Worthy of the Gospel

Good morning.

My name is Matthew Capone, and I'm the assistant pastor here at Cheyenne Mountain Presbyterian Church,

and it's my joy to bring God's word to you today.

A special welcome if you are visiting or new with us.

As I like to say, we're glad you're here, and we're glad you're here not because you're filling a seat,

but because we are following Jesus, and we're convinced that there is no one so good that they don't need God's grace,

and no one so bad that they can't have it.

And so God is going to have something to say to everyone in his word,

and everyone needs to hear what God has to say.

If you've been with us over the last month or so, you know that we are in the book of Philippians,

and Philippians is a letter.

It's a letter that's written to a church, and that church is very similar to our church.

And that church is in a city, the city of Philippi, that's very similar to our city.

Remember, Philippi is one of the only Roman colonies in Macedonia,

and so the citizens there are a higher percentage military than you would expect in other cities.

Some of them because they were already citizens because of their military service,

and so they wanted to move to a Roman colony where the tax benefits would be greater.

Some of them were already there because they came from military families,

and Philippi has a great military heritage.

And so this is a city that takes pride in its Roman citizenship.

And that's going to become important this morning because the first thing that Paul is going to tell us in verse 27 is,

only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ.

And it's an unfortunate translation because literally what Paul is saying in the Greek is,

act like a citizen of the gospel.

And so he's writing to people who are proud of their earthly citizenship,

their Roman citizenship,

living in a city where they would have felt pressure to act as a Roman citizen,

to adopt the values of Roman culture and Roman society.

And he tells them instead to adopt the values of the gospel.

And so these are believers, members of the church who feel under pressure.

Much like us, they live in a culture that values greed,

and yet they're called to generosity.

They live in a culture of sexual anarchy,

and yet they're called to sexual integrity.

They live in a culture that doesn't care for the poor,

and yet they're called to do that.

And even more than that, we're going to find out that they have opponents in verse 28,

that there are people who are actually pressing in on them.

And so as I've mentioned before, this is a book about partnership in the gospel,

and the question that we're going to see today is,

how do we have our partnership in the gospel when opposition comes?

When we feel the pull of dual citizenship?

When the culture that we find ourselves in asks very different things of us

than the culture that God has,

the demands that God makes on us.

That's the tension that the believers in the city of Philippi face.

It's the tension that we face as well,

and it's what Paul is going to speak to in this passage.

So we're in Philippians.

We're still in chapter 1.

We're starting at verse 27.

Remember that this is God's word,

and God tells us that his word is more precious than gold,

even the finest gold.

And it is sweeter than honey,

even honey that comes straight from the honeycomb.

So turn with me now to verse 27.

Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ,

so that whether I come and see you or am absent,

I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit,

with one mind,

striving side by side for the faith of the gospel,

and not frightened in anything by your opponents.

This is a clear sign to them of their destruction,

but of your salvation and that from God.

Verse 29.

For it has been granted to you

that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him,

but also suffer for his sake,

engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had,

and now hear that I still have.

Please pray with me as we come to this portion of God's word.

Dear Father in heaven,

we thank you that you know,

as the psalmist tells us,

that we are just dust.

You know that we're frail.

And yet as we're frail,

we still face challenges and opposition in this word,

and so we thank you that you've spoken to us.

You haven't left us alone as orphans,

but you talk to us.

You tell us things,

and you do it in ways and words

that we can hear and that we can understand.

And so we ask now

that you would pour out your spirit

to speak to us.

You'd pour out your spirit on me

as I explain your word

on everyone as we hear

that you would allow us to understand

and to believe and to obey.

We ask all these things in the name of your son.

Amen.

So our question here is,

how do we respond to opposition?

How do we respond to opposition,

and what is God doing in the midst of it?

How does God work in our lives

when we face opposition?

Paul doesn't waste any time.

He cuts right to the point

in verses 27 and 28.

He wants them to live

as these citizens of the gospel,

and he tells us exactly what that means.

