Transcript
This is our final sermon in the series that we've been preaching on Paul's letter to the Philippians. Paul loved that church. It was the first church in Europe that he went into with Timothy and Luke and Silas. They came across from Troas. They went to Philippi, and Paul preached the gospel there. The first convert in Europe was a woman named Lydia, and then a Philippian jailer, and then a church that started in their houses. And they
loved Paul, and they followed him around and tried to support him in his ministry. And they sent actually one of their young men all the way to Rome. When they heard that he was imprisoned in Rome, they sent a young man named Epaphroditus to watch out for Paul. And then Epaphroditus got sick and had to go home. And as a result of that, Paul wrote a letter to them, and we have that letter. The last letter
that Paul wrote from his imprisonment in Rome to a church is the letter to the Philippians, and it's vintage St. Paul. It is absolutely a magnificent letter. His last letter that he wrote from prison was to Timothy, his young friend, and that's 2nd Timothy. But this is the last letter to a church. And so now we have the privilege of reading the last chapter of that letter. And what a chapter it is. It's almost like a
valedictory. He's going to once again talk about his own life. He's done that already twice in the letter. He's spoken autobiographically about what's going on in his life. He's going to do it again. He's going to talk about them. He's going to give advice. So you might want to call the last chapter the advice from a friend. And here it is, the 4th chapter of Philippians. Listen how it starts. Rejoice in the Lord always, (Philippians 4:4) again I say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is nearby. Do not worry, or be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God which surpasses all understanding, will guard, that's the word that's used, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally beloved, and here we see Paul with one
of his lists. He loves lists. He loves to create these rhetorical lists. Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. The little word for think, logizesthe, we get the word logical from that word. It means compute those. Put them in your hard drive. Remember those. Think about them. And then
keep on doing the things that you've learned and that you've received and you've heard and seen in me. And the God of peace will be with you. And now he becomes autobiographical again. That you revived your concern for me. Indeed, you were concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. Remember for two years after he got arrested in Jerusalem, he was put in a prison that was in the precinct of the palace on the Mediterranean
Sea that Herod Antipas owned that was rented to the Roman governor. And so two Roman governors, Felix and Festus, lived there. In fact, the only inscription we ever found of Pontius Pilate was found at Caesarea in that palace, the Romans rented it. There was a dungeon in the basement and Paul was there for two years. He was not able to meet anybody there, evidently. And that's why they couldn't help him there. And that's why Paul decided
to appeal to Rome and appeal to Caesar to get out of there. And they put him on a prison ship, remember? It crashed in Malta and he finally ends up in Rome for his final imprisonment. He just wanted to get out of that prison on the Mediterranean Sea. And he says, you had no ability to help me there because I was incognito. And then he says, you revived your concern for me. You always were concerned, but
you had no way of showing it. Not that I complain of want, though, or of need. And here comes an amazing autographical part. Not that I complain of need, for I have learned to be content. I have to tell you about the word content here. I'm not satisfied with that English translation of autonomos, which is the word used here. We get the word autonomy from that word. It means, it's one of the Greek words for sanity.
In other words, I'm sane. I've kept my sanity. I'm content. I've kept my sanity. So he said, not that I complain of want, for I have learned to be sane and have kept my sanity in whatever state I'm in. I know how to have little and I know how to have plenty. I know how to be abased and how to abound, is the way the old King James put it. In any and all circumstances, I have
learned the secret of being well fed and going hungry. Of having plenty and of being in need. Almost sounds like our text from the book of Habakkuk that was read to us just a few moments ago. I can do all things. Now the word do could be translated, I can take in stride. That's what he means. I can take in stride all things that happen to me through him who strengthens me. I can do all things
through Christ who strengthens me. And he's referring to Christ there because remember earlier on he said the Lord is nearby. So I can take in stride all things through Christ who strengthens me. That's a favorite verse for a lot of people. A lot of people like to put that in their Bible. It's a good verse to put in your Bible. I can take in stride all these things because of Christ who strengthens me. In any case,
it was kind of you to help me in my distress. And now he points to the Philippians. You Philippians indeed know that in the early days of the gospel when I left Macedonia, that's their province, no church shared with me in giving and receiving except you. Think of all the churches Paul started, but that's a church that kept following him around trying to send stuff to help him. Maybe care packages, maybe Pete's coffee and things like
that so that he could keep in good shape. For even when I was in Thessalonica, which is the capital of Macedonia, you sent help to me once and again. You kept doing it. And then he says an interesting thing. Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the profit that accumulates to your account. I have been paid in full and have more than enough. I love that. Have you ever said thank you to somebody where
it's just a nice, clean thank you and you don't fish for more? Have you ever received a thank you letter with no return envelope? That's what Paul does. He says, thank you, I'm full. You don't have to send anybody else. See, they sent Epaphroditus and Epaphroditus became ill. And you'd wonder if maybe he might say, and by the way, your next missionary, I hope he's in better health. He doesn't say that. Watch what he
says. Notice what a nice, clean thank you this is. You know, we can all learn from this. Parents, when you say thank you, say thank you. If somebody wrote you a letter and you said, I'm so grateful for your letter, don't correct the spelling. Don't say, yes, thank you, but you misspell several words. Don't do that. Say thank you, clean, neat, simple. This is a simple thank you. I want you to watch it. This is St.
