Partnership and Church Planting in Philippi

We learn much about church planting from Acts 16. We should be sobered by the fact that it may involve suffering—it did for this team. But we should also be encouraged by the fact that Paul reached three different types of people, using three different approaches, with the one gospel. We should also be instructed by the various methods by which these unbelievers were reached. Consider the following chart adapted from Tim Keller, Church Planter Manual:

Ethnically

Economically

Spiritually

Ministry Approach

Lydia

Asian

Wealthy

God-fearer

Words

Slave girl

Native Greek

Poor?

Spiritual turmoil

Deeds

Jailer

Roman

Blue collar

Practical and indifferent

Example

All ethnicities and classes of people can be saved, and people in all types of spiritual conditions can be saved. Some are really influenced by dialogue, argument, and teaching. Others are moved by deeds of mercy. And some are attracted to Christian example. All of them are saved through responding to the gospel (Rom 10).

Do you know some “Lydias”—people who have moved to your city because of business or vocation? We have a lot of them in our city. Do you know some tormented girls—those who are dealing with hurt, abuse, human slavery, and even demonic power? They need mercy, counsel, and freedom. Do you know some blue-collar dudes? Perhaps God will lead you to minister to them.

As a church, we need to find contexts where we can teach the Bible to outsiders like Lydia. For Paul, that was down by the river. For us, it might be on college campuses or in religious clubs on campuses or at a coffee shop. You might start a small Bible study and invite people to it. My friend Harvey started his church as a result of a Bible study that he launched simply to reach his friends in Reno. It grew to 60 guys quickly, and now he pastors a church of more than 2,000.

As a church, we want to practice deeds of mercy, helping those who are poor and oppressed. We are commanded to practice good deeds, and Peter tells us that it has a tremendous impact on outsiders (1 Pet 2:12). I was in Detroit this week meeting with a church planter who has gained massive respect in a rough neighborhood, serving the community and loving the people around him with hospitality and authenticity. The example of this church has made people ask, “Why are you doing this?”

As a church, we need to witness through our example—in how we suffer, in how we praise, in how we live (1 Pet 3:1-2,16). Do people find something attractive about our lives? Let them see a life that says, “In all of our pleasures, Jesus is better; in all of our sufferings, Christ is enough” (Steve Timmis, “Christ Is Enough”).

The Big Picture

About 10 years after Paul established the church at Philippi, he wrote this letter to his partners in the gospel. He thanks them for their exemplary generosity (4:14-19). Before he does that, he makes them aware of his present situation (1:12-26); he explains why he had to send Epaphroditus back so soon (2:25-30); he appeals to them to unite in the gospel (1:27–2:11; 4:2-3); he warns them of the dangers of false teaching (3:2); and in all things, he urges them to persevere with joy in Christ.

Paul writes the letter with a warm, friendly tone. He loves this church. He calls them his “joy and crown” (4:1). But they were facing some adversity. They were experiencing problems stemming from false teachers (see 3:2), and they were also experiencing some disunity from within (see 4:2). As a result, Paul calls them to persevere, to unite around the gospel (see 1:27–2:4), and thereby to retain their joy (he refers to joy around 15 times). These dynamics are important. Our joy and our unity are found in Christ (cf. 2:5-11). When you get the gospel, you get joy. When you focus on the gospel, you get unity. But we must persevere in believing the true gospel, and we must persevere in cultivating harmony in our relationships around the gospel. We aren’t told much about the disagreeing ladies in Philippians 4:2-3. They appear to be very faithful Christians. And the issue doesn’t seem to be doctrinal. Disunity often appears over nonessential matters. Even the best churches have to work at unity (see Eph 4:3).

Six Challenges

So, what is the message of Philippians? I’ve already touched on some messages, but let me just mention six points of application from the book as a whole.

First, recognize that gospel advancement will cost us, but Jesus is worth it. This letter exalts the person and work of Jesus. He is the only Savior and Lord, whom we adore and proclaim to the world. He is the source of joy and unity. He is worth living and dying for. Paul speaks of the glorious “day of Christ” coming (1:6,10; 2:16), of being imprisoned for Christ (1:13), of honoring Christ (1:20), of the humility and exaltation of Christ (2:5-11), and of the imputed righteousness of Christ (3:8-9). May this study make us love Jesus more and fill us with fresh courage to make Him known to the nations.

