Philippians 2:14-16
We are called to be a light to the world around us. Thank God that He did not tell us to build a light. God didn’t ask us to figure it out on our own. He tells us to simply be a light, as the light of life is already on the inside of us. Today we are going to be in the book of Philippians.
The church in Philippi was a strong church. They were one of the only churches who partnered with Paul in his ministry. However, they were facing persecution from outside the walls of the church. They were trying to force them to conform to the societal norms of that day. They also faced issues of a corrupt government during that time. Christians were being wrongfully imprisoned and even killed for their faith.
The pressures of of that day were effecting them in that divisions were beginning to happen. Fractions within the church were starting to form. This is why Paul encourages them to stay united and of the same mind.
Paul also reminds them that Jesus faced persecution, however, He humbled Himself even to the point of death on a cross. In the midst of pressure to conform to the societal norms of that day, in humility Paul encourages the church to do something specific. Let’s read it together.
Philippians
2:14-16
“14 Do all things without complaining and disputing, 15 that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, 16 holding fast the word of life…”
Paul encourages the church to do all things without complaining and grumbling. To be fair, the Philippians had a reason to be upset; they had a reason to be unsettled. They were being pressured by the world around them to compromise their Christian beliefs in order to fit in with society. Sound familiar?
We too are facing similar pressures in our world
today.
- Tolerance
- Gender identity
- LGBTQ Agendas
- Abortion
- Relativism
- Humanism
Society today is trying to pressure the church into compromising it’s Christian values in order to fit in with the culture of the day. They are pushing for the church to embrace secular/ humanistic concepts in place of the Christian values found in God’s Word. What is crazy is that there are churches that have actually done it! They have shamefully embraced the world’s system, giving themselves over to doctrines of devils. How awful!
You see, the problem is not a political party. The issue is not specific people group. The problem is the devil. We are not facing a political issue or a social issue, it is a spiritual issue. The devil is building a world without God. He is misleading people in this world to darkness and away from the light. He wants to control the church and dim the light that God has given us.
Just hearing these things is enough to make us upset.
In fact, we have a right to be. We are living in a day and age where God is
being removed from the picture.
•
Christian values
are being attacked
•
The family unit
is being threatened
•
Corruption is
trying to seep its way into our government system more and more
• Schools are being used as a place to indoctrinate our children with twisted agendas
We have a reason to voice our concerns. We have reason to complain and grumble about the current state of our nation. However, Paul had even more of a reason to complain. Paul was wrongfully imprisoned for the gospel. He did nothing illegal, He just made the devil mad. Therefore, we was thrown in prison and was threatened to be killed. He was mistreated by the government of that day. He was beaten on numerous occasions. If anyone had a reason to complain, it was Paul the Apostle.
However, he did not complain about his current circumstances, Instead, he rejoiced in his hardship. While he was in prison, Roman military and guards were hearing the gospel; something that would have happened if he was not imprisoned. Paul was not focused on the problem at hand, he was focused on the goal: souls!
You see, Paul understood something that God is wanting for us to grab a hold of:
1.
We
are living in a crooked and perverse generation
•
The world we are
living in is lost
•
Crooked
= Skolios = Warped; wicked; unable to handle the weight of life
•
Perverse
= diastrephō = Corrupt; to turn aside from the right
path
•
There is no
political platform that can fix our nation/ world
2.
Jesus
is the answer
- He was the answer then
- He is still the answer today
3.
God
is relying on you
- He has already done His part
- Now He is relying on you and me
- He has called you and I to be a light
Let us not give in to the temptation to complain about
our current situation. Let us not get stuck on the issues we are facing.
Instead, let us be a light. We do not shine our light any default. We cannot
expect for our light to shine by just going through life. We must be
intentional. So, how can we be a light?
I.
Pray
Pray for our nation, pray for our leaders, pray for our neighbors
Pray that Jesus would save souls
Pray that Jesus would change hearts
Pray that Jesus would heal our land
II.
Hold
fast to the Word of God
Boldly raise the standard of God’s Word in your life
Be unashamed about the truth
Share the truth in love
Do not waver from the truth
People need to know where to go to find the beacon of light
III.
Share
Jesus with others
Realize that the world is watching
They don’t need to see us, they need to see Jesus
