The J.o.y. of Fellowship

Grace and Peace to you!

The Apostle Paul planted a church at Philippi.  Acts 16 gives an account of Paul's missionary journey to that area as a result of the call of the Holy Spirit to go minister in that area. As they gathered at the riverside on the Sabbath for prayer, they spoke to some women there and as a result of their sharing, the Lord opened the heart of a business woman named Lydia. Later as they journeyed, Paul cast out an evil spirit of a young girl, the after effects which caused Paul and Silas to be imprisoned. While in prison, Paul and Silas prayed and sang praises unto God in the hearing of the prisoners, an earthquake occurred which initiated events through which the jailer asked the all important question: "What must I do to be saved?" He was told, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved, and your house."

After leaving the congregation, he had returned at least once (Acts 20:1-6) and then was imprisoned in Rome, at least 700 miles from Philippi. While in prison a member of the Philippian congregation, a man name Epaphroditus came to visit Paul to bring him encouragement. Paul, having a heart for the people in the Philippian congregation, sent a letter back with his beloved friend which was to be read to the congregation.  Last week we gave an overview of the letter, and today we will consider the first 11 verses of his letter to his beloved people whom he cared for deeply.

But first a little reintroduction to the Apostle Paul, who grew up in the Jewish religion, was converted to Christianity and became an amazing vessel for the Lord. (We will hear of his testimony in chapter 3) He grew in his knowledge of the love and the grace of God, which can be seen by recounting three statements that he made concerning how he recognized more and more of his need of God’s grace. Paul understood grace!!! Do we understand grace?

1 Corinthians 15:9 For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.  Written 55 A.D.

Ephesians 3:8 Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; Written 60 A.D.

1 Timothy 1:15 This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.  Written 62 A.D.

Here is the beginning of his letter to his beloved people, a letter from which is oozing the grace and love of God in Christ Jesus. Oh, that our preaching and sharing would be from the same Spirit………

ESV Philippians 1:1 Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and deacons:

2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

 3 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you,

  4. always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy,

 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.

6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

The two Apostles lived in humility before God as they recognized that their calling to minister to the congregation was of privilege. They loved and served all the saints of the congregation, without any favoritism being showed, thanking God for them and praying for them with joy.  He recognized and applauded their partnership/unity in the Gospel which they had been connected together in right up to the current time.  He than gave additional encouragement by pointing out the the same Lord who had begun the work of grace in them would continue it until the day when faith becomes sight!! This was a stable congregation, for the power to keep and to preserve a congregation is God’s power.

7 It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel.

 8 For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus.

He then with all sincerity and intimacy pours out his heart, which is the heart of Christ for them, saying that his affection for them is not some earthly love, but it is the love of Christ. It is the seat of our tenderest affections which have been stimulated and made alive by the Holy Spirit, so that we love one another as Christ has loved us.

He  speaks somewhat openly of the intimacy that they share, not because of any outward characteristics, but because they are joined together through the grace of God which they have all received. Just because they are separated in a physical sense does not mean that they are not still in communion with one another, or that they have stopped working together, for the bonds of the grace of God are not earthly bonds, but heavenly and spiritual bonds. In addition, Since the love which abides in the heart of all believers as the result of receiving the gospel cares about their neighbor, Paul used his imprisonment as an opportunity to defend and confirm the gospel by defending and in so doing sharing it with his captors.

He then closes this first part of his letter with a prayer for them, that their love would continue to grow, like a flower going from a bud to a blossom to the fruit.

The Fruit of the Knowledge of God: Love

 9 And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment,

 10 so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ,

 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

He prays for them, asking for an increase more and more of their knowledge and discernment in love, for he knows that the future unity of their congregation hangs on whether they are living in and growing in the giving love of Christ.....There is no way that this point can be overstated........

Briefly stating a conclusion to the three verses, it is clear that the growth of our knowledge and discernment of the love of God will determine and govern our ability to rightly approve things that are excellent, to be sincere and blameless for the day of Christ, and to be filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, to the praise and glory of God.

"Grace is love that seeks you out when you have nothing to give in return. Grace is love coming at you that has nothing to do with you. Grace is being loved when you are unlovable…. The cliché definition of grace is “unconditional love.” It is a true cliché, for it is a good description of the thing. Let’s go a little further, though. Grace is a love that has nothing to do with you, the beloved. It has everything and only to do with the lover. Grace is irrational in the sense that it has nothing to do with weights and measures. It has nothing to do with my intrinsic qualities or so-called “gifts” (whatever they may be). It reflects a decision on the part of the giver, the one who loves, in relation to the receiver, the one who is loved, that negates any qualifications the receiver may personally hold…. Grace is one-way love.

