Paul does not hold back in expressing his affection towards the Philippians, revealing to us a community of believers sharing in their suffering and working together to glorify God. Paul recognizes that he is under the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ, eager to serve Him and challenge the church of Philippi to remain faithful to the work that God is doing in and through them.

Application

Philippians 1:1-11

1. Paul is secure in his identity as a servant of God. Have you experienced this assurance that whatever governs you has been overthrown, and you are under a new king—the Lord Jesus Christ? In what ways are you still living under the authority of the world or of sin?
2. How would those around you or in authority over you describe the thoughts that come to mind when they think of you? Who in your life is full of joy, gratitude, and confidence that God is doing something in you? Where is God’s work evident in your life for your spouse, children, or parents to see and be grateful and full of joy because of what He is doing?
3. Community happens where people are suffering together for a common cause outside of themselves. How is this principle true or not true of your life currently? Describe a time when you have developed deep relationships with others by working alongside them or suffering through hardship with them.
4. Paul recognizes that the Philippians have to learn how to give themselves to worthy things to persevere and not wander into a pattern of sin. What do you spend your time and energy on that is worthy? What things are not worthy? What action step do you need to take to be sure that you are spending your time on worthy things?

Key Points

• Paul identifies himself as a slave of Jesus—he recognizes that he is under the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ and will do whatever He wants him to do.
• Seeing lives that have been changed by the gospel and the fruit produced by a transformed life provides confirmation of our faith.
• Our confidence comes from knowing that God’s grip on us is sufficient.
• Bill suggested that Paul may have spent more time talking to God about the Philippians than talking to the Philippians about God. Often this should be true for us with parenting, friendships, or those we are in leadership over. Our prayer life is to be a major part of our relationship with others.
• It is confidence coupled with humility that inspires Paul to pray.
• Paul wants us to approve what is worthy; this will ultimately enable us to persevere in our faith.
• Worry reveals confidence in yourself.
• God began a work in us, and God finishes what He starts.

While Paul is imprisoned and writing to his valued church of Philippi, he is able to embrace the reality of both the physical world he is suffering in and the spiritual world that is moving forward as the gospel is advanced. Instead of discounting or despising his suffering, he recognizes it all as God's purposes for spreading the good news of the gospel.

Application

Philippians 1:12-19

1. Although Paul is plagued with physical suffering on earth, he is able to distinguish his own physical comfort from his one mission: the advancement of the gospel. He chooses to rejoice in his suffering because the gospel is spreading. What does your life say about your mission? Are you clear on what God has called you to do and what your mission is? In what way have you ever suffered for the mission of advancing the gospel?
2. Someone who has difficulty getting over or is particularly sensitive to personal offenses has an identity issue. When is a time you have experienced hurt by someone, possibly through criticism, accusation, or disapproval, that you couldn’t get over? What does that expose about where you found your identity in that circumstance? How can you shift perspective to find your identity in a God who can be trusted?
3. Paul makes an intentional choice to rejoice over what God is doing even though it means personal sacrifice. What is one area in your life where you need to choose joy even if it means sacrificing your own comfort, pride, or time?
4. How have you made decisions to avoid discomfort or suffering instead of sacrificing to serve someone else in the past couple of weeks? When you made the decision to run from suffering, what are you holding onto or trying to control? What does this reveal about your ability to trust God?

Key Points

• We should be careful not to use our physical circumstances to judge the spiritual reality.
• Paul can overlook the tension of offenses against him because he is to be able to identify more with the mission than the offenses. He has to subjugate his own personal feelings and emotions to the work that God is doing.
• There are three ways we can respond to suffering:
  • Like Paul, we can choose to connect the dots and see how God is moving amidst the pain.
  • We might find ourselves over-reaching or over-spiritualizing circumstances, trying to connect dots between suffering and blessing just to justify our hardships.
  • We may see no connection to what God is doing, stuck in tunnel vision towards our circumstances, and as a result swing towards despair.
    (Matt read through some passages from the book Through Gates of Splendor by Elisabeth Elliot as a helpful resource to these ideas)
• Paul's identity is not wrapped up in his reputation, what people think of him, his comfort, his prosperity, or his success—his identity is wrapped up in the mission that Jesus has called him to and that's why he can move past the suffering he experiences.
• Our identity is not in our need for vengeance; it's in trusting in a God who ultimately makes everything right.
• Until we understand how the mission of spreading the gospel connects to our personal circumstances, we simply have to trust God.
• If people are going to be blessed, it is going to be because other people sacrificed.

