September 29, 2013
The Incredible
Journey
Philippians 1:3-11 NOTES NOT EDITED
SIS—Christians are on an incredible journey.
Sometimes on the
journey of life, things don’t always go as we would hope. Such is the nature of life. It is a journey full of ups and downs, a few
dangerous curves, and times we seem to have lost our way. Yet, for the believer, we have God’s
guarantee we will make it to our destination.
Even with all the challenges we face, this life is still an “Incredible
Journey.”
I’m sure many of
you remember the Disney adventure, “The Incredible Journey.” Many of you
remember the 1993 remake of a Disney classic, "The Incredible
Journey." Two dogs and a cat form a "traveling partnership" when
they believe they have been abandoned in "The City." The story
continues as these three compadres brave the dangers of the wild in their quest
to return home. The metaphor of life, though obvious, is nonetheless quite
profound. From the time of our birth we are on an incredible journey to return
home to Our Eternal Father. We face many dangers and challenges and at points
it seems we will not make it home. Paul gives us the assurance that as
believers, and followers of Christ, we will make it home—and, the journey home
will be nothing short of “incredible.”
There are certain
passages, I like to repeat from time to time.
The passage we are going to read, today, is one of those passages. Let’s read what Paul says about having
confidence as we make our way through life:
PHILIPPIANS
1:3-11
Three important
facts emerge in regard to “Our Incredible Journey.”
1. First, we are going somewhere? (21-23)
In the journey of life, the destination makes all the difference in our
incredible journey. Sure, there are
steep mountains and deep valleys. Life
takes many an unexpected twist or turn.
But, knowing one’s eternal destiny is in God’s House with God’s Son, and
all the saints of all the ages makes all the difference. Jump down to verse 21:
21 For me, living is Christ and dying is gain.
What does a
believer gain in death? We gain
“heaven.” If it were not for the promise of heaven – life would be sore and
miserable indeed. The great Christian
writer and Oxford Professor of English, C.S. Lewis, wrote a wonderful series
titled, the Chronicles of Narnia.
One of the books in that series was made into a full-length, animated
film. It is titled, The Lion, the
Witch, and the Wardrobe. In this
part of the tale, two children experience the magical, mystical, perhaps even
frightening world called Narnia. C.S.
Lewis describes life in Narnia in a very profound way. Lewis says of Narnia, “it is always winter
but never Christmas.” As a child,
I always knew when the first snow of winter fell, Christmas was just around the
corner.
This is a perfect
description of life on earth if there were no heaven.
It would be “always
winter but never Christmas.” One
writer tells us this about heaven: “Heaven
is the inevitable reality that is coming which gives us not only something to
live FOR, but also something to live TOWARD in the midst of earthside realities
that so often disappoint and defeat us.”
The promise of
heaven makes living in this world tolerable—in fact, it makes living in this
world, “incredible”: Look at verses 21-23:
21 For me, living is Christ and dying is gain. 22 Now if I live on in the
flesh, this means fruitful work for me; and I don’t know which one I should
choose. 23 I am pressured by both. I have the desire to depart
and be with Christ —which is far better.
Paul is driven to
continue telling the story and giving praise to God because he knew he was
going somewhere – somewhere far better!
Paul describes
heaven as simply the “far-better place.” Heaven will simply be “far-better
than anything that our feeble minds could possibly imagine.” Heaven will be a place of indescribable
joy and fulfillment.
Yes, friends, as
the journey continues we are going somewhere. We are headed for the Promised
Land in this life, and the Land of Paradise beyond. We God’s children. We are going places! In
this “Incredible Journey” called life, we need to know we are “going
somewhere.” Our lives in Christ have
purpose. Even our pain has purpose. There’s something else.
2. We are not in a hurry. (23-25)
Too often we
become “left-laners.” Too often,
the urgencies
of the moment
blind us to the wonderful sights and experiences as we travel this earthly
highway. When we travel too fast and
gets us into all kinds of trouble
Take
one couple
I read about recently. Out of nowhere, a police officer
appeared behind them with lights flashing.
The man pulled to the side of the road.
When the officer walked up to the car a man rolled down the window and
said, "what's the problem officer?" To which the policeman responded,
"I stopped you for running that red light behind you." Just then the
man's wife leaned over from the passenger seat and said with a very loud voice,
"I told him to stop at that light. But did he listen? No. He just kept
right on going." The man then turned to his wife and yelled "Shut up
stupid!" The officer thought that sounded a bit rude. The policeman continued, "And just
before the light I clocked you doing 50 m.p.h. and the speed limit is only
30." His wife then leaned over again and squawked "I told him to slow
down. But did he listen to me. No! He never listens to me." And again the man shouted at his wife
"Listen stupid, I told you to SHUT UP!" The man’s mental abuse of his wife actually
made the officer a bit mad. The
policeman then looked at the woman and said "does he always talk to you
this way?" To which the woman
responed, "Only when he has been drinking."
Too often in life, we let things distract us, or we get into too big a
hurry to appreciate the “incredible journey” we are on. We try to figure things
out on our to “move things along,” and it only gets worse. Instead of taking our time and enjoying the
journey, we get wrapped up in the details of life or we become impatient with
the progress we are making. When my kids
were growing up, a common phrase they would use when I’d get a little
“impatient” with something was: Dad,
just chill out. I hated to hear that—but
I knew they were right.