Grace doesn’t make demands. It just gives. And from our vantage point, it always gives to the wrong person. We see this over and over again in the Gospels: Jesus is always giving to the wrong people—prostitutes, tax collectors, half-breeds. The most extravagant sinners of Jesus’s day receive his most compassionate welcome. Grace is a divine vulgarity that stands caution on its head. It refuses to play it safe and lay it up. Grace is recklessly generous, uncomfortably promiscuous. It doesn’t use sticks, carrots, or time cards. It doesn’t keep score. As Robert Capon puts it, “Grace works without requiring anything on our part. It’s not expensive. It’s not even cheap. It’s free.” It refuses to be controlled by our innate sense of fairness, reciprocity, and evenhandedness. It defies logic. It has nothing to do with earning, merit, or deservedness. It is opposed to what is owed. It doesn’t expect a return on investments. Grace is unconditional acceptance given to an undeserving person by an unobligated giver.

It is one-way love.   (Written by Paul Zahl)

This past week we had the joy of having VBS with the theme of Running the Race, and we hosted the Spoke Folk on Wednesday and Thursday. Thanks to all who joined together in this fellowship by offering their gifts which collectively worked to bless all, including those who served. It is truly a joy to be partaker of the continuing work of encouraging, affirming and inspiring.

Many were encouraged by teachings, the crafts, the games and the pizza and the video which was shown on Friday night. Some were inspired by the presentation done by Spoke Folk to the end that they might be one of the Spoke Folk of the future.  

May the grace that pours itself out upon us and into us each and every day, so fill us with love and longing for the saving of all souls of all ages that we have the response of Isaiah. For when Isaiah experienced the grace of God towards him, and when the question came forth as to Whom will be the messenger, He replied, “Here I am, send me.”

May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of the Father and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be upon us, now and forever, Amen.

God’s abundant grace upon you today,

Pastor Orval

Joy: Jesus, others, you

Psalm 16:8 I have set the LORD always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.

 9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope.

 10 For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.

 11 Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.

The words that David wrote were not only his own experience, but more importantly were prophetically speaking of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. (Acts 2:25-28) Jesus is our joy, and the only true joy giver. May the joy in the God of our salvation even as  Habbakuk did in the midst of trying circumstances.

Habbakuk 3:17 Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls:

 18 Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation.

 19 The LORD God is my strength, and he will make my feet like hinds' feet, and he will make me to walk upon mine high places. To the chief singer on my stringed instruments.

Today we will do an introduction to this letter as we consider what was written by the Apostle Paul to the church of Philippi, a church that he had been involved in from its beginning. In today's world, we call it a church plant.  Acts 16 gives an account of Paul's missionary journey to that area as a result of the call of the Holy Spirit to go minister in that area. As they gathered at the riverside on the Sabbath for prayer, they spoke to some women there and as a result of their sharing, the Lord opened the heart of a business woman named Lydia.

Later as they journeyed, Paul cast out an evil spirit of a young girl, the after effects which caused Paul and Silas to be imprisoned. While in prison, Paul and Silas  as prayed and sang praises unto God in the hearing of the prisoners, an earthquake occurred which initiated events through which the jailer asked the all important question: "What must I do to be saved?" He was told, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved, and your house."

After leaving the congregation, he had returned at least once (Acts 20:1-6) and then was imprisoned in Rome, at least 700 miles from Philippi. The congregation and Paul had a very close relationship. This is understandable by anyone who has been involved with anything from its beginning and so when a congregational member Epaphroditus visited Paul in prison to bring him encouragement and humanitarian needs, in the course of their fellowship hearing of the state of the congregation, Paul sent a letter back with his beloved friend which was to be read to the congregation. The letter to the Philippians.

Some of the most common known memory verses are in this letter. Perhaps you are familiar with some of them:

KJV Philippians 1:6 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:

KJV Philippians 1:21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

KJV Philippians 3:7 But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ.

KJV Philippians 3:10 That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;

KJV Philippians 3:14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

KJV Philippians 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.

