Philippians 2:17-18
¹⁷ Yea, and if I be offered upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I joy, and rejoice with you all.
¹⁸ For the same cause also do ye joy, and rejoice with me.”
TRANSCRIPT
Our text for this morning's message is taken from Philippians 2, verse 17 to 18. Allow me to read for you Philippians chapter 2, verse 17 to 18. “Yea, and if I be offered upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I joy, and rejoice with you all. For the same cause also do ye joy, and rejoice with me.”
As Christians, we ought to be serving the Lord. Have you ever paused to consider how you have served the Lord? Perhaps you have a very high opinion of yourself. You are proud of what you have done and you feel you have done well in serving the Lord, until you read Philippians chapter 2, especially verses 5 to 8, about the Supreme example of Christ. He is the Eternal Son of God, and yet He was willing to leave Heaven's glory and humbled Himself to come into this world to serve as a servant. And ultimately, He went to the cross. As believers, we ought to follow His example in humility and service.
When you consider the example of Christ, all of a sudden, you are humbled and you realise that you have fallen short in the way you have served the Lord. However, some may argue that that standard is impossible because Christ is the sinless, perfect Son of God, and what is possible for Him is impossible for the Believers to follow. But God did not just give us the Bible as a standard; He also provided the supernatural resources for us to meet that standard, and that is in the person of the Holy Spirit, who will empower us to do His will.
But some may still argue that it may be possible in theory, but it is impossible to do so in practice. How can a Christian meet such a standard? Well, it was as if the Apostle Paul had anticipated this objection, and his response was, although it is hard, but it is not impossible. To prove that it is not only possible in theory but also in practice, he gave three human examples: firstly, Paul himself, who was an apostle; and then Timothy, a young minister; and finally, Epaphroditus, a layman. We'll be focusing on these three spiritual servants, and from the exemplary examples, we want to learn how we ought to live our lives and serve the Lord. Today, we will only be focusing on the example of Paul. The title of our message is "The Exemplary Example of a Spiritual Servant: Paul”.
I. The offering
Our first point, is the offering. Paul began by saying, "Yea, and if I be offered” – he was willing to offer himself. In other words, he was willing to surrender and offer himself as a service to God. The problem with many people is that they do not want to give God of themselves. What do we mean by that? Allow me to explain. People may be willing to give God certain things. It is relatively easy to give money, although oftentimes they may not be as generous as they seem to be. It is not very difficult for a multi-millionaire to part with thousands of dollars. Some people would tell the church, "Just let me know how much you need for the mission work, and I will write you a check." They have no issue, no problem with money.
Some people are willing to give God a certain amount of their time. They may be retirees and they have lots of free time. They will volunteer for church work, they will visit mission churches, and they will engage in charitable works. Others who are much younger, they are full of youthful strength, and they are willing to give God their energy. They will attend and participate in all the different ministries of the church, the different fellowship groups. People may be willing to give of their money, time, and energy, but they will not give of themselves.
Yet without ourselves, all these gifts mean nothing to the almighty God. He does not want your money, time, and energy. Without yourself, you are the one for whom Jesus died. You are the one He loves. You are the one He saves. You are the one God wants. It is so sad that people will substitute things for themselves. That is why Romans 12:1 says, "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, wholly acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service." You are the one God wants.
The late James Montgomery gave a wonderful illustration of how we sometimes substitute things for ourselves. He gave the illustration of the story of Jacob in Genesis 32. Remember, Jacob had cheated his brother Esau out of their father Isaac's blessings about 20 years before, and he was forced to run for his life because his brother threatened to kill him. 20 years was a long time. Over those two decades, Jacob gradually forgot about his brother's threat. But when it was time to go home, he remembered the past, and he was afraid of what might happen to him as he moved along toward his brother's house. Jacob had time to think; he remembered his own dishonest conduct, he remembered his brother's murderous threat, and every step became harder and harder for him to take. Finally, he reached the brook Jabbok, which was the border of his brother's territory. What must he do?
