Philippians 4:10-17 "Content in Christ"

Verses 10 through 17 for the day.

So please make your way there as you're turning there.

I will start us off with a with a word of prayer before we even read over this text, but Philippians chapter 4 verses 10

through 17.

Let us pray.

Lord God, I just thank you again for the privilege it is to know you Lord.

Just the surpassing value of knowing you crucified and risen again Lord.

God it is upon this that we are justified and we come today to worship you through the reading and teaching the

preaching of your word and the singing and the fellowship of the Saints Lord.

So God I would just ask today that we would be each one convicted in the ways that we ought to be convicted.

That we would walk away from this text encouraged in the faith Lord.

And that we would want to live a life that represents you outside of these walls Lord.

And that we would seek your glory, your worship, the advancement of your kingdom today.

So Lord God I would ask all these things to be done according to your will and I ask this in the mighty

name the Lord Jesus Christ.

Amen.

Philippians chapter 4 verse 10 through 17.

Let us read this text today.

And as I said before, it did not make it in the bulletin, but that is the text that we are in.

The title for the text, and I hope it gives way into what we are going to be studying today, is

content in Christ.

How can we be content in Christ?

It's an interesting question and one that I hope that we can seek to answer today in this text.

But let us read over this.

But I rejoice in the Lord greatly that now at last you have

received thinking about me.

Indeed you were thinking about me before but you lacked opportunity.

Not that I speak from want, for I learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am

in.

I know how to get along with humble means and I know also how to live in abundance in all,

in any and all things I have learned the secret of being filled and going

hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need.

I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Nevertheless, you have done well to fellowship with me in my affliction.

And you yourselves know, Philippians, that at the first preaching of the gospel after I left Macedonia, no

church fellowshiped with me in the matter of giving and receiving, but you alone.

For even in Thessalonica, you sent a gift more than once

for my needs.

Not that I seek the gifts itself, but I seek the fruit which increases to your account.

Let us pray over this text.

Lord, I do just thank you, Lord.

God, just the blessing it is to be in you.

The remembrance that this text brings to our minds about the joy that it is to know you

and how much more greater that is than being full or being empty, Lord.

But that you have been sought in our lives, rather that you have sought us out to be in you.

So, Lord, I would ask today that we would be reminded of your grace, your mercy in this text, and just be

encouraged as a church today.

I would request this, Lord, in Jesus' name, we pray.

Amen.

So, as context goes, again, we are in Philippians chapter 4, and the book of Philippians is written

from Paul to the church of Philippi while he himself is in prison.

Why he himself is probably, when he says in here that he's hungry, it's probably, what do you think he's probably

alluding to?

He's probably hungry in prison.

He's probably suffering in prison.

He's probably experiencing all these trials while he himself is in prison.

But as we have discussed before, the reason why Paul, in chapter 2 and 3 and all these chapters that we've

looked at so far, every time that Paul expresses joy, it's because he went into prison

with something that no one can take from him, and that is knowing Christ crucified.

It's a joy that surpasses all understanding.

It's a joy that no one can take from you.

The whips can come, the hunger can strike, but Christ Jesus can be glorified and worshiped in the midst of

those things because it's something that no one can take from Paul or from us.

But let us remind ourselves of what took place in the prior verses, prior to verse 10 through 17.

Starting out in chapter 4, verses 1 and on, we see that there

is some arguing or some sort of contention that's going on in this early church before,

Eodia and Synthice, that he gives them advice on how to seek to fix these things, a

reminder that your name is written in the book of life, and because of that, that should be a joy that surpasses all sort of

contention and trouble, and that is all going on in this early, early church here in the Church of

Philippi.

He tells them to rejoice always.

He tells them not to be anxious for anything, but that we should be living a life with petition and prayer,

and that the peace of God is going to surpass all comprehension, and that's going to be the thing that guards

our hearts.

That's the thing that should carry us along.

It's the thing that should look over us as we go through our different walks in life, is the

guarded heart that is guarded by the peace of God.

He tells us that we are to seek after thou which is right, pure, lovely, and

commendable, and that we are to consider how to do these things.

We are to practice these things.

It's something that, as we said last week, none of us in this room are perfect at any of these things.

