- Well, good morning, everyone, it's great to be with all of you. And I wanna encourage you to take a Bible out right now and open it up to Philippians chapter one verse 12. We are in the midst of a brand new series, a study in the book of Philippians. And hopefully, you've already had enough time to download the notes off our website, you've got a pen handy and ready to go as we dive into God's word together. Lemme pray for us, and then we will begin. Father in heaven, we're grateful for your word. And we ask right now that you would give us eyes to see your truth and hearts willing to obey. It's in Christ's name that we pray. Amen. You know, I think we all wanna live a life that's worth living. It's hard enough when things are going well. However, when things are not going well, we still are encouraged to live this kind of a life that Paul unpacks for us. And so, today, Paul is gonna show us how we can can find real joy by living a life worth living. Our series title or the theme of our series and study, in the book of Philippians, is to choose to rejoice. And we can, we can choose this kind of life because we know Christ is Savior and Lord. And Paul's gonna show us how we can find joy as we live this kind of life, and he's also gonna reveal to us the driving force behind his life. He wants us to really understand what this life looks like, this kind of Christ-centered life that is worth living in the midst of times when circumstances do not go our way. If you look down at verse 12, I wanna begin to read all the way through verse 30. So it's a huge section, but you're gonna see why it all comes together. And then we're gonna talk about some real practical truths today. Look down at verse 12 with me. Paul begins and he says, "I want you to know, brothers, "that what has happened to me "has really served to advance the gospel." Now, stop right here, let me just fill in a few gaps along the way. Paul is writing a letter to encourage the believers in Philippi. This is the place where he planted a church. They are concerned for Paul, and they're probably concerned that the gospel is not advancing, that by putting Paul in jail, that somehow that has inhibited him from sharing Christ and their concern for Paul. Well, Paul wants to answer their question. And he says, "Hey, what has happened to me has really served "to advance the good news of Jesus." The word gospel means good news of Jesus. It describes the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. If you go to 1st Corinthians chapter 15 verses one to four, Paul lays out probably the best definition of the gospel. Jesus lived, Jesus died, he was buried, and he rose again. Why? So that by putting our trust and faith in him, we can have eternal life, our sin is forgiven, and we have his power living in and through us so that we can live a new transformed life here and also look forward to eternal life, because our sin is forgiven through Christ who paid the price for our sin. That's the gospel. And Paul says, "Hey, what's happened to me going to prison, "it's actually advanced this good news," verse 13, "So that it has become known "throughout the whole imperial guard, "and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ. "And most of the brothers, "having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, "are much more bold to speak the word without fear." Now, at first glance, when you look at this, you have to ask yourself the question, how is going to jail advancing the gospel? People were probably wondering up in Philippi, "Wait a minute, "they've put Paul, the Apostle, "the greatest church plantar in their lifetime, in jail, "doesn't that mean that Rome is more powerful than Christ?" And Paul says, "Absolutely not." And quite frankly, if you look at this on the surface, I mean, for people to say, "Wait a minute, Paul, how is it advancing the gospel? "How is it a good PR marketing strategy to plan a church, "to invite people into a relationship with Jesus Christ, "and then to tell them, "'Oh, by the way, if you follow Jesus Christ, "'you're gonna go to jail and get your head lopped off, "'you're gonna struggle, you're gonna suffer.'" And the average person could be reading this and actually saying, "Well, wait a minute, how is that attractive? "Why would I wanna enter into a relationship "with Jesus Christ? "And how is that "a wonderful church marketing planting strategy "to tell people, 'Follow Jesus and you're gonna go to jail "'and you might die?'" Well, Paul says, and we'll come back to this in a minute, that that actually advances the good news of Jesus Christ. And then he goes on in verse 15 and he says, "Well, some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, "but others, from goodwill." In other words, Paul has some opponents, some critics. I think these are believers, but they're not on Paul's team. Notice the next verse, in 16, he says, "The latter do it out of love," those that are really communicating Jesus Christ out of love and goodwill, "Knowing that I am put here in prison "for the defense of the gospel. "The former though," those that are jealous, "The former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, "not sincerely "but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment." They're probably rejoicing in the fact that Paul is in jail so