Hello friends,
This is Mark Gladman,
Also known as Brother Frederick James,
Your friendly neighbourhood monk in docks.
Welcome.
As we continue our journey through Paul's letter to the Philippians.
Yesterday we introduced the letter and discovered that Philippians is at its heart.
A book of becoming.
Paul is not just interested.
In what Christians believe so much as he wants to see Christians formed and Christ formed in them.
So over the coming days,
We're going to explore joy,
Humility,
Peace,
Contentment,
And even perseverance.
But it's a day before Paul says anything at all about Christian living.
He begins with something way more fundamental.
Grace.
Because before there's anything for us to do.
There is something that God has already done.
So as always.
.
.
Let's begin by becoming aware of the presence of God.
Take a slow breath.
With your shoulders relaxed.
Remembering that God is nearer to you than your own breath.
And as you become still,
I invite you to listen.
To Paul's letter to the Philippians,
Chapter one.
Versus one.
To 11.
Paul and Timothy,
Servants of Christ Jesus,
To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi.
With the bishops and deacons.
Grace to you and peace from God our Father.
And the Lord Jesus Christ.
I thank my God every time I remember you.
Constantly praying with joy in every one of my prayers for all of you.
Because of your sharing in the gospel from the first day until now.
I'm confident of this.
But the one who began a good work among you.
Will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ.
It is right for me to think this way about all of you.
Because you hold me in your heart.
For all of you share in God's grace with me,
Both in my imprisonment and in the defence and confirmation.
Of the gospel.
For God is my witness.
How I long for all of you with the compassion of Christ Jesus.
And this is my prayer.
That your love may overflow more and more with knowledge,
And full insight to help you to determine what is best.
So that in the day of Christ you may be pure and blameless,
Having produced the harvest of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ,
For the glory and praise of God.
Now Paul begins with Paul and Timothy,
Servants of Christ Jesus,
To all God's holy people in Christ Jesus at Philippi,
Together with the overseers and deacons.
Now if you've read Paul's letter before,
The opening might seem familiar.
But if we slow down,
There's already some remarkable things that are happening here.
Notice first how Paul describes himself.
He doesn't talk about being an apostle or a church planter or a theologian.
Or a Pharisee or a Roman citizen,
He simply says,
Servant of Christ Jesus.
The Greek word.
.
.
Is dough loss.
Literally a slave.
In the Roman world,
This was not an honourable title.
It described someone whose life belonged to someone else.
But Paul wears the title with joy.
His identity isn't built.
On achievement.
It's not built on status that he's carried from somewhere else.
It's found in belonging to Christ,
Already the values of the kingdom.
Begin to overturn the values of the empire.
Now let's step into the world behind these verses.
Philippi was a Roman colony filled with veterans of the Roman army and their families.
Loyalty to Caesar shaped public life.
Status mattered.
Rank mattered.
Titles mattered.
And into that culture.
Paul writes not about some sort of social hierarchy.
But about belonging.
He addresses all God's holy people.
And the word translated holy people is often rendered in English.
Saints.
We imagine saints often as extraordinary people,
Heroes of the faith,
Whose holiness seems way beyond our reach.
But Paul uses the word entirely in a different way.
Every believer in Philippi is called a saint.
And it's not because they're perfect and holy,
But it's because they belong to Christ.
Or perhaps we should say that holiness in Paul's understanding begins with God's gracious claim upon our lives.
And that,
I hope,
Is a profoundly liberating truth.
Now,
After greeting the church,
Paul writes words that many Christians know by heart.
Grace and peace to you from God,
Our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Notice the order.
Grace,
Then peace.
And if you read Paul a lot,
You'll notice he never reverses them.
Peace is the fruit of grace.
Peace isn't created by trying harder.
We receive peace because we first received God's grace.
And how often though?
Do we try and seek peace while neglecting grace?
We try to fix ourselves,
Working harder.
Trying all sorts of different things but Paul gently reminds us that transformation always begins with the gift.
Of God's love.
Only then.
Does peace begin to settle within us.
And then Paul goes on saying,
I thank my God every time I remember you.
Imagine hearing those words read aloud in the church at Philippi.
Paul begins with gratitude.
Even though this church isn't perfect and we're soon going to discover that there's tensions beneath the surfaces here.
Paul chooses first to notice God's work.
And this should tell us something very important about Christian formation.
People grow best.
When they're seen through the eyes of grace.
