Transcription
Welcome to a new series of Sabbath school lessons. We're studying this quarter Philippians and Colossians. The title of our Sabbath school lessons is uniting heaven and earth, Christ in these epistles. These lessons have been written by a dear friend, Clinton Wallen. Dr. Clinton Wallen works with me at the General Conference of Seventh Day Adventists. He works for the Biblical Research Institute.
In these lessons, we're going to be focusing particularly on Jesus, the Son of God, Jesus the Son of Man, the Christ that redeems us, the Christ that intercedes for us, and the Christ that's coming again for us. These are Christ-centered epistles. You're going to be enriched spiritually. You're going to be uplifted and inspired as we study them. So, with that background, let's just jump right into lesson one.
The title is persecuted but not forsaken. The Apostle Paul wrote Philippians someplace between 60 and 62 AD. He had visited Philippi earlier and raised up a small Christian congregation there. That Christian congregation became a thriving congregation and continued to grow. But when Paul wrote Philippians, he wrote it from a prison cell in Rome. There are four chapters in Philippians, and the great theme of each of these chapters is joy. In fact, the Apostle Paul mentions joy someplace between 26 and 28 times, either joy or rejoicing. Chapter one is joy in trials. Chapter two is joy in humility. Chapter three is joy and surrender. And chapter four is joy in gratitude.
So let's look at at chapter one. The Apostle Paul is in prison. Memory text is, "Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I'll say rejoice." Now, notice our text does not say, "Rejoice in the Lord in all things." There are many things that we can't rejoice in. A young man, 17 years old, driving home from school, gets hit by a tractor-trailer truck and is killed instantly. We don't rejoice in that. A terrible war takes place in Russia and Ukraine, and thousands of young people are dead. We don't rejoice in the death on either side. We don't rejoice in oppression, injustice. We don't rejoice when an alcoholic comes home, hits his wife in the face, and blackens her eyes and breaks her nose. We don't rejoice in those.
What does Paul then mean? He does not say, "Rejoice in all things." He rather says, "Rejoice in the Lord always." That's at all times. What's the difference? We can rejoice even in the hardship, difficulty, challenges, sufferings of life. We can rejoice even in the tears because God is our creator. He's still in control of the universe. He is our redeemer. He is the one that saved us from the penalty and the condemnation of sin. And he is our coming King. So we rejoice not in the circumstance, but we rejoice in spite of the circumstance that God is still in control. That God will guide our lives. He'll strengthen us. He will give us the hope, the courage, the faith to deal with whatever we have to deal with. This is why Paul could rejoice in prison because he knew that God was ultimately in control.
So you look at Sunday's lesson. Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ, here in Ephesians 3, chapter 1. Notice, see, there are four lessons, actually, that Paul wrote, four books that he wrote, four epistles that he wrote from prison: Philippians, Colossians, Ephesians, and Philemon. So they were all written from that Roman prison. But look what Paul says in Ephesians 1, verses 1 and 2. "Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints who are in Ephesus, faithful in Christ Jesus." So Paul says he is an apostle by the will of God. If indeed he ends up in prison because of God's will, because God wants him to be a witness there, he's open for that opportunity. In Ephesians 3:1, it says, "For this reason, I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for you Gentiles." In other words, I'm not a prisoner of Rome. I'm a prisoner for Jesus. Jesus has allowed me to be in this circumstance. Even if Jesus didn't actively cause it, he's allowed me to be here. There's a divine purpose in this. There's a purpose that overrides my immediate circumstance. And we see that with Paul witnessing there to the Roman guards. We see that with Paul witnessing in that society, and some even of Caesar's household become Christians.
In Philemon, chapter 1, Philemon is a little book. It's the story of a runaway slave by the name of Onesimus. And, uh, here Paul meets him, leads Onesimus to Christ, and sends him back to his to Philemon. And Philemon is a book written just one chapter, telling Philemon to treat Onesimus not as a slave, but as a brother. But you look here at Philippians, chapter 1, and verse 1. "Again, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother." So again, Paul says, "The Roman government may think that they have me as a prisoner, but I know that there is a divine will of God. I'm here on an assignment from God."
