Proud of the Gospel of Jesus Christ
Greeting and God’s blessings to you on this great day!
I want to begin by saying, “Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord” (2 Cor. 10:17). This is the first verse which came to my mind as I read the words of Paul for today.
Paul has just put forth the struggle he has been experiencing in his heart. For him to live means he can be a blessing to others in his service to the Lord. For him to die would be far better because he could depart this life and be with the Lord. His exact words were, “For me to live is Christ and to die is gain!” This was the focus of his life’s work and the assurance of his faith.
He begins our text today affirming his confidence in continuing to minister the Gospel in this world. Hear his words; Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy in the faith, so that your pride in Christ Jesus may be abundant because of me by my coming to you again. Philippians 1:25-26
My desire is to keep this message short and sweet today. Paul expresses his confidence that he will be able to return to the Church in Philippi and be used by Christ to disciple them even more in the future. His terms are progress and joy. These two terms speak of spiritual maturity and growth.
Is it not also our hope that as we minister in Christ’s name in this world that the people who are brought to faith might continue to “progress” in their faith and grow in their knowledge and understanding of God’s great love for them? Do we not also want to see them experience the joy of the Lord in their lives? This is Paul’s hope for the future as he travels to see them again.
Paul then says something that at first glance strikes us a bit strange. He says, so that your pride in Christ Jesus may be abundant. Pride is seldom a word we use in any positive context. It is generally used to address the sinful trusting in self and the refusal to submit and humble oneself before God. Here Paul uses pride to address our life in Christ and our celebration of Him as our Savior.
I should also note that many English translations of the New Testament use the word “boast” rather than pride in this passage. But what is pride? Are we not proud of the working of God in our children’s lives. This is not pride in ourselves, or a sense of self-sufficiency, but rather that God has accomplished something great in the life of one of His children. Are we not proud of our home congregation when the ministry of the Gospel is faithfully carried out in our midst?
While pride can be and is often a sinful emotion, there is a place in our lives for godly pride! This is what Paul is addressing in our text. Should we not be proud of Jesus as our Savior?
Possibly that is the key question. If a person is filled with sinful pride, then that same person wants to be the center of attention. Sinful pride is a self-centered arrogant belief that I am better than anyone else. This sinful pride moves a person to trust in themselves rather than God.
If I am proud of my child’s accomplishments, then I am excited to share what my child has been able to do. If I am proud of my company and their generosity in the community, I will share the news boldly, “Look at what my company did!” There is no shame involved when godly pride is present. It is a boldness to share what is good with others.
So, what does it say when we as Christians never talk about our home congregation and what the church is doing, or even more glaring, when we never talk about Jesus and what He has done for us? Are we not proud of Jesus? The opposite of being proud of someone is to be embarrassed of them.
If my son were to make a huge mistake in his life and end up getting arrested and put in jail, I would not be shouting it from the rooftops. I would quietly ask people to pray for him and I would hope that as few people as possible would know my son was in jail. You see, we hide what we are embarrassed of, and we proclaim boldly what gives us great pride. So, which is Jesus to you? Someone to be embarrassed of and hide away, out of view? Or is He the one we are the proudest of and Who we desire for everyone to know about? Which is He to us?
If our actions are any indication, I would dare say that we fall on the side of being embarrassed of Jesus. We have bought into the lie that to talk about “religion” to other people is offensive. We have made the choice to seek acceptance by the world at the expense of offering salvation to the world!
Paul’s point in his statement to the Christians at Philippi is that as they grow in their knowledge and understanding of the depth of God’s love for them in Christ, they will be so proud of Jesus that they will share Him boldly with everyone!
If you find yourself hiding Jesus, and you are scared to reveal Him to others, then I would encourage you to humble yourself before Him and first ask for His forgiveness. You know He will give it to you. Then delve deep into learning more about Him. Read and study the Scriptures and good Christian authors who can broaden your understanding of God and His great love for you. Let the Spirit of God rekindle the passion you once felt in your heart! Then when Jesus is the One you are most proud of, make Him known to everyone in every facet of your life. If there happens to be someone who says you are too religious or a zealot, take it as a compliment and shout the name of Jesus even more loudly.
Lift Him up and make Him known for He is the One who has saved you!