KJV Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

May this letter become more to us than a book from which we have isolated memory verses.

May this letter become more familiar to us as we hear the voice of the Spirit speak through the heart and life of our dear brother in Christ Apostle Paul.

May the message of this letter be burned into our minds, hearts and souls as we hear of and experience the love of Jesus flowing through the heart and life of our beloved brother Paul.

May we be joined closer in the love of God in Christ Jesus, a love that casts out fear, a love that unites us in joy and a love the empowers us to serve together for the sake of our neighbor!

Often times our changed circumstances cause our joy in the Lord to diminish as we struggle with acceptance of a changed situation. Nevertheless, with the help of the Lord and others, we attempt to work through to a place of accepting the current circumstances as the way things are for the time being.

1. What do we do when our joy is diminished by our present difficult circumstances?

2. Do we wait until our circumstances change to be joyful again?

3. Is it possible to live in joy in the midst of life's often changing circumstances?

4. What does it mean to have joy, to live in joy, to rejoice?

The answers to these questions we will seek in Apostle Paul's letter to the Philippians. This letter has been called the letter of joy as in it the Apostle Paul, being held in prison while he wrote the letter, encouraged his readers in this manner:  "Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice."  This verse is found in the last chapter of his letter, in chapter four, verse four.

Joy is a reality that is ours through the knowledge that God has reconciled us to Himself through the cross, by His gracious gift we trust in that reality, and even if circumstances change in our lives, our relationship with Him now and forever cannot be shaken.

Joy is the settled assurance that God is in control of all the details of my life, the quiet confidence that ultimately everything is going to be alright, and the determined choice to praise God in every situation.

Christian joy is shared, it is confident and it is increasing.

Jesus spoke of the connection between Himself, His Word, His Love, and His Joy.

 John 15:7 If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.

 8 Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.

 9 As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.

 10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.

 11 These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.

Apostle John speaks of the joy that comes from our union with the Father and His Son and of his desire that our joy would be full.

KJV 1 John 1:1-4  That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life;

 2 (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;)

 3 That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.

 4 And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.

May these studies be helpful to all of us who share in life's often difficult circumstances.

May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you and in you always! Amen!

The Inward And The Outward Flow of Grace pt 2

On the signboard outside of our church near the highway one reads a message on each side of the sign:

God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense  and Faith Binds Us To God’s Promises.

Our recent ALCA convention which was held in the Tri Cities in Washington State had for a theme: Amazing Grace.  Many of the messages that were spoken were centered around this great truth,  a truth that is often difficult for us remember and to live under it:  God’s unmerited favor towards us.

Why is it so difficult to accept God’s grace towards us when He continually tells us in His Word that He loves us, that He is the One who has the authority to punish evil, that His goodness is greater than all our sin and that He will always take care of us? This is a common difficulty that most Christians struggle with at times, not only in today’s world, but even in the time of Joseph it was a struggle for Joseph’s brothers to believe that forgiveness was just that: God saying: I forgive you out of love and grace.

Many here today remember a specific day in which we experienced the grace of God and began to live in the freeing power of forgiveness which meant that we were now free from the penalty and the power of sin. Or perhaps it has been a gradual and growing awareness in our experience of the grace of God which is about God joyfully accepting us on the basis of Jesus’s sacrificial death on the cross.

For the first time, we felt the cleanness of our conscience, in that there was now fellowship with our God through Christ and fellowship one with another. But then we began to walk the life of a Christian, and whether it was in a short time or even many years later, we began to struggle with the question of assurance.

Is grace really true? Could God really have forgotten all the sin I have done? Is it true that God will never again bring up my sin before me? Is it really and truly separated as far as the east is from the west?

We are in chapter 50 of Genesis and Joseph’s brothers, who out of hatred and envy had sold Joseph to the slave traders, had heard  17 years earlier from Joseph himself some shocking, disturbing, but yet joyful words as he revealed himself to them.

KJV Genesis 45:1 Then Joseph could not refrain himself before all them that stood by him; and he cried, Cause every man to go out from me. And there stood no man with him, while Joseph made himself known unto his brethren.

 2 And he wept aloud: and the Egyptians and the house of Pharaoh heard.

 3 And Joseph said unto his brethren, I am Joseph; doth my father yet live? And his brethren could not answer him; for they were troubled at his presence.

 4 And Joseph said unto his brethren, Come near to me, I pray you. And they came near. And he said, I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt.

