THE GOSPEL’S CHAIN REACTION
A “Chain Reaction” is a series of events so related to each other that each one initiates the next. In other words, one event triggers another and then another and yet another.
The Gospel of Jesus Christ has the power to do just that in a person’s life. When the gospel takes hold of you and begins to change you, others will be affected by what has happened or is happening to you.
On the other hand, if you do not allow the gospel to change your life, others may not give your Christianity much weight. Don Carson, president of the Gospel Coalition, wrote a sarcastic little piece about such persons. He mimics their attitude saying, “I would like to buy about three dollars’ worth of gospel. Not too much – just enough to make me happy, but not so much gospel that I learn to really hate covetousness and lust. I certainly don’t want so much that I start to love my enemies or cherish self-denial and contemplate missionary service in an alien culture. I want ecstasy; not repentance…
“I would like to be cherished by some nice, forgiving, broadminded Christian community, but I myself don’t want to love those from different races – especially if they smell. I would like enough gospel to make my family secure and my children well-behaved, but not so much that I find my ambitions redirected or my giving too greatly enlarged. I would like about three dollars’ worth of gospel, please.”
Paul’s life was a life drastically changed by the gospel of Jesus. He went from a hunter of Christians imprisoning and killing them to a “fisher of men” preaching the gospel all over the place. That change caught people’s attention. It spoke of genuine conversion and transformation of the heart.
But would this testimony hold up in dire circumstances? What does suffering and opposition do to a person’s faith in Jesus? How do others respond to a Christian’s suffering and trouble? What do they learn about our faith in Jesus when hard times fall on us?
1. Are Life’s Challenges “Chains” or Opportunities? (1:12-14)
I mentioned that Paul was in prison for two years. It should be added that Paul spent two years in prison in Palestine, and after appealing to Caesar, Paul is sent to Rome where he sits for another two years in prison. So, he sat chained for 4 years.
It is in this context that Paul makes a very profound observation to the Philippians: “Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel,” (12). He’s not just thinking about his present circumstances either. Paul had endured beatings, shipwrecks, stoning’s, assassination attempts, and so much more (2 Cor. 11:24-28).
24 Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, 26 I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers. 27 I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. 28 Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches.
He looks at these “troubles” as a way of advancing the gospel.
The word “advance” is a military term that means “to strike forward” and was used to refer to an army of woodcutters that went ahead of the regular army to cut a road through the forest. They made a “way” through the terrain. With remarkable insight, Paul saw that his difficulties and impediments were being used by God to prepare a way to accomplish his purposes. His chains opened a door to spreading the gospel to an unlikely audience.
This audience was the palace guard or “Praetorium.” He writes, “As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard…that I am in chains for Christ,” (13). The palace guard was a contingent of 9000 elite soldiers who served as Caesar’s bodyguard in Rome. They were a cross between the Secret Service and Navy Seals. They were highly paid and highly influential. Many went on to political service after their stint in the army. How would Paul have ever had opportunity to speak the name of Jesus to these guys?
Think of the math: Paul was chained to a guard 24 hours a day; they changed guards every 6 hours; Paul was in contact with four different guards a day, 28 times a week, which means he could reach 3000 guards in 2 years. In all that time they watched him dictate letters, chat with visitors, and share Jesus with the guards themselves. Paul was such a dynamo that it took prison to slow him down to write the letters we are reading today.
What else did the guards witness about Paul’s life? His patience? His gentleness when treated unfairly? His courage? His willingness to endure these hardships for Jesus? The fact that his “crimes” were no crimes at all but that he saw it as an opportunity to speak of Jesus? They heard him sing and pray but they did not hear him complain (see complaints slide).
When the believers in Rome saw how Paul reacted to his “chains” as opportunities, they began to understand how God was sovereign and how his will was being achieved. They said, “If Paul can preach in prison, we should use our freedom to preach in the streets.” Why be afraid? Paul wasn’t. As Carson said, “A whiff of persecution sometimes puts backbone into otherwise timid Christians.”
