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Philemon
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What’s Next?Life After 40 Days of PurposePhilemon 1:1-7
IntroductionSince January our ministry focus has been primarily on the 40 Days of Purpose Campaign. Our adult small groups, children’s ministries, Teen ministries, and worship services all adopted the Purpose Driven Life theme. We launched fourteen small groups and had nearly 90 participants. They are now done. Now we ask, What’s Next? In the midst of the 40 Days Campaign; “The Passion of the Christ” movie came to Viroqua. Several of you served in an outreach effort by distributing books by John Piper to people as they came out of the theatre. About 250 books were handed out. Again we ask, What’s Next? Easter was two weeks ago. There was a very nice ecumenical Good Friday worship service that Grace Church participated in and it really demonstrated a step in building unity for several churches in Viroqua. Then, last week we had a Baptism service where five people publicly acknowledged their association with Jesus Christ. What are we going to do Next?
These have served as great opportunities for spiritual growth; both individually and as a church family. I know for some of you it was a big challenge to get involved in a 40 Days Small Group. I commend you for following through with your commitment and for helping to make it a success. From my vantage point I had the privilege of hearing many first hand accounts of how people were benefiting from their 40 Day small group. People were building relationships; both new and old. People were growing in their knowledge of Christ. You also had the opportunity to hear some of these reports during the sharing time last Sunday. Again I ask, what’s next? As a church and as individuals --- what can we do to keep the momentum? Let’s be encouraged by what we have learned and by what we accomplished together. Probably the worst thing that we could do is to put all the books and videos away, and fill that weeknight on the calendar with a TV show. That would be a shame. Small groups have been important to Rheta and I for many years. It was through an adult small group study when our kids were very young that we first learned how to study the Bible. We gained comfort in asking questions and we really looked forward to meeting on Friday nights and spending time together with our friends. We grew in our understanding about many things and that group ended up meeting weekly for not just six weeks, but for over three years! This morning we are going to look at a couple key components of Small Groups. To help us do that, if you have your Bible please turn with me to the little book of Philemon (located just before Hebrews – a mere 1 page in most Bibles!). In context, Paul wrote this letter (more like a post card) to persuade Philemon to reconcile with a man by the name of Onesemus. However, as Paul builds up to the main issue in this letter he includes some very encouraging words to Philemon that fit very well for where we are at as a small church; and in particular, words of wisdom for small groups. The letter is actually addressed to Philemon and to the members of the church that was meeting at his house. Let’s Read verses 1 through 7. Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother, to Philemon our dear friend and fellow worker, 2 to Apphia our sister, to Archippus our fellow soldier and to the church that meets in your home: 3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 4 I always thank my God as I remember you in my prayers, 5 because I hear about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints. 6 I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ. 7 Your love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the saints. Word had gotten to Paul (in prison at the time he wrote this letter) about this church meeting in Philemon’s house. Paul thanks God for what he hears about them, because of their FAITH in the Lord Jesus and their LOVE for all the saints. Faith and Love, it sounds simple. Two foundational characteristics of the Christian life. Let’s unpack this and see how it applies to us. Paul goes beyond commending them for their faith. He prays for them to be active in sharing their faith. The nice thing about this passage is that he directly follows up the ACTION with the WHY. We should be active in sharing our faith in the Lord Jesus… so that we will gain a full understanding of every good thing that we have in Christ. Notice how it flows just as well in reverse: Do you want to gain a fuller understanding of every good thing we have in Christ? …. Then be active in sharing your faith. How can we make this happen? A small group is a great place to learn, to practice, and to improve on sharing our faith. One of the best rules for any Bible study is: “there is no such thing as a stupid question”. I’m sure at my first Bible study I didn’t have a clue about many things and I probably asked some off the wall questions, but they were patient with me and helped me grow in my understanding. However, in a small group, we might share something or ask something that gets pounced on, but in the long run it can serve well to help us to learn how to share our faith in a less than friendly setting. This reminds me of a few common clichés that fit well with the model of learning within a small group setting: “Know why you believe what you believe”, Rick Warren shared, “the more you share – the more you become aware”. Or how about, “the best way to really learn something, is to teach it to someone else.” OR if we combine these we might come up with something like … “the best way to really learn something, is to explain to someone else what it really means to you.” I would be willing to bet that as you here me say the words “be active in sharing your