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As we come to study together and look in the word, I want to share a Bible truth to underscore our indispensable principle, and it’s Ecclesiastes 3:14, and I think as we finish, you’ll understand the connection. “I know that everything God does will remain forever. There’s nothing to add to it, and there’s nothing to take from it. God has so worked that man should fear Him.” Let’s commit our time to the Lord in prayer.
Our Father, we thank You that You’ve given us this truth that everything You do will be forever; everything that you began will be completed. We ask You now by Your indwelling Holy Spirit turn our eyes afresh to the Lord Jesus Christ. We want to behold Him. You know our hungers and our needs and our desires and our capacities. Meet us where we are and bring us to the place that You would have us. Thank You that we can trust You for this because we claim it in Jesus’ name. Amen.
We continue to behold our Lord Jesus in the wonderful book of Philippians. In our introduction to this precious epistle, we’ve actually had four introduction lessons. The first two introduction lessons we called the theological introduction, and it was based on Philippians 2:5-11. The first part of that through verse 8 describes our Lord Jesus and His stooping love; He was God, He became man and He lived as a man and then went to the cross. In the second part, He’s exalted, highly exalted above every name that is named.
So, the first part, why did Jesus come as He came? Philippians answers the question this way, “He came as He came to show us how God created man to live, and he was the illustration.” The first Adam failed, so Jesus became the last Adam, the second man; God started over. God created us in His image to put Christ on display. That was always His purpose, and that’s His purpose now. The first theological background showed Christ living as God intended man to live. In those verses 5-8 of chapter 2 we see these four principles; how is man supposed to live, how did Jesus do it? Number one, He laid aside who He was by nature. Number two, He determined never to look back and grasp at what He willingly laid aside. Number three, instead He depended 100% on the One who lived in His heart, His Father. Because of that, He was able to put His Father on display. He said, “If you see Me, you have seen the Father.” Just so, as we follow the Lord, He said that we are to have the same mind. So, we lay aside who we are by nature, and we determine to never reach back and trust the flesh. We put no confidence in the flesh. Instead, we rely on the One who indwells us, the Lord Jesus in the Person of the Holy Spirit. If we live that way, then He can manifest Himself through us. That’s why we began with that introduction.
The second part has to do with His exaltation. Philippians 2:9-11, “For this reason, also, God highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus, every knee would bow, of those who are in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God, the Father. And we added to that the Ephesian description of His exaltation, that He’s above every power and every authority, and Lord of all in His humanity. He was Lord before, but now in his glorified humanity, He’s given this wonderful name. By the way, the reason he gave us the exaltation of Christ is because that’s the One that lives in your heart, and that’s the One that lives in my heart. It’s easy to say, “Jesus lives in my heart,” but who is this Jesus? He’s the highly exalted One. Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess and a name above every name. You aren’t going to enter into the message of Philippians if you haven’t a firm gaze on the One that lives in your heart.
Our third introduction was actually the first part of the actual historical background, and it’s recorded in Acts 16. Paul says in Philippians 1:5, “In view of your participation in the gospel from the first day until now…” He mentions the first day because that first day was quite memorable. Acts 16 talks about it, how they got to go to Europe and to Macedonia, the vision and how he met Lydia and the demon possessed girl, and the jailor. That all happened and he puts it under the first day. The point is, if you read Acts 16, that is ten years before the letter was written, and he was already living the exchanged life. He lived it and put it on display, and Acts 16 illustrates every point that Philippians illustrates, and he put it on display long before he wrote it. That was the first part of the historical background.