It means that they would be

striving together,

striving one mind side by side

for the faith of the gospel

and not frightened in anything

by your opponents.

And the point Paul is making is simply this,

and this is a dynamic that you'll see

if you've been in church for a while,

if you've studied church history,

there are two options for any church.

And they're this.

We are either going out

in a mission with each other,

or we are going on a mission

against each other.

We are either going out in mission

with each other,

or we are going on a mission

against each other.

Paul's writing to a church here

that's struggling with unity.

They're struggling to get along.

And he's telling them,

as you feel pressure from the outside,

there's only one way

you're going to survive.

And that's by working with each other

rather than against each other.

And so this goes back to what we saw

in the very introduction to the letter

where he told them

that they needed to discern

what was right and most excellent.

That they would know

what are the important things

to focus on.

What are the gospel issues

that they can focus on?

Remember that with partnership

in the gospel,

the gospel is the focus

of Jesus' death

and his resurrection.

And so the church needs to know

how to keep the primary things primary

and the secondary things secondary.

And so the first truth is that

we have one of these two options.

We're either working with each other

or against each other.

The other reality is that

when there's opposition,

the church has to choose

between those two things.

In other words,

there is no option for the church

except to join together in unity

or to not make it,

to not survive against their opponents.

And this is something that we can use.

It's a spiritual diagnostic tool.

I was gone the last several weeks

and while I was gone,

I was in the mountains at one point

and my low tire pressure light came on.

And it's a very frightening light.

It's this exclamation point

with parentheses around it,

which in my mind

should mean something like

your engine is about to fail.

So the first time this light went on for me,

this was not the first time, thankfully,

but the first time I panicked a little bit.

I do what I always do

when I have car problems

that I don't understand.

I quickly call my dad.

Ask him,

what is going on?

There's an exclamation point

on my dashboard.

Like, should I pull over right now

and take it to the mechanic?

Find out it's only low tire pressure.

So this is probably the one flaw

in all Subaru makers

that they've decided to make

the low tire pressure light

this very frightening warning.

But there's a spiritual diagnostic here

that if we're not working together,

then it's clear

that we've not been able

to discern what's best

and what's right.

Because if we discern what is right,

if we understand what's important,

if we're working together

for the gospel,

then we'll be able to work

with each other

rather than against each other.

Now again,

don't hear what I'm not saying.

Remember,

Paul later is going to refer

to certain people in the church

as mutilators of the flesh

and dogs.

So Paul doesn't have a problem

fighting over things.

There are things

that are worth disagreeing about,

but Paul knows when to decide

what's worth fighting over

and what's not.

And this is a dynamic

that it's not just something

that you see

if you're in the church,

but the outside world

notices this dynamic as well.

A couple of years ago,

there was an article

in November of 2016,

there was an article

in The Economist,

which is not an American publication.

It's not written by Christians

or for Christians.

It's a European magazine.

And they wrote an article

about the relationship

of churches in Europe.

And they had noticed

that as the heat

had been rising

on the church in Europe,

the same exact dynamic

had taken place.

That there was greater unity

than there had ever been before

between people who disagreed

about various things.

And so as it goes on,

the article says this,

asks this question.

Why then the emphasis

on commonality?

They've been describing

the reality

that these churches

are pulling together

like they've never

pulled together before.

There are some obvious reasons.

At a time when Christianity

feels under pressure

from secularism

in the Christian West

and from persecution

in the Middle East,

there is a natural impulse

among its practitioners

to close ranks

and play town

sectarian difference.

Again, that's

the non-Christian's explanation.

In July,

when an elderly Catholic priest

was murdered

at the altar in France,

very few Christians

of any sect

reacted by saying,

never mind,

he wasn't one of ours,

or even serves him right

for being a heretic.

In Germany,

the Lutheran Catholic churches

face almost identical dilemmas.

Both are struggling

to hold their ground

as members leave,

either through disenchantment

with religion

or to avoid

paying church taxes.