In Christ,
Pastor Russ
I want to begin by saying, “Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord” (2 Cor. 10:17). This is the first verse which came to my mind as I read the words of Paul for today.
Paul has just put forth the struggle he has been experiencing in his heart. For him to live means he can be a blessing to others in his service to the Lord. For him to die would be far better because he could depart this life and be with the Lord. His exact words were, “For me to live is Christ and to die is gain!” This was the focus of his life’s work and the assurance of his faith.
He begins our text today affirming his confidence in continuing to minister the Gospel in this world. Hear his words; Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy in the faith, so that your pride in Christ Jesus may be abundant because of me by my coming to you again. Philippians 1:25-26
My desire is to keep this message short and sweet today. Paul expresses his confidence that he will be able to return to the Church in Philippi and be used by Christ to disciple them even more in the future. His terms are progress and joy. These two terms speak of spiritual maturity and growth.
Is it not also our hope that as we minister in Christ’s name in this world that the people who are brought to faith might continue to “progress” in their faith and grow in their knowledge and understanding of God’s great love for them? Do we not also want to see them experience the joy of the Lord in their lives? This is Paul’s hope for the future as he travels to see them again.
Paul then says something that at first glance strikes us a bit strange. He says, so that your pride in Christ Jesus may be abundant. Pride is seldom a word we use in any positive context. It is generally used to address the sinful trusting in self and the refusal to submit and humble oneself before God. Here Paul uses pride to address our life in Christ and our celebration of Him as our Savior.
I should also note that many English translations of the New Testament use the word “boast” rather than pride in this passage. But what is pride? Are we not proud of the working of God in our children’s lives. This is not pride in ourselves, or a sense of self-sufficiency, but rather that God has accomplished something great in the life of one of His children. Are we not proud of our home congregation when the ministry of the Gospel is faithfully carried out in our midst?
While pride can be and is often a sinful emotion, there is a place in our lives for godly pride! This is what Paul is addressing in our text. Should we not be proud of Jesus as our Savior?
Possibly that is the key question. If a person is filled with sinful pride, then that same person wants to be the center of attention. Sinful pride is a self-centered arrogant belief that I am better than anyone else. This sinful pride moves a person to trust in themselves rather than God.
If I am proud of my child’s accomplishments, then I am excited to share what my child has been able to do. If I am proud of my company and their generosity in the community, I will share the news boldly, “Look at what my company did!” There is no shame involved when godly pride is present. It is a boldness to share what is good with others.
So, what does it say when we as Christians never talk about our home congregation and what the church is doing, or even more glaring, when we never talk about Jesus and what He has done for us? Are we not proud of Jesus? The opposite of being proud of someone is to be embarrassed of them.
If my son were to make a huge mistake in his life and end up getting arrested and put in jail, I would not be shouting it from the rooftops. I would quietly ask people to pray for him and I would hope that as few people as possible would know my son was in jail. You see, we hide what we are embarrassed of, and we proclaim boldly what gives us great pride. So, which is Jesus to you? Someone to be embarrassed of and hide away, out of view? Or is He the one we are the proudest of and Who we desire for everyone to know about? Which is He to us?
If our actions are any indication, I would dare say that we fall on the side of being embarrassed of Jesus. We have bought into the lie that to talk about “religion” to other people is offensive. We have made the choice to seek acceptance by the world at the expense of offering salvation to the world!
Paul’s point in his statement to the Christians at Philippi is that as they grow in their knowledge and understanding of the depth of God’s love for them in Christ, they will be so proud of Jesus that they will share Him boldly with everyone!
If you find yourself hiding Jesus, and you are scared to reveal Him to others, then I would encourage you to humble yourself before Him and first ask for His forgiveness. You know He will give it to you. Then delve deep into learning more about Him. Read and study the Scriptures and good Christian authors who can broaden your understanding of God and His great love for you. Let the Spirit of God rekindle the passion you once felt in your heart! Then when Jesus is the One you are most proud of, make Him known to everyone in every facet of your life. If there happens to be someone who says you are too religious or a zealot, take it as a compliment and shout the name of Jesus even more loudly.
Lift Him up and make Him known for He is the One who has saved you!
In Christ,
Pastor Russ
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