Paul gives the church of Philippi a mature perspective on suffering as he perseveres and chooses to rejoice through his imprisonment. Through his humble dependence on others and on the Spirit, his confident hope built on past experiences of God’s faithfulness, his heart held captive by Jesus, and his understanding that there is always work to do for the gospel, Paul encourages the Philippians to continue on until God calls them home.

Application

Philippians 1:18-26

1. In humble dependence, Paul knows that the church of Philippi is praying for him because he has allowed himself to be known by them. Who are you fully known by? Who in your life prays for you? What would it look like for you be more transparent and vulnerable within your community so that people can pray more specifically and effectively for you?
2. Romans 5:3-5 tells us that suffering produces endurance, endurance produces character, and character produces hope—this is an unbroken chain. If you are in the midst of a season of suffering, how can you see this taking form in your own life? Looking back on suffering in the past, how has it produced endurance, character, and hope in you?
3. Bill suggested that the people who fear suffering the most are people who have not suffered. Some of us live our lives every day trying to avoid suffering. In what ways do you try to minimize suffering in your life? How much energy and time are you spending trying to avoid it? What is one area where you need to lean in to suffering, knowing that it produces hope?
4. How is your view of death different from what Paul describes in Philippians 1:21-24? In what ways do we view death as “loss” rather than “gain”? If you had to fill in the blank for, “To live is ____”, what would you say? (Ex. to be a parent, to be loved by a soulmate, to be productive, to be accepted, etc.)

Key Points

• Regardless of what happens in our circumstances, we should be confident that Jesus is going to give us what we need and will accomplish all that He wants to accomplish in us and through us.
• When we are captivated by Jesus, there is a kind of loving and being known that we will not fully experience until we lock eyes with Him. No amount of intimacy in this world is comparable. When we see Jesus Christ face to face, that is the gain of death. It’s not theological, theoretical, practical—it is personal.
• When our hearts are captivated by Jesus, death is just the tunnel through which we pass in order to have an unmediated experience with our Beloved—every other experience of intimacy and life is but a dim, faint reflection.
• Hopes in this world will disappoint you, but hope like that produced in Paul’s life will not end in emptiness.
• Everything that is good, right, and beautiful that we may be tempted to put our hope in is only here temporarily to point us to Jesus.

We are far from home—citizens of Heaven living in this world. As citizens of Heaven, God calls us to live bound together in one Spirit and with one purpose, making disciples and fighting for the gospel. Although we don’t suffer in the same way as the Philippians suffered, we battle internal struggles within our church body that require us to stand together and contend for each other and for the good news.

Application

Philippians 1:27-30

1. What does it look like for us to be citizens of Heaven? How should this impact how we interact with our culture? How do we live in a way that is not perfect but “worthy” of the gospel?
2. What separates you from the people around you who aren’t citizens of Heaven? What about your life could confuse others about where your citizenship is? How does your life look like you may belong to the world?
3. Matt gave a list of four internal ways in which we struggle that can be a threat to the gospel. Which of these four are the biggest challenge for you and why?
   1. Self-sufficiency: Believing that you are good as you are, that your sin isn’t serious enough to need rescuing from, and that you don’t need any help.
   2. Rugged Individualism: Isolating yourself and not allowing others to speak into your life. You avoid community and tend to want to hide from vulnerability and exposure.
   3. Legalism: A control issue in which you add to the Scriptures to “maintain purity” and decide yourself what God wants.
   4. License: Reckless living because you feel entitled to live however you want; you feel trapped by God’s authority and choose to be a citizen of your own kingdom.
4. What are a few ways you can choose to suffer and take risks to benefit others even though it will not benefit you in the short term? Why is it so critical to us that everything go so well for us in this world? What does that expose about where you place your hope?