Last week we looked at the historical occasion of the book. Philippians is actually a thank-you note. Acts 28:30-31 describes Paul’s position as he was now in prison in Rome. “He stayed two full years in his own rented quarters, and was welcoming all who came to him, preaching the kingdom of God and teaching concerning the Lord Jesus with all openness unhindered.” He had considerable liberty while he was in prison. He is still in prison, but they had rooms above the barracks of the Praetorian Guard that could be rented. He rented those rooms. So, the question comes, since he had already been in prison for two years, and he’s now going to be there almost another two years, how does he pay the rent? If he has to rent rooms, he’s got to have money. We find the answer in Philippians 4:15, “You yourselves, also know, Philippians, that at the first preaching of the gospel, after I left Macedonia, no church shared with me in this matter of giving and receiving but you alone.” The Philippians, for ten years had been financially supporting the Apostle Paul, and he’s now writing a thank-you note. Later, we’ll get into the reason he chose this time, because of his courier, Epaphroditus, almost died. We looked a little at that last time.
It’s interesting when you read Philippians, there’s not one single quote from the Old Testament. Many books quote the Old Testament. Though I say there is not a quote, there are many illusions to the Old Testament. For example, this idea of every knee bowing and every tongue confessing is in Isaiah 45 as a prophecy. He refers in Philippians 2:17, to His light being a drink offering, and that’s a reference to the Old Testament. In Philippians 3:5 he describes circumcision, and that’s a reference to the Old Testament. Especially in Philippians 4:18 he’s describing the financial assistance as a sweet smelling offering to the Lord, and that’s also a reference to the Old Testament. That’s the review.
It’s time to open the first chapter of the book of Philippians. Although we’ve suggested it several times, what I’d like to accomplish is that I want to state clearly the theme of the book of Philippians. And then I want to suggest an outline. When you hear an outline, it’s not an inspired outline; it’s just an outline I’ve chosen to make it easy to present the truth. If you don’t agree with my outline, you can find your own outline. I want to give you the theme, and then I want to suggest an outline.
By mentioning the theme, I think it’s easier to grasp the theme if I reiterate the point I made earlier; what is not the theme. If we learn what is not the theme, it’s easier to see the real thing. There are so many glorious realities in the book of Philippians, that many commentators have isolated this reality or that reality, and called it the theme. For example, since the note of joy goes all through this book, many commentators say that the theme of Philippians is joy. Every chapter mentioned joy or rejoice. It’s mentioned more than twenty times in this book, but joy is not the theme of Philippians. If you are looking at joy as the theme, you’ll be distracted from the actual theme of the book. It’s a recurring emphasis, no question about that, but it’s not the theme.
I have several commentators, and actually many commentaries on the book of Philippians. One of them is called “The Joy Way”, and another is called “Joy in a Roman Jail”, and there are others. These are the names of books on Philippians—“Joy in the Midst of Chaos”, “Joy Beyond Happiness”, “Joy in the Journey”, “Joy Overflowing”, “Joy Under Pressure”, and I’m coming out and saying that’s not the theme, and it isn’t the theme. Some say that unity is the theme. Philippians 2:2, “Make my joy complete, being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose.” Unity goes through the book. Philippians 4:2, “I urge Euodia and Syntyche to live in harmony in the Lord.” I told you last time one commentator calls them “Odious and Soon Touchy”, and you can see why.
I’m not going to quote these passages, but these expressions are in Philippians; “fellow partakers”, “fellow athletes”, “fellow spirits”, “fellow rejoicers”, “fellow workers”, “fellow soldiers”, “fellow helpers”, “fellow yokebearers”, and unity is a great emphasis but it’s not the theme. Philippians 1:27, “Conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel, whether I come to see you or remain absent, I will hear that you are standing firm in one spirit with one mind, striving together for the faith of the gospel. I can see why people would say that unity is the theme.
Some say that it’s suffering. When you come to a verse like Philippians 1:29, “For you it’s been granted for Christ’s sake, not only to believe in Him but to suffer for His sake.” The gift of suffering is put on the same level as the gift of getting saved; it’s a gift that you came to the Lord; it’s a gift to suffer. So, some say that suffering is the theme. And then they unite it; it’s joy and suffering, and they try to bring those two things together. Paul is going to say some wonderful things about suffering, and when we come to them we’ll look at them. But it’s not the theme; that’s not the theme of the book.