Paul. This is great St. Paul. I've been paid in full and more than enough. Notice, I'm fully satisfied now that I received from Epaphroditus. He names that young man the gifts that you sent a fragrant offering, a sacrifice, acceptable, pleasing to God. And then he does make a promise to him. And my God will supply all your needs as well. According to the riches of glory in Christ Jesus. To our God, the Father be glory
forever. Amen. And now we know from Paul's letter to the Thessalonians that at the end of every letter, he took the pen in his own hand because he would dictate his letter to an amanuensis, a secretary, who would write in very, very small print because the Greek manuscripts have very small print because of the expense of papyrus. And then at the end, he would take the pen and write his own greeting. He says in the Thessalonian
letter, this is my mark. I write my own greeting at the end. In fact, to the Galatians, he says, look with large letters. I write this greeting because he has bad eyesight. Wouldn't it be great if we could find an original St. Paul document that would have big handwriting at the end? So he said, now he takes the pen in his own hand and writes his final greeting himself. Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The friends
who are with me greet you. All the saints greet you, especially those in Caesar's household. Don't you love that? We know that one of the five prisons in Rome where Paul was, was the prison actually in the precincts of Nero's Via Villa Palace, right in the basement. He says that earlier, the Praetorian Guard is guarding me. And now Paul has been winning some of those Praetorian Guards to Christ. And so he says, they greet you too,
especially those of the emperor's household. They greet you. Now, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. And that's the last letter Paul wrote to a church. You know, there's one line in the letter that I really love. As I already alluded, many people call it one of their favorite verses. I can do all things. I can take in stride all things through Christ who strengthens me. And I have learned the secret
of facing plenty and want of being abased and being abounding. I've learned the secret. And the secret is I can do all things. I can take in stride all things through Christ who strengthens me. What is the secret of St. Paul? He's speaking autobiographically to us. He shared earlier autobiographically as well. He shared about his own coming to know Christ in the 3rd chapter. He shared in the 1st chapter. He says, Don't worry about me and
my imprisonment. I'm doing fine. I get that I get a crack at the Praetorian Guard. It's my goal to be out in the open and share my faith. He shared that in the 1st chapter. And now he says, I've learned the secret. I've learned the secret of keeping my sanity. Have you learned the secret of keeping your sanity? He said, I've learned the secret of keeping my sanity. What is the secret? I believe the 4th chapter
gives us six markers that show us his secret. Let me just track them with you. This is the secret of St. Paul as I see it in the 4th chapter. First, it's something he knows. What do you know to be true? What is it you know to be true? It's interesting. It starts with something he knows. Notice, rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I say rejoice. Let everyone know your moderation. The Lord is nearby. The Lord
is nearby. That's why he says, through Christ, I can take in stride everything. Jesus Christ makes the difference for St. Paul. He is a man in Christ. It's Jesus Christ. He met him on the road to Damascus. It's Jesus Christ who gives him the strength to make it, who helps him keep his sanity, knowing the Lord is nearby. In fact, it's interesting, isn't it? In his final advice, rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I say rejoice.
