Paying careful attention so as to remain firmly committed to following Jesus...

 

This week, we have been looking at a section of letter that the Apostle Paul wrote to early followers of Jesus who were a part of a church in Philippi, Greece. And in this section of this letter, we have discovered that our joy that comes from Jesus should result in us paying careful attention to how we live as followers of Jesus. As followers of Jesus, we are to pay careful attention to how we live so as to take notice of the practices and patterns that characterize the life of a spiritually mature follower of Jesus so that we can imitate those practices and patterns in a way that results in us growing into a spiritual maturity that reveals and reflects Jesus to others.

 

And in Philippians 3:17-4:3 we see the Apostle Paul reveal three different reasons why our joy that comes from Jesus should result in us paying careful attention to how we live as followers of Jesus. So far, we have discovered that we should pay careful attention to how we live as followers of Jesus because there are many who are hostile to Jesus and the message of the gospel.  In addition, we have discovered that we should pay careful attention to how we live as followers of Jesus because we are foreigners here for a short time.

 

As followers of Jesus we are to live out the kingdom practices of the kingdom of God, because that is where our ultimate destination will be. As followers of Jesus, we are foreigners awaiting the return of our Rescuer and Leader. And as followers of Jesus we are foreigners waiting to receive our heavenly bodies. Upon Jesus return to usher in the kingdom of Heaven in its fullest sense, Jesus will transform our lowly, material body that has been corrupted by the effects of living in a fallen and broken world into a splendid heavenly body.

 

In addition, when Paul uses the phrase “by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself”, he is revealing for us the reality that Jesus will transform our bodies because He has the power to do so. Jesus has the power to subject all things to Himself. In other words, Jesus has the power and authority to do all things because He is large and in charge over everything. Today, we will see Paul conclude this section of his letter by revealing for us a third reason why our joy that comes from Jesus should result in us paying careful attention to how we live as followers of Jesus in Philippians 4:1:

 

 Therefore, my beloved brethren whom I long to see, my joy and crown, in this way stand firm in the Lord, my beloved. I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to live in harmony in the Lord.  Indeed, true companion, I ask you also to help these women who have shared my struggle in the cause of the gospel, together with Clement also and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.

 

Paul begins verse 1, by expressing his love for the members of the church at Philippi and reinforcing the commands that he had given at the beginning of this section of this letter. You see, Paul had a strong desire to see the members of the church, as the members of the church were a source of great joy and pride to Paul. And because of the joy and pride that Paul found in the members of the church at Philippi as a result of God’s transformational activity in their lives, Paul wanted the members of the church to stand firm in the Lord. So Paul commanded the members of the church, and followers of Jesus throughout history, to remain firmly committed in their conviction to follow Jesus and to imitate those practices and patterns of spiritually mature followers of Jesus in a way that results in them growing into a spiritual maturity that reveals and reflects Jesus to others.

 

And it is here that we see Paul reveal for us the timeless reason we should pay careful attention to how we live as followers of Jesus so as to remain firmly committed to following Jesus. As followers of Jesus, we are to imitate the example of others who remain firmly committed to following Jesus in a way that brings joy and pride to them as a result of their role in our spiritual growth. As followers of Jesus, there is a joy and pride in the Lord that comes when we are used by Jesus to help others become more like Jesus.

 

Then in verse 2, Paul transitions to address a relational conflict that was occurring among two members of the church at Philippi. While Paul does not go into detail as to what the source of the conflict was, Paul urged these two members of the church to live in harmony in the Lord. In other words, these two members of the church were to work out their conflict in such a way that resulted in there being an agreement in their thinking about the issue that had driven the conflict. Paul’s point here is that, as followers of Jesus, we are to remain firmly committed to following Jesus by striving to live in agreement with one another that comes as a result of the common relationship that we have with Jesus. While there will be disagreements that occur amongst followers of Jesus, as followers of Jesus, we are to remain firmly committed to resolving those disagreements according to the message and teachings of Jesus in a way that strives towards a common mindset that we should have as a result of our relationship with Jesus.

 

Paul then concludes this section of his letter by asking the members of the church to come alongside these two who were in conflict to help resolve the conflict, because, at the end of the day, they were fellow members of the community of faith that were engaged in the common kingdom mission together. Paul here is revealing for us the reality that we are to remain firmly committed to following Jesus by supporting one another as we struggle to spread the gospel together. What unites us as followers of Jesus and what brings joy to us as followers of Jesus, is what occurs when we partner together to engage in the kingdom mission that we have been given by Jesus in community with one another.

 

Because, as we have discovered this week, our joy that comes from Jesus should result in us paying careful attention to how we live as followers of Jesus. As followers of Jesus, we should pay careful attention to how we live as followers of Jesus because there are many who are hostile to Jesus and the message of the gospel. As followers of Jesus, we should pay careful attention to how we live as followers of Jesus because we are foreigners here for a short time. And as followers of Jesus, we should pay careful attention to how we live as followers of Jesus so as to remain firmly committed to following Jesus.

 

We should pay careful attention to how we live as followers of Jesus because joy flows from a mind set, an attitude of delight in life that takes the long view and that is based on the relationship that we have with Jesus and not on our current circumstances. We should pay careful attention to how we live as followers of Jesus because joy is a mind-set, an attitude of delight in life that produces a quality of life that flows from our relationship with Jesus in a way that results in us living our day to day lives in a way that reveals and reflects Jesus to the world….