Neither is humility the theme, the stooping love of Christ. That’s humility. Philippians 2:3, “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, with humility of mind, regard one another more important than yourselves. Do not merely look out for your own personal interest, but also for the interest of others.
It’s strange to have all these topics in a thank-you note. If you wrote a thank-you note would you include all of this? Others think it’s missions, evangelism, and soul winning. Philippians 1:12&13 He said, “My imprisonment has turned out for the furtherance of the gospel. Many in the Praetorian Guard have come to Christ. Many in Caesar’s household, the royal household and family have come to Christ.”
Joy is there, unity is there, missions is certainly there, humility is there, but that’s not the theme. Others take Philippians 4:7, “The peace of God which surpasses all comprehension will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” Peace is mentioned but it’s not the theme. In fact, this is a thank-you note, and thanksgiving is not the theme. Some think based on Philippians 3:13&14 that the theme is perseverance, “I do not regard myself having laid hold of it yet, but one thing I do, forgetting what lies behind, reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”
Even heaven is not the theme. You know, “To die is gain.” You might say that’s heaven. Look at Philippians 3:20, “Our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity of the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power He as, even to subject all things to Himself.” That is not the theme. Philippians 4, “I’ve learned the secret. I know how to be content.” Contentment is not the theme.
These are wonderful realities but they are not the theme. Paul never said, “For me to live is joy; for me to live is humility; for me to live is missions; for me to live is peace; for me to live is sacrifice. He never said that, and he didn’t say for me to live is Christian service or even Bible study or prayer. There is a big emphasis on prayer in Philippians, but he doesn’t say that. What he does say is in Philippians 1:21, “For to me to live is Christ.” The theme of the book is Christ. Paul was thirty years in Christ when he wrote the book of Philippians. Thirty years down the road is pretty far along for someone like Paul. Listen to the yearning of his heart, Philippians 3:10, “That I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His suffering, being conformed to His death.” After thirty years his one prayer was to know the Lord, “That I might know Him.” That was his life.
I’m going to use an expression, and because if you understand this expression, you’ll understand the theme. The word is “environment”. For me to live is Christ, another way to say that Christ has become my environment. “To live is Christ, and that’s my new environment.” Philippians 1:20, “According to my earnest expectation and hope, that I will not be put to shame in anything, but that with all boldness Christ will even now, as always, be exalted in my body, whether by life or death.” The theme is “Christ is my life, my environment, in time and when I die, I gain more of Christ, and in eternity.” Paul in this book just keeps talking about to gain Christ, to be found in Christ and to live is Christ, and to press toward the high calling in Christ Jesus.
I’m going to enlarge now on the theme. The theme is Christ, Christ as our environment, but I want to get a little more pointed in terms of the way the Holy Spirit gives us this book. It’s Christ, Christ in me and Christ through me. It’s His life and He’s living in me instead of me. His death and resurrection put an end to Ed Miller, and I hope it’s put an end to you and to your life. We emphasize the One who lives in us, and is highly exalted, a name above every name, over every power and He’s Lord. How can you be anxious if you really believed He lived in your heart?
Paul represents all Christians. The very first verse, “To all the saints who are in Christ Jesus.” That’s how it begins. Here’s how it ends, “All the saints greet you, especially those in Caesar’s household—all the saints. Chapter 4, he said, “All whose names are written in the Book of Life.” When Paul testified, “For me to live is Christ,” he was proclaiming Christ as his environment, but it was also telling us that Christ should be our life and our environment. Do you realize this? The same Christ that lived in Paul lives in you? And the same Christ that lives in you lives in me? Some people walk around like they have a monopoly on the Lord. Nobody has a monopoly on the Lord. We’re all equal and we all have everything. Maybe we don’t have eyes to see it, yet, but we all have the same thing. We have the Lord Jesus Christ.
