10 But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at
last your[a] care for me has flourished again;
though you surely did care, but you lacked opportunity. 11 Not
that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I
am, to be content: 12 I know how to [b]be abased, and I
know how to [c]abound. Everywhere
and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to
abound and to suffer need. 13 I can do all
things through [d]Christ who
strengthens me.14 Nevertheless you have done well
that you shared in my distress. 15 Now you
Philippians know also that in the beginning of the gospel, when I departed from
Macedonia, no church shared with me concerning giving and receiving but
you only. 16 For even in Thessalonica you
sent aid once and again for my necessities. 17 Not
that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that abounds to your
account. 18 Indeed I [e]have all and
abound. I am full, having received from Epaphroditus the things sent from
you, a sweet-smelling aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well pleasing
to God. 19 And my God shall supply all your
need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. 20 Now
to our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen.
In
today’s me first culture; it is hard to imagine a God who promises to supply
all the needs of those who give sacrificially to the work of advancing gospel ministry but that is what scripture
teaches. ((Philippians 4:19) And my
God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ
Jesus.) The Philippian church
had made a sacrificial offering to further the apostle Paul’s gospel ministry
to which Paul assured the Philippians that their gift had been credited to
their account. ((Matthew 6:19-21) 19 “Do not lay up for
yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves
break in and steal; 20 but lay up for yourselves
treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do
not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure
is, there your heart will be also.)
God
promised to make provision for all their earthly needs as well. This way of
thinking goes against anti-Christ hedonism philosophy; that is, living for
pleasure and using our liberty to gratify our own desires as the highest human
virtue. The Bible condemns this way of living as idolatrous self worship. ((Romans 1:25) 25 who exchanged the truth of God for the
lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is
blessed forever. Amen.) Through eyes of faith; spiritual men and women are able
to see past the temporal of this life into the eternal riches that await the
faithful in heaven. ((Hebrews 11:16)
16 But now they desire a better, that is, a
heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be
called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.)
Let’s
turn our attention again to the passage and study the practical aspects of
church giving. Firstly; we notice that the church in Philippi was eager to help
Paul’s gospel ministry and had helped in the past. (Verse 10) It’s true that acts of practical giving are often the
intent of the twice born heart but opportunity to act on our desire may be
lacking. Perhaps finances are not available to give due to joblessness or
perhaps other barriers such as distance or even other pressing needs may
prevent or stall our purposed giving. This is especially true for those who are
financially indebted because there is already a valid claim on their finances
that precedes their desire to give charitably. Proverbs 22:7 says:
7 The rich rules over the poor,
And the borrower is servant to the lender.
For some;
(unlike the church in Philippi) the reason that they lack opportunity to give
towards furthering gospel ministry is because they simply have not purposed to
do so. Other cares crowd their minds and they have not yet reckoned the
importance to do so. To that person; I would simply say; seek your heavenly
Father in prayer and petition Him to make you more generous towards furthering
gospel ministry in your individual way or through your local church. ((2
Corinthians 9:7)7 So let each one give as
he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of [a]necessity;
for God loves a cheerful giver.)
In verse 11-12; we learn an important
principle from a mature disciple of Jesus Christ. Namely; how to be content
with whatever means we find ourselves with. ((1 Timothy 6:6) 6 Now godliness with contentment
is great gain.) According to the most recent data from the Bank of Canada, the
average debt held by Canadians, excluding mortgages is $20,759.
This national reality demonstrates that as a nation; we are not living in the sphere
of God’s purposed contentment but rather we are a covetous people, always
wanting more of that we aren’t purposed to have. ((Exodus 20:17)17 “You shall not covet your
neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male
servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything
that is your neighbor’s.”)
The
Biblical solution to this problem is learning to be content with our current
situation. This means that rather than always lusting after more; we need to
learn to be thankful and contented by what we already have and what God
Almighty has provided, is providing, and will continue to provide for us for
the rest of our earthly lives. ((Matthew
6:26-30) 26 Look at the birds of the air, for they
neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds
them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 Which
of you by worrying can add one [a]cubit to
his [b]stature?28 “So
why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they
grow: they neither toil nor spin; 29 and yet I say
to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not [c]arrayed like one
of these. 30 Now if God so clothes the grass of the
field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not
much more clothe you, O you of little faith?)
