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Scripture Reading: Phil. 1:19-21; 2:12-16; 3:9-10; 4:2-8, 12-13
Prayer: Lord, thank You for Your presence and Your rich anointing. Lord, we know that this is all that we need. Lord, we are still looking to You to show us Your way of life. Show us how You would like for us to go on in this way. Open up Your Word to us, and give us the depths of the mysteries concerning Yourself being life to us. Amen.
Philippians 1:19-21 says, “I know that for me this will turn out to salvation through your petition and the bountiful supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I will be put to shame, but with all boldness, as always, even now Christ will be magnified in my body, whether through life or through death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” The main thought in these verses is salvation. To Paul salvation was to magnify Christ even under persecution and imprisonment. If Paul failed to magnify Christ, that would be a shame to him, but if he magnified Christ, this would be his salvation. Salvation to Paul was to magnify Christ regardless of the circumstances.
In chapter 1 sufferings turn out to salvation, but in chapter 2 we have to carry out our salvation. Philippians 2:12-16 says, “So then, my beloved, even as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much rather in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who operates in you both the willing and the working for His good pleasure. Do all things without murmurings and reasonings that you may be blameless and guileless, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverted generation, among whom you shine as luminaries in the world, holding forth the word of life, so that I may have a boast in the day of Christ that I did not run in vain nor labor in vain.”
Salvation in chapter 2 is from murmurings and reasonings. The sisters murmur, and the brothers reason. Murmurings and reasonings are two small enemies to the experience of Christ. Because they seem to be so small, we often do not care about them, but they are two signs which indicate that we have been defeated in living Christ. No one who lives Christ murmurs or reasons. Murmurings and reasonings kill our life of living Christ. We should carry out a life without murmurings and reasonings. Between husbands and wives, fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters, there are a lot of murmurings and reasonings. The females mostly murmur, and the males mostly reason. Even in the so-called “glorious church life” these things exist. Because we murmur and reason, we fail in carrying out our salvation.
Salvation in chapter 2 has many elements. Doing things without murmurings and doing things without reasonings are two elements of salvation that we have to work out. Other elements of this salvation are included in verse 15, which says, “That you may be blameless and guileless, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverted generation.” In order to be blameless and guileless children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverted generation, we must be saved from murmurings and reasonings. The word perverted in this verse means to be “warped” or “twisted.” Today’s perverted generation is warped and twisted. In such a generation we as children of God, having God’s life and nature, “shine as luminaries in the world, holding forth the word of life” (vv. 15-16).
We have to shine as luminaries. A luminary is an object that shines with no light of its own; it shines by reflecting light. Christ is the true light (John 1:9; 8:12), typified by the light of the sun. We as luminaries reflect this light into the world. To shine as luminaries is equal to holding forth the word of life. To hold forth in Greek means “to apply, to present, to offer.” We should always have something of Christ to present, to offer, to the people of the world. To hold forth Christ is to shine. To only speak is inadequate; we have to shine. This shining depends upon what we are, not upon our speaking. We must be people who shine by reflecting Christ as the light.
Salvation comprises several elements in chapter 2: not murmuring, not reasoning, being blameless and guileless children of God in the midst of a crooked, perverted, warped, and twisted generation, shining as luminaries to reflect Christ, and holding forth the word of life. This salvation with all of these elements is the salvation that we should carry out.
In Philippians 3:9-10 Paul desired to “be found in Him, not having my own righteousness which is out of the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is out of God and based on faith, to know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death.” To be found in Christ, having the righteousness which is out of God based on faith, is to have God Himself embodied in Christ as righteousness. The Christ we live out in chapter 1 is our righteousness in chapter 3. The righteousness out of God and based on faith in chapter 3 is the Christ we must live and magnify in chapter 1. When we live and magnify Christ according to chapter 1, people will find us in Christ, not having our own natural goodness or natural virtues, but having Christ as our righteousness.
When we see this vision of the experience of life and look at our present situation, we have to admit that we are far off from this experience. We may study the Bible and pray much, but we are still very much in ourselves and not very much in Christ. We are usually in ourselves, having only our good behavior. One brother’s characteristic may be his slowness, and another brother’s characteristic may be his quickness. When I contact such brothers, I may find them only partially in Christ and mainly in their peculiar characteristics. But the apostle Paul’s particular characteristic was the righteousness of God, the Christ he lived and magnified. In Philippians 1 Paul expected and earnestly hoped to live and magnify Christ. Then in chapter 3 he desired to be found in the very Christ he lived and magnified. Being found in Christ, he would have no goodness of himself, but the righteousness of God, who is Christ as the embodiment of God.
Each chapter of Philippians presents a particular aspect of this salvation. We experience Christ as our salvation in aspect after aspect. Salvation has a long-term aspect and a short-term aspect. Chapter 1 deals with salvation in its lifelong, or long-term, aspect, and chapter 2 deals with salvation in its daily, or short-term, aspect. These are two aspects of the same salvation. Eventually, this salvation also has the aspect of being the righteousness of God as seen in chapter 3.
In the book of Philippians Paul speaks in a very practical way concerning God’s salvation, covering its lifelong aspect, its daily aspect, and its aspect of being the righteousness of God. This last aspect includes Christ as God’s embodiment lived out and magnified by us. The righteousness of God in chapter 3 equals the salvation mentioned in the two preceding chapters. In its daily aspect small things such as murmurings and reasonings are mentioned because daily life among people on this earth is mainly a matter of murmurings and reasonings.