 5 Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life.

 6 For these two years hath the famine been in the land: and yet there are five years, in the which there shall neither be earing nor harvest.

 7 And God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance.

 8 So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God: and he hath made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt.

 9 Haste ye, and go up to my father, and say unto him, Thus saith thy son Joseph, God hath made me lord of all Egypt: come down unto me, tarry not:

 10 And thou shalt dwell in the land of Goshen, and thou shalt be near unto me, thou, and thy children, and thy children's children, and thy flocks, and thy herds, and all that thou hast:

 11 And there will I nourish thee; for yet there are five years of famine; lest thou, and thy household, and all that thou hast, come to poverty.

Fastforwarding to 17 years later, after Jacob had died, we see the brothers coming to Joseph(50:15).  What are they thinking as they approach their brother who had spoke grace into them so many years earlier? Let us read Genesis 50:15-21.  

Genesis 50:15 And when Joseph's brethren saw that their father was dead, they said, Joseph will peradventure hate us, and will certainly requite us all the evil which we did unto him.

 16 And they sent a messenger unto Joseph, saying, Thy father did command before he died, saying,

 17 So shall ye say unto Joseph, Forgive, I pray thee now, the trespass of thy brethren, and their sin; for they did unto thee evil: and now, we pray thee, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of thy father. And Joseph wept when they spake unto him.

 18 And his brethren also went and fell down before his face; and they said, Behold, we be thy servants.

 19 And Joseph said unto them, Fear not: for am I in the place of God?

 20 But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.

 21 Now therefore fear ye not: I will nourish you, and your little ones. And he comforted them, and spake kindly unto them.

Joseph wept: Why?  Because they doubted Joseph words of grace and forgiveness extended to them out of God’s love flowing through him for them.  50:17

Because they feared that he would now punish them. 50:18-19

Because they thought that that evil they had done to him was greater than the kindness of his grace and forgiveness. 50:20

Because they feared for their future as they were dependent upon him. 50:21

God loves you!!!

16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Only God has the authority to punish evil.

Romans 12:19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.

His kindness is greater than evil, evil does not have the last word,

KJV Isaiah 53:5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

He will take care of you in every aspect of your life.

John 16:33 These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

1 John 5:4 For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.

 5 Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?

In closing, I want to read a facebook entry by Marla Peterson, the daughter of Brian and Melissa Peterson,  and she has given me permission to use it today.

I think about suffering sometimes. And that may sound odd, but it’s a aspect of reality that I believe forms so much of our worldview, our culture, and our personhood.

What I’ve realized is that God acknowledges suffering in a way that no one else can. God knows supremely the wrongness of this world because God is perfectly good— therefore, recognizes challenges to goodness more truly than we can.

The Bible, particularly the Old Testament, continually describes the horrifying state of a nation, a people, or a person. God does not hide the fallen state of humanity; He points it out and rebukes it time and time again. But God doesn’t do this out of pride or conceit. God is providing a true description of reality from an unbiased perspective that we wouldn’t otherwise have.

I feel like these descriptions should be read like a sentence fragment right before the comma (in nerdy grammatical settings, we call this a compound sentence with a coordinating conjunction) followed by:

“, but God knew His perfect and sinless son would be crucified to die to redeem these broken people… to redeem this broken nation that fell away.”

God draws attention to suffering and brokenness because it’s part of our beautiful redemption story. He brings up suffering because he knows that the joy of the gospel overshadows it— even if we don’t quite feel that reality yet.

We can view the realities of the Old Testament and the New Testament as two separate sentences, I suppose. But I actually prefer them together as one compound sentence with a coordinating conjunction. Who knew grammar could be so helpful in conveying biblical themes.

Suffering feels a little too heavy for me these days, but God knows that. And in response, I think God says, “I know. I know it feels that way, and that is okay.” And I do believe that Jesus still weeps with us, even knowing that a victorious ending awaits.

But I think God also asks us to trust in the promise written in Romans 8: The sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed in us (v. 18).

I don’t think this verse requires that we deny, minimize, or ignore suffering. If anything, it allows me to acknowledge the magnitude of my suffering, my community’s suffering, and this world’s suffering while trusting that what God declares is true— the gospel and the glory of God outweighs the seemingly stifling heaviness of suffering in this present age.

He loves you and His grace is yours today and always!