I want you to notice that little expression, “In Christ.” Philippians 1:1, he greets all the saints in Christ in Philippi. He gets them looking in the right direction in the first verse, “Their environment is there in Philippi,” but not primarily so, not anymore. They are in Christ in Philippi, and that’s an entirely different thing. When Paul wrote this, he was in a Roman prison, but he doesn’t call himself a bondslave of Nero; he calls himself a bondslave of Christ. He’s in Christ in prison in Rome. First of all, it’s Christ. What the world calls environment, Paul now calls “The Lord Jesus”. It didn’t matter if it was in Rome or in Maryland or in Rhode Island or Delaware or in prison. It didn’t matter. We’re going to miss the theme of Philippians, if we miss that truth that we are in Christ Jesus, and He is in us. A lot of words can follow “in”, but none as precious as Christ.
Some say, “I’m in trouble.” Not primarily so, not if you are a Christian. You are in Christ in trouble. That makes a difference. Some say, “I’m in debt.” Not primarily so. You are in Christ in debt, and that’s going to make a difference, if you live in your environment, if I live in my environment. “I’m in pain,” “I’m in danger,” “I’m in confusion.” Not first of all; you are in Christ in pain in confusion in danger. We love to use the word “in”, “I’m in the family,” “I’m in the church,” “I’m in sports,” “I’m in the military,” but God is going to teach us in Philippians not to begin there. We begin, “I’m in Christ in my family,” “I’m in Christ in my church,” “I’m in Christ in my school,” “I’m in Christ in my sport,” and so on. Some grieve because they say, “Well, you know, I’m in the nursing home,” “I’m in the hospital.” Not primarily so. You are in Christ in the nursing home. You are in Christ in the hospital. You are in Christ in that place of employment that you happen to be. We need to see this. It’s not just words; it’s reality. The words “in Christ”, “in Christ Jesus”, “in the Lord”, “in union with Him”, those are inspired words.
Philippians “in Christ” is mentioned twenty times, and that’s just in Philippians. He also uses that expression in his other letters. If you count the “in Christ” in his other letters, it’s eighty-six times. If you include expressions like “in the Lord” and “in Him” and “in union”, it’s one hundred and sixty-four times. If the Lord says something once, you better listen. If He says it twice, perk up. But if He’s going to say it one hundred and sixty-four times, then you better give Him a hearing ear.
I hope that helps us remember that we are first privileged to be in Him before we’re in any situation. You are not in a fix; you are in Jesus. Your are not in a dilemma; you are in Christ. You are not in a crisis. Look at what it looks like in your own environment, but in your new environment you are in Christ Jesus, not in some jam, some pain, some agony, some trouble.
Let me try to illustrate it. I think we all know what a tadpole is. My stepdad had a pond in his backyard, and we used to catch tadpoles, and some of them were enormous. A tadpole is actually a frog. It begins as a tadpole. If it’s a bullfrog, it can be a tadpole up to three years as a tadpole. As a tadpole, it has a certain way to adjust to the environment. It has gills and breathes underwater. It has an appetite and eats algae and decaying plants. But there comes a metamorphosis, and suddenly the tadpole grows legs and jumps on the land, and all of a sudden he’s developed lungs. If you put him underwater, he’ll drown. He had been underwater in that environment for three years, but now he can’t live in that environment anymore. He’s become terrestrial; he has to live in the environment on the earth. Now he has a new appetite; he doesn’t eat plants anymore. Now he eats insects and all that kind of thing.