Both are wondering

what to do

as Islam gains adherence

and demands the same status.

As Germany's Christian churches

have long enjoyed,

it would not make sense

for Lutherans and Catholics

to be squabbling

with one another.

And so again,

the church is either

going out in a mission

with each other

or going on a mission

against each other.

In practical terms,

it looks like this.

we can either argue

about our preferences

in music

or we can figure out

how to reach out

to Otero Elementary School.

But we simply

don't have time

to do both.

We can argue

about the right way

to teach our children

or we can strive together

side by side

to raise them

with sexual integrity.

That it's simply

at times

just a matter of time.

We don't have time

to do both.

And so we have to figure out

what's most important.

And so what I'm not saying

is that differences

don't matter.

But we have to determine

our focus.

And our focus

is something

that draws us together,

joins us,

that we're striving

side by side.

In fact,

in the face

of opposition,

we have no other choice

but to realize

what is most important

and work together

for it.

It's not the only thing

he tells them,

though.

In verse 28,

he says,

and not frightened

in anything

by your opponents.

So not just striving

side by side

for the sake

of the gospel

but doing so

without fear.

And why is it

that they can go out

and not have fear?

Well, it's because

of their dual citizenship.

They're citizens

of Rome

but they're also

citizens of the gospel.

And so I'll ask you

a simple question.

Which still exists

right now?

The Roman Empire

or the church?

It's the church, right?

And so that's why

they don't have to be

frightened in anything.

Because it's their

heavenly citizenship

that is more real

and more powerful

than their citizenship

on earth.

And so they can strive

side by side

together

being of one mind

as we'll find out

in chapter 2.

Striving side by side,

having one spirit.

In other words,

they've all partaken

in the Holy Spirit.

They've received

the truth and reality

of the gospel

and that's what allows

them to have unity.

It's the gospel

that brings them together

because the religious person,

the legalist,

says,

be good like I am good.

And you can't have unity

if someone's saying

be good like I'm good

because you're just

going to have pride.

People are going to be

calling each other

to be like themselves.

The non-religious person

says there is no good.

You have to find

your own good.

Of course,

we can't have unity

around that

because each person

is going to determine

a different good.

But the gospel says

no one is good,

only Jesus is good.

And so that gives us

the humility

that we need

to actually have unity

with each other.

If we are not good,

but Jesus is,

then we can lay down

our preferences

and our secondary issues

to focus on that.

Focus on what is

most important,

which is the truth

and reality

of the gospel.

So religious says

be good like I'm good.

The non-religious says

find your own good.

And the gospel says

no one is good,

only Jesus is good.

So find your good

in him.

And so we find unity

as we're striving together

for the sake of the gospel,

but it's also the gospel

that allows us

to have unity in that.

And so this is the strategy

that Paul gives the church

as they live in a culture

that's pressing in on them.

That they work together

with unity

and they do it without fear

because they know

that their heavenly citizenship

is more real

than their earthly one.

But it's not just

the Philippians

who are going to do something.

God is at work as well.

Remember, we're not just asking

how do we respond

to opposition,

but also what does God do

with us?

How does he change us?

How does he provide for us

when we face opposition,

when we feel the pressure

coming in on us?

I have a uncle,

my dad's youngest brother,

who has spent his career

working for the State Department.

He's been stationed

all over the world.

And at one point,

probably 10 or 15 years ago,

he was stationed in China.

And while he was stationed

in China,

a family member

went over to visit him

and they found on the streets

of China an amazing deal.

They were selling

these North Face rain jackets

for the very low price

of $10.

And who knew, right,

that North Face

was selling their products

for so much cheaper in China

than they're selling them

in the U.S.?

And this is a shock.

Why are we not just

importing these jackets

from China?

And so these jackets

were given as gifts

to various people.

I received one

and I thought,

this is great.

I think I was probably

in high school

at the time that I received it.

Had this great

North Face logo on it.

I could wear it

and be clear

that I was very cool

because I had

a North Face jacket.