The first thing he did was to send some servants ahead of him to find out about Esau, perhaps get a feeling of what he was planning to do. He realised that Esau had come with 400 men; that was a huge army from Jacob's point of view. Perhaps Esau was coming to kill him. He had to think quickly. He then divided his family, his servants, his flocks into two groups. He reckoned in his heart that if Esau attacked one group, the other group might escape. The second thing he did was to send gifts to appease his brother. First, he sent him a present of 200 female goats, then followed by the second group: 20 male goats, just in case Esau was still not happy.
He sent 200 ewe lambs and then 20 rams. And still uncertain, he decided to send over his entire livestock: 30 camels with their young, 40 cows, 10 bulls, 20 female donkeys, and 10 male donkeys. Each group had a servant in charge, and he gave to each servant the same message to send to Esau: "This is a gift from thy servant Jacob, and he is right behind us." After he had sent the animals, Jacob sent his wife Leah with her children, and then followed by his beloved wife Rachel with her children. Then at last here was nothing left to send.
Jacob was all alone, and he was trembling. He stood before his brother. I suppose if he had known the famous chorus, he'd be singing, "I surrender all." All the goats, all the sheep, all the camels, all the cows, all the bulls, all the donkeys, all the servants, including his family, he had given up everything. But there was still one thing left he had not given—himself. Of course, the story had a good ending in Genesis 33, verse 4: "And Esau ran to meet him and embraced him and fell on his neck and kissed him." And he went.
The point I want to stress to you is that this is what we would do oftentimes. We tell God that we will give him some of our time, and then we volunteer to do some things around the church. We will give him our money, but we do not give of ourselves. We tell the Lord, "Oh, I cannot come to church; I'm too busy, but I will make more money, and I will give to the Lord's work.” Do you think God will appreciate this gift? Do you think this gift will be holy and acceptable to him? God forbids!
It is not just our money; it is not just our time, our resources, or even our energy. God wants us. Without giving of ourselves, all these things would mean nothing. Paul says, "Yea, and if I be offered, I'm willing to sacrifice, to surrender, to offer myself to the almighty God.” That is what God wants. Dear friends, are you willing to give of yourself to God?
II. The sacrifice
Our second point is the sacrifice. "Yeah, and if I be offered upon the sacrifice and service of your faith." The original Greek word for "offered" is the technical term used to describe being poured out as a drink offering on the altar. In those days when the people offered a sacrifice, they would first kill an animal and then burn it on the altar. After this sacrifice was done, the worshiper would make an additional offering called a drink offering. He would take a cup of wine and pour it on the altar, and because the altar was burning hot, the drink offering would sizzle and almost immediately disappear like a puff of smoke.
In other words, Paul was willing to spend and be spent to the point that his whole life was like a drink offering to be consumed for the service of God. It was as if Paul was saying to the Philippians, "I know that you are worried about me because I'm in prison in Rome, and I may be executed. My life may come to an end, but what is my life? The important thing is not my life; the important thing is your faith, that you will grow spiritually from strength to strength and from faith to faith when I'm killed. My life is just like a drink offering poured on the altar, and then it will just disappear. It is your life that is most important."
That is the idea. Paul saw his life as not the important thing. If he dies, he dies; his life will be a sacrifice. It is the faith of the Philippians that is far greater than his sacrifice. His life will be just like a drink offering, which vanishes in no time. So all his past achievements, his credentials, his accolades, and even his martyrdom would be nothing. All that truly matters to him is the faith of the Philippians, that they may be strong, they may be firm, that they remain faithful to the Lord Jesus Christ.
Dear friends, this is the kind of attitude that should exemplify every Christian who names the name of Jesus as his or her own Saviour. One day, you and I will die and be gone. Death will come swiftly; it will come suddenly, whether it be cancer or a heart attack or an accident. It will take us away when we least expect it to come.
What should be our attitude toward life and death? We are just like a drink offering when our lives go up in a puff of smoke. When we look back upon our lives, what have we left behind? It doesn't matter how many houses we have or how big our bank accounts are or the titles and credentials we have. Left behind, all these things mean nothing. What is most important is a life that is lived for the Lord Jesus Christ.