Now,
Paul doesn't ignore the church's weaknesses or their deficiencies.
It's just that he simply refuses to let those things become the first thing that he's going to see and address.
And then comes one of the most hope-filled verses in the New Testament.
Paul writes,
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.
Notice whose work this is.
God began it,
God continues it,
And God completes it.
So Christian formation has nothing to do with it.
With self-improvement.
It's cooperation with the God who's already.
At work within us.
Sometimes.
We can get really discouraged because we don't seem to be changing quick enough.
Maybe we struggle with impatience,
Fear,
Pride,
Anxiety,
Old habits keep popping up.
Paul acknowledges none of these as reasons for despair.
Instead,
He points us back to God's faithfulness,
The God who starts the work and never abandons it halfway through.
It doesn't mean that our transformation is going to be instant,
But it does mean that ultimately.
.
.
Our transformation is now.
Certain.
Now interestingly.
.
.
Saint Benedict begins his rule with a single word.
Listen.
Listening is the beginning of transformation.
Because it creates space for grace.
And Paul seems to understand this too.
Before he offers instruction,
He reminds the Philippians who they are.
Beloved.
Remember.
Prayed for.
Held by God.
Maybe we need to hear those words today too.
That our deepest identity.
Is found in belonging to Christ and everything else grows from there.
And then Paul reveals what he prays for.
He writes that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight.
You might wonder.
Why doesn't Paul pray for courage or success or church growth?
He prays that love will increase.
But it's important to understand that this isn't some sort of sentimental love,
It's a discerning love.
Love that learns to recognize what's truly good.
Love that sees with God's eyes.
Love that shapes wise decisions.
He could be praying that we become kinder or wiser,
But Christian maturity is always both loving and discerning.
Because truth without love becomes harsh.
And love without wisdom?
Becomes naive,
But Paul longs for both.
And then he writes.
So that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ.
The Christian Life.
Involves choosing between what is good.
And what is best.
Formation slowly reshapes our desires until we begin to love what God loves.
Because our hearts are changing.
And then finally,
Paul speaks of being filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory of God.
And praise of God.
Is one of scripture's favorite images for spiritual growth.
But remember fruit.
It can't be forced,
It grows.
And it grows quietly and slowly.
Almost imperceptibly.
Trees don't strain to produce fruit,
They just remain rooted,
Connected.
Nourished,
Alive.
And the fruit simply comes.
And the same's true.
In the Christian life.
When we remain rooted in Christ's transformation.
Becomes God's work.
It's about abiding.
And the fruit.
Is that work of God growing?
Within us.
So what might the passage be saying to us today?
Maybe some of us need to hear again that God hasn't given up on us.
Maybe you've been disappointed with your spiritual growth.
Maybe you've expected maturity to come more quickly than it has.
I think Paul would be gently reminding you that God is patient,
Formation is lifelong and the work is still unfolding.
Perhaps others of us need to recover the priority of grace.
Quite often we live as though everything depends on us,
But Paul invites us to rest in the God who's already begun the work.
And maybe there are others of us that need to hear the invitation to become people of gratitude.
Who might God be asking you to see through the eyes of grace today?
Whose goodness have you overlooked?
Because you've been distracted by their weaknesses.
So today,
I'd invite you just to spend some time reflecting on this single sentence.
He who began a good work in you will carry it on.
To completion.
Pull out your Bible and read it slowly,
Maybe several times.
Notice which word captures your attention.
Feel.
Began good work completion.
Whatever it is,
Just simply allow God's promise to settle into your heart.
And when that word sunk deep.
Maybe ask.
God,
Where are you still at work in me?
Just simply where God is lovingly shaping you.
Where is that?
And rest in that for a time.
So let's pray.
Faithful God,
You are the one who begins every good work.
When we become impatient with ourselves,
Remind us of your patience.
When we rely upon your own strength,
Lead us back to your grace,
Increase our love,
Deepen our wisdom,
Teach us to see ourselves and others through the eyes of Christ,
And continue the good work that you've begun in us until the day when we're made fully alive.
Thanks so much for joining me today.
Tomorrow we're going to explore how Paul discovers joy even while in prison and what that teaches us about finding God's presence in the middle of life's uncertainties.
So until then.
.
.
May the grace of Christ go with you.
May you know that the one who began the good work is still faithfully at work within you.
And may grace,
Peace and love be with you and remain with you today and always.
Amen.
Until tomorrow.
Bye for now.