that they get the honor and the prestige of being great church planters. Well, in verse 18, Paul says, "What then? "Only that in every way, "whether in pretense or in truth, "Christ is proclaimed, "and in that I rejoice" Paul doesn't care how it happens, he wants the message of Jesus Christ to go out. And so he says, "I rejoice," or, "I find joy." And then he says, a second time, "Yes, and I will rejoice." And then he explains why. In verse 19, it's the word for or because. "I'm rejoicing that Christ is proclaimed "because I know," and he lists a couple of things. "That through your prayers," the prayers of the believers, "And the help of the Spirit of Jesus," this is the Holy Spirit that saved Paul, that's operating in him and in the believers up in Philippi, "Through their prayers and the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ, "he is," he says this, "This will turn out for my deliverance, "as it is my eager expectation "or confident expectation and hope "that I will not be at all ashamed. "But that with full courage, "now as always, Christ will be honored in my body, "whether by life or by death." And then he gives really the central driving force of his life. In verse 21, he says, "For or because, let me explain it further," he says, "For to me to live is Christ, and to die his gain." What's he saying here in those verses? Paul is saying, that through the prayers of the saints, and through his prayers as well, and also the Spirit of God that dwells within him, he knows that all of this is gonna turn out for his deliverance. Deliverance from what? Deliverance from prison, he's gonna be set free, or deliverance to heaven. 'Cause Paul says, whether it's by life or death, both are gonna provide an opportunity, he says, to what? To honor Christ. "Christ will be proclaimed and honored in my body "by life or by death." And so I know, and he's confident, he has this eager expectation of knowing 'cause his hope is found in Jesus Christ who is gonna take him to heaven. That no matter what happens, whether he's released from prison, that would be deliverance because he's gonna live for Christ in this life, he says. Or he says, "By death, I'm gonna enter into the very presence, "I'm gonna be delivered from this life "to honor Jesus Christ forever." Then he says, in verse 22, "If I am to live in the flesh, "that means fruitful labor for me. "Yet which I shall choose, I cannot tell. "I am hard-pressed between the two. "My desire is to depart and be with Christ, "for this is far better, "I'm gonna pend eternity with him, "but to remain in the flesh is more necessary "on your account." And then he says, "Convinced of this," somehow he's convinced he is gonna be released, I think that's the idea, at least that's the way I read it. "Convinced of this, "I know that I will remain and continue with you all," he's gonna remain in this life, "For your progress and joy in the face." So I'm gonna stay here so that you can now find the same kinda joy I found, "So that in me, "you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus "because of my coming to you again." Now Paul switches to them in verse 27. In 12 through 26, Paul's talking about his own life as an example. And now, in verse 27, he says, "Only let your manner of life be worthy "of the gospel of Christ. "So that whether I come and see you, or in absent, "I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, "with one mind, striving side-by-side for the truth, "for the faith of the gospel, "and not frightened in anything by your opponents. "This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, "but of your salvation and that from God. "This sign has been given "to you as a sign of their destruction and salvation. "For, and again, because it has been granted to you "that for the sake of Christ, to proclaim him, "you should not only believe in him, "but also suffer for his sake, "engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had "and now hear that I still have." It is within verses 27 through 30 that Paul talks about four traits to a life that is worth living. He describes his example, and then he challenges them to live in the same way. And I want you to look down at verse 27, here's where we're gonna spend a lot of our time. And Paul says, "Only." In other words, this should be the central driving force of your life. He says, "Let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel." What's he talking about? The good news of Jesus Christ. He says, "Let your life reflect the good news of Jesus Christ." Now, this phrase, let your manner of life, actually means that you need to allow your life not to earn the gospel. He's not saying let your manner of life be lived in such a way that you earn the gospel. No, he's saying, "Let your life be lived in a way "that is befitting of the gospel." Now, this word, manner of life, is the same word, if you'll flip over to Philippians chapter 3 verse 20, you'll see it. He translated differently, but it's the same idea. He says, "But our citizenship," it's the same word, "Is in heaven. "And from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Chris." Now, why would he used that word? Well, here's the background that helps us understand this. Paul is writing to a Roman colony, a leading Roman colony in Philippi. And citizenship meant