What is most important is a life that is lived for the Lord Jesus Christ, a life that is ever ready to be offered as a living sacrifice and service for Him. We pray that as parents, at the end of the day, we will be able to say, "Yeah, my life is like a drink offering offered for the faith of my children." As Sunday school teachers, we'll be able to say, "Yea, my life is like a drink offering offered for the faith of the little ones." And as pastors, elders, deacons, we'll be able to say, "Yea, my life is like a drink offering offered for the faith of the members." That is the best life we can ever live; that is the best legacy we can ever leave behind, living our lives just like a drink offering.
III. The joy
Our third and final point is the joy. Look at the last part of the 17, "I joy and rejoice with you all." Unfortunately, many believers do not experience this kind of joy in serving Christ. When the circumstances are good, they are happy, but when the circumstances are not good, they are sad and sometimes even resentful. The only things that bring them joy are those things that promote their own interests and welfare. That is not biblical joy.
When believers seek to do God's will and live a life that pleases the Lord, they will view their sacrifices and service for Him as great joy. The reason why many believers know little about this kind of joy is because they know little about this kind of sacrifice. Let us take a moment and consider this word "sacrifice." We use this word so often, but we do not pause to consider its true meaning.
The basic meaning of sacrifice is to give up something. It is to give up something valuable for the sake of other considerations. For example, we sacrifice our time with the family to earn more money; we sacrifice our freedom to achieve a noble cause. It is always about giving up something very precious to us. Dear friends, have you ever felt serving God to you as a sacrifice? It is in the sense of losing something. Have you ever felt that when you serve, when you sacrifice, you are like giving up something? Let's say you spend two hours cleaning the church, and you felt that you have lost two hours, or you have given a thousand dollars to the mission work, and you felt that you have lost that sum of money, or you have spent one whole night to prepare the Sunday School lesson, and you felt as if you have lost all your energy and strength, including a good night's rest.
When we feel we lose our time, money, and energy, and yet we do not see the results, what happens? We become discouraged and disappointed. But that is a very unbiblical, shallow, and worldly way of considering our services to God. Biblical sacrifice is never a sacrifice in the sense of being a loss, never. A believer can never sacrifice anything to God without it being replaced by something infinitely greater and more valuable.
If you have your Bibles, maybe you can turn with me to 2 Corinthians 4:17. "For our light affliction, which is but for the moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory." Sometimes, as we serve the Lord, as we sacrificially serve the Lord, we may suffer persecutions, we may suffer afflictions and troubles of all sorts. But Paul says, "Our sacrifice, our suffering is considered light in comparison with eternity. Even if we have to suffer every day of our lives, what is that in comparison with eternity? It is only for a moment, and we know that there will be this eternal weight of glory awaiting us in heaven."
Biblical sacrifice is always an exchange of something lesser for something greater. That was the reason why Paul said in Philippians 3:8-11 that he considered all those things he had lost as dung. We all know that verse very well, but why did he consider all those things he had forsaken as spiritual rubbish? Because what he gained was Christ and the infinitely greater blessings of salvation and eternal life. What can be most more precious than eternal life? What can be of a greater blessing than having Jesus Christ as your Saviour, as your Lord? Paul says there's no comparison; all these things are but spiritual rubbish.
That was the reason why in Acts 5:29, when Peter and the other apostles were warned by the high priest not to teach and preach Jesus Christ, their response was, "We ought to obey God rather than men." Subsequently, they were beaten, thrown into prison, and later on, they were released. And when they were released, what did they say? Acts 5:41, "And they departed from the presence of the Jewish council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name's sake." Why were they rejoicing after being beaten? Because they considered themselves worthy to suffer for Christ, and they knew that there would be this eternal glory waiting for them in heaven.
That was the reason why so many missionaries are willing to live years and years under very difficult, demanding, and oftentimes dangerous conditions, and yet they are always rejoicing. If we may put it this way, the greater the sacrifice, the greater the joy. If you truly understand the biblical meaning of sacrifice, then you understand the greater the sacrifice, the greater the joy.