In Philippians 4:2 Paul says that he exhorted Euodias and Syntyche to think the same thing in the Lord. In living Christ, the hardest thing to do is to think the same thing. To enjoy Christ may seem to be easy, but without the real enjoyment of Christ we all would be dissenting, not thinking the same thing. We would be dissenting not only toward the elders but also toward everyone else. We would be agreeable only with ourselves. When we come to serve by arranging the chairs, we may arrange the chairs and murmur at the same time because the way the chairs are arranged and cleaned may not suit us. Because our fallen nature is full of dissension, it is difficult to see real harmony not only in our family life but also in the church life. Harmony in the church life is a real treasure.
In the experience of enjoying Christ, living Christ, and magnifying Christ, there are many obstacles. The first obstacle is murmurings and reasonings. The second obstacle is dissension. Paul was a very skillful writer. When he writes about these two good sisters, he says, “I exhort Euodias, and I exhort Syntyche, to think the same thing in the Lord. Yes, I ask you also, genuine yokefellow, assist them, since they contended with me in the gospel, as well as with both Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life” (vv. 2-3). Paul first touches the negative problem of dissension between two of his fellow workers, exhorting them to think the same thing. He then highly appraises them for the positive point of their service in the gospel. Then as a conclusion he leads them to rejoice (v. 4).
Philippians 4:5 says, “Let your forbearance be known to all men.” This means that you should be found in forbearance by all the saints. The word forbearance is difficult to explain completely. Many may define forbearance as patience or long-suffering. However, forbearance is more than patience or long-suffering. It is reasonableness, considerateness, and consideration in dealing with others, without strictness of legal right. First, if we would be forbearing, we must be reasonable and fair. We must do things in a reasonable and fair way. Second, we have to consider others. To be forbearing is to consider how others will be affected by what we do or say. We should consider whether or not our words would damage people. We have to be very considerate in dealing with others, avoiding strictness.
The Chinese translation of Philippians uses a word for forbearance that means to fit in with another’s situation. When we lack forbearance, we are unable to fit in with another’s situation. Brothers or sisters may be living together in an apartment in a very pleasant way. When another brother or sister comes in who lacks forbearance, trouble may be stirred up, destroying the peaceful situation. But when a brother or sister who is full of forbearance comes into a situation in which brothers or sisters are having problems, he or she becomes a peacemaker. Whatever that brother or sister says or does keeps everyone comfortable. Everyone is calmed down, and everyone feels that everything is all right in the apartment.
Although every verse of Philippians 4 mentions a new item concerning the experience of Christ, all these items are related to one another. A proper Christian life of living and magnifying Christ will not dissent with others, will always rejoice, will always forbear, and will have no anxiety (v. 6). This kind of life enjoys the peace of God (v. 7).
In Philippians 4:8 Paul presents six items that express the life that lives Christ. This verse says, “Finally, brothers, what things are true, what things are dignified, what things are righteous, what things are pure, what things are lovely, what things are well spoken of.” These items form three pairs. The first pair is true and dignified. The second pair is righteous and pure. The third pair is lovely and well spoken of. Verse 8 concludes with two matters: “If there is any virtue and if any praise, take account of these things.” All these items are very human. Some saints are very desirous to live Christ but in a way that is not very human. These six items with two concluding matters describe how human we should be in living Christ. We should be true, without any pretense or falsehood. We also should be dignified, which means that we are people who invite honor, regard, and respect from others. As those who live Christ, we should be righteous before God and men, and we should also be pure. To be righteous is to be right without; to be pure is to be single in our intention and motive within. We must be right without and pure within. We should also be lovely and well spoken of. To be lovely is to be lovable, agreeable, and endearing. To be well spoken of is to be of good repute, renowned, attractive, winning, gracious, and even charming.
Although all the foregoing items are human virtues, we must realize that these human virtues are the vessel created by God to contain His attributes. A glove is made in the image and likeness of a hand as a container for the hand with its fingers. Without the hand with its fingers, the glove is empty. In the same way we were made in God’s image and likeness. He is the true God, and He has made us in a way that we can contain Him. God is true, and man can also be true. God is dignified, and God also made man to have dignity. The items in Philippians 4:8 are not only the virtues of man but also the attributes of God.
We are vessels made to contain God for His expression, so we have the outward form of these attributes but not their reality. When we live Christ, who is the embodiment of God with all the attributes of God, He fills up all our empty virtues. God’s attributes then become our virtues. Thus, living Christ makes us very human. We should not only be spiritual and heavenly but also be true, dignified, righteous, pure, lovely, and well spoken of. These human virtues with the divine attributes are the detailed expression of the Christ we live and magnify. If we are not lovely and dignified, we are not expressing Christ. If we do not live a dignified life, we are not living Christ. If we live and magnify Christ, we will surely live a dignified life.
The way for us to live Christ with all of these human virtues with the divine attributes is found in verse 13, which says, “I am able to do all things in Him who empowers me.” We can be true, dignified, righteous, pure, lovely, and well spoken of in Christ, the One who empowers us. In Christ, the One we live, we are able to do all things.
The Christ we live is not only our power but also our secret. Philippians 4:12 says, “I know also how to be abased, and I know how to abound; in everything and in all things I have learned the secret both to be filled and to hunger, both to abound and to lack.” To abound is to be rich, and to lack is to be poor. Paul knew how to handle both poverty and abundance. Poverty would not defeat him, and riches would not spoil him. To be filled means to be rich with more than enough to eat, and to hunger means to be poor, to lack, to suffer privation with not enough to eat. Paul had learned the secret both of being rich and of being poor.
The book of Philippians ends with a life not dissenting with others, full of forbearance, without anxiety, and full of human virtues. Philippians ends with a person who is so true, dignified, righteous, pure, lovely, and well spoken of. Such a person is full of human virtues with the divine attributes as their contents to express Christ in a human way. We also should be such persons. The secret of such a life is Christ, the One who empowers us. To live and magnify Christ, having the righteousness out of God and based on faith, is our salvation.