When we lived in Rhode Island my second son, Daniel (this is another illustration), began a new hobby. Since we lived pretty close to the ocean, he said one day, “Dad, I think one day I’m going to learn how to be a diver.” So, he went and took lessons. The first day he appeared in all his gear it looked a little weird to us because he had a mask on and he had a wet suit on and he had a big air tank on his back and a hose going through his mouth, and he stood there in fins, and I felt like saying, “What are you doing in this environment?” He said, “But I’m going to another environment, and in order to survive I’m going to have to bring my environment into the other environment or I won’t be able to survive.” We looked at him and to these eyes he looked a little peculiar. When you became a Christian, you were transformed, and now in order to live in your old environment, you better bring your new environment with you in Christ Jesus. Those who look at you are going to raise their eyebrows and question and say, “You look a little peculiar, a little strange.” Christians look funny living now in the world but we’re citizens of heaven; we have a new environment. That’s Philippians, and he’s presenting it as the normal life. The normal life is, “For me to live is Christ,” and He has become my environment. When I got out of the old environment, like the metamorphosis that took place on the bullfrog tadpole, we’ve been transformed, and our appetite is also transformed.
Anyway, that’s the theme of Philippians, to live is Christ as our environment. I said there are a bunch of things that are not the theme. I mentioned joy, unity, humility, missions, peace, contentment, prayer, heaven and sacrifice, and they aren’t the theme. Then, how do they fit in the book? The answer is that they are by-products; they’re the fruit and the outworking of a relationship with Christ. All those things are wonderful but not to be pursued. If you run after unity, you’ll never end up with unity. If you run after peace, you won’t have peace. In fact, if you run after the will of God, you’ll miss it. You are not to run after the will of God. You are to run after the God whose will it is, the Bible whose Bible it is, you are to run after the Lord. It’s His Bible and it’s His church; He’s the head of the body. If I am really looking to Christ in reality and He’s my environment, I will not lack joy. Any Christian who lacks joy is not living in His environment. If you are looking to Christ in reality, your life will be filled to the brim with joy and running over on all sides at all times. What’s true of joy is true of those so-called themes of the book because Christ lives in you. Before Him every knee will bow and every tongue confess.
Did you ever have the privilege of leading someone to the Lord? Do you know what really happened? As you put Christ on display, they confessed the Lord that was in your heart. They bowed the knee to the Lord that was living in your heart. That’s evangelism, and nothing else is. Manifesting Christ, and then they respond to that. If I’m really living in my environment, it’s not possible to be discontented. It’s not possible to not be humble, if I’m really letting Him live. That’s the exchanged life. If I run after holiness, or loyalty or sacrifice or stewardship or service, to that degree I’ve departed from my environment. We live in Christ Jesus. You can test whether or not you are in Christ. Are you ever anxious? Are you ever worried? Are you ever prayerless? Are you ever unthankful? Are you ever unforgiving? That’s because you are living abnormally; the normal life is Philippians. That’s why we wanted to look at that. To any degree we go after those things, we’re going to miss them.
I also told you I’d like to share an outline this morning that we’re going to follow. Again, I just it’s my idea; it’s not inspired. If you can handle the content any other way, that’s alright, but this is how we’re going to go through it. You know the chapter divisions; there are four chapters in the book of Philippians. Except for Psalms, chapter divisions are not inspired; they are manmade. In fact, in the early twelve hundreds a man named Lankton, he was the one who invented chapters, and he divided the Bible into chapters. Not long after that, Cardinal Hugo, with the concordance, he divided it into verses. They chose the chapter divisions, I don’t know what their reasoning was, for example, Acts 21 ends with a comma. I’m thinking that’s probably not a good place to end a chapter. Some chapters in my heart when I follow the message, like John 13 & 14, that’s a bad break. It shouldn’t have been broken there because the connection, “Before the cock crows, you are going to deny Me three times. Let not your heart be troubled.” That’s the connection, and when you take that apart you miss the glorious revelation God was Christ.
Anyway, since chapter divisions are made by men, I’m going to use the chapter divisions that are here because I see a special emphasis in chapter one and a different emphasis in chapter two and three and four. So, because joy goes through the book, it’s not the theme, but in a sense, it is because of Psalm 87:7, “All my springs of joy are in Thee.” In that sense, it’s a theme because if you looking to Christ, you are going to bubble over with joy. So, I’m going to include joy as we give this outline. Psalm 16:11 says, “You’ll make known to me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy.” Nehemiah 8 says, “The Joy of the Lord is our strength.” And Philippians 4 says, “Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice.” There are other verses that teach the same thing.