Fast forward

to when I'm in college

and I decided

to take this jacket

with me

on my study abroad program.

This is the jacket

that I take with me.

It's a traveling

study abroad program.

At one point,

we were in the city

of Delphi,

which is in Greece,

and there's a rainstorm

that comes.

So I had my

North Face jacket

and I put it on.

It continues raining

throughout the day

and I become

very,

very wet.

Because while this jacket

has the logo

of North Face on it,

it has nothing

to do with North Face.

It was never made

by North Face.

North Face costs

are probably higher

than $10

just to make a jacket.

And so the point

is this.

We don't know

what's real

or not

until the storm comes.

We don't know

what's real or not

until the storm comes.

And that's what Paul

is telling us

in verse 28.

This is a clear sign

to them

of their destruction,

but of your salvation

and that from God.

So what does God do

for us

in the midst

of opposition?

As we stand,

as we strive

side by side,

God assures us

that we belong

to Him.

That we are genuine.

in.

And so one of the ways

that God uses

opposition in our lives

as we're struggling

with the forces

coming in against us

as He looks at us

and says,

as you have been

faithful,

you can know

even more

than ever

that you belong

to me.

because it's

because it's only

the people

that I adopt

and that are mine

that are able

to stand

when the opposition

comes.

And so take hope.

Be encouraged

because you belong

to me.

And this isn't

something that we earn.

It's not something

that comes from us.

If you know

anything about rain jackets,

you probably know

part of the reason

I got soaked.

And that's

there was no tape

on the seams.

So the material

wasn't terrible

but the difference

between a real rain jacket

that's going to keep you

dry for hours

and one that won't

is that all the seams

have tape on the insides

that's waterproof.

Because that's where

the water was coming in.

It was through the seams.

And so when He says

this is a clear sign

of your salvation

and that from God

what He's saying

is this,

God is the one

who puts the tape

in your seams.

He's the one

who enables you

to stand in opposition.

And so it's not

that you muster up

your strength

and you earn God's favor

but that you were

already His.

He had made you

and created you

and so when the storm

comes,

when opposition comes

and you stand,

you can know

that it's God

who has given you

the grace.

It's God

who's holding you up

and sustaining you.

He's the one

who made you.

And so it's a clear sign

of your salvation

that what's happening

in a small way

as you stand

against opposition

is a sign

of what will later

happen in a big way.

And so God uses it.

He uses it

to give us assurance

that as we persevere

He's saying

take heart,

be encouraged,

don't be frightened

because you belong

to me

my kingdom

and my reality

is greater

than any other

that's around you.

But He doesn't

leave it there.

That's not,

that's just the start

of what God does

for us

in opposition.

He says,

for it has been granted

to you

that for the sake

of Christ

you should not only

believe in Him

but also suffer

for His sake.

Engage in the same

conflict that you saw

I had and now hear

that I still have.

Paul's laying out here

a principle

that he's explained

in other letters

that he's written

which is this,

that as the Master

walks,

so walk His disciples.

As the teacher goes,

so go His students.

And so if we're followers

of Christ,

we're going to join

with Him.

We're going to join

with Him

not just

in His glorification,

not just in the new

body that He's given,

but also in His humiliation

that as Christ suffered,

we are also going

to suffer.

We're not going to suffer

to the same extent

that He did.

We're not going to suffer

in the way that He did.

Our suffering is not

going to earn our salvation

in the way that His did.

But it's also another way

that we know

that we belong to Him.

And so when we suffer,

we can consider it

an honor.

It's a gift

is what we're told

in verse 29.

It has been granted to you.

It has been gifted to you

that you would suffer.

Paul again is hitting

the partnership here

in verse 30,

reminding them

that he is suffering as well.

He's in prison.

He's struggling

for the gospel.

He is being pushed in on

by the Roman Empire

and so are they.

And so they're together in it.

But they also know

that this too confirms

that they belong to God.

As the master goes,

so go his followers.

Some of you are perhaps

familiar with Jeremiah Denton.