faith”, some of you are saying …. No Way! Not me. Not even in a small group setting. No Way! I may have shared this with some of you before, but I learned in the last few years that when it comes to ministry, I will no longer tell God that “I will not” do something. I have learned to trust that if there is something He wants me to say or do, then He will prepare me to do it. I actually told him there was no way I would ever go into full-time ministry, I would never give a sermon, and I would never go visit someone at a jail. Since coming to Viroqua, he has led me to do them all. Sometimes I try to remember if there is anything else that I said “I wouldn’t do”, so that I can know what to expect next. So, before you say “No way”, to sharing your faith. My advice to you is … Be careful! Through sharing our faith, whether in the “typically” friendly confines of a small group study or with a non-believing friend or relative, it helps us to grow in our understanding. As Paul points out in verse 6, he prays that they will be active in sharing their faith so that they will have a full understanding. What is meant by a “full understanding”? Listen to what Paul wrote to the Colossian church (a letter written about the same time as the letter to Philemon – probably from the same jail): Col 1:9-14 and 2:2-4 COL 1:9 For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. 10 And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, 11 being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. 13 For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. 2 My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. 4 I tell you this so that no one may deceive you by fine-sounding arguments. Paul wrote another letter to the Ephesians, during this same time frame. Here he says in Eph 1:6-9: 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace 8 that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. 9 And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, So, we see this theme of gaining “a full-understanding”, addressed repeatedly by Paul in his various letters to the churches. Is Paul saying that to have a “full understanding” you must be a theological scholar; then, you can actively share your faith? Definitely not. Understanding is not just knowing all the facts about the Bible. Paul is telling us that “understanding” is demonstrated by practical application through godly living. The more we understand, the more naturally we live it. The more we live it the more opportunity we will have to talk about it. The more we share it, the more we understand. It’s as if the sharing and understanding kind of feed on each other. Like a cycle, and every time it goes around, you understand a little more. Let’s look at the second point of encouragement Paul gives to Philemon. But to address the second part of this text we need to hit the pause button and ask a much bigger question. One that we could never do justice in the time we have left and probably not even begin to scrape the surface if we had two or three weeks worth of sermons. That question is, “How do we define love?” Paul says in verse 7 of our text, “Your love has given me great joy and encouragement”. To keep focused on the application of this morning’s message, let’s think about, how Love is defined in the atmosphere of a small group? After all, Paul did write this to Philemon’s house church. I don’t think it is too much of a stretch to equate this to a small group setting. Warren Wiersbe said, “The mind grows by what it takes in; the heart grows by what it gives out.” Have you noticed that when you get connected in a small group or develop any friendship, you start seeing the needs of the other people. We begin to empathize with their pain and we celebrate their joys. Our priorities begin to shift. We take an interest in their lives. We are concerned. We get involved. Jesus taught us through what is known as The Great Commandment, that we are to Love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. The second part is like it; Love your neighbor as you love yourself. John Piper translates the first part to mean: “Love God with all you are.” The second part of the command he adds, “is like it”. We are to Love God and Love one another ---- “with all we are”. What does this look like? We could go into isolation and study the Bible day and night. We would focus intensely on loving God, but it would be at the expense of fulfilling the second half. That means, Love cannot be learned in isolation and means we have to be around people – yes that includes people who will be irritating, they will be imperfect, but aren’t we all like that at times? Rather humbling, but true. How do we demonstrate to others that “we love them”? To answer that, let’s flip it around. Think of someone who loves you. How do you know they love you? Is it because they say I love you all the time? Is that it? When we first started sharing the office, Rich used to kid me about how I would say good-bye to Rheta on the phone. I’d say “love-ya” –“bye”. Sounds normal, but I got in this routine where it was such a habit that I just said it faster and faster to the point you could barely discern the words. It became: “loveyabye”. I would say it so fast and so habitual, that I started to worry about accidentally saying it to someone besides Rheta! Now does it mean anything when I say it so ritualistic? Is it really expressing my deep heartfelt love? It means very little, unless I back it up; with compassion, with focused attention, with acts of kindness, with helps, AND with words that don’t come out at 100 mile per hour. In Galatians 5:6 Paul outlines a link between faith and love. He writes that, “love is the way faith expresses itself.” Without love faith is dead. Which goes along with what James wrote, “faith, if it has no works is dead,” Put these two verses together