In each chapter there’s a difference emphasis. I suppose before I leave the idea of joy, just reminding you, and I know you know it, but there’s a difference joy and happiness. Happiness depends upon what happens. That’s where you get the word; it’s depends on circumstances, and it’s an emotion. Joy is deeper than happiness. It’s independent of any circumstances; it’s just living in your environment. Do you realize that a Christian can be unhappy and full of joy at the same time? If you ever see a Godly man or woman at a gravesite of a loved one, you see that, because death doesn’t make you happy, but because of all you know, you know too much, while the tears are coming down your cheeks, in your heart you are singing and rejoicing because of the reality. We don’t want to confuse happiness and joy. Joy is rooted in truth and not circumstances. Happiness is rooted in circumstances. Happiness is an emotion; it’s a feeling. Joy depends on grace, not circumstances, and it’s a manifestation of His joy. When you see the expression “the joy of the Lord”, it’s not a joy He gives you. He wants you to enter the joy of the Lord; it’s the joy He has. According to Hebrews 1:9, He’s the happiest Person in the universe. I know He’s a man of sorrow, but that doesn’t take away the fact that He’s been anointed with gladness above his fellows. He’s the happiest Person in the universe, and when I live union with Him, I’m going to have that same joy. He went to the cross despising the shame for the joy that was set before Him.
So, what is the most dominant focus of chapter one? I think it’s in verse 6, “I am confident of this very thing. He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ.” The word “confident”, chapter one is full of confidence. Philippians 1:25&26, “I am convinced,” I am confident, “that you proud confidence in me may abound in Christ Jesus through my coming.” Since chapter one deals with confidence, I’m going to call chapter one “joyful confidence”. So, we’re going to look at joyful confidence, and that means no confidence in the flesh. Philippians 1, this is how I’m going to outline it; it gives us four different illustrations. We should have confidence in this because, and in this because, and in this because, and in every case the “because” is a revelation of our Lord Jesus. Because Christ appears this way, we’re to have confidence in death. Because Christ appears this way, we’re to have confidence in the gospel, and so on. We’re going to look at that.
I’m so glad I can have confidence, because I have a confidante living in my heart. A confidante is someone you can trust, someone you can be open with, someone you can share everything with, and know that they are going to protect you. So, I’ve got a confidante in my heart. Because of that, I can be filled with joyous confidence. I hope that when you observe my life in Christ Jesus, you’re going to see somebody at peace, steady, composed, established, grounded, anchored, rejoicing, thankful. That’s Christ and that’s His life, and I long for that in my life.
Chapter two has a difference emphasis. I’m going to read verses 3&4, “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind, regard one another more important than yourself. Do not only look out for your own personal interest, but also for the interest of others.” Philippians 2:7, “But He emptied Himself, taking the form of a bondservant, being made in the likeness of men, being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death.” And then the same verses we read, verses 19-21. God is going to give us in chapter two four illustrations of humility. One is Christ, one is Paul, one is Timothy and one is Epaphroditus, and they all illustrate the same thing.
So, joyous confidence, joyous humility, what is emphasized in chapter three? Philippians 3:12, “Not that I’ve already obtained it, or have already become perfect, I press on that I may hold that for which also I was hold of by Christ Jesus.” It’s this emphasis of continuing, pressing on. Philippians 3:13, “One thing I do, forgetting what lies behind, reaching forward to what lies ahead.” Verse 14, “I press on.” The chapter ends with the ultimate goal, and that is, “I press on until I end up glorified in heaven with a new body.”
