentary makes no note on the scope of the phrase implied in the Greek (annoyingly) – in fact, it makes no note of all about ‘that’ at all.

So I’m going to go out on a limb here, a limb which I may later retract, and say that Paul is implicitly referring to everything he’s written up to this point, and explicitly referring to chapter 3. I say this, because I think it can be argued that this verse is the central exhortation of the letter. Because the letter has been outlining the life lived with Christ as King;

When Jesus is our Christ, our King, we are servants of Christ, saints in Christ and partners in his gospel. (1:1-5)

His relationship with the Philippians exemplified the life as a partner in the gospel (1:3-11). His testimony of life and attitude in prison exemplified the life as a servant of Christ (1:12-26). He exhorted the Philippians to live as fitting saints of Christ in the world (1:27-2:30). And the purpose of chapter 3 has been all about sticking with Christ, climaxing in 4:1’s call to stand firm.

Granted, it could be true that Paul has just chapter 3 in mind when he says, “THAT is how you should stand firm in the Lord!” – It makes good sense. But I think Paul could have stopped after every section in Philippians so far and said just as validly, “THAT is how you should stand firm in the Lord!”. Seriously, go back over every section of the letter – it works very neatly.

In this way, the whole letter is an exhortation to stand firm in the Lord, the King. Don’t move on to a different way of life – keep living the life that is proper when Christ is your King. Don’t shift when the false teachers call you. Don’t shift when the world throws rocks at you. Stand firm, unmovable, with Christ as your King; letting the reality of his Kingship shape every part of your Christian life.

That, I think, is what Philippians is all about – the ‘Christ Revolution’ – everything changes when Jesus takes the throne of our life.

But I’ve been wrong before,

Matt.

¹⁷ Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you. ¹⁸ For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. ¹⁹ Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. ²⁰ But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, ²¹ who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.

Whether we want to admit it or not, we’re all great imitators. For good or for bad, there is almost always someone we look up to and admire – the person we aspire to be like in some way, shape or form.

Philippians 3 is all about imitating. We saw in yesterday’s post that Paul shares his personal testimony in order that it might be imitated by the Philippians. In fact, a failure to adopt his view of things would be evidence of the reader’s immaturity. As a Christian, imitation matters – or more precisely, who you imitate matters.

The Philippians were facing an imitation dilemma – two leadership parties were vying for their attention and following. In one corner were the mutilators of the flesh – evil men bent on leading the Philippians into a religion of future attainment – that is, telling them to start racking up God points through an adherence to Jewish religious practices, in order to attain something further in this life. In the other corner was Paul, the former true-blue Jew also determined on leading the Philippians into a religion of past  attainment – that is, telling them to live according to what they have already attained by faith in Christ – an assurance of salvation that as we saw yesterday, was to not to be the death of good works, nor the goal of them – but the impetus. In Philippians 3, Paul has been passionately presenting his case by means of personal testimony – it’s been rather compelling, and now, in the final verses of the chapter, he makes his final plea to them.

Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you. (v17)

Paul boldly calls for the Philippians to get behind him and follow him – others have already done this – and they are further encouraged to take note of those who do so. Who you follow, matters. A lot. And I don’t think Paul’s command has lost any of its intended force as we read it today. We are to join in following Paul’s example laid out in Philippians 3, and we are to take not of those who do so. That is, we don’t write them down in a note book – but we mentally notice good imitation, in order that we might further imitate them! Christians are always to have a model or models to follow. Always! Christians who ride solo, who consider themselves stable and firm enough to not require someone to imitate are utterly blind to their immaturity and need a good whack of humility across the head. If you can’t bring to mind in the next three seconds the person or persons who you have noticed are an exemplary imitator of Paul in Philippians 3 and Christ – you need to find one. Look long, look hard. And there’s no excuse – even if you’re certain no-one in your church or town is suitable to follow, you can always read about a dead Christian and imitate them! There’s plenty of legends out there! The apostolic command remains strong today – join in imitating Paul and follow others in doing so.

Paul then takes a very serious turn and warns his readers of how utterly important good imitation is;

For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ.  Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. (v18-19)

THIS is why careful imitation is so important. Because there are people in the earthly church who are not part of the heavenly church who are vying for YOUR attention. They may look wonderful, they may sound warm and encouraging, they may live outwardly impressive lives – but do not be fooled, there are many who live as enemies of the cross of Christ. And I am fairly sure given the context that Paul is not referring to the world outside the church – but the world that has seeped inside the church. The dogs, the mutilators of the flesh, are ultimately enemies of the cross of Christ. They not only sidestep his cross in the formulation of their faith, but they stand against it. They deny it, they overlook it, they disregard it, they may even outright distort or deny it. Almost every false teacher in church history has distorted the cross of Christ. It is very hard to stand as a true ally of the cross of Christ and preach heresy – at least without effectively compromising your doctrine of the cross. But it is very easy to preach against the folly of the cross of Christ, to step around the shame and humility of it all. It’s very easy to ignore the atoning work of Christ on the cross, and focus on the exemplary part. Likewise, it’s very easy to ignore the exemplary part and never call people to take up their own cross and die. It is very easy to live as an enemy of the cross of Christ – and there are countless leaders in the church today vying for your discipleship behind them.

But consider the outcome of their way of life. Their destiny? Destruction. Their god? Their stomach. Their glory? Their shame. Their mind? Is on earthly things. It brings Paul to tears, and it should do similar things to our souls. Lament over false teaching. Be broken by the thought of church leaders in the world standing against Christ and his cross. There is little use in me pointing fingers here – but it’s not hard to do. Be careful who you imitate. Test their life and faith. Test their view of the cross. Do your very best to test where their mind is focused. And above all, do not follow such people, lest you imitate them to your own destruction. Consider the absolute horror of the outcome of those who stand against the cross of Christ, and make every effort not to follow them.

Rather, consider the outcome of Paul and those who follow Christ;

But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body. (v20-21)

Imitate those whose minds, and very souls, are set on heaven, not destruction. Indeed, imitate those who belong to heaven. Imitate those who are awaiting a Saviour from that same heaven. For even if they seem weak and feeble now, perhaps not the most impressive people on planet earth – just you wait. For Christ, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control – by his utterly sovereign power – will transform the lowly into the glorious. Philippians is all about life with Christ as King. Imitate those who await the King’s return. Imitate those who await the transformation the King brings – the transformation that is not to come in this lifetime – as the false teachers will constantly tell you – but in the age to come. Imitate those who wait for true and Christ-wrought transformation.

Who you imitate really matters. Consider the outcome of those you are currently imitating. Test carefully the teaching of those you listen to and follow. If in doubt, follow Paul as he follows Christ.

There is one more very important implication of the passage. Paul commanded the Philippians and us to take note of those who are worth imitating. The question begging to be asked is – are you worth imitating?

Because, whether you like it or not, you are being looked up to in your church. Seriously you are! Your life is on display for all to see. And whether it’s someone older than you, of similar age to you, or someone you lead in a kids church, or your son or daughter, or your brother or sister – someone, or someones is looking up to you right now looking for a Christian to imitate. And imitate they will – for good or for bad! How important then, that we make doubly sure that we are imitating Paul in Philippians 3. How important then that we count all things as rubbish compared to knowing Christ. How important then that we press on to know Christ more and more. How important then that we do not think we have already reached the goal, but press on. How important then that we live up to what we have already attained. How important then that we ourselves are modelling someone above us well.

Because who you imitate matters – and what you present for others to imitate matters even more,

Matt.