Second, fight for joy in Christ. The psalmist says, “Serve the Lord with gladness” (Ps 100:2). Paul gives us a picture of what joyful service to Jesus looks like, and he mentions it with some joy-related words about 20 times. This is “crazy joy” because it doesn’t derive from pleasurable circumstances. It comes from Christ and is experienced even (or especially) in suffering. But it doesn’t come naturally; we must pray for joy and fight for joy. We must fight against overvaluing things in this life and remember that Jesus is our greatest treasure and highest good. Beneath all of our sins is a lack of joy in Christ. We live out of the overflow of our hearts, and we must find our greatest pleasure in knowing Christ. I must admit some mornings are difficult. Do you agree? When I (Francis) was a child, my aunt [with broken English] used to ask me all the time, “Why you never happy?” I also remember once when my dad was cooking a fish—and we cooked the whole fish—I commented that the fish looked very sad. My dad said [with broken English], “That’s how you always rook.” He was right. I wasn’t a very happy kid. Maybe you can identify. Joy is not always greatly present in our lives, but I want you to see your need for Spirit-produced joy, and to see how a joyful attitude glorifies God.

Let me illustrate how joy honors God. Imagine me (Tony) telling my wife this Valentine’s Day that I want to take her to a nice restaurant and to watch Les Misérables, the musical. She might say, “That’s sweet. Why do you want to do this, Tony?” The wrong answer would be, “Because I have to. It’s Valentine’s Day. Everyone else does stuff like this. I guess I have to also.” Does that honor her? No. The right answer is, “Nothing gives me greater joy than serving you.” That honors her. The other attitude doesn’t.

We don’t have to serve Jesus; we get to serve Him. Your motives and attitude matter to Him. You can dishonor Jesus by not serving Him with joy. Such joy flows from our union with Christ, for it is a fruit of the Spirit. You need to know Jesus to find joy, and as a Christian, you need to commune with Christ for fresh joy. This doesn’t mean that you are silly or that you never grieve—not at all. It means that there’s a profound contentment and satisfaction in Jesus that’s authentic and compelling to others. It means that in your grief and hard times, you can truly say, “The joy of the Lord is my strength” (see Neh 8:10).

Third, maintain the unity of the Spirit. Paul addresses unity in several letters, including this one. It was important to him, and it must be important to us. Avoid disunity created by arguing over nonessentials and spreading rumors about others. Pursue unity by focusing on the gospel and forgiving and reconciling with others. The church in Philippi was a great church, yet they needed to seek unity. Even the best churches have to defend against gossip, forgive, and reconcile.

Fourth, become a “Macedonian giver.” Paul thanks the Philippians for their generous, loyal, God-honoring support. In 2 Corinthians 8–9 Paul remarks on the exemplary generosity of “the churches of Macedonia” (Philippi, Berea, and Thessalonica). He writes,

We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God granted to the churches of Macedonia: During a severe testing by affliction, their abundance of joy and their deep poverty overflowed into the wealth of their generosity. I testify that, on their own, according to their ability and beyond their ability, they begged us insistently for the privilege of sharing in the ministry to the saints, and not just as we had hoped. Instead, they gave themselves especially to the Lord, then to us by God’s will. So we urged Titus that just as he had begun, so he should also complete this grace to you. Now as you excel in everything—faith, speech, knowledge, and in all diligence, and in your love for us—excel also in this grace. I am not saying this as a command. Rather, by means of the diligence of others, I am testing the genuineness of your love. For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ: Though He was rich, for your sake He became poor, so that by His poverty you might become rich. (2 Cor 8:1-9)

These churches weren’t wealthy (though there were some exceptions), but they were sacrificial, generous, cheerful, and loyal. What moved them? They treasured Jesus above all (2 Cor 8:5,9). Here in Philippians, Paul says they gave as an expression of love and as an act of worship (Phil 4:19). They were loyal to Paul and the mission, and they were devoted to Jesus.

Fifth, let’s learn what gospel partnership looks like. We will take a closer look at this later, but for now be ready to learn what it means to be coworkers in the mission.

Sixth, as a church, let’s give the world a picture of the coming kingdom of God. Just as people looked at Philippi and said, “This looks like Rome,” one should look at the church and say, “This looks like the coming kingdom of God.” We should long to be able to say, “You want to know what the kingdom of God is like? Then look at the church.” The church in Philippi may not have looked spectacular, but Paul tells them they are an embassy of the kingdom, an outpost of the kingdom (see 1:27; 3:20).

In the coming kingdom many of the poor will reign with Christ. So the poor should be present and should often be leaders in the church. It shouldn’t be a strange thing for a godly hotel maid to mentor a new Christian lady who is a CEO. In the coming kingdom there will be no class or color distinctions. Likewise, there should be none in the church. In the coming kingdom we will eat together with people from east and west. Therefore, the church should reflect kingdom hospitality. In the coming kingdom righteousness and justice will dwell. So, the church should be a community of justice. In the coming kingdom we will sing praise to the King. And so now, let the church exalt the Messiah. This church in Philippi was showing Rome what a better kingdom looked like; let’s show our city and our world what a better kingdom looks like. We do this by submitting our lives to the kingship of Jesus, following His Word.