everything. And so Paul is using a metaphor here. He is saying, "Look, you are citizens of Rome, "and therefore, because of that, "you need to live in light of that, "you need to reflect your citizenship." In other words, because you're a citizen, that means you have a duty and an obligation to live like a good Roman, with the morals and values of a Roman citizen. And Paul is saying, "Now that you are a citizen of heaven," it's the same word when he says, "Let your manner of life." You now lead to live with the same morals and values of your heavenly address in heaven. And when you do, you demonstrate, by your life, that you've been given the gospel, that the gospel is worthy or truthful, because as you live this way, it demonstrates that the gospel of Jesus Christ not only saves you, but transforms you in this life. Now, many of us know the modern illustration of Megan and Harry, the Dutch and Duchess of Sussex. They chose not to live as Royals anymore. Because when you live as a royal over in England, you have to live according to morals and values, you gotta dress like one, you gotta act like one. And Paul is saying, "Look, I want you to act in a way "that is befitting of the gospel. "And as you do, "it'll demonstrate the truthfulness "of the good news of Jesus Christ." And as you do, he explains and unpacks what that looks like. The four traits of a life worth living start with this phrase that he gives you right away, right up front, when he says, "Only let your manner of life "be worthy of the gospel of Christ." Verse 27, again, notice, "So that, whether I come to see you or I'm absent, "I may hear of you, that you are," and here it is the first one, "Standing firm in one spirit." The idea here is standing strong in the face of opposition, those that were coming against Paul. And, again, he's drawing on his example. Now, when adversity comes, perspective is everything. So where does he get this perspective from? Well, he tells you, back up in chapter one, verse nine, we covered this last week. He says that it is a prayer that their love may abound with more knowledge and discernment. Knowledge of what? Knowledge of the truth. In the midst of difficult circumstances, in the midst of opposition, I can stand strong because I am reminded that God is in charge, I am reminded that, as Romans 8:28 points out, that he works all things together for good to those who love him and are called according to his purpose. I'm reminded that when I do the hard work of loving someone else, even though it might be discouraging, I don't trust my feelings. I trust the truth of God's word, that as I love him, God is gonna use this to transform lives and hopefully reach them and advance the good news in and through me. God is using your adversity. God is using the circumstances that you find yourself in to advance his good news. Now, where do we get this from? Well, we now go back to the time where Paul is in prison, which he just explained not only in Philippi, but right here Rome as he writes this letter. We go back to what he says back up in verse 12. Paul was at house arrest, Paul was chained to a guard 24/7. There were six different shifts. And that means that there were four different guards that were chained to Paul 24/7 under house arrest in Rome. And that means that he had a captive audience. That means that, as he said, the gospel is going and advancing throughout, he says, "The whole imperial guard," he says in verse 13. That means that Paul was sharing Christ with each and every one of them. I mean, I can't imagine a Roman soldier going home to his family at the end of this and say, "You're not gonna believe this prisoner, "I've never experienced anything like this. "I've never experienced or had a prisoner like "this guy Paul. "He's telling me about this guy Jesus Christ, "and he cares about me. "He knows your name." As the soldier is talking to his wife, he's saying, "Hey, he knows your name, he's praying for us, "he's caring for us. "I've never met anything like this." And then furthermore, Paul says that because of this, the gospel is going out, these individuals, these Roman soldiers, are now giving their lives to Jesus Christ, and as a result of this, it's going beyond the imperial guard. How do we know that? We'll go over to chapter four and locate verse 21. Paul is sending greetings. And he says, "Greet every saint in Christ Jesus, "the brothers who are with me greet you "and all the saints greet you." And notice, "Especially those of Caesar's household." What's he saying here? He's saying that even though he's in prison, he's reaching people in the White House. He's reaching people in places that you could never even imagine. And the point here is this, even in the midst of opposition, only God can do this. Only God can do these kinds of things. I mean, there's no other way around it. Paul's life is being lived in such a way that these guards are giving their lives to Christ, and now people in Caesar's household are giving their lives to Christ. Because remember, Paul's in jail in defense of Christ. And so they wanna investigate what this new sect is, called Christianity. Who are these Christ followers? Well, Paul's given a ready made opportunity to explain to the highest of highest authorities in Rome, in the Roman Empire, who Jesus Christ is. And, as a result of all of this, now, there are others who are watching Paul and they're seeing how bold he is, and so now they're encouraged to be bold for their faith. Now, what does this look like in a life especially now? A couple of thoughts here that you need to be reminded of based on this. And that is, when we go through circumstances, and we stand strong, it means that we're gonna have access to people we've never had access to before. When we go through situations in life, all of a sudden, there's a new group of relationships that we can share Jesus Christ with those people. And it shows that Christ is real, and we get to share Christ with people who may have never heard of him before. And that's especially true in our culture right now. We have a chance to live in a way that demonstrates the truth of our faith. When we go through cancer, when we go through death, when we go through trials and circumstances and difficulties, Paul says it shows up. And it also demonstrates that someone is willing to die for this. If called upon, they're willing to die for this. And that demonstrates it's all true. And I know some of us have had our lives turned upside down, and we're reminded that God is in control and that he's working in and through you, and that he wants you to share this new life with others. Paul was reminding us that there was a partnership that these believers had with him. And that I can strong in the community, we'll come back to this in a minute, with one another. And that means we gotta get in a small group with people, especially during this time. It also means that if you are needing to walk with another couple right now in your relationship, we have this wonderful new mentoring ministry for couples here at Rockpoint Church. And I wanna encourage you, as soon as I'm done, as soon as our service is completely wrapped up, to get online and click on mentor couples on our website. These are couples ready to walk with you. Your marriage might be going really good but you wanna improve it, I would sign up for it. Your marriage may not be doing really well, and you may wanna walk alongside of another couple who can walk you through what it means to live out this new life in Jesus Christ in your marriage relationship. Well, the second trait that Paul talks about here is striving for the faith. Now we stand strong in the face of opposition, but now this is really the offensive. And he says, "I want you to stand firm in one spirit, with one mindm" and then he says, at the end of verse 27, "Striving side by side for the faith of the gospel." In other words, working hard, striving together. Now, when Paul says, "I want you to strive for the faith," that's the gospel. Again, it's living for it. And Paul explained what living for that means when he was talking, in verse 21, and actually starting in verse 20, when he says, "Hey, I wanna live in such a way that Christ is honored. "So for me to live is Christ, "and to die would honor Christ." That's what he said in verse 20. So whether it's by life or death, Christ is honored, he's magnified. The fact that I die and my deliverance means I'm delivered from this life, that means I'm in the presence of Jesus Christ, I honor him, magnify him, for the rest of my life. Now, here's the principle I want you to see. I wanna start with dying 'cause that informs how we should live. Paul knew where he was going. Paul had assurance of his salvation. And you knew Christ would show up in his life here and now. So once that's done, Paul is ready to die. And he says, "It's gonna be awesome to be in eternity." And here's the principle I want you to see. Once you're prepared to die, now you're ready to really live. Because you're freed from that. And you know that he's gonna take care of me and the future is gonna take care of me right now. And so, once that's done, then I can start focusing on the living. Because this is a temporary life, eternity is long and my present day life is short, and I wanna live in light of eternity. Paul says, "Hey, I'm ready to die so now I can really live in." And then he says, "For me to live is Christ." What does that mean? Well, it means that I am, first, finding my meaning, and my purpose, and my satisfaction in him. For me to live as Christ, he is the central driving force of my life. Now, let's add a few things to this and then you'll begin to really see how this comes together. If you go over to chapter three, I want you to locate verse seven. Chapter three, verse seven. Paul says, "But whatever gain I had, "I counted as lost for the sake of Christ. "Indeed, I counted, everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of," here it is, "Knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. "For his sake, I have suffered the loss of all things "and count them as rubbish in order that I may gain Christ." And then he says down in verse 10, jump down there, "That I may know him and the power of his resurrection "and may share his suffering, "becoming like him in his death. "That by any means possible "I may attain to the resurrection from the dead." What Paul is saying here, "For me to live is Christ, "I find meaning and purpose in him, "and the more I get to know him, "the more I begin to be like him," I taste his grace, I taste his love, I understand how I'm