Key Points

• We are citizens of Heaven, far from home, with the identity of Heaven inside of us.
• “Living in a manner worthy of the gospel” refers to worthy as weighty, or living like there is substance to this life—not living like we are perfect but in a way that reveals we represent the kingdom of heaven.
• We are called to be bound to one another with one Spirit and one purpose, standing and fighting together for our faith.
• You have to choose whom you fear: Am I going to be afraid of people or of God? (See Matthew 10:28)
• One sign to others that you have put your faith and trust in God is when someone is trying to intimidate you and you are not affected by it. It is a sign to others that you aren't trusting in yourself, but that you are trusting in Someone else to protect and provide for you.
• Although we do not suffer in the same way as the Philippians, we still have to choose to suffer:
  • We choose to sacrifice our time and our money
  • We choose to serve other people
  • We choose to take risks that don't benefit us in the short term, that benefit other people
  • We choose to impoverish ourselves of time and energy and resources to be a blessing for other people for their long term benefit
  • We choose to speak about what God is doing in our souls even though that may mean we experience alienation
• In the best of times there is still suffering, and in the worst times of suffering there is still blessing. Because both are always taking place, we can take comfort that our hope comes from somewhere else, our citizenship of Heaven.

Led by Jesus’ example, we are called to empty ourselves out for other people and for God’s glory. We are to make the intentional choice to think of others as better than ourselves even when we feel right or entitled.

Application

Philippians 2:1-11

1. In Philippians 2:2, Paul gives us three commands related to how we interact with others: to agree wholeheartedly with one another, to love one another, and to have one mind and purpose (“same soul”). Which one of these is hardest for you? What challenges or difficulties do you feel when trying to live these out? How can you follow these commands more effectively?
2. Paul reminds the church to not be selfish or try to impress others. In what circumstances are you most likely to be selfish? Where do you most often find yourself trying to impress others? Why is it hard for you to think of others as better than you in these situations?
3. We want to hang on to what we feel entitled to, but Jesus did the opposite; He emptied Himself of everything He was rightfully entitled to. What do you feel entitled to? What does it look like for you to empty yourself of that?
4. When you are wronged, how hard is it for you to let it go? When you are right and not recognized for it, are you able to let that go? Bill mentioned, “the path to glory leads through willing humiliation.” Where are you willingly being humbled? With this in mind, what can you do this week to bring glory to God?
5. 1 Peter 5:6-7 says, “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.” When you struggle with anxiety, you are trying to hold on to something. In that moment you are not trusting God with the outcome. What are you holding on to that causes you anxiety? What do you know is true about God that can allow you to let go?

Key Points

• Instead of walking into a room and thinking about how other people are noticing us, we should be thinking about how we can serve them. In dealing with other believers, we have to choose to see them through an eternal lense.
• We are people who want to chase empty glory—glory of ourselves, of other people, and of worldly pleasures. But Jesus had real glory, and He emptied it out for us.
• When we are right, we want to tell everyone and be affirmed in that, but Jesus, who had equality with God, still did not cling to that. He still chose to pour Himself out as a sacrifice for us.
• The load, weight, or burden of my neighbor’s glory should be laid on my back, a load so heavy that only humility can carry it, and the backs of the proud will be broken. —CS Lewis, The Weight of Glory
• Don’t view how God feels about you through a small, temporal circumstance.

As believers, we are responsible for working out and cultivating the new life that has been placed inside of us. Even though we have done nothing to earn the gift of the salvation we have been given, we are called to act responsively to the work that God is doing within us.

Application

Philippians 2:12-18

1. To be filled with awe and reverence over the work that God has done in us, we need to take inventory and remember. How would you describe the work that He has done for you? What does this say about God, and how does that motivate you to work out your salvation?
2. Paul gives three different areas of direction: do everything without complaining or arguing, live clean and innocent lives, and hold firmly to your faith. Which of these is most difficult for you? Where do you feel most tempted to rebel and why?
3. Matt explained that God gives all believers desires and power to respond to Him. How often are you gaining new desires and new power from the Holy Spirit? When was the last time you sensed new desire and chased it down? If you haven’t experience new desire or power recently, which of these questions most addresses your heart: Is my salvation real? Have I been spiritually lazy? Have I hardened my heart?
4. How is your life shining light in the darkness? How can you live so that your life looks different from the rest of the world and shows the results of your salvation?

