We are learning from Paul’s epistle to the Philippians. Our text today is Philippians 1:12-18. Let's read that to get a general feel of what Paul is saying in the passage.
“Now I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel. 13 As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. 14 Because of my chains, most of the brothers in the Lord have been encouraged to speak the word of God more courageously and fearlessly. 15 It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. 16 The latter do so in love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. 17 The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. 18 But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice” (NIV).i
Philippians is a book about attitudes. Your attitudes not only affect your own moods and emotional state, but your attitudes affect those around you as well. Paul’s attitude while in prison was affecting other Christians and non-believers. As we study this epistle, watch for attitudes: attitudes that Paul tells others to have and attitudes that he exemplifies. In this passage we will examine: (1) Paul’s attitude toward his circumstances and (2) Paul’s attitude toward his critics.
I. Paul’s attitude toward his CIRCUMSTANCES.
Paul was in Prison at Rome. The circumstances in and of themselves were not pleasant. Four times in this brief letter he mentions his chains. Paul was literally chained to prison guards twenty-four hours a day.ii He is awaiting a trail that could end in a death sentence. At the time of this letter he has been in Rome for two years.iii
Acts 28:11-31 describes his situation there. Luke says in 28:16, “When we got to Rome, Paul was allowed to live by himself, with a soldier to guard him.”iv Luke then reports Paul’s interaction with the Jewish leaders in Rome, his effort to lead them to Christ. That is followed by this summary in the last two verses of Acts. “For two whole years Paul stayed there in his own rented house and welcomed all who came to see him. 31 Boldly and without hindrance he preached the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ” (Acts 28:30-31). So he had some freedom even though he was chained to a guard all the time. That in itself would not be pleasant.
The events leading to his imprisonment began back in Acts 21:15 at Jerusalem. There a riot broke out when some of the Jews accused Paul of desecrating the Temple by bringing a gentile into it—something Paul did not do. To keep Paul from being killed by the Jews the Romans took him into custody. He was taken to Caesarea for a trial before Felix who was governor. Paul was a prisoner in Caesarea for two years (Acts 24:7). When Festus replaced Felix Paul endured another trial. At that trial he had to appeal to Caesar to avoid being sent back to the Jews who would have killed him. His appeal to Caesar meant he would go to Rome for trail. That’s why Paul was sent to Rome.
His journey to Rome was filled with hard experiences. Acts 27 describes the shipwreck that he endured. It is difficult for us to comprehend the stress that Paul went through during that four or five year period. The mob in Jerusalem tried to kill him. He goes to trial before Felix, Festus, Agrippa, and then in Rome. On his way to Rome he is almost killed in a shipwreck. At Malta he is bitten by a poisonous viper (Acts 28:3). I think at that point I would have been asking, “What else can happen?” We need to see in all of this that Paul had plenty to complain about if that had been his disposition. Paul was not rejoicing because his life was easy.
Observing the events going on in Paul’s life, it looked like the devil was having a field day. And the devil was at work. He was doing everything he could to put Paul out of business. He incited the riot in Jerusalem. He inspired the Jews to try to kill Paul. He may have had a hand in the storm and the snake as alternative ways to do away with Paul. And if he couldn’t kill him, he would at least shut down his ministry by keeping him in prison.
We are naïve if we think the devil is not involved in world events and in the opposition that we personally experience. He is the “adversary.” He goes about like a roaring lion seeking to devour.v He is the “god of this world.”vi All you have to do is read the latest news to see his works. All you have to do is listen to the media to hear his lies. He inspires hate. He inspires violence. He is at work stirring up trouble and hate. Paul said, “We are not ignorant of his devices.”vii
When he wrote to the Philippians Paul could have talked a long time about all the trouble Satan was giving him. I’m reminded of the lady who stood up in the Sunday night testimony service and said, “You’ll pray for me. The devil has been after me all week. Bless his holy name.” The truth is, he’s been after every one of us all week. But a testimony service is not about what the devil is doing. It’s about what God is doing.
Do you remember the prophetic word God gave us last Sunday? I’ve drawn counsel from that all week. It’s easy to see the devil’s works in the events going on all around us. But God told us to get our eyes on what he is doing. “You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You.”viii “Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.”ix What has your attention?