supposed to love and serve others. So that now the I live in this life, I live a life that reflects Jesus Christ and honors him and magnifies him. Why? Because he's everything to me. And when I live finding meaning and purpose in him, I know him, I know how to love others, I know how to serve others so that when you see me, you see Christ because Christ is living in me. This oftentimes happens. When I go through times of suffering, he says, we'll come back to that in a minute, but his point is, I'm beginning to understand how I live for Christ, less of me and more of him. That's why he talks about, through suffering, I become like him in my death. I don't want me anymore, I want more of him. Now, Paul ties into this in this wonderful verse found in Galatians chapter two verse 20. You'll see it up here. He says, "I've been crucified with Christ." And that means my old life, I didn't have a relationship with God, but I've been delivered from the penalty and the power set and I've got a relationship with Jesus Christ, I've received salvation through the good news of Jesus, but the gospel has been received, now it needs to be reflected in my life. And he says, "I've been crucified with Christ, "it is no longer I who live now in this present life, "but Christ who lives in me." That's the idea of what he's talking about here in Philippians. "And the life I now live in the flesh, "I live by faith in the Son of God, "who loved me and gave himself up for me." Gave himself for me. He died so that I might have eternal life, but he also died to transform my life. And as I live in this new life, I discover who he is so that I now begin to live in love and be transformed. It's the death of me, and it's the new life of Jesus Christ being raised in me. And as I do, I live this transformed life. So when I start walking out and loving and serving like Jesus Christ, you know what that actually means in this life? It means that, all of a sudden, some things of my life begin to die. And in knowing that these things are dying in me, I begin to live out this new life so that I can focus on others and not me. If my eternal life is secure, and he's gonna provide all I need in this life, now I'm freed, freed to live for others. This has enormous implications for our life today. And here's the reason why. Oftentimes in my life, when I look at, "Well, why was I so impatient in that situation? "Well, why was I so unkind? "Well, why didn't I want to step out and serve that person?" Do you know why? One word, self. Oftentimes, and you'll find this true in your own life, when we reflect upon our life, the reason why we're not kind, the reason why we're not patient, the reason why we're not serving others is 'cause we're still thinking about us. But the gospel takes care of the root problem of selfishness. Why? Because I know that Jesus Christ has provided all I need for eternity and has provided all I need right now. And as I live, I live. For me to live is Christ. I find meaning and purpose in him, so I don't need to find meaning and purpose from anything in this world. I find my satisfaction in him. And then I begin to live for others by living out his character qualities in me so that I can start pouring my life into other people. And that's why Paul says that if I stay here in this life, it's gonna be fruitful labor, because I'm going to be living and serving so that others can find joy and help. Well, Paul goes on, in these verses, and he gives the third trait that's worth following, and it's this, living with courage in the face of fear. Here's the point here. Fear is not necessarily wrong. The kind of fear that keeps you from touching a hot stove is actually a good thing for a kid to understand. But the kind of fear that Paul's addressing here is the fear that keeps us from trusting God, honoring him, living for him. And his whole point here is the gospel takes care of that. Because God is taken care of my eternity, and God's gonna meet my needs in this life, and if that is true, I can start pouring my life into other people, I can start servingm he's transforming me so that the new life you see in me is Jesus Christ. I live as Christ would live. And when that begins to happen, there's nothing they can do to me. There's nothing they can do to the Apostle Paul. He's overcoming fear because he has fear in something greater. I hope you caught that principle. Overcoming fear is having the fear of something greater. And the reason is because fear controls you. And so, these believers and the Apostle Paul and those that are standing more boldly for the good news of Jesus Christ fear God more than anything. Not that God would punish them. The punishment of God for our sin took place on the cross of Jesus Christ. And it is from that point of receiving new life in Jesus Christ that I can start living out a new life in Christ. And so, now that I am, I'm ultimately responsible to him and I live and worship in awe. Fear for a believer in Jesus Christ is living in worship in awe of who he is. And as I do, I begin to reflect upon the fact that, "Wow, my God is real." And my sins are forgiven. And I've got confident hope and I don't have to be ashamed in this life. God Almighty is not against me, He's actually for me, and He's sovereign, and He's coming again. And as I live this kind