Philippians: Shine Like Stars – DAY 9
Family Discussions for a New School Year
Paul is confident that God will continue the good work of the gospel in and through the Philippian believers.
*This is DAY 9. For previous days, click here.
DAY 9/MONDAY
Philippians 1:3-6
Confident of This
“I thank my God every time I remember you.
Philippians 1:3-6 (NIV)
In all my prayers for all of you,
I always pray with joy
because of your partnership in the gospel
from the first day until now,
being confident of this,
that He who began a good work in you
will carry it on to completion
until the day of Christ Jesus.”
*Click here to read Philippians 1 in the NIrV, ESV, & NLT.
The following Q & A section is meant to help us comprehend these Bible verses. Comprehension, as author & Bible teacher Jen Wilkin defines it, “seeks purposefully to discover what the original author intended me to notice or ask” (Women of the Word, p.89, 2014). If we neglect comprehension, we can easily make up our own self-satisfying meanings for what we read in the Bible. This is NOT what God intended! See how a few simple but careful questions can aid our comprehension of God’s Word.
Q & A
| 1) | Q: What is the “this” of which Paul is confident? | A: “That He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” |
| 2) | Q: Who began “a good work” ? | A: “He” = God |
| 3) | Q: The good work was begun in whom? | A: “you” = the Philippian Church |
| 4) | Q: What is the “good work” ? | A: Their partnership in the gospel |
| 5) | Q: What is God going to do with this good work He started in the Philippian Church? | A: “Carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” |
| 6) | Q: When/What is “the day of Christ Jesus” ? | A: The Day Jesus will return (the 2nd Coming) |
Me-ology vs. Theology
I’m going to pick on Christian devotionals & social media posts for a minute. They are designed to make a point in a matter of seconds or a couple of minutes at the most. We know this is because the attention span of our culture has dropped below that of a goldfish (I wish this were an exaggeration!).
The problem is that the truth of Scripture can’t be clearly communicated in short bursts like this. Worse than the brevity is the attempt to “sell” people on the Bible by appealing to something in their selfish nature. Yikes. These marketing techniques have led to the growth of “me-ology” (making the Bible all about us) rather than theology (studying to know God).
*I first heard the term “me-ology” from Marcie Morris of Provoked to Proclaim on Shanda Fulbright’s podcast, Her Faith Inspires.
Why am I bringing this up right now? In our Scripture for today, Philippians 1:3-6, it is v.6 that is often pulled out and emphasized, out of context, to make people feel good about God beginning & completing something in them. It is just the type of “me-ology” thing I see all the time in devos and social posts.
As we saw in our Q & A section above, Philippians 1:6 is not about us — at least not directly! While the truth about God beginning & continuing His good work of the gospel in and through believers does apply to us, we need to know & understand that Paul was specifically writing to the Philippian believers. And the “good work” is not just anything we decide to call “good work;” it’s partnership in the gospel.
This would be a good time to review the gospel.
The Gospel Paul Preached to the Corinthians
Although the following Scripture passage is from Paul’s letter to the Corinthian Christians, we can be confident it contains the same gospel Paul preached everywhere he went, including Philippi.
“Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.
3For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5and that He appeared to Cephas (Peter), and then to the Twelve (apostles, minus Judas Iscariot, plus Matthias). 6After that, He appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7Then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8and last of all He appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.”
I Corinthians 15:1-8 (NIV)
To sum it up:
- Christ died for our sins.
- He was buried.
- He was raised on the 3rd day.
- Christ appeared multiple times.
- All of this was done according to the Scriptures (Old Testament).
The Good Work of the Gospel
What is the “good work” of gospel partnership?
The start of the work is internal; the internal work leads to external actions.
We can see the internal and external work of the gospel in Paul’s, a.k.a. Saul’s, conversion.
Saul (Paul) becomes a Christian.
“Meanwhile, Saul (Paul) was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest 2and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way (Christians), whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem.
3As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, ‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute Me?‘
5‘Who are you, Lord?’ Saul (Paul) asked.
‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,’ He replied. 6Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.’
7The men traveling with Saul (Paul) stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. 8Saul (Paul) got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. 9For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.
10In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, ‘Ananias!‘
‘Yes, Lord,’ he answered.
11The Lord told him, ‘Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul (Paul), for he is praying. 12In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.’
13‘Lord,’ Ananias answered, ‘I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to Your holy people in Jerusalem. 14And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on Your name.’
15But the Lord said to Ananias, ‘Go! This man is My chosen instrument to proclaim My name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. 16I will show him how much he must suffer for My name.’
17Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul (Paul), he said, ‘Brother Saul (Paul), the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.’ 18Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s (Paul’s) eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, 19and after taking some food, he regained his strength.'”
Acts 9:1-18,19 (NIV)
When Paul (Saul) met Jesus, he was changed from an unbeliever into a believer. He fasted & prayed, was filled with the Holy Spirit, and was baptized.
The first thing Paul preached is that Jesus is the Son of God.
Paul’s Early Preaching
What Paul first preached:
“At once he (Paul) began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God.”
Acts 9:20 (NIV)
Paul’s internal change — into a believer in Jesus filled with the Holy Spirit — led to an external change: preaching that Jesus is the Son of God.
From Paul’s next recorded sermon in Pisidian Antioch:
“Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. 39Through Him everyone who believes is set free from every sin, a justification you were not able to obtain under the law of Moses (in the Old Testament).”
Acts 13:38 (NIV)
A more complete summary of the Gospel Paul preached:
- Jesus Christ is the Son of God. (Acts 9:20)
- Christ died for our sins. (I Cor. 15:3)
- He was buried. (I Cor. 15:4)
- He was raised on the 3rd day. (I Cor. 15:4)
- Christ appeared multiple times. (I Cor. 15:5-8)
- All of this was done according to the Scriptures (Old Testament). (I Cor. 15:3,4)
- Through Jesus our sins can be forgiven. (Acts 13:38)
- Through Him everyone who believes is set free from every sin. (Acts 13:39)
Back to Philippians 1:3-6
Reread our Philippians verses for today in light of what we have learned about the gospel Paul preached.
“I thank my God every time I remember you.
Philippians 1:3-6 (NIV)
In all my prayers for all of you,
I always pray with joy
because of your partnership in the gospel
from the first day until now,
being confident of this,
that He who began a good work in you
will carry it on to completion
until the day of Christ Jesus.”
The good work of the gospel is both internal and external.
The internal work begins when we believe in the Lord Jesus and are saved. Our sins are forgiven! We are set free from sin through Jesus. He is the Son of God told of in the Old Testament Scriptures who died for our sins, was buried, was raised on the 3rd day, and appeared multiple times to His disciples and apostles. When we believe, the Holy Spirit comes to live in us, starting the work of our sanctification (becoming holy = more like Christ).
The external work includes all we do to share and spread the gospel and multiply disciples of Christ!
Confident of This
So, for review, what is the “this” of which Paul is confident?
That God, who began a good work in the Philippian Christians — the good work of living out and sharing the gospel — will carry it on to completion, continuing what He started in them, until the day of Christ Jesus.
DAY 9/MONDAY Prayer
Father God,
Thank You for Your Word. May we read it carefully, with our hearts and minds open to Your truth.
Let us not make Bible study about us! As we read Your Word, may the Holy Spirit guide us into the truth about You and Your Son. I pray we will come away knowing more about You and thinking less about ourselves.
Continue the good work of the gospel in and through our family.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen.
DAY 9: Paul was confident that God, who began the good work of the gospel in the Philippian church, would carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.