Each one of us in this room will fail at these things.

There will be times that we experience from everyone in this room when they are not acting loving, when

they're not acting right, when they're not acting pure.

That's the whole point that Paul is saying, practice these things.

It's something that we ought to seek after.

It's something that we will fail in, but it's something that we ought to be looking towards and trying our best to

emulate who Christ is, because Christ is the best of the best of all those examples of

right, pure, and considerability that we see in that text.

As a reminder, the peace of God that we have when we approach this text in verse 10 through 17,

it needs to be remembered that we are by nature enemies of God, and why we are yet

enemies, Christ died for us.

That's the type of peace that should be guarding our hearts.

It's the type of peace that our hearts should recognize what's going on in these verses of 10 through 17.

So starting off here in verses 10 through 17, when we look at this,

I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at last you have received thinking

about me.

You revived thinking about me.

You were thinking about me before, but you lacked opportunity.

This is something that Paul is saying, I'm rejoicing over what you are doing, your actions,

your thought, your love offering that you're giving to me while in prison, the prayers that you're lifting up on

my behalf.

I rejoice to hear about these things from you, Church of Philippi.

Why would Paul rejoice over such a thing?

And the reason is, is because Paul views this church as his family.

It's brothers and sisters in Christ.

He loves this church, Philippi, so much to even know that they're thinking and that they're praying for

him.

It's something that Paul rejoices over.

For whatever reason, when Paul says in here, he says, I rejoice in the Lord greatly that now at last you have

revived thinking about me.

Indeed, you were thinking about me before, but you lacked opportunity.

For whatever reason, it doesn't say to us maybe it was a bad windstorm.

Whatever the example is, they were not able to give them thanks.

Maybe it was a stopping of the guards from giving a letter or letting somebody, one of their messengers, into the prison.

To tell Paul about what's going on.

But for whatever reason, they lack the opportunity to share and exhort Paul in his suffering.

Now, this should tell us something that I think is important for us as Christians.

And that is, we are a church very similar to the Church of Philippi, right?

We are a church that comes and worships God.

We are a church that is built upon the foundation Jesus Christ.

We are a church that has been covered by the blood of Jesus.

And because we are a church just like this Church of Philippi, should we be praying for the prisoners

and the captives?

The ones that are suffering, the ones that are being beheaded in China, or whatever the example is.

Should we be praying for those kind of individuals today?

Absolutely, we should.

In fact, at every opportunity, whenever we can think of a good opportunity to reach out to another

Christian and show them love, we ought to do such.

Because that's what this church in 2 ,000 years ago is doing for Paul.

They see that Paul is in need of encouragement, and they seek to give it to him.

They want and they desire to show Paul the love that they have towards an

apostle of the church.

So I would encourage you, when you, in your weeks and your months to come, when you can think of a

Christian that is suffering, it is not a bad thing to reach out to them and express love,

gratitude, and even that you are praying for them.

And do be praying for them.

Prayers availeth much.

So please be praying for those people, those individuals that you could think of in your mind.

Even a great example of this today is I overheard Dawn giving encouragement to my wife

today.

That's exactly what's going on in this text.

That I love these individuals.

I'm going to express compassion towards Paul in this that the church is doing.

And Paul is saying it's received greatly and thankfully.

So thank you, Dawn, for mimicking the life that this church is doing today.

Now in verse 11 he says, not that I speak from want, for I learned to become content

in whatever circumstance I am in.

This is something that Paul has learned over time on how he ought to behave as a believer in Jesus

Christ.

That he's learned this.

It's something that maybe at first, when he first became converted to know Christ, he might not have known the

secret on how to be content in everything that he did.

But it's something that he practiced.

It was something that as years went on, he was able to figure out, okay, I know how to now be content, which will

come to how you can be content in life.

But think about this for just a moment, that Paul has learned

the source of fulfillment comes only from Christ and nothing else.

So that should mean for us that if we lose our job, our family, we have troubles in

whatever the example is, money, pleasures, car troubles, whatever it is,

we know that our ultimate source of fulfillment only comes from Christ and not from any of those things.

And why would that be the case?

I think Paul's already alluded to this in a prior text in Philippians chapter 1 verse 20 when he says,

for me to live is Christ and die is gain.