Key Points

• Two truths stand out: we are to work hard and God works in us. These truths seem in conflict with each other but in reality are both true at the same time and a mysterious component to our spiritual growth.
• When we complain and argue, we are saying that we are not content for Someone else to be in charge and making decisions for us; we feel entitled to a better situation.
• The need to be right is a deep form of insecurity where we feel the need to prove ourselves. If we have truly trusted in Christ, we have already been validated in the deepest way, and we are freed from the need to be right.
• We are instructed to live clean and innocent lives in a way that reflects who God is. As humans, oftentimes the calling to live a clean and innocent life feels like restriction rather than liberation. However ultimately, what you think is “liberating” is truly enslaving. There is no safe time or place to sin.
• The instruction to hold firmly to our faith reminds us that the mark of the believer is that we do not quit. We do not give up even in suffering.
• We have the responsibility to cultivate on the outside the new life that God has placed deep inside of us.
• Part of the redemptive plan involves suffering; suffering for believers is a validator that we are all in this together—we are on the same team.

If we say we are believers then there is a mission to accomplish and a passion to develop—to live a life of humility and sacrifice, modeled by the life of Jesus. We are to put others’ interests above our own and understand that the mission of Jesus is not about our own well-being. Through the examples of Timothy and Epaphroditus, Paul shows us that our lives should be lives of risk-taking, sacrificing, and humble submission for the work of Christ.

Application

Philippians 2:19-30

1. When Paul references Timothy as genuinely concerned for others, who in your life comes to mind as genuinely concerned for you and why? What would it look like for you to have this kind of concern for those around you? What would change in your life?
2. We have to be careful to detect the false gospel of a “God owes me” mentality, or thinking that because we go to church or do our quiet time or serve in some capacity that life should go well for us. Instead, Paul recognizes the cost of the furtherance of the gospel and shows how Epaphroditus takes on the risk of caring for others. How are you taking on risks to care for others for the proclamation of the gospel?
3. Paul calls Epaphroditus his co-worker and fellow soldier: someone who has labored alongside him in the proclamation of the gospel and has battled with him through challenges and trials. In what ways do you have this type of warfare mentality with your community? Who are your co-workers and fellow soldiers? Who would say that you are in the trenches with them?
4. What are some excuses that we self-generate to keep us from humble sacrifice in our care for others? Do your excuses reflect that you care more about your own safety, security, and comfort, or care more about others’ well-being? What could you be doing for the work of Christ to reflect genuine concern for others except for your excuses?

Key Points

• Genuinely caring for others is not just about helping people with their problems but about advancing the gospel and sharing the Truth with them.
• Christ’s mission is not about our own well-being and comfort but about the well-being of others.
• We tend to think that God must relieve us of the suffering we are facing, while Paul recognizes that every good thing that comes from God is divine mercy in our lives. He is not entitled, but filled with gratitude.
• Anything we do for the mission of Christ is the work of Christ; self-sacrifice accomplishes this work.
• If you see furthering the mission of Jesus through daily humility and sacrifice as a non-issue for you as a believer, you may be in a dangerous place of still living for yourself.

Paul begins Philippians 3 with a warning to guard our faith against the subtle shift that can happen when we misplace our confidence. If we are not careful, where we find our value and hope can turn inward, causing us to lose confidence in God’s mercy and gain confidence in our performance and in ourselves.

Application

Philippians 3:1-7

1. Matt drew a comparison between circumcision, baptism, and praying a prayer of salvation. How do all of these acts represent something much bigger than the actual act? How have you experienced putting your confidence in one of these or something else other than faith to justify your salvation? How is the celebration of these different than acquiring salvation?
2. When is a time that your motivations for serving transferred from Christ-centered to self-centered? How are you experiencing that currently?
3. When we have put our faith in the work we are doing, we start (1) feeling entitled to be compensated, as if God or others “owe” us, and (2) thinking we are better than others who aren’t doing the same work. Which of these two do you currently struggle with the most? How do you combat the feelings of entitlement or pride with the truth of Scripture?
4. Out of the considerations listed below, which do you more closely identify with?
   - You have been in church your whole life and have considered yourself a Christian, but you have not truly trusted in Christ alone as the substitute for your sin.
   - You have been in the faith for a long time and have made a subtle shift from trusting in God’s mercy to trusting in the work that you do.
   - You are a doer, and you are “doing” because of your own sense of entitlement. Matt challenged us to keep in check the “doer” mentality of the Grace Church culture. Being a doer is a good thing, but it needs to come from the attitude of, “I’m serving because Jesus served me,” not for recognition, control, or expectation of getting something in return.
   - You have fallen under the “super-busy Christian activity culture”—where you take good, spiritual activities and begin to believe God loves you or owes you because of them.
   - You are very disciplined in your spiritual activities (prayer, reading God’s Word, service, etc.) and that has become your source of entitlement over how you believe God should feel about you.
   