If you focus on what the devil is doing, you will lose your peace. He will agitate you and pull you into conflict. I’m not saying we should ignore the bad news altogether; but keep it in perspective. The devil is at work in the world around us. He has an agenda, and he has people he can lead in that agenda. But God is also at work. In fact, just about the time Satan thinks he has everything going his way, God has a way of stepping in and turning it around. Satan inspired Haman to have all the Jews killed. He even got the king to sign off of the edict. But just in time, God intervened through Esther and turned it all around. Satan opposed Jesus at every turn. He inspired the Jewish leaders to try to trap him in his words. He even inspired the crucifixion of Jesus. It looked like his greatest triumph. But it turned out to be his greatest defeat. Sometimes God lets the devil have a pretty long leash. But God never loses control. He never relinquishes his sovereignty. Remember that when the devil is doing his worst. In the end, God always wins! And because we are aligned with him, so do we.
Now look at Philippians 1:12 at Paul’s evaluation of his imprisonment at Rome. “Now I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me [we’ve been talking about those events, especially his imprisonment at Rome] has really served to advance the gospel.” The Philippians probably saw it as a great hindrance to the gospel. Paul is restricted. He is not traveling all over the world preaching the gospel and establishing churches. He is not able to visit churches and encourage them in the faith. The devil seems to have God’s most effective servant shut down in Rome. But Paul does not want them discouraged with that kind of thinking. Paul sees beyond what the devil is doing. He sees God at work turning things upside down on the devil. In reality, all these circumstances that seem so negative on the surface has “served to advance the gospel.”
How can that be? Paul explains himself in the next couple of verses. First, in verse 13 he talks about the gospel reaching the palace guards among others “As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ.” The palace guard (praetorion) was probably “the emperor’s own elite troops, stationed in Rome.x So Paul as a prisoner is able to reach the inner circle of the Roman Empire. Since guards were rotated in four-hour shifts, Paul had opportunity to share the gospel with many of the guards over this two-year imprisonment. Being with him they realized he was “in chains for Christ.” He was not there because of a crime. It was his devotion to Christ that got him thrown in prison. They got to see that devotion first hand. They heard Paul share his testimony. They heard him talk about the love of God and the salvation available through the cross. And many became Christians. Then they shared Christ with others at the palace. Because of the evangelism going on at the palace Paul could write at the end of this letter, “All the saints send you greetings, especially those who belong to Caesar's household” (Phil. 4:22). I see in that a little dig at the devil: we’re even reaching people in Nero’s household—right at the heart of Satan’s stronghold.
God had opened the door to Caesar’s palace for Paul to preach the gospel. I doubt it happened the way Paul expected or would have chosen. But God made a way where there seemed to be no way. The key to Paul’s joy was to let God do it anyway he wanted to without being upset about it. When we started this church I did not know the direction God would take us. I assumed it would follow the path of other churches we planted. But God took us in an entirely different direction. He opened doors of ministry very different than in the past. There were some bumps along the way. But he gave us influence into people’s lives with the gospel. And that is what it’s all about.
For our own protection God usually takes down the low road of humility rather than the high road of fame and success. By all outward appearances Paul did not look all that successful. He had no high-priced lawyers getting him out of prison. He was in the lowest social position, not the highest. Yet God was accomplishing his purposes through it all.
Charlotte Elliott was struck with an illness that made her an invalid for most of her life. She loved the Lord with all her heart. She longed to do something significant for God. But there she lay, confined to a bed with a body that wouldn’t function properly. All hope for real usefulness seemed to be dashed. But on that bed Charlotte Elliott wrote an invitational song that may have prompted more response to the gospel than any other. Who knows how many people have come to Christ singing her song: “Just as I am, without one plea But that Thy blood was shed for me. And that Thou bid’st me come to Thee O Lamb of God, I come, I come.”xi
She could have gotten bitter. Instead she got better. She could have given up on serving God. Instead she served him in the circumstances she found herself in. Our service to God is not dependent on circumstances. It is dependent on consecration. It is dependent on yieldedness. Prov. 3:5-6: “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths” (NKJV).
In verse 14, Paul points out something else representing an advancement of the gospel. When other Christians saw Paul’s boldness in proclaiming the gospel, they got bolder about their testimony. “Because of my chains, most of the brothers in the Lord have been encouraged to speak the word of God more courageously and fearlessly.” So here is Paul in chains, facing a possible death sentence, and he does not back off of his commitment to Christ. They think, if he can do that in those circumstances, surely I can stand up for the Lord as a free man. The risk I’m taking is far less than the risk he is willing to take for Christ.