He's already alluded that, look, if you have a life that seeks after

whatever the example is, let's, a great, I think one of the examples that we talked about, this was

months ago as we were going through Philippians chapter 1, but one of the examples was that if you were a teacher

and all you did was try to teach children and that was what you lived for and that's where you got your

contentment from, was teaching children, when you die or when you retire, guess what

stops happening?

Teaching children.

You have suffered a loss.

There was no gain when you retired or even when you died, there was no gain.

And so what Paul's doing in here is he's echoing essentially what chapter 1 already started us off with, that if you

are in Christ it means that your life is going to be seeking after him and that is the only type of life that when

you die you will actually be rewarded with a gain.

So if you seek fulfillment today in our pleasures, and this is something that contentment is, be

reminded today, practice today as Paul himself has learned, learn yourselves to be content in

everything.

But that contentment only comes from knowing Christ.

My mind immediately takes me back to chapter 3 when Paul says that all things, whether they be

all his supposed self -righteousness, his family lineage, all the things that Paul has

in the comparison of comparing that to Christ, he counts all those

things to be a lost and dumb fecal matter in the surpassing value of

knowing Christ Jesus.

He has a view of Christ that is much greater than anything that this life could offer, and

that is where his contentment comes from, is knowing Christ.

Something that no one, and I got to repeat that to you, if you know Christ and Christ knows you,

no one can take it from you.

You have a bad day at work, you have a bad day at home, whatever it is, no one can

take away from you knowing Christ crucified.

That is something to rejoice in, it's something that is stable, it's something that will not go away.

It might grow, it might diminish in seasons of hardship, but no one can take

the truth of Christ being your Savior from you.

Content in whatever circumstance I am in.

Verse 12 he says, I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in abundance.

In all, in any and all things, I have learned the secret of being

filled and going hungry, both having abundance and

suffering need.

Paul is letting the church of Philippi know, church, it's true, I suffer right now.

Church, it's true, I'm going hungry right now.

Church, it's not great what's going on to Paul, yet I am content

in whatever the Lord gives to me because I know Christ.

Paul has learned this over time.

Again, this is a second imprisonment, maybe his first imprisonment was a little bit more challenging than this one, but he's come to know

that his contentment in life is that of seeking after Christ in his face.

Paul says in the times of abundance, he rejoices.

In the time of suffering, he leans on the cross.

I think of some of the most godly men and women that I know of in my own life, whether it's throughout history or if

it's actual individuals that I've met in person, and the most humble and the most godly of

them will always say, look to Christ in all things and through all things you will find strength,

or something to that effect.

It's this godly type of attitude that seeks Christ in all things,

and that will be what gets us through our day -to -day interactions, our day -to -day sufferings, our day -to -day

challenges.

In verse 13, and the reason that we bring this up, the suffering that Paul is going through right now is that

the context of verses 10 through 12 help us understand verse 13.

Verse 13 is a often misquoted, taken out of context verse, right?

This is one of those ones that if we don't know what this is saying or what this is teaching, we can apply it in very

wrong ways today.

Verse 13, I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Now, is it right if I say I can do all things through Christ who

strengthens me?

Is it okay for me to go jump off a bridge or a cliff and say, Christ, I'm gonna fly today.

You're gonna strengthen me through this.

That's not gonna be how it goes, right?

Now, it is true that Christ could absolutely save us in a miraculous way in those things, but that's not the meaning of this text.

It does not mean that I can go and, especially in the

false prosperity gospel that it is, it is not teaching that you can just say a certain thing, or do

a certain thing, and you're gonna be rewarded with it.

That's not what this is teaching us.

It's teaching us that in the midst of suffering or in the midst of grandeur, that we, if

we are in Christ, we are able to sustain our lives and live a life that is glorifying to God.

It's saying I can go through life.

I can go through whatever circumstance I'm in, whether you live a life that is like the life of Job and the

suffering and the recording that we see in there, or we live a life of pleasure and reward and all these kind of things.

It doesn't matter what it is, if we are in Christ, we know that it is Him who strengthened us to live through

those experiences, to live through those kind of lives.

And so that's what Paul is painting here.