   No matter where our temptation lies to trust in something other than Jesus alone, the truth is that, as believers, we will live in eternity with Jesus because He will bring us there—not because we are trusting in some version of our own faithfulness that will ultimately leave us empty and alienated from Him.

Key Points

• The Philippians have taken faith and corrupted it by adding religious activity to it. When we take faith and try to add a physical, religious activity to it, we no longer have faith.
• No physical activity has the ability to have a real impact on our soul.
• When we bank on faith + what we are doing to save ourselves, we are rewriting the story of redemption and making ourselves the centerpiece.
• Oftentimes, the work we are doing to “earn” our salvation is what is leading us away from God. It can be a distraction to true faith that engages us with the Lord.
• Trusting in some created version of our own faithfulness ultimately leaves us empty and alienated from Jesus.
• In Colossians 2:13-15, we see that God did it all. While we were dead, God made us alive. He canceled; He disarmed; He shamed; He gave victory; and He forgave—He restored us.

Paul demonstrates his own personal, experiential knowledge of Jesus Christ, urging us to know Him in the same way. Instead of having a lofty, distant view of Jesus, we are able to step into a real relationship with Him.

Application

Philippians 3:8-11

1. Paul shows us how to be both a leader and parent as he opens his life up to scrutiny. He understands that we cannot make ourselves an effective instrument of transformation in the lives of others unless we open ourselves up to being vulnerable to being judged. Who are you leading or serving, and how are you letting your frailty and brokenness shine through your leadership? In your areas of leadership or authority, how can you move towards vulnerability?
2. Have you had an encounter with Jesus that causes you to be willing to identify with Him above all else? Write out or tell your community group about a time when you decided to choose Jesus above everything and everyone else.
3. Paul recognizes that his identity and relationship with Jesus is a “we”; it is a relationship with a person to be known and embraced. What do you identify with most in this world? (Ex. school, hobby, team, sport, family, etc.) In what ways is it easier for you to identify more with something in this world than to identify with God? Is your relationship with Jesus first person or third person: is it “we” or “He”?
4. After listening to Bill White’s teaching, how would you describe your knowledge of Jesus: personal (experiential) or theoretical (propositional)? If you’ve recognized that your knowledge is merely theoretical, how can you move toward knowing Christ personally?
5. When we personally know Jesus, five experiences are true for us. Choose the one that resonates most with you and answer the following question(s).
   - We experience both gain and loss. In this culture, we rarely have the opportunities for loss. What are you going to intentionally lose this week for the sake of Christ?
   - We experience humble dependence on Him. How have you experienced humility and dependence on Jesus recently?
   - We experience the power of the resurrection. (Romans 6) Because of the resurrection, you have a new master—sin does not rule you any longer. If you struggle to believe you have a new master, how have you been living with sin as your master? If you truly believe that Jesus was raised from the dead and frees you from the power of sin, how can that change your actions or behavior?
   - We experience shared suffering in Christ. How are you currently suffering, and how does this grow your personal relationship with Jesus?
   - We experience death and denial of self; the thing that I think would bring me life I give it up for the sake of Jesus. Where are you denying yourself for the sake of Christ?

Key Points

• If you have a relationship with Jesus that you identify as “we” instead of “He”, it will lead to experience and personal knowledge of Christ instead of merely theory and head knowledge.
• As we grow in our love for Him, we will learn to stop seeking lesser things.
• To lead children well, parents should encourage their children to repent, not just telling them to do it, but by modeling true repentance themselves—recognize their sin and repent from it. Parents have to model repentance in vulnerability.
• The means by which we live in the resurrection of Jesus and the hope of eternal life is knowing Christ experientially and personally.
• We cannot be an instrument of transformation in the lives of others unless we risk judgment through vulnerability.