of life, I don't want you to forget this last character quality, and that is that the trait that describes my life that's worth living, that pulls it all together, is pursuing relationships. And that's why he said, "I want you to stand firm in one spirit, "one mind, striving side by side." And that's because we live out the Christian life together. We need one another. And the gospel unites us in Christ. Then as we taste his humility and his selfish or selfless living, because I am selfish, he is self-less, and get that right, now I begin to live like he would in my world as I pour myself into the lives of other people. And that's why I said, the gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ gets at the root of all selfishness. And as we live this life together, Jesus said this that the Apostle Paul fully understood, in John chapter 13 verse 35, "By this, everyone will know that you are my disciples "if you love one another." And it's why we've got to live in community with one another. Now, Paul really wraps this up with two gifts. If you look down, he says, "If you live this way," he says, finally, in verse 28, "This is a clear sign to them." These are Paul's opponents who are not believers now. He faced two types of them. In this setting, these are individuals who are definitely not followers of Christ. They don't want Paul alive, period. And he says, if you live this way, this high-calling life that reflects the truthfulness of the good news that's transforming you, this will be assigned to them of their destruction and of your salvation. So the sign is your new life to those that don't know Christ as a sign of destruction, and also your salvation. And he says that this sign is given to them and to you from God for or because it's been granted to you to live for Christ. How do we live for Christ? He tells you two wonderful gifts. And the first one is belief. It's been given to you as a gift from God to believe, to put your faith and trust in Jesus Christ, it's a gift to you. God opens our eyes so that you can understand that you are a sinner and you need a savior. And that happens when you say, "God, I'm a sinner, I need you, "and I wanna trust you as my Savior and Lord." And you place your trust and faith in Christ as Savior and Lord. And when that happens, you enter into this massive relationship with Jesus that will transform you and give you great joy. That's a gift, but it's also a gift to suffer. Notice that. He says that you've been granted a gift to believe and a gift to suffer. Why? So that Christ will be proclaimed in the context of suffering. And that will be a sign to their destruction and also to salvation. Some of you say, "Wow, a gift of suffering? "I wanna give that gift back." But, well, let's unpack that. How is this a sign? How is my life a sign in the midst of suffering, a sign to those who don't know Christ and also to me? Well, suffering is the context. Suffering is the best way, trials, difficulties, circumstances is oftentimes the best way to display the power of Jesus Christ, first, because individuals are loved by God. We said back several weeks ago that God loves you, and we specifically referenced John 3:16. We did this on Easter Sunday. And it says, "For God so loved the world "that he gave His one and only son." Why? "So that if we put our faith and trust "and believe in him as Savior and Lord, "we shall never perish." Peter said in 2 Peter 3:19 that God doesn't want anyone to perish. And as you live out this new life before them, they begin to realize that the trust that they've been placing in the material possessions of the world, the things that are being stripped away from them right now. As you live in relationship, still staying connected as best you can, as you begin to demonstrate this the new life that you have, in this present circumstances and trials to come, they begin to look at your life and say, "Wow, there's really something going on there." And that is a sign. Your new life is a sign to them that the gospel not only saves you, but the gospel continues to transform you even in the midst of adversity. But it's also a sign to you because it demonstrates that your faith is real, as you continue to demonstrate your dependence upon God, as you live as Christ would live, and as you find your meaning and purpose in life. As he becomes the central component to your life, you're trusting him, you're living for him, and as that happens, in the midst of suffering, you're depending upon him, your faith is growing, you're being transformed, you're remembering what he says in verse six that he who began a good work in you is gonna be faithful to complete that good work until the day you come into the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. And finally, it's a gift to us because it's more of him and less of us. And I begin to serve him and live for him. Now, the big question that I think is important here, and I wanna end with this, here's the big question. How do I know then how to live though specifically in the midst of suffering? If I'm to live this life displaying the good news of Jesus Christ, and this is a sign both to those who need Christ that this is real, and also to me, but in the practical situations of life, how do I know what to do? Well, Paul answers that for us. At least