So, chapter one is joyous confidence, chapter two joyous humility, and I’m going to call chapter three joyous pursuit which is a hunger, an appetite, a desire to go on in the Lord. What is the emphasis in chapter four? Let’s read Philippians 4:11, “Not that I speak from want. I’ve learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, I also know how to live in prosperity, and in any and every circumstance, I’ve learned the secret of being hungry, and being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need; I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” The great emphasis in this chapter is contentment, joyous contentment. Paul said, “I have learned a secret,” and the Apostle Paul needed to have the secret discovered to him. I think we need to the secret discovered to us. When Christ is my life, changing circumstances will not effect my peace at all. 2 Corinthians 3:5, “Not that we’re adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves; our adequacy is from God.”
So, that’s the outline we’re going to follow; joyous confidence with four different illustrations, joyous humility, joyous pursuit and joyous contentment. Let me just introduce joyous confidence and we’re not going to even begin to finish this. The first is joyous confidence because God is faithful. Philippians 1:6, “I’m confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Jesus Christ.” If Christ is my life, then He is faithful, and that gives me confidence at all times. The idea of confidence is absolute certainty. Faith is not going to develop through possibility or probability, but only through certainty. We need God’s people to start proclaiming certainty because that’s where we’re going to be established. I need a guarantee and it needs to be routed in God’s faithfulness.
In relation to this, that verse 6 teaches two things. Number one, it certainly teaches that God’s is faithful to complete what He’s begun. The other thing it teaches is progressive sanctification. If He’s in the process of completing it, it’s not complete yet. And so, there’s an illustration there of progressive sanctification. Many call it, “the perseverance of the saints.” I prefer to call it, “the preservation of the saints.” I’m going to be preserved, and that’s the reason I’m going to make it to the end.
In his wonderful hymn, John Newton wrote, “Through many dangers, toils and snares, I have already come. Tis grace that brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home. You know I love poetry. I’m a simpleton in poetry because I recognize all the forms of poetry, but I like metered and rhyme and the thought. I mean a dish can run away with the spoon, and a cow jump over a moon, that’s meter and rhyme, but Mother Goose didn’t have the thought. In this last verse, I’m not criticizing Newton, “Through many dangers, toils and snares, I have already come, come, come. Grace brought safe thus far, and grace will lead me home.” Come and home won’t rhyme. That’s not a big deal, because I know what Newton had in mind, and I’ll sing that song with gusto because that’s the point.
Let me close by giving you one verse, His keeping power. Jude 1:1, “To those who are the called, beloved in God the Father, kept for Jesus Christ.” At the end of the chapter it says we’re kept by the Lord. But here it says we’re kept for Him. I’m not finished yet on the meditation on His keeping power, but it’s very important to know that I have no intrinsic, and you have no intrinsic value. If value is made by the price that is paid, then His blood made a treasure of you. I have an illustration I want to use. Do you see this masterpiece here? This is a toiletry bag, and it was Lillian’s great grandfather’s. When her father was dying, he said to me, “I’ve been keeping this toiletry bag, it’s not worth much, but I’ve been keeping it for my father. Just before he died, he said, ‘Will you keep it for me?’” I’ve got this thing, no value, but there’s a value in the One I’m keeping it for. You couldn’t give me enough money to depart from this because I’m keeping it for my father-in-law. Jude 1:1, “kept for Jesus Christ”. God is keeping you for His Son.
So, we’ll close with Jude 24, “Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, to make you stand in the presence of His glory, blameless with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory and majesty and dominion and authority before all time and now and forever.” God is going to keep that which He has begun, but there are many deceived. They are looking back to some experience. He’s only going to keep what He’s begun. Just because a person might think they are saved, they may not be. So, we’re going to look at that in a little more detail. Let’s pray together.
Our Father, we thank You for Your word, and not what we think we understand of it, but all You’ve inspired it to mean, quite apart from anything that’s been said. Will you work in our hearts everything You’ve inspired it to mean. We thank You, Lord, that You are going to guide us as we go through this amazing epistle. We pray that You would make a burning reality, the fact that Christ is our environment. We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.
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