Knowing Jesus is infinitely more valuable than anything this world can offer us. However, we don’t drift into a life of knowing and pursuing Him; we come to know Him intimately through pursuit, effort, and discipline when His previous work in our heart meets our present response.

Application

Philippians 3:12-16

1. God’s offer of Himself to us is infinitely more valuable than all human abilities, achievements, and possessions combined. What do you tend to find more value in than Christ?
2. We are to train and aggressively pursue God, not just try. How have you seen a difference in seasons of your life where you have “trained” to know Christ versus “tried” to know Christ? What does it look like to train to know Christ?
3. Chris Curtis reminded us that our past should inform us, not define us. What from your past have you let define you? How can you change this? In what ways would this remove bitterness, guilt, and resentment from your life?
4. How has God been faithful to you over the years? What does it mean for you to remember these things “correctly”—with proper perspective? How can you remind yourself of these events to motivate you to pursue Him more diligently?

Key Points

• In this passage, perfection does not mean sinlessness, it means maturity.
• The context of the language in Philippians 3:12 is both war and athletics. Paul uses an aggressive tone, meaning to pursue Christ violently (war-like) and to train ourselves like an athlete in pursuing Him. It is this kind of energy and discipline that it takes to know and experience the One who is of infinite value.
• "Grace, we must learn, is opposed to earning, not to effort." —Dallas Willard. You cannot earn grace; however, living out that grace and partaking in grace is about effort.
• How do we pursue God?
  • The way we view ourselves: we should have a holy discontent and dissatisfaction of our spiritual lives that motivates our pursuit of Christ.
  • Forget the past: we should remember our pasts with perspective, knowing that it helps inform who we are but it does not define us.
    In the slide that Chris used to explain forgetting the past, the circle represents bad things. “My bad,” meaning something you did wrong and you feel guilt for but should respond with repentance; “your bad,” meaning something someone has done to you and you feel resentment but your healthy response is forgiveness; and “its bad,” meaning something bad has happened to you, and you are living in the world of “if only I had … ” and you feel bitterness. Your healthy response is hope—not that He will fix everything but that your future with Him is far greater—it outshines whatever you could have had.
  • Strain forward. We become frustrated and are quick to run to sin because we are trying all the time instead of training. Our motivation and urge for straining and training towards Him is initiated by God but must be worked out by us.
• If you feel low on energy to pursue Christ, beg God to saturate your mind that He has taken hold of you and put that truth before you day in and day out.

Scripture References

Matthew 11:12

Mark 2:1-12

1 Corinthians 9:26-27

We are either citizens of Heaven or enemies of the cross of Christ. If we are truly citizens of Heaven, we are to purposefully emulate and follow other believers and set our sights on our eternal citizenship as we labor together to become more like Jesus.

Application

Philippians 3:17-21, 4:1

1. In Philippians 3:18 it is their conduct that tells us who they are. What is your conduct telling others about who you are? Matt challenged parents to consider that what our children are saying is not what is most compelling but what they are doing. If you are a parent, in what ways do you resonate with Matt’s challenge to parents to be honest about how our children are doing?
2. Paul describes an enemy of the cross of Christ as someone whose god is his appetite, who brags about shameful things, and who only thinks about his life here on earth. Which one of these do you most identify with, and how does this play out in your life? How are you living as a citizen of Heaven in light of this struggle?
3. There is intense activity and eager anticipation as we wait for the return of our Savior. The view that Jesus could come back at any time should drive our decisions and be the framework through which we live our lives. How is this concept difficult for you in your life? How often do you think about Jesus’ return? Who do you know who seems to live this out, and how does it affect the people around them?
4. When Paul writes, “He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like his own” (3:21a), do you read this as a rebuke or an encouragement? In what ways do you lean towards either vanity, in which you need the reminder that your human body is a “body of humiliation,” or towards frailty, in which you need the reminder that Jesus will one day transform your body into a glorious one like His own?
5. Matt reminds us that we need to be both following someone and leaving space in our lives for someone to follow us. Who are you following? Who is following you? Where can you create space in your life to either follow someone else or let others follow you? Are you so busy that there is no space in your life for people to learn from you and be blessed by you?