Fear is contagious, but so is courage. In a battle if one soldier turns and runs, it is harder for the other soldiers to stand and fight. But if one displays unusual courage it inspires all his comrades. That’s what Paul did. He inspired the other Christians to stand up and proclaim the gospel. What you and I do during the hard times, influences others. We are in spiritual warfare. The warfare is real. And sometimes we have to stand our ground when it is not easy to do. But when we do that it inspires others to do likewise.
One positive outcome that is evident by the very letter we’re studying is that Paul wrote this and other letters while imprisoned at Rome. In addition to Philippians he wrote Ephesians, Colossians, and Philemon that became part of the New Testament. Imagine the loss if we did not have those prison epistles. How many people have come to the Lord through those epistles? Who knows? How many Christians have been strengthened in their faith by reading these letters? It is impossible to measure the benefits from Paul being confined to prison and writing these epistles. We can look back from where we are today and see the advancement of the gospel in that way as well.
Paul saw good things God was doing in his circumstances. He knew his steps were ordered of the Lord. He knew that God was working all things together for his good. “Now I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel. 13 As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. 14 Because of my chains, most of the brothers in the Lord have been encouraged to speak the word of God more courageously and fearlessly.”
That was Paul’s attitude toward his circumstances.
II. Paul’s attitude toward his CRITICS is expressed in verses 15-18.
“It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. 16 The latter do so in love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. 17 The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. 18 But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice.”
By his example Paul had stirred others to stand up and proclaim Christ. Some were doing that out of pure, godly motives. They loved the Lord and wanted to advance his cause just like Paul did. As we would expect, Paul is encouraged by those ministries. When our heart is right, we will always rejoice to see ministers like that advancing the kingdom. To not have that response, is a sure sign something is wrong in our own hearts.
The surprise in this passage is Paul’s response to those in the ministry whose motives were not so pure. During Paul’s imprisonment, they stepped up and preached. But it was not a sincere love for the Lord that was motivating them. They were preaching Christ (vs 17) “out of selfish ambition.” Their goal was to build their own kingdom, their own reputation. Paul was not there to lead. So they stepped in to fill the gap. But the motive behind it all was different from Paul’s motives. They were seeking followers for themselves through the name of Christ. Paul was laying down his life to win followers of Jesus.xii In chapter two Paul will exhort those at Philippi, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit” (2:3).
Who knows the damage done to the cause of Christ by people operating out of “selfish ambition”? They’re identifying with the name of Christ. They present themselves as his representatives. They even preach a true gospel. But at a heart level it is designed for self-exaltation. I’m convinced this accounts for far more division in the Body of Christ than doctrinal issues. Try to get a united effort in any city and see what you run into. The greatest obstacle is the underlying question, “What’s in it for me?” After years of working with spiritual leadership in cities, I learned to build an answer to that if I wanted cooperation.
For example, when we launched Hang Ten in this city, I structure the program to give pastors an answer to that question. Some would have cooperated without that. But many would not. Hang Ten was an evangelistic outreach to the schools in the Springfield metropolitan area. The primary target was the unsaved students in the public school system, junior high and high school. Private schools participated, but we wanted to reach lost kids. I needed pastors to promote it in their churches to motivate the Christian kids to participate in the program at school. We got almost 100% participation from the evangelical churches, and the program was very successful. But when I asked the pastors to participate I made it clear, “When your kids lead someone to the Lord or start that process with an unsaved kid they will bring them to your church.” Any pastor could see how the program might build his church. As I said, some would have done it just to get lost kids saved, but many would not have participated without that incentive. And it was a good way to handle it because those are the kids that had relationship with the lost student.
Paul did not found the church at Rome, and not everyone there agreed with him on certain issues. We can read Paul’s letter to the Romans and guess what some of those issues were. In that letter Paul is proactively taught truths they need to be established in. Perhaps Israel’s place in God’s plan was an issue. Maybe some differed on the observance of Jewish holidays since Paul addresses that in Romans 14. These were people who believed the essentials of the gospel. Paul says in our text they were preaching the gospel. But they still had some differences with Paul, and they did not have the right attitude about those differences. They became contentious with Paul over those differences; more importantly they wanted people following them instead of Paul.