Dear friends, take a moment and consider this: when serving the Lord gives us true joy, when building up the faith of the believers gives us true joy, when giving and supporting the gospel work gives us true joy – whatever gives us true joy, we are most willing to sacrifice for it, right? We are most willing to put in our utmost efforts to do it. We will never murmur and complain. People who murmur and complain as they serve God, they do not understand the true meaning of sacrifice and service. Remember, biblical sacrifice is always an exchange of something less for something greater, something that cannot be compared, something that goes forever and ever for all eternity, the weight of glory in heaven. When we understand that, then we know that the greater the sacrifice, the greater the joy.
So when Paul saw the Philippians serving the Lord, growing spiritually, he rejoiced with them. Even though he might be in prison, even though he might be facing potential death, he did not want the Philippians to be sorrowful for him. Instead, he urged them, “Do not worry about me; remember, my life is like a drink offering poured out as a sacrifice and service of your faith. And when I see you growing spiritually, I'm so happy; I rejoice, and I want you to rejoice together with me.” That is what it means in verse 18, “For the same cause also do ye joy and rejoice with me.”
Dear friends, can you imagine one day when we lie on our deathbeds with all our loved ones, our children standing beside us, and they are crying, and we say to them, “Why are you crying? Why are you sorrowful? I have lived my life as an instrument to bring you to Christ. I've lived my life to nurture and teach you the word of truth. And when I see how you have come to know the Lord Jesus Christ and how you have grown spiritually, I'm so happy, I rejoice, and I want you to rejoice with me. Do not be sorrowful, do not worry about me. The most important thing is your faith.” That is the kind of life we want to live. We are willing to surrender and offer ourselves to God; we are willing to sacrifice for the faith of others. And at the end of the day, we will rejoice.
Soon we will be having our annual congregational meeting, and this is an election year whereby we will elect the office bearers. It is not by chance or coincidence that we are learning about the exemplary example of a spiritual servant. Why? Because we want our pastors, elders, and deacons to be like Paul, Timothy, and Epaphroditus. We want people who are willing to surrender and offer themselves to God. We want people who are willing to sacrifice their lives for the faith of others, and we want people who will rejoice when they see the brethren growing spiritually.
This is the kind of spiritual leaders we want for our church, and for that matter, this is the kind of parents and individual Christians we want. Let our lives be lived in this fashion - people who are willing to offer themselves to God, people who are willing to sacrifice their lives for the service of God and the faith of others, and people who will rejoice when they see others growing from strength to strength and from faith to faith. When we see that happening in our church, in our families, in our individual lives, what do we say? All glory to God. Let us pray.
Father in heaven, we thank Thee for how Thou has enabled us to consider these two verses pertaining to the exemplary example of a spiritual servant, the Apostle Paul. And help us to learn from his life how he has followed the supreme example of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. And we want to live our lives; we want to serve Thee in a similar fashion. So help us always to consider ourselves that we ought to offer first ourselves today, and we ought to be willing to sacrificially serve Thee so that we will not murmur, not complain. And biblical sacrifice is always giving something that is lesser for something that is infinitely greater.
May we understand that the greater the sacrifice, the greater the joy. And we will rejoice when we see the believers growing spiritually. Oh Lord, grant to us such a church that we will glorify Thee. Grant to us families where parents, individual believers, will live their lives in such a fashion as Thou hast taught us. With men, it is impossible, but with God, all things are made possible. Empower us by Thy Spirit that we will live our lives to do Thy will. We pray all this in Jesus' name. Amen.