he gives a framework to find the answers. In Acts chapter 16, which we looked at last week, Paul specifically did not speak up and say that he was a Roman citizen before he was beaten and thrown in jail. You can go back and check it out. He didn't reveal that he was a Roman citizen until after he was beaten, thrown in prison, and the guards came to know Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord and the church began to really, really grow. Now, the question that comes up is, how did he know the difference? Paul wasn't running around looking for people to throw rocks at him, Paul wanted to act. Do you know where he found it? Again, verse nine, his prayer for them is the same principles he follows, with knowledge and discernment. Do you wanna know how you live in suffering? The knowledge of the word and the discernment that comes to the power of the Spirit. That's why he said, if you go back down to verse 19, because he knows that through their prayers, and his prayers, and also the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ. So what's Paul saying here? You wanna know how to live this new life in suffering? It happens when you go back to the truth of the Scriptures, you're reminded of everything we've talked about thus far, and you ask God, the Spirit of God, to give you discernment so you know how to live out this new life. That's why I loved this verse that we started with last week. "Count it all joy, my brothers, "when you meet trials of various kinds, "for you know that the testing "of your faith produces steadfastness." You can find joy in the midst of it. God's at work. "And let steadfastness have its full effect "that you may be perfect and complete, "lacking in nothing." Here's the next verse though. "If any of you lacks wisdom, "let him ask God, "who gives generously to all without reproach, "and it will be given to him." "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, "and do not lean on your own understanding. "In all your ways, acknowledge him, "and he'll make straight your paths." His ways are not our ways. And when we're guided by the principles we've talked about, when we trust the leading and the guiding of the Holy Spirit, which is what we talked about last week, go back, review it, pull it up, the Spirit of God, hearing the voice of God, what does that look like, he will begin to guide you in terms of how you might live your life. Now, some of you are saying, "Wow, what a life Paul lived, "I'm not like that." Well, you don't have to do everything right now. All I'm asking for you to do this week is to ask yourself the question, "Am I living this kind of life "that is befitting of the good news that I've been given?" Because Paul is telling me I need to make Jesus Christ the central focus of my life, so that I'm finding meaning and purpose in him. Ask yourself this question, am I spending time with him? Do I need to spend more time with him? Maybe you've been given more time because of COVID-19, maybe you need to spend more time with him, but also, how can I start living for him. And go back and look at these four traits and just find one that you need to work on this next week as you seek to live out the good news of Jesus Christ, trusting in him, asking God to give you wisdom on how to live out this new life in the midst of suffering so that Jesus Christ is seen by how you love people, how you live differently, how you join with others in community, because we're all in this together. And here's what I want us to do. We're gonna transition right now into a worship song that has been written by a couple of our worship team members. You're gonna hear the background of this song, and then they're gonna sing it for you. I don't want you to wrap things up and start walking away from the TV, I want you to sit and watch and listen to these words, because the words reflect how everything we do in our life, we live as Christ for his glory and honor. So let's worship him as they share this story and this song with you.

- I suppose I don't need to say what day it is, which is what I was about to do, but we're talking about a new song that you and I wrote. My name is Hunter, this is Eric, by the way, for those of you who don't know. And yeah, we're talking about a song that we wrote a little ago. And--

- Not too long ago.

- Yeah, not too long ago, not too long ago at all. It's called Glory to Your Name. Why don't you tell us a little bit about it?

- Yeah, no, I really like this song. I mean, this is, Hunter, you brought this chorus to me a couple weeks ago. I think the tune was beautiful, the lyrics are rich, and the chorus just talks about fear, and not so much fear, but God. And I think that's the amazing and cool thing about this song. I mean, it talks about how the fear fades away when we know that God's the same, and that he's unchanging. And I think, the reason that's so rich and timely right now is probably pretty obvious. But we're constantly feeling like we don't want to have fear, but fearlessness is not really what the endgame is, it's courage. We wanna be above the fear, and we get that from God. Courage is rising above that fear. Fear is actually healthy. And so, this song, I feel like the chorus really directs us to God being above our fear and giving us the ability to rise above that fear.