It reminds me of a story I heard in a very closed country where an Adventist pastor and elder were giving out literature, and in this particular country, it was against the law to do that. They were sharing literature with a small band of Adventist believers. The elder was caught and put in prison. As he was in prison, when other prisoners heard that he was a Christian, they beat him. And every night he would get beaten, pummeled, sometimes knocked unconscious. There was a man that was watching all that, another prisoner. And he would lift him up, bathe his wounds after others had gone. And eventually, the two studied the Bible together. And eventually, this second man, this prisoner watching the beatings and the love on the face and the kindness of his words, even to his tormentors, this second prisoner, unbeliever, accepts Christ, and as he does, his life is transformed. He eventually leaves prison, and our elder left prison. They, they join the same Adventist church, and this second prisoner who helped our Adventist brother eventually becomes an Adventist pastor.
Once you know that God is ultimately in control of your life, you then look at every opportunity in life, whether it's good or bad, whether there are tears of sorrow or there is joy, whether the mountain is is high or there and you're on the mountain peak looking out over the valleys and just this euphoric joy, or whether you're down in the valley in darkness, whatever circumstance you are, you can rejoice in the Lord. What? Always. Not because of what happened to you, but because God is bigger than our problems, greater than our difficulties, and larger than our challenges.
Here, there's an interesting note that Paul gives that that the author gives about Paul. He says, "Paul has given his life in service to Jesus Christ. If that service includes being a prisoner, he's ready." Paul describes himself as an ambassador in chains. Don't you like that? An ambassador in chains.
The first time that we read about Paul in prison is found in Acts chapter 16, and it's very instructive. Paul's in Philippi, raises up a new congregation there, is in the process of raising it up. Lydia has been baptized, the seller of purple, this sharp businesswoman. And, um, then there's a slave girl that follows Paul through the streets of Philippi, and she is shouting out, and Paul gets annoyed with all of this, and, uh, he ultimately casts the demonic forces out of her. As the result of that, the inhabitants who employed her for fortunetelling and soothsaying, they lose their lucrative business because now this woman is not being possessed, this girl, by the demons. So Paul and Silas are beaten. They are bruised. They're bloody. Their hands are are chained. They're put in stocks, which are, uh, manacles to to chain their feet or to to contract or keep their feet from, uh, moving in their hands. And so it's just a terrible contortion. And their backs are bloody. They're thrown into prison. And we read about them here in Philippi. It says, "But at midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly, a great earthquake." Verse 26. "So that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone's chains were loosed."
Look, they're in prison. Their backs are bloodied. Their hands are swollen because they've been put through these stocks. Their feet are swollen, black and blue. But yet they're singing. They're praising God. And the other prisoners hear it. And then there's an earthquake. The prison walls fall down. The jailer is about ready to commit suicide because he said, "This is dishonorable for me. The prisoners are going to escape." And Paul says, "Don't, don't do that. Don't end your life. All the prisoners are here." And eventually, this Roman guard, Roman jailer, is led to Christ. He's converted. He and his family are baptized.
Here's the formula for a miracle: First, if you don't have a need, there's no need for a miracle. Need plus faith plus prayer plus praise equals a miracle. That's the formula. You first have a need, and you believe that in that need, God is bigger than your problem, greater than your difficulty, larger than your challenge. And then you pray earnestly and praise God that he is going to deliver you. And God works a miracle. Need plus faith plus prayer plus praise equals a miracle.
We need to run along to Monday's lesson. Paul in chains. Now, this time that he's in chains here in Philippi in Acts chapter 16 was the first time. But throughout his life, he faced many hardships, many difficulties. We read about that in 2 Corinthians 4:7-12. 2 Corinthians chapter 4, verse 7-12. Paul faced many a trial, many a difficulty, many a challenge. 2 Corinthians chapter 4, starting with verse 7: "But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us. We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; we are persecuted, but not forsaken; we are struck down, but not destroyed. Always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus may also be manifest in our body."
