Comments on Philippians 1:12-20

I'm going to be covering the next nine verses of Philippians 1 so we’ll be picking up in verse 12 and reading through verse 20.

Now I want you to know, brethren, that my circumstances have turned out for the greater progress of the gospel, so that my imprisonment in the cause of Christ has become well known throughout the whole praetorian guard and to everyone else, and that most of the brethren, trusting in the Lord because of my imprisonment, have far more courage to speak the word of God without fear. Some, to be sure, are preaching Christ even from envy and strife, but some also from good will; the latter do it out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel; the former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition rather than from pure motives, thinking to cause me distress in my imprisonment. What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed; and in this I rejoice.

Yes, and I will rejoice, for I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayers and the provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, according to my earnest expectation and hope, that I will not be put to shame in anything, but that with all boldness, Christ will even now, as always, be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death.

Last time, I had read the portion in Acts 16 reminding us of what all had taken place in Philippi that Paul could still say that he was thankful to the Philippians believers. Today, though I won’t read it, I would encourage the reading of Acts 21:27 - 28:31. These several chapters detail the “things which happened unto” him or his circumstances leading up to his writing of this letter. We can be so grateful that he was imprisoned so we can have Philippians along with the other so-called Prison Epistles (Colossians, Ephesians and Philemon). So let’s dive into the text.

    Paul could look at everything that had happened to him, from his arrest, to the shipwreck, to his imprisonment in Rome and find joy, because the gospel was being furthered. That word “furtherance” or “greater progress” in the NAS comes from the Greek word προκοπή which was a military term used to describe the army engineers that opened up new routes for the troops to take. Rather than seeing his imprisonment as a hindrance of his mission, he chose to use it to help. What circumstances do we find ourselves in that maybe we need to change our perspective on and see them as something we can use to bring glory to God?

    In the next verse, he tells his readers and us that the whole praetorian guard and everyone else have come to know that his bonds are for Christ. These guardsmen were hand-picked from the veterans of the Roman army and charged with guarding Caesar himself and yet there was a rotating schedule of these men chained to Paul. Do you think Paul let that time go to waste? We know from later in the book that some of these men, at least, came to faith in Jesus Christ. If not for his imprisonment, Paul would more than likely never have had the opportunity to preach the gospel to Caesar’s household.

    So we continue on and Paul writes of those that are now speaking the word without fear. Perhaps there were those in Rome and elsewhere who had been too timid to speak of Christ, but seeing Paul’s circumstances and how he was not hindered freed their tongues. It’s possible that some went out who might not have but were encouraged that if Paul in prison could keep preaching then perhaps they could too. Interestingly, the word “speak” there is from the Greek λαλέω which is the word for everyday conversation here. The next verse mentions preaching, but there is something to be said for having the Lord’s things be part of our normal speech during our normal days as well. 

    Paul next mentions two groups of people that are now preaching Christ. One does so from envy and strife and one from love and good will. He then expounds on these two groups in the next two verses as well. I found it interesting that in the NAS the order is reversed from the KJV but still both groups are discussed. The first group is hoping to add to Paul’s distress or the KJV has “add affliction to my bonds.” They are preaching Christ and finding joy in Paul’s current predicament. These men were probably those that didn’t agree with Paul on some matters and so were making names for themselves while they were preaching. Envy and strife have destroyed more local bodies of believers than any barb from the outside ever has.

The other group knew Paul and his heart for the gospel and spread it out of love for him. He was currently unable to freely proclaim it, and so they went out. They knew he was “appointed for the defence of the gospel,” and decided to help their brother in his work since he was currently “out of commission” as it were, though we know he was making the most of where he was anyway. 

    

    So what does Paul make of these two groups? The next verse tells us. He rejoices that Christ is preached. Sometimes we do get hung up on methods or people and forget that Christ being preached is good in and of itself. Obviously Paul wasn’t going to rejoice in the fact that there were those preaching from a place of envy and strife, but he could rejoice that the gospel was going out. We should hope for preachers sharing the good news from a place of love for Christ, and yet in many pulpits around the world this morning I am sure that not everyone is preaching Christ in sincerity of heart. There might even be pastors in this town that are preaching because they like to hear themselves talk, or they like being congratulated and thanked after the sermon. But if the Word of God is going out, Isaiah 55:11 reminds us “It will not return to [Him] empty, without accomplishing what [He] desire[s], and without succeeding in the matter for which [He] sent it.” 

Now I do want to pause for a minute here and make it clear that I am not for those that are preaching Christ selfishly, but I am for Christ Himself. I know in my own heart that my preaching isn’t always from a place of pure sincerity and I do try and stay humble enough to recognize that. I also ought to have grace for my brothers that I might not entirely agree with. Wiersbe had an interesting anecdote about John Wesley and George Whitefield in his commentary: “It is a matter of historic record that the two great English evangelists, John Wesley and George Whitefield, disagreed on doctrinal matters. Both of them were very successful, preaching to thousands of people and seeing multitudes come to Christ. It is reported that somebody asked Wesley if he expected to see Whitefield in heaven, and the evangelist replied, ‘No, I do not.’ ‘Then you do not think Whitefield is a converted man?’ ‘Of course he is a converted man!’ Wesley said. ‘But I do not expect to see him in heaven - because he will be so close to the throne of God and I so far away that I will not be able to see him.’” We ought to remember to have grace and humility with one another (as we we can see from 1 Peter) and be able to rejoice when Christ is glorified.

    Paul then goes on to show his confidence in his soon release from his imprisonment because of their prayers for him. We’ve said multiple times in this hall how important and how powerful a group of believers earnestly praying can be, and Paul knew that power too. He also saw his deliverance as being a “provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.” That word provision, or supply in the KJV, is from the Greek ἐπιχορηγία from which we get our word “chorus.” In those days, when a Greek city was having a celebration or festival somebody had to pay for the singers and dancers. That payment was often so large, that the word became associated with a lavish donation and so Paul was looking, not to his own resources, but to those of Christ, which are limitless. He was in prison and at this point probably owned very little, and yet he knew he could trust Him who is always faithful. 

    Wrapping up this morning, Paul is confident also that at the appearing of his Lord he will not be ashamed. He knew that even though the first ruling had gone in his favor he was not necessarily out of the woods yet. But he also knew that, with Christ as the object of his affection and his reason for being, he would make sure that the glory for whatever happened next went to Him. From our human perspective it seems odd to say that a person could magnify the Son of God. I liked the analogy Wiersbe used in his commentary of a telescope. A far off star is many millions of times greater than a telescope here on earth and yet when you look through that telescope you can see the star more clearly. That should be our purpose as well, as it was Paul’s. We look through his life and can see Christ more fully and more clearly. When others look through our lives, can they say the same? One of my favorite songs from Phillips, Craig & Dean is called “Will you love Jesus more?” The chorus of that song is :
Will you love Jesus more
When we go our different ways?

When this moment is a memory,

Will you remember His face?

Will you look back and realize

You sensed His love more than you did before?

I’d pray for nothing less,

Than for you to love Jesus more.

And that is my prayer for us as well. Let us be like Paul and seek to magnify Christ whether it be by life or death. No matter our circumstances, no matter whether we are criticized, persecuted or just going through difficult times, let us preach Christ and Him crucified and the many blessings that He has brought to us. Let our speech be bold for Him.