Key Points

• We are wired to receive things that we have not been taught directly—the people we choose to emulate correlates directly with what we learn and how we change.
• The group of people that Paul is speaking to is trying to add religious activity to their faith. Even if you say that your salvation hinges 99% on God’s work and 1% on yourself, then you are an enemy of the cross, only trusting in yourself.
• Just as the Philippians are under Roman rule, the Church is under Heaven’s rule.
• Leaning in to the anticipation of the second coming means to faithfully and eagerly wait for Christ’s return by living a holy lifestyle, loving people well, being generous with our time and resources, and sharing our life with others.

Scripture References

1 Corinthians 11:1

Luke 12:35-46

While our faith is personal, it is not private. In Philippians 4:2-5, Paul shares in his letter both an exhortation to two women in the church of Philippi who cannot make peace with each other and a command to rejoice in the Lord in view of Jesus’ return. Not only does this reveal to us that we are to make peace with others because we are of the same mind in Jesus Christ, but that we are to rejoice and hold loosely the things of this world.

Application

Philippians 4:2-5

1. Paul begins by addressing a disagreement between two believers, made public by their profession of faith and commitment to the local church. On what basis does he plead with them to settle their disagreement? Think of a difficult relationship in your life: what would it look like for you to let go of the offense and settle it for the sake of having the same mind in the Lord?
2. The experiences of Paul uniquely qualify him to tell the church to rejoice in the Lord. When you think of the phrase “rejoice in the Lord,” what comes to mind? What is our ability to rejoice in the Lord based on? How does this fact frame the reality of your difficult or painful circumstances?
3. As a community of believers, we are to be characterized by being considerate, composed, and gentle with others. How true is this for you within your sphere of influence? What would be some indicators that this is not true of you? With whom and under what circumstances can you be more gentle and considerate?
4. The way in which Paul handles this disagreement tells us that even mature Christians find themselves in situations where they must have someone else step in to help them. In what areas of your life might you need someone else to step in and help? If this has happened in the past, how did pride seep in as you considered asking someone to help you?

Key Points

• We make peace with others in the Lord and rejoice in the Lord through talking to ourselves, not listening to ourselves. We should not listen to our own sense of justice; instead of listening to what we are feeling, we must tell ourselves what is ultimately true—to take captive our thoughts and direct them to obedience of God.
• We can miss what God wants to do with our lives because community seems too difficult and we would rather be able to hide and avoid difficult conversations.
• Thoughts will come to mind, but it’s what we do with our thoughts that determine who we are.
• The hope and truth that the Lord is near allows us to let go of anxiety—it gives us hope in the midst of what panics us.

Scripture References

Proverbs 26:17

In our culture today, we have the expectation for control and for connectivity. In Philippians 4, we are instructed to cease worrying about the ever-increasing issues we are controlled by and connected to and to instead pray. In the context of thankfulness, our prayers should ultimately come from an overflowing heart of gratitude for what God has done for us. While we naturally attempt to be self-reliant by worrying, we must trust the Lord and go to Him for all that we need.

Application

Philippians 4:6-9

1. In humility and thankfulness, and in the context of all He has done for us, we present our requests to God. When is the last time you remember praying in this framework of gratitude? How would your prayers look different if you prayed like this?
2. Peace comes when we pray without worry. Matt commented that both prayer and not worrying take faith. Do you think you have faith to stop trusting in yourself and to go to Him in prayer? Why or why not? Do you have faith to stop worrying and trust Him with the outcome? What is a situation in your life where you need to stop worrying as you pray?
3. Matt addresses two ways to apply Paul’s instruction in this passage: systematic (built-in systems in your life to help you redirect to prayer) and spontaneous (when you get bad news, what is your initial response?).
   1. Systematic: What systems do you have in place to help you pray throughout the day?
   2. Spontaneous: When do you worry, and what do you worry about? What is your default response when you are in pain, difficulty, or strife? What do you turn to first, and how can you begin to train yourself to rewire that initial response?
4. When worry drives our lives, we try to self-soothe using unhealthy habits to fill our minds and souls. These things distract you at best or they destroy you at worst. What is it that you need to cut out of your life that is not feeding you in a healthy way? What are you feeding on or consuming or escaping into that is not helping you grow?