So Paul faced trial. He faced difficulty. He faced shipwreck. But notice what he says here in verse 10: "Always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus may be manifest in our body." When we go through trials in life, when we go through challenges that are bigger than we are, when the problems seem to be overwhelming, God is doing something in us. God is shaping us. God is molding us so that the life of Christ can be manifest in us. Every difficulty is a call to prayer. Every challenge is a call to draw closer to Jesus. Every problem is an opportunity to exhibit our faith.
Here, the note under Monday's lesson says, "No matter how hard life got, Paul was able to see a brighter side, and that gave him courage to bear up under stress." Despite Satan hurling everything he could, Paul knew that he was not forsaken. That's the key. Remember what Jesus says in Matthew 28:20, "Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the world." Hebrews 13:5, Jesus says, "I will never forsake you."
Here in 2 Corinthians chapter 6:3-7, we see some spiritual resources that the Apostle Paul had that you and I can have too to deal with every difficulty. 2 Corinthians chapter 6, verses 3-7, spiritual resources. We are not left alone in this battle. We're not left alone in the trials of life. He says in 2 Corinthians chapter 6, starting with verse 3, "We give no offense in anything, that our ministry may not be blamed." In other words, he was tried unjustly. He was put in prison for no good reason at all. But "in all these things we commend ourselves as ministers of God: in much patience, in tribulations, in needs, in distresses, in stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in sleeplessness, in fastings; by purity, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Spirit, by sincere love, by the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armor of righteousness on the right hand and on the left."
Isn't that amazing? He tells you all these challenges that he's facing, all these difficulties that he experienced, all the trials that he's gone through. He says, "This is what we're dealing with?" Then he says, "Here's the way I deal with this. First, by a pure life." In other words, I have no regrets. Secondly, by knowledge, I know that Christ is my Savior. Christ is my Redeemer. By long-suffering, I, I, I'm patient in this. By kindness, by the Holy Spirit, by sincere love, by the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armor of righteousness. Just think about those last three that he lists: by the word of truth. Fill your mind with the word of the living God, and the word of the living God will strengthen you. Then it says here in verse 7, "by the power of God." Trust in trial that God's power will be poured out in your life. He goes on to say, "By the armor of righteousness." There is a spiritual armor that comes that Christ clothes us with when we trust in His righteousness. And on he will, he will guide us, the text says, on the right hand and on the left.
Again, our note, it says there's a wonderful sentence beginning with "Also," about six sentences down under Monday's lesson. "Also, the Holy Spirit makes effectual what has been brought out by the world's Redeemer. It is by the Spirit the heart is made pure. Through the Spirit the believer becomes a partaker of the divine nature. Christ has given His Spirit as a divine power to overcome all heredity and cultivated tendencies to evil, and to impress His own character upon His church." This is Desire of Ages, page 671.
In Tuesday's lesson, we get a little background of Philippi. I've traveled to Philippi on numerous occasions. The ruins of that city are fairly intact today. There's been a lot of archaeological discoveries there. Philippi was at the end of the Ignatian Way. It was a Roman retirement city, not far from the sea. The sea breezes blew in, and the climate was outstanding. They had discovered gold in the Pangaean hills decades before. So when you think about Philippi, it's a wealthy retirement city at the end of the Ignatian Way. Now, what's the Ignatian Way? It's one of the systems of Roman roads that takes you from there several hundred miles back to Rome. So, very prosperous city. When you lived in Philippi, you could pretty well get whatever you desired by the way of goods: beautiful togas and clothing, food that came in either from the ocean or transported by wagons on the Ignatian Way, uh, art, culture. They had a beautiful little coliseum there, a small stadium that would seat probably 3, 4,000 people. Population was maybe about 15,000 at at the most, but a larger stadium because of the travelers that would come in. You had a lot of travelers that swelled the population of the city. Philippi was one of the chief cities of Macedonia, which is the northern province. Just an amazing little city. Ruins of that city today, uh, still attract scores of visitors. It was here that God directed Paul to plant the first Christian church in the European soil. Why Philippi? Because the gospel could easily be taken over the Roman roads because people would be coming there from different parts of the empire. Because if you impacted that city as a test case, you could also reach Thessalonica. You could also reach Athens and Corinth and Berea. So Philippi became a test city.