Jeremiah was a prisoner of war

during the Vietnam War.

He was in the infamous

Hanoi Hilton

and he was the man

who became famous

because when he was put on TV,

after months of torture,

he blinked in Morse code

the word torture.

And that was the first time

as Americans

we knew a little bit

about what was going on

with our POWs.

He later became

one of the Alcatraz 11.

He was put into solitary confinement

for multiple months

for all of the day

except for 10 minutes each day.

And so his return

was highly anticipated.

People were waiting for him

when he landed

at Clark Air Base

when he was finally released.

And these are the words

that he had.

These are the first words

that he had to say

to the nation.

We are honored

to have had the opportunity

to serve our country

under difficult circumstances,

he said.

We are profoundly grateful

to our commander-in-chief

and to our nation

for this day.

We are honored

to have had the opportunity

to serve our country

under difficult circumstances.

So what Paul is telling us

is that when we face opposition,

that suffering

is the honor

of being associated with Christ.

In the same way

that Jeremiah didn't

have been able to suffer

for the sake of his country,

he had the benefits

of citizenship,

he had the joys

of being an American,

he also took part

in the suffering

of defending our country.

So also,

those who are citizens

of the gospel

have the honor

and the privilege

of suffering

for the sake of Christ.

In fact,

we find this out

in other parts of Scripture

as well.

In Acts 5,

Christians are preaching

the gospel,

they're taken,

and they are beaten.

And after they're beaten

and released,

it says this,

then they left

the presence of the council

rejoicing that they were

counted worthy

to suffer dishonor

for the name.

And every day

in the temple

and from house to house,

they did not cease

teaching and preaching

that the Christ

is Jesus.

In other words,

the opposition

that they faced

only emboldened them

to strive more and more

side by side

in unity

for the gospel.

And it was an honor

to suffer dishonor

for the name

because it was something

that was given to them

by Christ himself

and something

that he enabled them

to do.

We've already sung

that today.

We sang in God

and grace of God

and glory,

grant us wisdom,

grant us courage

for the living

of these days.

And so it's God

that grants us

the wisdom

and the courage.

It's not something

that we muster up.

He's the one

who puts the tape

on the seams.

But we're also going

to sing this as well

in just a minute.

Remember,

we're asking

how do we respond

to opposition?

We respond

by working together,

focusing on

what truly matters,

focusing on the gospel.

What does God do?

How does he work

in our lives

in opposition?

He confirms for us

that we are his,

that we belong to him.

And he gives us

the honor

of serving

under difficult circumstances.

And so that's

what we're going

to sing here

of Though Church Arise.

We're going to sing

in verse 1

that we would have

the strength

that God has given.

It's God

who gives the strength.

It's him

who gives us

what we need

to stand up

in opposition.

We're going

to be striving

together for what matters,

what's important.

In verse 2,

we're going to stand

against the devil's lies

rather than each other.

And it's Christ

whose death

and resurrection

enables all of it.

And we'll see

that two verses later.

Come see the cross

where love

and mercy meet

as the Son of God

is stricken.

Then see his foes

lie crushed beneath

his feet

for the conqueror

has risen.

It's Jesus' victory

that allows us

to suffer

because we know

the end of the story.

And it's his victory

that gives us

the strength

and the courage

and the wisdom

to stand

when opposition comes.

please pray with me.

Dear Father in Heaven,

we thank you

that you have chosen us

as yours,

that you have given us

the opportunity

as we'll find out

in a couple weeks

to shine as lights

in the world.

But we confess

that it's not easy

and that we often

face opposition

and so we ask

that you would hold us up,

that you'd prevent us

from saying,

be good like I'm good.

But instead,

we would be able

to stand strong

as we say,

no one is good,

but Jesus is good.

And so for that,

we are honored

to stand and suffer

for the sake of his name.

We ask this in Jesus' name

because we have earned

none of this,

but he has earned it for us.

And so we ask it in his name.

Amen.

Amen.