Sermons for the Month
Five Weeks of Joy (5)
DATE: November 21, 1999
SERVICE: Christ the King
TEXT: Philippians 4:10-23“To all of you Saints here this morning, grace and peace to you from God our Father, from His Son, Jesus Christ and His Holy Spirit. AMEN
This morning we come to the conclusion of our five week series on Paul's letter to the Philippian church. I wish to thank the large number of you that have come forward to tell me how much you have appreciated this different approach to the sermon. As I shared with you six weeks ago, these would be less sermons than Bible studies. And judging by the number of responses particularly last wee, it has encouraged me to do this again (although it throws the office staff and the Lay Readers into cardiac arrest). In today's final verses Paul thanks the Philippians for being one of the few groups of Christians who have been concerned about his welfare. In fact, so concerned have they been over his welfare that they have showered him with financial support beyond his expectations. But it is not the money that makes him happy? Paul is joyous because their generosity that reflects the fact they truly live their life in the spirit of Christ. At the same time as he does this, however, he touches upon a raw nerve in American society: the issue of possessions. In describing why it is not necessary for the Philippians to send any more gifts to him, he lines out for us an attitude toward possessions that can guide us as we wrestle with the question of multiple possessions and conspicuous consumption particularly as we head into the holiday season. So today, the first we will be doing it looking squarely at this problem. What is the situation in the world at this point in time when it comes to consumption and possessions? Second, we will make sure we have understood Paul's perspective. Finally, we will try to relate, on a personal and community level, Paul's perspective on the world's problem. First, then, what is the state of the world today in terms of food, fuel, and resources? These statistics are drawn from Ronald Sider's provocative book, Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger--A Biblical Study. Thirty percent of the world's population live in the developed countries. But this minority of less than one-third eats three-quarters of the world's protein each year. At least 500 million are actually starving. That does not mean they will die tomorrow of course. But it does mean that they get less than the minimum daily amount of needed calories. When this happens, one becomes listless and the body begins to burn up its own fats, muscles and proteins for energy. Tragically, even this ghastly figure of 500 million starving persons tells only part of the story. Experts think that another one-half to one and one-half billion persons lack adequate protein even though they eat enough calories. How long can the earth sustain the present rate of industrialization? A growing number of people agree with economist Robert Heilbroner: "Ultimately, there is an absolute limit to the ability of the earth to support or tolerate the process of industrial activity, and there is reason to believe that we are now moving toward that limit very rapidly. Global warming is a fact. In the developed world, industrial production has been doubling every ten years. If we project this growth rate for another fifty years, It would follow that the demand for resources will have doubled five times, requiring a volume of resource extraction thirty-five times larger than today's; and if we look ahead over the ten doublings of a century, the amount of annual resources requirements will have increased by over a thousand times. In the undeveloped countries one child in four dies before the age of five. The infant mortality rate there is ten times higher than in developed countries. And half of these deaths are related to inadequate diets. Many more statistics can be quoted but they would only serve to confirm what is already abundantly clear; when it comes to consumption and possessions, there is an enormous imbalance between East and West, between North and South, between developing countries and developed countries. And it is also clear, as American Christians, we live on the consuming side of the equation. We have riches undreamed of in other countries. So, what ought our perspective to be? Do we sell all our goods and become poor ourselves? Do we simply ignore the imbalance? Is there a middle ground? Let's see if Paul has help for us. Paul in our lesson today says he has discovered the secret to existing in any circumstance: it is Jesus who gives him the strength to endure whether in poverty or in plenty. Notice Paul does not pass judgment here on either condition. He does not say that to be wealthy or to be poor is the better position. He has enjoyed both and both he says can be a potential threat to us. From his perspective he has learned to be content with both. Not a lot of us could say that, I suspect. But there is nothing very mysterious about how Paul can say this. He reveals his 'secret' in verse 13: 'I can do everything through him who give me strength.' Jesus is his secret--the indwelling empowering, loving Lord of Lords makes it possible for Paul to thrive in whatever circumstance he finds himself. What it really boils down to is this. Paul has found in Jesus a new center for his life. His life is no longer wrapped up in what happens around him. Circumstances are secondary. Jesus is the source of his contentment. I suspect that until we make Jesus the center of our lives in this way we won't know this kind of contentment. This is not easy for us to do. Our whole culture cries out that happiness is found in having. Contentment comes on the heels of success. Our experience tells us that it is better to be well off financially than to have to struggle by on little. And yet…is this not making materialism the center of our life? Does that not make materialism a competing 'god' with the Lord God who wants our prime allegiance? And will we not continue to struggle with our own private discontent until we get this straight? It is so simple. Make Jesus Lord. Let your life revolve around knowing Jesus. And yet it is so hard for us. 'Let go and let Jesus,' the cliché states. That is not at all easy. It is not the 'letting Jesus' that is the problem. It is the 'letting go' that is so hard. There is so much to let go of. In any case, I suspect it is not quite the either/or case the cliché would make it. Most of us are somewhere in between the two poles. We have not rejected Jesus in favor of materialism. But then neither are we holding fully to Jesus with no other center to our lives. We are struggling to keep on letting go and keep on letting Jesus. And this is the very path to contentment. Says Paul, "In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of being in need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me." And that brings us to the end of the Epistle to the Philippians. Before we close it, however, I want to once again go back to the central theme that pervades the whole book--the idea of joy. For joy is more akin to an emotion we feel when things are going well that it is to anything else. It is what we experience in the flush of success or at times of high sensory excitement. Joy is to us often equivalent to happiness. But for Paul, joy had much more substance. It was, to be sure, a feeling, but it was more than that. And it was present not just in good times but also in the midst of difficult times. In other words, while our culture knows in general what joy is, it is not fully in touch with how Paul understood that word. Now that we are at the end of this letter, now that we have seen all the difficulties Paul faced, now that we have reviewed the comments and perspective he has on life, hopefully, we have a better understanding of his idea of joy. Nineteen times Paul uses the word 'Joy' in this letter in spite of the fact he is in jail as he writes. He urges the Philippians to rejoice even though they are facing very difficult circumstances. Why can he and they be joyful? Because they and he are living in the Lord. That is his source of joy. I want to add a personal word here before the amen. Putting myself for a moment in Paul's shoes, I believe that we who consider ourselves leaders in the church all feel this joy most profoundly when we see our congregations, our people, our friends, reflecting the life of Jesus in what they do and say. We go home after a long day contented not so much because we have put in a good day's work but rather when we share a moment with someone who understands and takes to heart the mission of Jesus, to reach out with giving hearts, to serve, not be served, to be concerned first and foremost that God's grace come alive in the hearts of those who have not heard. That for me is really, honest to goodness joy! AMEN AMEN