Now, Paul writes back from prison to the Philippians. He loves the church at Philippi. They are some of his dearest, dearest friends. The first church in Europe. It's a multi-ethnic church because there's a businesswoman from, uh, Thyatira there from Asia. There's a little slave girl. She could have been from Africa or some other province they, they captured, the Romans captured. And then there's a Roman civil servant. They all, with their families, begin the first Christian church. So it's, it's, it's a multi-ethnic church. Paul just loved that church, wrote to it in Philippians so endearingly.
But then you have Colossae. Now, Paul never visited Colossae. Colossae has not been well excavated. It's a mound there. I climbed it just not long ago, and, um, we can see the ruins scattered. Not much for excavations at all. Uh, Paul again in Colossians writes powerfully against heresy, uplifts the Lord Jesus Christ. In Colossians 4:9, we read these words. The centrality of Christ shines through in the book of Colossians. There were some challenges there, but listen to what Paul writes in Colossians 4:9. He talks about Onesimus, "a faithful and beloved brother, who is one of you." So this Onesimus comes from Colossae. Why is it that Paul is so interested in writing about Onesimus? Well, there is a reason for that that we find in the book of Philemon. There's a reason for that that we read about in the book of Philemon. Philemon, verses 15 and 16: "Why is Paul interested in this Onesimus?" Paul's in prison in Rome. Onesimus becomes this runaway slave. Paul meets him in Rome, leads Onesimus to Christ, but Onesimus is from Colossae. So he writes to his master Philemon in verses 15 and 16: "For perhaps he departed for a while for this purpose, that you might receive him forever, no longer as a slave but more than a slave, as a beloved brother, especially to me; but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord?"
I should pause there. Why doesn't Paul come right out and condemn slavery? Now, make no doubt about it. Slavery is unjust. It's despicable. It's horrible to treat human beings as mere cattle and to treat your human beings with no human dignity merely because of the color of their skin. Horrible. Horrible injustice. But why doesn't Paul condemn it openly? There are two reasons for this. First, the slavery we knew in modern times was quite different than the slavery then. These people were more like indentured servants, and, uh, many of them were treated well by their masters. So that's one reason. Not all of them. There were masters that were wicked and cruel. But there were masters that provided them a base living, a small place to live, and welcomed them as servants in the homes. But there was a second reason. For Paul at that time to speak openly against it would have caused a rebellion in the Roman government. The slaves would have been worse off and impressed and deep and and oppressed further. So the Apostle Paul, rather than doing that, writes to Philemon and says, "You treat Onesimus as a brother. You treat him with dignity. You treat him with respect."
Colossae and Philippi had some similarities. We read about those similarities in Philippians chapter 1, verses 1 to 3, and Colossians 1, verses 1 and 2. Two cities, one that Paul visited, one that Paul did not visit. Philippians 1, verses 1 to 3: Look what the Apostle says. "Paul and Timothy, servants of Jesus Christ, to all the saints, that's the believers in Christ Jesus, who are in Philippi, with the bishops and deacons. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." Now, let's go over to Colossians chapter 1. Colossians chapter 1, verse 1 and 2: "Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, to the saints and faithful brethren in Christ who are in Colossae." In both instances, he talks about those who are faithful, those who are committed to Christ. The church at Philippi and the church at Colossae, although they were both different, were faithful to Jesus.
What are the main points of this lesson this week? What are the takeaways from this lesson? Takeaway number one: Paul's in prison and he rejoices. We can rejoice when trials come to our lives because Christ never abandons us in trial. The second thing that we can notice is that Paul goes to Philippi, which is a chief city in that part of Macedonia, and starts a multi-ethnic church that resonated together in the gospel of Christ, that the gospel breaks down barriers between us. The gospel unites us. And the third thing we can notice, a takeaway is the church at Philippi and the church at Colossae were faithful to the Lord Jesus. This is an appeal to you and to me to be faithful to Christ at any cost.
Let's pray. Father in heaven, we thank you for your love and grace and your goodness. We thank you for the call of faithfulness to Jesus. And Lord, may we find joy in every circumstance of our lives. We pray thee in Christ's name. Amen.