Let all men know your forbearance is the way some translations translate epikos, the Greek word used there. In the book of James, the word is used by James. It's translated there in the RSV, patience. Here it's translated in the new RSV, let everyone know your gentleness. It's translated that way sometimes. Epikos. Moderation is what the word means. Are you intrigued by that? Wouldn't you expect that he writes at the midpoint of the first century, Nero is
the emperor, after the fire of Rome in 64 AD is a terrible persecution that Nero wrecks upon, especially the Christians. He blames them for the fire. They didn't create the fire. He did himself. But yet he blames them and throws them into the arena. Paul himself was probably thrown into the arena finally to face lions. And so it's a terrible time. Wouldn't you expect in a way Paul would say, let everyone know your zeal or your
courage or the intensity of your faith in this tough time we're in. Instead, Paul surprises us. He says, let everyone know your moderation. Paul doesn't want more fanatics around. He wants, he doesn't want Lord Ronald who leaped on his horse and rode madly off in all directions. He doesn't want that. Paul wants people who are sane, who kept their sanity, who keep calm and cool in the face of danger, who are unflappable. Remember, that's what he
said earlier on in the 1st chapter. When you face danger, don't be startled. Don't panic. And now he's saying it again in a different way. He's praying for this. Rejoice in the Lord always. Let everyone know your moderation. The Lord is nearby. If you knew the Lord was nearby, you wouldn't have to panic. You heard it in the Habakkuk text. He says, the crops fail. Everything is failing, and yet I'm trusting the Lord. I trust the
Lord in the midst of my life. And Paul is saying that, and that's the secret, something he knows. He knows that Jesus Christ is there. He's alongside of us. And if I know that he's there, then what am I frightened of? Can I tell you a little story? It's a true story. When my son was a little boy, he's a big man now, and believe me, he's not afraid of anything now. But when he was a
little boy, there was a little period he went through where he was afraid of monsters. And we always had to check under the bed to make sure there were no monsters. I'm sure it was maybe movies he saw, or maybe Sesame Street or something. But I don't know if he was afraid of the Cookie Monster or what, but there were monsters that we were worried about there for a little while. My son, who's a big tough
guy now, but he, as a little boy, he was worried about monsters. But at night we had to, in our prayers, had to definitely pray that we'd be protected from monsters, wherever they might be. And they might be under the bed. Who knows? They might sneak in. So we had to be careful about those. Then we read, as a family, the Chronicles of Narnia. Chronicles of Narnia are so marvelous, because of course there are monsters there
to cope with, too. But in Lion Witch and Wardrobe, Susan and Lucy get to jump on Aslan's back and run through Narnia. And all the little creatures that have been turned into stone by the Wicked Witch come back to life, because Aslan just makes everything come to life. And it was wonderful. So we had just read that. And I remember with my son one day, in fact this became a big joke in our family. He was
saying, Dad, I think some monsters are out. I'm going to have a hard time going to sleep. He said, little guy, he said that. And so I said, Hey John, I have an idea. Let's just imagine something. I'm going to take you right now. I'm going to lift you up and put you on Aslan's back. Remember, Susie and Lucy got to ride on Aslan's back. Can you imagine that? I'm going to put you on Aslan's back.
You know, he's as big as the lions in Trafalgar Square. About ten kids can get in the back of a lion in Trafalgar Square. That's what Lewis says. That's how big Aslan was. I'm going to put you on his back. And now we're just going to walk around a little bit. Oh John, look, there's a monster over there. There's a python over there. Oh, there's a dragon over there. But we're riding on Aslan's back. Who cares?