and we see that the works of love are the evidence of living faith. Do you see how this aspect of faith and love that Paul wrote about to Philemon are so intertwined; especially for this small group meeting under his roof. We Love God and Love one another ---- “with all we are”. We heard this summarized in the 40 days campaign as Purpose #1 –Worship and Purpose #2 –Fellowship. What keeps us from living out these two purposes? What about Busyness? Busyness is a huge enemy of relationships and therefore, fellowship. Which also means it’s a huge enemy of small groups. Fellowship requires time and energy. I really appreciated Rick Warren’s challenging prayer for starting off the day. If you recall, he pointed out, that if we understand that loving God and loving people is a priority for our lives; then we should pray: “Lord, Whether I get anything else done today, I want to make sure that I spend time loving you and loving other people. Because that is what is important to you and I don’t want to waste this day.” That says a lot, doesn’t it? What about family? We often say I don’t have enough time for church involvement (or small groups or fellowship) because we prioritize our family first. Well, that’s great. It’s certainly Scriptural. Proverbs teaches us to train up our children in the way they should go. Deuteronomy tells us to teach our children as we walk along the road and sit in our homes. That is certainly a worthy endeavor. Yet, how are we modeling to them our commitment to the church family? How are we modeling the importance of a life of learning to study the Bible with other adults? How are we modeling to them service in the church? How are we modeling to them the importance of reaching out to those who have special needs? Our children need to see this modeled or else they will grow up, leave home, and they will not understand how they are supposed to fit into a church family as an adult. Ask yourself this: when your children grow up and move on, do you hope that they will join a Bible study? Do you hope they will invest in their marriage by attending a couples retreat? Do you hope they will be active in a church and even attend prayer meetings and business meetings? Yes, we must --- train up our children in the way they should go. If these things are important: how will we backup our words with actions? In a similar way, we tend to be good at saying we “Love God” and saying we “Love Jesus”. How are we backing that up? Christ certainly demonstrated his love for us with more than words. His actions demonstrated his love. The pictures of “The passion of The Christ” will be a reminder of that to me. What am I (we) doing for him? Christ taught (by way of the passage about the Judgement), “as you did unto the least of them …. You did unto me….” Jesus is pointing out that we can show our love to him by showing love to other people. Our “full understanding” is demonstrated through works of love. We care for their practical needs; physical, emotional, or spiritual. Philemons church must have been doing it right. Paul was encouraged by their actions to the point that he said, “your love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the saints. What is it like to feel refreshed? When was the last time you felt refreshed? Maybe that’s a good way to think of getting together as a small group. A time to get “refreshed”. I’m talking about More than just going for the “Refreshments”!! In fact, I extrapolated 6 reasons from “The Purpose Driven Life”, as to why we should be involved in a small group. First of all, Refreshments (just kidding). #1 -A small group helps you identify with a group of believers. #2 - A small group moves you out of self-centered isolation. #3 - A small group helps you develop spiritual muscle. #4 - The small group needs you. #5 - The small group will share in Christ’s mission in the world. #6 - The small group will help you from backsliding. I learned that word from my Baptist past and learned what it meant from Hebrews 10:24-25 : 24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. 25 Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another – all the more as you see The Day approaching. We are all learning how to do this. John Piper explains that Christian love is not an all or nothing thing, but it is a growing thing. Let’s encourage one another to keep growing. This morning I want to encourage you, I want to challenge you, and I want to spur you on to think about being involved in a small group. The healthy perspective for all of us would be that we are getting involved in a small group in an effort to grow to that next level of understanding. Desiring that fuller understanding of every good thing we have in Christ and desiring to practice our love for all the saints I really hope you are thinking of joining or even hosting a group. Wouldn’t it be awesome to have a wide selection of groups to pick from? We had a bunch of them for six weeks. It is certainly possible! If you have even a tiny level of interest or you have some ideas or questions; I really want to talk to you! Join me as we close in prayer. Echoing Paul’s words in Philemon: Lord, I pray that you will help each of us to be active in sharing our faith. Sharing, so that we can have a fuller understanding of every good thing we have in Christ. I also pray that we can each demonstrate your love to those around us in an effort to refresh the hearts of the saints, and to model Christ-like love to our communities . We have had some very positive experiences through small groups over the last several weeks. Help each of us to evaluate those experiences in light of your Word and then help us to decide how to proceed for the weeks to come. ---- Amen. Benediction: I encourage you to Go, and be active in sharing your faith! Have a good day. Jeff Gordon: Grace EFC Viroqua, WI 4/25/2004 |