SERMON OUTLINE
THE BOOK OF PHILIPPIANSThe Church at PhilippiThe Church at PhilippiPhilippians 1:1-2
The Joy of A Spirit-Filled Life (Part 1)The Joy of A Spirit-Filled Life (Part 1)Philippians 1:3-5
Elements of True JoyElements of True JoyPhilippians 1:3-6
The Joy of a Spirit-filled Life (Part 2)The Joy of a Spirit-filled Life (Part 2)Philippians 1:6
What are the Things Most Important to Us?What are the Things Most Important to Us?Philippians 1:7-8
Growing in GodlinessGrowing in GodlinessPhilippians 1:9-11
Message 5: Praying for the ChurchMessage 5: Praying for the ChurchPhilippians 1:9-11
Growing in GodlinessGrowing in GodlinessPhilippians 1:9-11
Are All Things Really Working For Good?Are All Things Really Working For Good?Philippians 1:12-14
In Times of AdversityIn Times of AdversityPhilippians 1:12-18
Trouble in the ChurchTrouble in the ChurchPhilippians 1:15-18
For to Me to Live is Christ, to Die is GainFor to Me to Live is Christ, to Die is GainPhilippians 1:19-26
To Live is ChristTo Live is ChristPhilippians 1:19-26
Living Worthy of the GospelLiving Worthy of the GospelPhilippians 1:27-30
Live your life worthy of the GospelLive your life worthy of the GospelPhilippians 1:27-30
The Motivation for Spiritual Unity (Part 1)The Motivation for Spiritual Unity (Part 1)Philippians 2:1-2
Let's Have FellowshipLet's Have FellowshipPhilippians 2:1-4
Essential Principles of Spiritual Unity (Part 2)Essential Principles of Spiritual Unity (Part 2)Philippians 2:3-4
The Ultimate ExampleThe Ultimate ExamplePhilippians 2:5-8
The Ultimate ExampleThe Ultimate ExamplePhilippians 2:5-11
What Is Christmas?What Is Christmas?Philippians 2:6-11
The Greatest NameThe Greatest NamePhilippians 2:9-11
Living a Sanctified LifeLiving a Sanctified LifePhilippians 2:12-13
Work Out Your Own SalvationWork Out Your Own SalvationPhilippians 2:12-18
Moving Forward Not BackwardMoving Forward Not BackwardPhilippians 2:13-14
Stop Murmuring and ComplainingStop Murmuring and ComplainingPhilippians 2:14-16
The Exemplary Example of a Spiritual Servant: PaulThe Exemplary Example of a Spiritual Servant: PaulPhilippians 2:17-18
The Exemplary Example of a Spiritual Servant: TimothyThe Exemplary Example of a Spiritual Servant: TimothyPhilippians 2:19-24
The Importance of Spiritual DiscernmentThe Importance of Spiritual DiscernmentPhilippians 3:1-2
True Believers Worship God in Spirit and in TruthTrue Believers Worship God in Spirit and in TruthPhilippians 3:3, John 4:4-30
Nothing to Boast OfNothing to Boast OfPhilippians 3:3-6
What Is Gain To Me Is LossWhat Is Gain To Me Is LossPhilippians 3:7-9
The Power of Christ's ResurrectionThe Power of Christ's ResurrectionPhilippians 3:10-11
What are Your Spiritual Goals?What are Your Spiritual Goals?Philippians 3:10-11
Pressing Toward The MarkPressing Toward The MarkPhilippians 3:12-14
Pressing Toward the MarkPressing Toward the MarkPhilippians 3:13-14
Morning Devotion 2: God’s High Calling for YouMorning Devotion 2: God’s High Calling for YouPhilippians 3:13-14
How to Know the Will of GodHow to Know the Will of GodPhilippians 3:15
Who Are You Following?Who Are You Following?Philippians 3:16-19
Heavenly Or Earthly MindedHeavenly Or Earthly MindedPhilippians 3:20-21; 1 Corinthians 15:50-57
How Do You Stand Fast?How Do You Stand Fast?Philippians 4:1
How to Maintain Christian UnityHow to Maintain Christian UnityPhilippians 4:2-3
Having Peace in Times of Trouble [Part 1]Having Peace in Times of Trouble [Part 1]Philippians 4:4-7
The Cure for AnxietyThe Cure for AnxietyPhilippians 4:6-7
Message 6: Praying for the TroubledMessage 6: Praying for the TroubledPhilippians 4:6-7
Having Peace in Times of Trouble [Part 2]Having Peace in Times of Trouble [Part 2]Philippians 4:8-9
Learning To Be Content [Part 1]Learning To Be Content [Part 1]Philippians 4:10-12
How To Be An Overcoming ChristianHow To Be An Overcoming ChristianPhilippians 4:13
Learning To Be Content [Part 2]Learning To Be Content [Part 2]Philippians 4:13-19
My God Shall Supply All Your NeedsMy God Shall Supply All Your NeedsPhilippians 4:19
Living By Grace and For God's GloryLiving By Grace and For God's GloryPhilippians 4:20-23