In 1997, Hong Kong was handed over by the British to China. This meant trouble for the house churches. Pastor Lamb, a man in his 70s, spent over half his life in prison for the gospel. When asked if the government officials still observed his activities, he said, “Not so much now…every time they threw me in prison, the church grew.”
Paul said, “Because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear,” (14). What are your chains? Your health may feel like a chain holding you down. Your marriage or your friendships seem to limit you in ways you can’t explain to others. Your employment feels like a limitation to serving God. Are they chains? Or are they opportunities?
2. Are you focused on your chains or the gospel? (1:15-18)
When I face challenges or trials, I have a hard time seeing the positives. I’m a “glass half-empty” guy. I wish I were more like Paul. He had the ability to see what was important. He looked at his problems as part of God’s program and shared Jesus in his words and attitude. That encouraged others to be bold too. He even saw past the poor motives of other preachers and could say, “At least they’re preaching the gospel.” (see vv)
There were two kinds of preachers who responded to Paul’s chains. One cohort loved him and appreciated his mentorship; the other cohort were envious of him and took advantage of his being out of commission to press their own agenda.
We may speculate that these envious preachers were Jewish Christians who promoted circumcision for Gentiles. But Paul doesn’t say that and there is no evidence for it. It simply says they were envious and wanted to cause Paul trouble. What I suspect is that they were what we call “influencers” today, and that they wanted to be the ones that people listened to, not Paul.
Part of their frustration with Paul was his view that his captivity promoted Christ’s saving work. How could someone who called himself an apostle of Jesus Christ be in such dire straits? In their minds, a genuine apostle was a living demonstration of the transcendent power of Christ. They had visions; they performed miracles; they were dominant personalities. They DID NOT get arrested and sit in prison.
These people “…preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains,” (17). What are they hoping to do to him? Break him? Make him show his “true colors” and admit he’s a fraud?
Do you have people who seem to want you to fail? Are they watching to see you mess up so they can “be your hero”? That’s code for telling you what a real Christian says or does. Or do you have people in your life who just always have to compete with you and show you that they are better at everything?
How does Paul respond to these preachers? Meh! The NIV says, “But what does it matter?” In Greek this is two words amounting to “So what?” or “Whatever!” Paul cares about one thing and that is the preaching of Christ.
Three times in this text he writes “preach Christ.” That’s the focus. From what we can tell, their message was sound. These are not pagans or heretics spreading a false teaching. They are not preaching another ‘Jesus’ or another gospel. They preach Christ. They preach Paul’s gospel.
Paul wrote Timothy about this gospel. He said, “Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel, for which I am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But God’s word is not chained,” (2 Tim. 8-9). The gospel is the story of how God called a people to himself (Israel) and promised to deliver them through his Son (Jesus) who is their true king (David’s heir).
Some of us struggle when someone on the “wrong team” is used to present the gospel. I will admit that when I was younger, I was suspicious of mainline denominations and of charismatics. Paul would say, “Wait a minute. Are they preaching Jesus? Are people learning that their sins are forgiven?” Yes? Then what’s the problem?
One of the best commentaries I have ever read was written by Frank Matera, a Catholic priest. Some of my favorite writers, John Stott, NT Wright, and Michael Green, are Anglicans. Gordon Fee is a Pentecostal. One of my doctoral students was Greek Orthodox…and his prayers were so meaningful. What we all have in common is a love for Jesus and a belief that the world needs to know about this gospel. We all play for the same team; we just have different styles. No need for a competitive attitude.
I want to learn from Paul’s perspective on chains:
· God’s purposes are often accomplished through our “chains” – our problems.
· The example of our brothers and sisters in chains – who praise God even while suffering or in dire straits, should encourage us to be bold in our faith.
· And the message of Christ is all that matters.
I want to conclude with this question for us to consider:
Would anyone be interested in Jesus Christ after having watched how I reacted or listened to my words while I suffered _________?
I pray that our response will cause a chain reaction for the gospel.
AMEN