It's not saying that I can go out and do whatever I want, or whatever it looks like, and I can survive, or I can do

this or this or this.

No, Paul's saying if I get my knees broken tomorrow, Christ will strengthen me.

I'm okay.

If I leave here bloody and beaten and bruised, it's okay.

Christ strengthens me.

I find my contentment.

If I am beheaded tomorrow, it's okay.

Christ will vindicate me.

I know this.

I am strengthened in that truth and that reality.

If I suffer a terrible hardship today,

I am strengthened when I have no strength.

I'm able to stand in Christ when I'm unable to stand on my own strength, because

it's Christ who lives in me.

So

there's so much that we can cover on all this.

It's remarkable.

But let's look at verse 14.

It says in verse 14, nevertheless you have done well to fellowship with me in my

affliction.

So Paul's saying it's a good thing that even though I'm suffering in that false prosperity gospel that's taught

today, this name it and claim it, if you have faith in Christ, you'll have wealth in your life.

It's a bunch of garbage.

And Paul, if that existed back in that day, Paul would be quick to rebuke it, and he'd point to his own life in

the example.

Say, I suffered, yet my reward was not wealth.

My reward was not health.

My reward was I'm no Christ Jesus.

And it wasn't even a reward.

It was something that was given to me.

It was something that was granted to me.

It was something that God had to do on his side of things.

I'm totally undeserving is what Paul be responding in this.

And so he's saying to this church, church, thank you for fellowshipping with me in my affliction.

Thank you for not forgetting about me.

And thank you for praying for me.

Thank you for giving me this love offering or whatever it is that they're giving to him in this text.

Thank you for sending people to me to encourage me in my situation right now, church.

Thank you for this, in my affliction, in my challenging.

And you yourselves know, Philippians, that at the first preaching of the gospel after I left

Macedonia, no church fellowship

with me in the matter of giving and receiving but you alone.

That hurts when you consider all the other letters that Paul is sending out in this

time of his imprisonment.

Do you think that the other churches should have been thinking about Paul and his imprisonment?

Has not Paul seen the plants, the fruit that he has

planted, the evangelizing, all that he has done for the Lord and yet none of those

people are telling him thank you or none of those people are reaching out to him and encouraging him.

None of those people are reaching out and doing those things in the midst of his turmoil, in the midst of his suffering.

First of all, notice that this church of Philippi has commemorated and thanked

for what they have done.

He says that the other churches haven't done this, they haven't been

thinking about me, they haven't been giving and receiving, but you alone church, you alone Church of Philippi,

thank you for what you're doing in this.

It makes me think about even in our own church today, as one of the announcements that we gave today is this

Magic Valley Baptist Association that's coming up, right?

It would be wrong of us to think we shouldn't be thinking about what these other churches are going through.

It wouldn't be right for us to ignore those that are suffering and that what these other churches are trying to help out with.

We as a church ought to be doing those things.

We as a church ought to be giving love and prayer and consideration and encouragement to those that are suffering in the faith

today.

And that can look like a multitude of different things, but that's what we should be doing.

This church in this day, the Church of Philippi, has done this.

They are thanked for doing this.

They are commemorated in that, but the other churches that haven't been doing that

are actually called out in this text.

Verse 16 says, for even in Thessalonica you have sent a

gift more than once for my needs.

So this is something that this church has been doing continually when they've had the

opportunity to do so according to verse 10 they have done it.

And in verse 17 it says, not that I seek the gift itself, but I seek the fruit

which comes, which increases to your account.

What does this verse mean?

What does this look like for us?

What is Paul even getting at in this text in verse 17?

Not that I seek the gift itself, but I seek the fruit which increases to your...

Paul is not seeking after whatever this church has given to him.

Let's say they gave him food or whatever they gave to him.

He's not saying, I'm actually seeking what you're giving to me,

but I'm seeking that you're actually giving in the first place.

I'm thankful for that.

This is remarkable when I think we should be modeling our lives in this own way.

This week, I'll be honest with you, I had a very interesting encounter this week at the Twin Falls Fair.

There was a lady that came up to me.

I was sitting on a bench with the kiddos and this lady comes up with me and she starts talking to me about Jesus.

And I was like, oh man, this is awesome.