What do you do with fellow Christians who insist on being contentious with you? There is one group here in Springfield who went all the way through my sermons back to 2016, four years of sermons, to find something to attack me on. In fact they have publicly attacked me. Do I allow myself to get pulled into an ongoing spat with those people? No, I praise God they are reading or listening to my sermons, even if it is with a motive to find a point of contention. I will keep proclaiming Christ and not get sidetracked. Winston Churchill said it well: “You’ll never reach your destination if you stop to throw stones at every dog that barks.”xiii
These people thought Paul would react to them he way they would have reacted if the roles were reversed. In verse 17 Paul says, “The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains.” They thought it would irritate Paul the way they would have been disturbed if he were doing that to them. They were promoting their faction. They were preaching out of “envy and rivalry” or competition. They were competing with Paul, but Paul was not competing with them. His response was very different than what they expected.
Paul simply rejoiced that the gospel was being preached. Paul’s one passion was that Christ would be preached and God would be glorified. He was not concerned about how many followed him. He was not concerned about how successful he looked. He was only concerned about the advancement of the gospel.
In Luke 9:49 John asked Jesus, “Master, we saw a man driving out demons in your name and we tried to stop him, because he was not one of us. Do not stop him Jesus answered, for whoever is not against you is for you.” There are only two kingdoms: light and darkness. If a person is preaching light, the gospel of Christ, don’t stop him; don’t oppose him. He may be doing it imperfectly, and he may be doing it with some selfish motives. But, praise God, Christ is being preached.
By Paul’s example, we have instruction on how we are to view Christians who disagree with us on some issues, or even compete with us for a following. I’m not talking about people who deny the deity of Christ.xiv I’m talking about people who are Christians but need some sanctification. Maybe they’re not doing it for the right motives. Maybe we do not agree on some matters. But I praise God the gospel is being preached. That was the attitude Paul expresses here toward his critics. Phil. 1:18: “But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice.”
Maintaining these attitudes toward our circumstances and toward our critics is another secret to living joyfully. No matter what the devil threw at Paul, he landed on his feet. He used whatever circumstance he found himself in as an opportunity to preach the gospel. His eye was single—that whether it be in life or death Christ be magnified. I want that kind of singleness of heart, don’t you?
END NOTES:
i All Scripture quotes, unless indicated otherwise, are from the New International Version.
ii Gordon D. Fee, Paul’s Letter to the Philippians, The New International Commentary on the New Testament, Stone, Bruce, Fee, and Green, gen. eds. (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1995) 92.
iii Bruce Barton, Mark Fackler, Linda Taylor, Dave Veerman, Philippians, Colossians, & Philemon, Life Application Bible Commentary, G. Osborne and P. Comfort, eds. (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House, 1995) 33.
iv The use of “we” in Acts 28:16 indicates Luke was with Paul in Rome. Writing from Rome Paul mentions Luke in Phm. 23-24 and Col. 4:10-17. Barker, Kenneth L., ed., The NIV Study Bible, 1985 (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1995) s. v. “Introduction to Acts” by Lewis Foster, 1643.
v 1 Peter 5:8.
vi 2 Cor. 4:4; 1 John 5:19.
vii 2 Cor. 2:11, KJV.
viii Isa. 26:3, NKJV.
ix Heb. 12:2, KJV.
x Fee, Paul’s Letter to the Philippians, 113. According to Fee, the term originally denoted “the general’s tent” or “the headquarters within a camp, evolving over time to refer to the governor’s palace.” But by the time Paul wrote this letter it was frequently used to denote “the emperor’s own elite troops, stationed in Rome.”
xi “Biographical Sketch of Charlotte Elliott,” Women of Christianity, Sept. 6, 2008. Accessed 6/6/20 at https://womenofchristianity.com/biographical-sketch-of-charlotte-elliot/.
xii This kind of attitude was the dividing the Christians at Corinth. See 1 Cor. 3:1-4.
xiii Winston Churchill Quotes, Goodreads. Accessed 6/6/20 at https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/986175-you-ll-never-reach-your-destination-if-you-stop-to-throw.
xiv Paul dealt with false teachers and false prophets differently (2 Cor. 11:4; Gal. 1:6-9). See Barton, et al., Philippians, Colossians, & Philemon, 37.