The Beautiful Greeting

Philippians 1:1-2

Finally, consider Paul’s opening words to the Philippian church in the first two verses. This is a beautiful greeting because it sounds the theme of grace. All of these things that we’ve been talking about are works of God’s grace—joy, unity, partnership, conversions, new churches, generosity, and such. By God’s grace we become Christians, servants of Jesus, and it’s by God’s grace that we live out the Christian life. The phrases “of Christ,” “in Christ,” and “from God” all highlight God’s work in uniting us to Jesus. Notice three evidences of grace in this little greeting.

First, grace is displayed in the life of the senders of the letter: Paul and Timothy (1:1a). Paul had been a Jew who hated Christians. But then he met Jesus. Did he deserve this? No. It was grace. He explains his glorious conversion in Philippians 3:1-11. He explains how he was a very religious person, but he couldn’t earn righteousness. Righteousness was given to him only by faith in Christ. It was a gift. Consequently, he was transformed. What about Timothy? His mother was Jewish, and his father was a Greek. He became a Christian by God’s grace also. He heard the gospel and believed. Elsewhere Paul says that Timothy’s faith was “sincere” (2 Tim 1:5). In chapter 2 Paul speaks joyfully of Timothy. He had been transformed by grace. These two men were now “slaves of Christ Jesus.” There’s humility here. They don’t go on and on about their title. They are slaves or servants of Jesus.

What about you? What’s your story? Are you a Christian? Do you think Christianity is about being religious? It’s not. It’s about Christ. It’s about trusting that Jesus Christ has lived the life we couldn’t live and then died the death we should have died. It’s about embracing Jesus as your Savior, Lord, and Treasure. You can do that now. Lydia heard and believed. Timothy heard and believed. Will you believe?

Second, grace is displayed in the receivers of the letter: the Philippians (1:1b). Paul calls them “saints.” How did they become saints? Was it by performing religious rituals? No! It wasn’t because of their behavior. They became saints when they changed positions. They were once in Adam, but through faith in the gospel message they became “in Christ” new creations. Are you in Christ? That’s different from being in a church building. You may be in a worship service but not in Christ. If you’re in Christ, then you have every spiritual blessing. If not, then you’re in Adam (1 Cor 15:22).

Further, some of the Philippian Christians even became “overseers and deacons.” What about that? Remember how the church got started? A businesswoman, a slave girl, a jailer, and some other converts. And now, some of them are Christian leaders. Isn’t that remarkable?

Sometimes when I (Tony) am on a plane or out on the town I eventually get asked, “So what do you do?” I like to play with inquirers and so I say, “Guess.” They guess everything imaginable. But when I tell them I’m a pastor, their jaws drop. Apparently, I don’t look like a pastor. I then proceed to tell them, “Oh, believe me, I’m far more surprised than you are!” I’m sure some of these Philippians were exceedingly surprised that they were called overseers and deacons. The mention of these church leaders in a greeting is unusual for Paul. Perhaps he makes a distinction among them either because of the need for them to assert their leadership in handling the disunity or because the disagreement was over leadership (or the lack of it?). What’s important to note is that Paul mentions these two offices: overseers—who shepherd the flock by knowing, feeding, leading through the Word and prayer; and deacons—who not only serve but also help others serve well.

Finally, grace is displayed in this Trinitarian blessing (1:2). Paul reminds us of the fountain of grace and peace! Where do grace and peace come from? They come from our triune God. Paul mentions the Father and the Son, the Lord Jesus, but we know that such grace and peace come through the Holy Spirit’s work in our hearts. Peter calls God “the God of all grace” (1 Pet 5:10), and rightly so. We have received grace from the Father, grace from the Son, and grace from the Spirit. Consequently, we have peace. We have rest. We have blessing. Out of this position, and out of this blessing, we are called to live a mission-oriented life of holiness. By grace, we are servants of Jesus and God’s saints. Bless His holy name!

Let’s finish with this phrase: “the Lord Jesus Christ” (Phil 1:2). In the first century one could be killed for saying Jesus, not Caesar, is Lord. Yet that’s what Christians did. How was it that these ordinary people turned the world upside down? Luke writes that they were “saying that there is another king—Jesus!” (Acts 17:7). Is Jesus your King? Paul goes on to say that you will either bow the knee to Jesus now or do so later, when it’s too late (Phil 2:5-11). Scripture implores you: bow to the King now.

Reflect and Discuss