Philippians: Progress and Joy in the Faith

I've been doing a lot of reading in Philippians lately, as I'm speaking for a youth camp this weekend and focusing on several passages for the messages.

I've always characterized Philippians as a book focused on the joy of the Lord and of following Him. This is an accurate assessment, as Paul uses the term joy/rejoice over 10 times in 4 short chapters:
- 1:4- "making my prayer with joy"
- 1:18- "Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice."
- 1:25- "I will...continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith."
- 2:2- "complete my joy by being of the same mind"
- 2:17- "Even if I am am to be poured out as a drink offering...I rejoice with you all."
- 2:29- "Receive him in the Lord with all joy"
- 3:1- "Rejoice in the Lord..."
- 4:1- "Therefore my brothers, whom I love and log for, my joy and my crown..."
- 4:4- "Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice."

This is a sampling of the types of things that Paul speaks about in connection with joy. He covers items from prayer to evangelism to unity to one's relationship with God. It is obvious that this is a huge theme for this little epistle.

However, as I've dug a little more deeply and more specifically recently, I've also noticed a huge emphasis on a believer's progress in the faith. Specifically, Paul repeatedly addresses the tension of working hard to progress in your faith with the understanding that God is the one working in you and through you. Consider:
- 1:6- "And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ."
- 2:12-13- "Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure."
- 3:12-13- "Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead..."
- 4:12-13- "I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me."

Here we see Paul repeatedly describing a believer's faith as a journey where the believer works hard ("work out", "press on", "straining forward") to progress and grow; yet, all the while, God himself is completing the work and supplying the strength (see the bold text above).

It seems then fitting that Philippians 1:25 is a great theme verse for the book, and should be the goal of every believer, and a priority of every church: "Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith."

Fight for joy, fight for progress. God will give it.

Fathers' Day Sermon- A Father's Love

Here's my Fathers' Day Sermon entitle "A Father's Love", given at Revive Church on June 17, 2013.

Psalm 103:13- "As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him."

Disciplining Love
Providing Love
Compassionate Love.

Spiritual Fitness- Sermon on 1 Timothy 4:1-10

Here's my sermon from Sunday May 19 at Revive Church on 1 Timothy 4:1-10 entitled "Spiritual Fitness." (We had some technical difficulties with the audio, so I sound like I'm screaming into my pillow, but that's alright!)

The deceived servant will fall away.
- Deceitful Teaching
- Seared Conscience
- Legalism
The disciplined servant will remain faithful.
- Different Diet
- Different Discipline
- Different Source of Strength

Mothers' Day "Poem"

This last Sunday, I had the honor of giving the message at my church for Mothers' Day. I'll be honest with you- it was one of the toughest messages to plan and preach (since the elders decided to do a moms-specific message). I am not a mother (obviously), and it was a challenge and a stretch to preach something encouraging, sensitive, challenging, grateful, etc.

One thing I was sure of was that I didn't want anyone feeling shame over their shortcomings (or perceived shortcomings) with their own family or their own mother. Therefore, I had to emphasize the gospel, and  not just the importance of a godly momma. In my prep, I came across a great article - "Happy Daughter's Day" -  by Elyse Fitzpatrick, and it prompted me to write the below "poem" in encouragement to mothers about the great God they serve:

It is not about your temporary status as a mother, it is about your eternal position as a daughter.

It is not about birthing children; it is about being re-birthed by God’s Spirit.

It is not about your performance as a mother, it is about Jesus’ perfection as a Savior.

It is not about having faithful children, but having faith like a child.

It’s not about weaning kids, but about worshipping the King.

It is not about your greatness; it is about Jesus’ grace.

It is not about your skillset; it is about God’s strength.

It is not about your imperfect love, but his perfect love.
It is not about your work, it is about Jesus’ worth.

If you wanted to check out the whole sermon "A Mother's Faith" (on Timothy's godly mother), here it is as well:

Paul's Testimony: Great Mission, Great Mercy (Sunday Sermon 4/14/13)

Here's the sermon I preached Sunday April 14 at Revive Church in Claremont.

Text: 1 Timothy 1:12-20

Outline
1. Paul receives a mission
2. Paul receives mercy.
3. Paul gives glory.

Enjoy!

Making Work Better

I've been reading a little about the theology of work, mainly from Tim Keller's Every Good Endeavor: Connecting Your Work to God's Work. This topic has intrigued me since I am a Bible-lover who is also in his early career years. It just so happens that my career has centered on staffing and recruiting.

On a semi-related note, and a shameless self-plug (hey, this is my blog), some friends and I launched an online hiring system this week, called Flazingo. The aim is to bring world-class hiring processes in a user-friendly format for any business to use (though we've started by aiming to serve small businesses, who are mainly do-it-yourself when it comes to hiring.) We believe humans are created to work and find the most satisfaction when they're using their gifts in a productive manner. We believe the best companies are those who care most about their employees gifts, lives, and productivity. In a small way, we believe the better companies hire, the better the world will be!

Since I know my general blog traffic, the odds are that you are a college friend, a family member, or someone who clicked on the wrong link. At any rate, check out our system or pass it along to someone who may be interested in it.


Flazingo - Complete Hiring System from Flazingo on Vimeo.

Good Friday Sermon: What Happened and What it Means

Here's my Good Friday sermon, given at Revive Church on March 29, 2013. Much of my study for this came from my favorite John MacArthur book, The Murder of Jesus.

"Good Friday: What Happened and What it Means"
1. Jesus was bound so that we would be free.
2. Jesus was found guilty so that we would be clean.
3. Jesus was forsaken so that we would be accepted.
4. Jesus died so that we might live.