Key Points

• Worry puts us at the center of our situation, assuming that we know better than God. As Oswald Chambers once said, “Worry on the part of God’s children is unconscious blasphemy.”
• As we pray, we redirect our energy to trust God and dependence on Him for our issues. The reality of our situation may not change, but we can have peace.
• The only way to stop worrying is to pray, releasing control of your will, giving it to God, and choosing that you are okay with whatever He decides.
• When you continue to worry it is because you have your own agenda, and you are worried you will not get your own way. We have to let go of our own agenda and surrender to God’s.
• Pride, demands, and entitlement feed worry. When you demand certain outcomes and you have no power to make them happen, you will worry.
• Culture tells us to empty our minds in order to gain peace, but Scripture tells us to fill our minds with what is good. We have to fix our minds every day and direct our thoughts to what is excellent, pure, and praiseworthy.
• Matt read a response to “What is meditation?”:

"When I talk about prayer and meditation, I'm talking about slowing down in reflective prayer over the Scriptures and lingering with God over how they need to apply to my life. … The goal is not to empty my mind but to redirect my mind to the great Truth of Scripture. This is the real work, and it takes time and effort.

It involves “putting off” and “putting on” (Colossians 3 ESV).

It involves confession of sin and weakness.

It involves pleading for transformation by the Holy Spirit.

It involves hungering and thirsting after God.

It involves a willful rejoicing for the great things that God has done for me in Christ even and especially when I don't feel it. [I am overriding feelings with the Truth]

It involves capturing my imagination and fixing it on the throne room of Christ and imagining the day when He saddles up and returns to claim us and His world.

It is also that I view my circumstances from this perspective that God's will in this world becomes clear, and I am settled in a place of contentment, clarity, and peace."

Scripture References

Luke 12:22

1 Peter 5:5-7

While we naturally try to find the next thing that will be “enough” for us, Paul reminds us that as believers we can find contentment regardless of circumstances. He has learned and trained to be content in little and in plenty, finding contentment in God’s character and the hope of Jesus rather than comfort. The fullest satisfaction of our souls is available to us outside of success, affirmation, security, control, or anything else we grasp as a false source of contentment.

Application

Philippians 4:10-23

1. It is when we give away sacrificially and generously that we are content. When we sacrifice and release, we are reminded that we do not need the thing we are sacrificing and recognize there is greater hope and contentment. Where are you currently sacrificing to create space for Jesus to be enough? How have you found that Jesus is greater?
2. Contentment is not a fleeting feeling; it is something that we train in our souls over time. Paul references two training grounds (listed below). Identify which of these represents you in this particular season and answer the questions that follow.
   1. Seasons of life in which Paul had nothing: In these circumstances, comfort may have been stripped from you unwillingly, or you may put yourself in an inconvenient or uncomfortable situation for the greater mission of God. When in your life has comfort been stripped away to leave you with certainty that God is enough? If this has never happened for you, what is one step you can take to let go of your comfort and let God prove to you that He is enough?
   2. Seasons of life in which Paul had plenty: In these circumstances, we can confuse comfort with contentment in Christ. Where are things going well for you that you are tempted to feel self-sufficient and like you do not need Jesus? What are you looking to as your source of life that is really just fool’s gold (ex. someone's approval, a certain measure of control, a particular comfort or feeling of achievement, etc.)?
3. When our hearts cry out with anger, fear, anxiety, panic, etc., we have to do the work of discovering where that comes from. When was the last time you reacted in one of these ways? What do you think was the false source of contentment that was being exposed in that moment? If you cannot trace it back, ask someone who knows you well: “Where have you noticed I give all of my best energy and my affections? What do you think is a false source of contentment for me?”
4. As a Christian, Paul’s life is located in Jesus, his ability for contentment comes from his personal connection with Him, and all of his needs are met through Him. In what ways do you or do you not feel connected and plugged in to Jesus? If you don't feel connected to Jesus, be reminded that being plugged into Him is a reality that doesn't always match our feelings.

Key Points

• Discontentment is a restless desire or craving for something one does not have, while contentment is being satisfied with what one has; not wanting more or anything else.
• “Christian contentment … is the direct fruit of having no higher ambition than to belong to the Lord and to be totally at His disposal in the place He appoints, at the time He chooses, with the provision He is pleased to make.” -Sinclair Furguson. When doing God's work and knowing Him is what satisfies us, we can be content.
• We have to be careful not to confuse comfort for contentment in Christ.
• Even when circumstances do not line up with the feeling we desire, we can trust God's character.