So I started talking about her with Jesus too and we're going back and forth and all this stuff.

And eventually it comes to the point where she says, my whole family has cast me out because of my

relationship I have with Jesus.

And I go, I'm so sorry.

Is there anything I could be praying for you about?

She said, please be praying for those relationships.

And so I prayed with her right there about those things.

And what was remarkable is that afterwards, just, and this is just sitting on a bench, just a very weird

encounter, just wonderfulness.

Praise the Lord for this, right?

She goes and gets food from the booth that she's working at and she comes and brings that back and she tells the wife and I,

wait, don't leave yet, I'm gonna be right back.

So she left for five minutes, got the food, came back, says give me just another couple seconds, I'll be right back.

She goes back and she grabs $13 or $15 out of her pocket and she gives it to me.

She says, I want you guys to go and have a fun time at the fair.

Thank you for what you're doing and let them have fun, the kids.

Paul receiving this gift is not saying I was wanting the gift that you're giving me.

We shouldn't live a life seeking after the gift.

That would be wrong.

It would be wrong of me to have sat on that bench and said, the only reason I'm talking to you is so that you'll give me your $15

and the food.

That would not be the type of life that we're living.

However, something that I have a challenge with, and I'll be honest with you, I have a real hard time accepting

gifts from anybody.

Very hard time.

I don't like it.

It kills me every time I get a gift from somebody.

However, something that was told to me early on many years ago by my pastor when I was being

discipled as

a they love the Lord and they're glorifying Him in that giving.

And so it's been something I have had to challenge myself with is that accepting something knowing that they're doing that in

the service, not to me, but they're doing that in the service of the Lord Jesus Christ.

And so that's how we ought to model our lives is if somebody, first of all, when you give, let's think about this, when

you give whatever that looks like, whether that's an offering, whether that's meeting somebody on a bench and you want to give them some

money so that their kids can go play on a ride, whatever it is, when you do a giving, it doesn't matter what it looks like, whether

you're serving with your hands, whether you're giving with your wallet, whatever that looks like, you should be giving it

to the Lord.

You should be doing it to the Lord, not for that person, not to that person, but because you love

Jesus and you're wanting to serve Him in whatever that looks like for us today.

Second of all, receiving such, you should seek, you shouldn't seek the gift itself, but you should

seek God being glorified in the action or the giving itself as well.

And that's what Paul's doing in here.

He's saying, I'm not receiving this gift itself, I'm not thankful for the gift itself because it's just a gift

because of it being this food or whatever it is in this text.

He's saying, I'm thankful that you as a church are glorifying God in these

ways, that you as a church are being sanctified and wanting to give.

That's a great thing that you've grown up in the faith now, Church of Philippi, to want to serve Jesus in this

way.

It's a good thing.

And he says, I seek the fruit which increases to your account.

1st Corinthians chapter 3 verse 6 through 7 says this, I planted, Apollos

watered, but God is causing the growth.

So neither then the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything but God who causes the

growth.

Paul is looking at this and he's saying, I'm so thankful that God has caused growth in

you, Church of Philippi, to be concerned about me, to be praying for me.

I'm thankful for God causing that growth in you, that you are now bearing the fruits of knowing

Jesus and wanting to give to glorify him.

I'm thankful for that.

Now this, first of all, again going back to the the prosperity gospel, this dashes

false teachers and false wolves who seek their own wealth and all that they do.

Because what are the the preachers and the pastors, and when I say pastors I give air quotes because they're not real

pastors if they're false teachers.

This dashes them to pieces because what are they preaching?

They're seeking the gift rather than the fruit of righteousness.

They're seeking the actual gift itself.

They want the jet.

They want the money.

They want those things.

They're seeking the gift from the individual rather than the individual doing things to the glory of God.

And so Paul's saying, I seek the fruit which increases to your account.

This is a church that Paul himself helped plant.

This is a church himself that I would say that you could argue that Paul was helping water to become more and

more like Christ.

But Paul knows that it is ultimately Christ, God himself, who is causing the

growth in this church.

Think about that for a moment.

How many of us have planted a tree and seen it grow in our lives?

I've never planted a tree so I can't say I have.

I guess I take that back.

I got to plant a coconut a long, long time ago and I got to see pictures every year from this family.