Verse 13 Paul and all
Christians claim this confidently without pride or conceit because God the Son
places His power into us to accomplish His purposes through us in spite of
having little or a lot of resources. Gospel ministry is not predominantly
dependent on material wealth but rather spiritual power provided through the
Holy Spirit. ((Ephesians 3:16) 16 that
He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be
strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man,) Consider the
humble missionary if you will. A young lady named Sue with the gift teaching discerns
a call to go on a foreign mission after confiding with her pastor that she
feels led by the Holy Spirit to disciple and train pastors in a primitive
society. Sue is sponsored air travel by her church but arrives in a completely
isolated society in which She has no means to support herself, little to no
human connections, limited language comprehension and the culture (although She
has studied it) is still alien to Her own. Within days of arriving, Sue finds
work as a seamstress apprentice earning just enough for her room and board. On her
third day on the job; Sue is approached by another seamstress who notices the
cross on her neck and says she too is Christian and invites her to her home for
dinner that evening. There, Sue meets a passionate yet immature minister who
lacks understanding of basic apostolic doctrine. The mission is now under way
with very limited resources. 7 years later, Sue returns home with the husband she
discipled and later married during the mission with their 3 year old daughter.
He too feels led to foreign missions but before the next missionary trip
begins; they have many stories of God’s faithfulness that must be told back
home.
Verse 14-16 Any genuine
minister will be grateful for any and all help He may receive with his gospel
ministry. Paul was affirming the
partnership that He shared with the Philippian church. Gospel ministry is the
work of the preacher and the local church as they expend their energy and
resources to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ as their primary goal.
Verse 17-18 The Philipian church offered their
gift with the right attitude of a willing heart and with the right motive of
investing into soul winning that would profit them into eternity. ((Psalm
126:5-6)
5 Those who sow in tears
Shall reap in joy.
6 He who continually goes [a]forth weeping,
Bearing [b]seed for sowing,
Shall doubtless come again [c]with rejoicing,
Bringing his sheaves with him.)
((Proverbs 11:3030 The fruit of the
righteous is a tree of life,
And he who [a]wins souls is wise.)
Verse 19-20 The Lord will provide.( Jehovah-jireh or Yahweh Yireh)
The spiritual man or woman trusts that God will provide for their material
need naturally and even supernaturally if need be as they live in faithful
obedience. God owns all the earth and is able to meet all your need through His
providence. This promise only applies to those who call on the one true God by
faith in His one and only Son Jesus Christ. This principle does not mean that Christians
should be slothful, negligent, or wasteful but rather hard working and
industrious as God enables each one.
Proverbs 6:6-11
6 Go to the
ant, you sluggard!
Consider her ways and be wise,
7 Which, having no [a]captain,
Overseer or ruler,
8 Provides her [b]supplies in
the summer,
And gathers her food in the harvest.
9 How long will you [c]slumber, O
sluggard?
When will you rise from your sleep?
10 A little sleep, a little slumber,
A little folding of the hands to sleep—
11 So shall your poverty come on you like a prowler,
And your need like an armed man.
To conclude; I will cite a famous story in the life of the Father of
faith; Abraham, who trusts God and is provided for at just the right moment.
Genesis 22:9-14
9 Then they
came to the place of which God had told him. And Abraham built an altar there
and placed the wood in order; and he bound Isaac his son and laid him on
the altar, upon the wood. 10 And Abraham stretched
out his hand and took the knife to slay his son.
11 But
the Angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said,
“Abraham, Abraham!”
So he said, “Here I am.”
12 And He
said, “Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him;
for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your
son, your only son, from Me.”
13 Then
Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a
ram caught in a thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram, and
offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 And
Abraham called the name of the place, [a]The-Lord-Will-Provide;
as it is said to this day, “In the Mount of
the Lord it shall be provided.”
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