And then suddenly he's sound asleep. And that became a big, that became a joke in our family. If you're really worried about something, then ride on Aslan's back. If the Lord is nearby, if you're on Aslan's back, the great golden lion, son of the emperor from beyond the sea, what are you afraid of? What are you afraid of if the Lord is nearby? If the Lord is nearby, you don't have to be afraid. And that's
why Paul can say you can be moderate. You can be steadfast. The Lord is nearby. You can be mellow. But the Lord is nearby. That's how he keeps his sanity. Secondly, he prays. In this text, we have a wonderful invitation to pray. He invites us to pray. And he says, whatever you're anxious about, pray with supplication and thanksgiving. Let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all knowledge, will guard
your life. Pray. And when you pray, you have a chance to bring to the Lord that which you're worried about. And Paul believes that. And he prays an awful lot. Paul prays at the beginning of each letter. He began the Philippian letter by praying for the Philippians. That prayer is a part of his secret. Third, he focuses. It's interesting that he would give, you might say, the Pauline doctrine of meditation immediately after prayer. He says, finally,
whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, think about those things. That's the biblical, both Old and New Testament doctrine of meditation. We don't have the doctrine of meditation of the empty garden, where you empty your mind of everything and sort of create a mantra so you'll empty your head. No, don't empty your head. Our Lord spoke against that. He says, don't empty a house of evil spirits, because if you leave it
empty, they'll sneak into the side doors. But fill your house with what's true. Focus your eyes. And that's the Jewish and Christian understanding of meditation from the Psalms and now here in the New Testament as well. We have the focusing tradition of meditation. We focus on what is true in the midst of what is harsh and what is dangerous and what's toxic. Focus on the faithfulness and the love of God. Whatever is true, he says, logistie,
think about those things, put those into your computer. Wow. And then he is able to handle advantages and disadvantages. I know how to be abased. I know how to abound in any and all circumstances. It's interesting. He keeps his sanity in any and all circumstances. Remember when we did our series in St. Paul, we saw that Paul used his advantages, he used his disadvantages. The fact that he could only rent the hall in Ephesus between 11
and 4 in the afternoon meant he couldn't probably reach the wealthy people as well. But that's the one time of day that the slaves could come in here, Paul. And for two years and a quarter, he rented the Tyrannus Hall in that bad hour, the hour when everybody's hot and people are falling asleep. And yet that's when the slaves could come and listen to St. Paul. And Paul reached so many slaves for Christ because of that
disadvantage. Or another disadvantage of St. Paul is his imprisonments, so many times in prison. But let me ask you a question. When would Paul have time to write letters if he weren't in prison? His imprisonment enabled him to write letters. And so his disadvantage became his advantage. Paul says, I've learned how to handle advantages and disadvantages. I can flow with them. I can keep sane in the midst of them because of Christ. So Christ enables him,
that's his secret, to handle the advantages and the disadvantages. Pascal has a great quotation. He says, do great things as though they were small because of Jesus Christ. And do small things as though they were great because of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ has a way of leveling the ground so that the great things are brought down to size and the small things are brought up in importance. So that you become mellow and sane and healthy and
handling both the big and the small things. That's Paul's secret. And then fifth, he has friends. I don't want to let this slip through our fingers. Paul had friends who were watching out for him. Do you have friends who are watching out for you, who are watching out for your back? It is the most beautiful thing in life to have friends who are praying for you, who care about you, who know your name, and are tracking
with you and trying to find out how things are going in your life. And the Philippians were those friends. Notice he pays tribute to them. He says, you didn't know where I was when I was down at Caesarea. But the minute you found out I was in Rome, you send Epaphroditus right away. And those friends meant so much to St. Paul. And he thanks them for it. And then finally, Paul enjoys life. You can't miss it.
He starts and he ends. Rejoice and the Lord always even repeats it. Again I say, rejoice. By the way, I just finished reading John Adams, this wonderful book by David McCullough. And John Adams, at the end of his life, shared his favorite verse in a letter he wrote to a friend. And he said his favorite verse was, Rejoice and the Lord always. And again I say, rejoice. And there was a sort of joy in the life
of this great man, John Adams. And it's a wonderful gift to enjoy life. Can you think of a time that's more exciting to be alive than right now? I can't think of a more exciting time. What a time to be alive. What a time to try to make a difference in the world than the time we're in right now. And Paul rejoices at the time and place where he is. And that joy that he has and
feels is part of his secret. Well, I have learned the secret, he says, of keeping my sanity. I know that the Lord is nearby. I pray. I focus on what is true. It enables me to handle advantages and disadvantages. I have friends who are watching out for me. And I'm grateful and joyous. That's Paul's secret. Heavenly Father, thank you for this secret. Thank you for this wonderful letter to the Philippians that we were able to read
and watch unfold. May we learn this secret and may it make all the difference in our lives as well so that we can stay sane and healthy and whole and keep our heads clear in the time in which we are alive now too. In all this we pray, in Jesus' name, Amen.