Letter #1 - Phillipians 1:1-11
by Kent Vos
“He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion.”
I like this verse. In fact, I’ve quoted it a number of times and perhaps you have, too. It might go something like:
“Hey, I know times are tough and I know you may not feel God is at work, but just remember, my brother or sister…’He who began a good work will see it through.’”
Unfortunately, I think that for me, I’ve sometimes reduced this verse to merely a nice saying, as a small “grenade of encouragement” lobbed over the fence without enough thought, and then I walk away. But have I fully comprehended and conveyed the power and the context behind the verse? To be sure, there is power behind it! Let’s explore.
What did Paul have in mind when he said this? I think about how the church in Philippi first started. Paul was wandering around modern day Turkey on his second missionary journey (Acts 16). He tried to enter one city and “was kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching.” He tried to enter another city “but the Holy Spirit would not allow them.” I don’t know about you, but I’d be a bit confused at this point as to where I’m supposed to be. But then Paul had a vision of a “man from Macedonia” and off he went to Macedonia (where Philippi is located) . Perhaps he was expecting to find this man with a light from heaven shining down upon him, saying, “Paul, be confused no longer, you’ve arrived just where God wants you!” Instead, Paul finds a small handful of Jewish women meeting by a river (not even a Jewish synagogue existed in that town) and gains a single convert, Lydia, plus her household. After this big vision, seems a bit anticlimactic, don’t you think? But remember, “He who began a good work will see it through….”
Things then go from mediocre to just bad. Paul soon finds himself beaten to a pulp, along with Silas, thrown into a dark, damp prison, stretched out in the stocks, with no one to tend to his excruciating wounds. What would you do? Would you think that “He who began a good work will see it through?” Paul apparently did. In fact, he and Silas started “praying and singing hymns to God.” That doesn’t even make sense! But to Paul, he knew God is ALWAYS up to something greater, even when we don’t perceive it. Event when it hurts. Even in utter confusion. And this attitude of non-sensical joy not only gets him through the situation but makes such an impression on the jailer, otherwise apathetic to Paul’s cause, that he can’t help but ask “Sirs, what must I do to be saved!?” Well ok, there was this big, miraculous earthquake that happened, too…but in all seriousness, I’m convinced it was especially Paul’s joy and peace in such dire straits that made this unforgettable impression on the jailer. Paul knew “God would see this good work through.”
And now Paul writes the letter of Philippians from another jail, waiting for his trial in Rome. And he writes with joy to “all the overseers and deacons” in Philippi. That’s right, it all started with Lydia and a jailer, and now, there is a full-blown church in Philippi. “God is seeing a good work through”!
You may ask, “Ok, I see, but how can I be so sure God will see this good work through in ME?” “I’m in the fight of my life, you know, and it really couldn’t get much worse.” Glad you asked.
I recently bought a ton of rocks. Well, 18 tons of rocks, to be exact, and it turns out 18 tons of rocks is kind of expensive. But, the COVID shutdown had just happened, and I had time on my hands, and I had in my head a landscaping design with these rocks that was going to make my yard look great! It turns out moving 18 tons of rocks with a single shovel is back-breaking work (who knew). But I had paid all this money, I saw the final product in my head, and I WOULD FINISH! Many days, I worked past sundown, and the neighbors informed me that I was crazy and weird. But did I finally finish? Yes, I did!
You see, Jesus paid the ultimate price on the cross (indeed, we cost more than rocks) for the joy set before him (us being reconciled to Him is that joy). And he has such a beautiful design in mind to complete through each of our lives. With so much already invested in you and so much at stake, how could he NOT “see his work through to completion” - so that “our love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight”? That is His unstoppable plan in our lives, no matter how dark things may look. Take heart, take joy, and believe this!
What are you going through right now that seems impossibly hopeless?
Pray for the Holy Spirit to give you the kind of joy Paul had in prison. Choose joy.
Pray for the Holy Spirit to help you understand how beautiful the masterpiece is that God is crafting in your life despite how ugly your circumstances may seem today.
Pray that God would work in your life to create a love beyond the basic and fleeting love the world knows, a love that is rooted in truth and knowledge of the gospel.