- It's so funny, 'cause that chorus, I was doing the dishes and just pondering the meaning of life as you do while you're doing the dishes.

- [Eric] Obviously.

- Obviously.

- Did something dawn on you as you were doing the dishes?

- Oh, my gosh. Okay, dad. So, yeah, yeah, something dawned on me. And actually, something that I've been pondering a lot was this concept that there is nothing new under the sun. And that can be, for a creative, that is a very scary thought. Because you wanna create something original, you wanna create something that people find refreshing and new, not derivative and kinda copying everyone else. But if you look at it through the lens of our God, and there's nothing new under the sun, and that means there's nothing new to God. And we were just starting this journey with COVID and all that jazz at the time. And I just remember thinking like, "Wow, "if there's really nothing new to God, "and God is the same yesterday, and today, and forever, "then yeah, we can press through that fear "to the reality of who God is."

- Yeah. I think that it came, it really unfolded very quickly, because I think we had a shared vision for what this looked like. I mean, in the first verse, we talked about sort of our own small struggle in this and how we put anything on a pedestal that isn't God, then that's not gonna end well.

- [Hunter] Yeah. And then, in the second verse, we just talk about how God is really the master of everything. He holds everything together, there's nothing that He doesn't know. And, man, is there's so much hope in that. Even when we talk about the mountains quake and the oceans rage, or they churn in anger, but he's the constant that holds it all in place. Like you say, there's nothing new under the sun, but right now, there's so much fear and anxiety over what the future is gonna look like. But God is using this time right now to tear down so many idols that we're building up. The idol of financial security, the idol of health, the idol of even like our kids. Because, man, a lot of us don't see our kids as those idols anymore, 'cause we're cooped up with them. The idle of activity and sports. I mean, everything is screeched to a halt. And so many idols are being torn down and causing us to have to focus on who God is and what is he trying to accomplish through this. And man, is that amazing?

- Well, we're gonna play this song for you. It's relatively new, so bear with us. But yeah, we're gonna play the song for you right now as we grab our acoustic guitars. ♪ When I fill my sail with any wind that moves me ♪ ♪ My heart falls for whatever lies I hear ♪ ♪ When I pull my hope in fading earthly treasures ♪ ♪ Catastrophe will always be so near ♪ ♪ But all fear fades away ♪ ♪ When I know you are the same ♪ ♪ Nothing changed you're bigger than today ♪ ♪ And I know so it brings glory to your name ♪ ♪ When mountains quake and oceans turn in anger ♪ ♪ You're the constant that holds everything in place ♪ ♪ You know every season as it comes to pass ♪ ♪ No flower blooms or leaf falls outside your grace ♪ ♪ When all fear fades away ♪ ♪ When I know you are the same ♪ ♪ Nothing changed you're bigger than today ♪ ♪ And I know so it brings glory to your name ♪ ♪ The alpha, omega, beginning, and end ♪ ♪ My father, eternal protector, and friend ♪ ♪ Savior, redeemer, the giver of life ♪ ♪ In all things you're solving my praises will raise ♪ ♪ The alpha, omega, beginning, and end ♪ ♪ My father, eternal protector, and friend ♪ ♪ My Savior, redeemer, the giver of life ♪ ♪ And all things you're solving my praises will raise ♪ ♪ But all fear fades away ♪ ♪ When I know you are the same ♪ ♪ Nothing changed you're bigger than today ♪ ♪ And I know so it brings glory to your name ♪ ♪ And all fear fades away ♪ ♪ When I know you are the same ♪ ♪ Nothing changed you're bigger than today ♪ ♪ And I know so it brings glory to your name ♪ ♪ Oh I know so it brings glory to your name ♪ ♪ Oh I know so it brings glory to your name ♪

- Yeah, so there you have it. That is Glory to Your Name. We wrote that song for such a time as this. And actually, let's just pray. Glorious God. God, our Father, eternal protector, Lord. We know that you have all things under control. We trust you, and we love you, and we sing praises to you, God, because you are worthy of all that we have to offer, which is nothing compared to You. God, we love you, and we worship you. In Jesus name. Amen.