Rejoice in All Circumstances

January 20, 2019 Background Scripture: Philippians 1:12 – 21 Lesson Passage: Philippians 1:12 – 21 This letter bears many statements that suggest that the Apostle Paul found the key to sustained contentment. Anyone can be content in a given situation or as a result of a specific circumstance. Attempting to sustain contentment is a very different matter. Contentment is an emotional state and emotions can be very fleeting. For example, I don’t know of anyone who does not want to be happy. We invest a lot in making ourselves happy. Those investments range from time to resources—financial and otherwise. Yet, we learn the lessons that Solomon wrote about thousands of years ago concerning the seasons of human life: “a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;”. Life changes constantly and those changes put a lot of pressure on the emotional wellbeing of people. This is further complicated by interpersonal relationships. Your time of dancing is quickly dampened when you learn that a close friend is experiencing their time to mourn. So, what was the key that Paul found to sustained contentment? Paul decided to allow his entire life purpose to be the fulfillment of Christ’s purpose for him. No matter what situation or circumstances Paul was confronted with, he connected it to the ministry he had been commissioned by Jesus Christ to carry out. Paul responded to those who preached Jesus as a selfish way to criticize Paul’s persecution by the state. Paul rejoiced that the outcome was the preaching of Jesus Christ—even though it was being done for selfish ambition. Rather than being depressed because he was surrounded by prison guards to keep him from escaping or being harmed, Paul took advantage of the time to tell the guards about Jesus. Paul made sure that others understood that he was not in his situation because of criminal activity on his part. Paul’s situation was being used by God to advance the preaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Paul’s letter to the church at Philippi is threaded through with words of encouragement for them to rejoice always. From the beginning of the letter to the end, Paul spoke of rejoicing. Paul was in chains at the time he wrote this letter. Yes, this letter was written and sent from prison, and it is one of the most uplifting of all of his writings. Paul rejoiced because he was content. His contentment was the result of seeing the outworking of his ministry through his situation, because his whole life was now viewed in terms of his ministry. Paul’s ministry, simply put, was the preaching of Jesus Christ. Whether he preached the gospel, or others preached it, it did not matter to Paul. What mattered was that the gospel was being preached. If Paul preached the gospel freely without persecution, he was content. If Paul preached the gospel and as a result suffered persecution, he was content. If others preached the gospel in an attempt to add to Paul’s suffering, he was content. If others were emboldened by Paul’s rejoicing in prison and preached the gospel without fear, he was content. In all circumstances, if the gospel was being preached, Paul was content and for that he rejoiced. Robert C. Hudson December 27, 2018