I planted this coconut tree on their property and they would send me a picture.

And guess what?

Every year it grew and it grew and it grew.

It's something I was so thankful about.

I was like, man, that's so cool.

I got to plant that tree and now it's actually being used as a hammock tree for somebody to be able to lean on and relax.

Praise God for that, right?

How many of us have seen a tree grow to adulthood?

It's something that is remarkable.

It's something that tells me right here that we are to be patient when we seek

God's kingdom.

We shouldn't have the expectation that I did this.

Tomorrow I planted.

Seeds are going to take root and it's going to be a 50 -foot wonderful tree now.

No, that's not how the kingdom of God works.

We plant.

Somebody else waters or we water.

Somebody else planted.

And we know that God is the one that's causing the growth and oftentimes it can be a slow thing.

Sometimes it can be a fast thing.

But we know that we should have patience in everything that we do, especially when it comes to spiritual growth and our own

sanctification.

And I promise, brothers and sisters, give it time.

Give it time and you will see sanctification take place.

Seek after God and give it time and it will happen.

Now, so Paul has seen now this this tree that he planted years ago.

It's growing up and it's doing things in the right manner.

It's seeking to give God glory and the giving of a gift to Paul.

And Paul is so thankful for the fruit that has increased to their account.

Let me tell you the ending of the story that I just started with that coconut tree.

That coconut tree was on the big island and years ago it got flooded with lava and was burnt down.

Destroys me to think about that now.

And it was just a story I just thought of right now, but it's a true story.

We have to come away and walk away and know that God is the one who causes the growth.

And when trees grow, fires sometimes come, disease often can kill, foreign viruses can affect.

But we are to always remember that it is God who raises the men up and it is God who cuts them down.

We want and pray and desire the growth of others in godliness.

And because we want others to be more Christ -like.

So as Paul, an apostle of the church, the early church, was seeking

other sanctification, it's a remarkable thing today that we come to church today wanting to be

sanctified ourselves.

And I hope we look around the room today and we want others to be sanctified as well.

We want others to be watered.

We want others to grow up to be these big, long -lasting trees that will not be burnt down.

Trees that actually bear the coconuts.

The trees that actually bear the fruit.

The trees that actually have the hammocks put on it.

The ones that are being used to glorify God.

We want that.

Is that necessarily going to happen tomorrow?

I don't know.

But know that it is God who causes the growth and have patience in the Lord over these things.

Paul is thankful that the church itself has given a gift, not because he's thankful for the gift

itself, but he's thankful that the church is bearing fruit.

The church is bearing fruit.

I'd ask today, when we think about Valley Baptist Church and we think about our own churches or

anything along those lines, we think about other churches, ask yourself, do we see fruit?

And if you don't see the fruit yet, give it patience.

Give it time.

Think about it.

Pray for it.

Show exhortation, just like this church is.

Do you see fruit?

Be patient in the Lord and God will grow his kingdom.

Let us pray.

Lord God, I do thank you so much for this day, Lord.

I thank you for the one who causes the growth, Lord.

I thank you for you doing those things.

Lord God, I would ask today that each one of us would consider how we can plant seeds, how we can water

seeds, Lord.

God, I would ask, how can, Lord, put it on our minds today, how can we bear fruit

for your kingdom?

How can we go amongst the nations baptizing in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit?

Lord, how can we grow children up to know who you are?

How can we be deliberate in our own family's worship?

How can we be deliberate in all those ways, Lord, so that we would bear fruit for your kingdom, for your

glory, for your praise?

Lord, I do thank you for this Church of Philippi years ago, who bore the fruits of righteousness in the

seeking to give Paul a gift to your glory, Lord, and what that tells us that we ought to be doing as a

church today.

So Lord God, it is upon the gospel, which is the perfect life of Christ, his

death that is the atonement for us, the paying for our sin there upon the hill of Calvary,

his burial and his resurrection on the third day according to Scripture, Lord, that we come here to worship you.

It is through this gospel and this gospel alone that we come here.

So Lord, I would just ask that we would be reminded of this.

Let us bear fruit this week and these months to come, and Lord, be glorified.

We say this in your name.

Amen.

Brothers and sisters, please.