Now, please do not
hear what I did not say. This is a
problem
many people have
when they listen to preachers. I am NOT
saying that there is not an “urgent” need to be about the business of
Christ. People are dying, communities
are decaying, and families are disintegrating.
We must be urgent in our approach to ministry. This is not to say we must be in a
“hurry.” To
be in a hurry implies anxiety or uncertainty. Being in a hurry implies that we are not
confident of the outcome of our life and work.
To be in a hurry is to seek to “control” our circumstances rather than
trust our Savior. We need to be “urgent”
about eternal matters, but not in a hurry.
Just as it takes many years to become a strong, mighty oak, it takes
time to make a difference in our church, our family, and our community. Urgency mandates that we take matters
seriously, but faith dictates that we take time to hear from our Lord along the
way. Urgency and hurriedness are not
synonyms in our walk with the Lord.
A good example
of what it means to be “urgent” but not
hurried”
is a vacation I
took when I was an elementary school kid.
This is perhaps one of my favorite memories from childhood and I use it
often as an illustration because it is rich with so many truths.
When I think of
vacations I’ve had over the years one stands out
as the “Mount
Everest” towering above them all. It was
our families trip to Florida. I guess I
must have about eleven or twelve years old.
I remember the Pontiac Bonneville station-wagon that my Dad recently had
purchased. It seemed like it was the
size of a battleship. It was blue and
had wood-panelling (or a wood-like panelling stuff) on the sides. It had a rear-facing third seat in the
back. It was my chariot-of-fire on a
wonderful adventure from West Virginia hills to Florida swampland. I remember we had a flat tire as we were
leaving and I was afraid it would cancel our trip. To this day I can see my Dad and Mom way up
front as I would turn from that rear-facing third seat. I remember watching as the scenery would
change magically as we passed through state after state on our journey to
Florida. Every sight along the way was
something remarkably new to me. My eyes
would strain to take every thing in.
Every spot along the way was a gateway to a whole new world.
The vacation for me
did not start when we arrived in Florida.
My vacation started
when we left the driveway. I was excited
about each and every mile along the way.
You see, I was a child, and it was my Dad and Mom’s job to worry
about the details. All I had to
do was enjoy the ride!
Paul understood the
struggle between “urgency in ministry” and “hurriedness.” Look at verses 23-25:
23 I am pressured by both. I have the desire to depart and be with
Christ —which is far better — 24 but to remain in the flesh is
more necessary for you. 25 Since I am persuaded of this, I know
that I will remain and continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith,
Paul talks about “making
progress.” (Greek: --prokope). The
original world meant, “To drive forward as if by beating.” Christian
growth is hard and takes time. Often, ministry
is hard and it takes time. Sometimes
progress is fast. Sometimes it is
painfully slow. The key is to be urgent,
but not hurried in our ministry.
Progress in our
Christian lives takes time. Sometimes, for some of us, it takes a lot of
time. How many times as the journey of
life continues have you had a “flat tire” along the way? How many times have you tripped over your sin
and fallen on face? Life is full of
flat tires. There are trials and
temptations upon the road of life that slow our journey. There are nails of tribulations that puncture
the tires of our faith and send us to the side of the road and searching for
our spare tire.
Don’t get
discouraged because you feel you are not growing fast enough. Becoming what God wants you to be takes
time. It may take an eternity. But time is something that a Christian
has a whole lot of!
Like the ancient
Israelites, God has brought us to the edge of the
Promised Land – a
land of sweetness and blessing; a land of abundant joy and tremendous expectation. As Christians, salvation has brought us to
the edge of the Promised Land of a sanctified and holy life full of blessing
and great expectations. God wants us to
live in the promised land.
Paul instructs us
that if we are patient with life’s circumstances
and persistent in
pursuing the calling in our lives, we will experience “progress and joy in
our faith.” We are not in a hurry.
But, the most
fantastic truth about this journey that continues is this:
3. We are not travelling alone. (3-5)
Look back at
verses 3-5: 3I thank my
God every time I remember you. 4 In all my prayers for all of you, I always
pray with joy 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first
day until now, 6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you
will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
Isn’t that
fantastic! These verses remind us of the
wonderful truth about life in the Christian family. We have each other. We do not travel alone.
The greatest
treasures we have in life are our family and friends.
No thought more
readily disturbs my sense of peace than the fact that I might someday be
alone. I love being around people. I love even being around total strangers.
I’ve told you
before, one of my most favorite past times is to go to the mall. Most people go to the mall to shop. I go to the mall to see the people! It gives me great joy to be with all my
“homies” in the mall. I can walk around
for hours just looking at people. Wow! That sounds really weird, doesn’t it! I’m
a stalker by nature!
God created us to
be social. In the garden, he gave Adam a wife.
He gave Adam and
Eve children. The children spread out
and made communities. God said, “It is not good for a man to be alone.”
As this journey
continues, remember that as a Christian, God gave you a church – this church –
a COMMUNITY. You need this church and
this church needs you. The “Church” is
the only institution that Jesus instituted in this world. He left no hospitals, no colleges, and
established no government. All He left
was, “the Church.” He said,
Mat
16:18:
I will build My church, and the forces of Hades will not overpower it.
Both the ordinances
of the church—baptism and the Lord’s Supper—point to the importance of
community. Baptism identifies a person
as a member of God’s family. Celebrating
the Lord’s Supper reminds us
of the communion
(partnership, relationship) we have with God and with His family of faith
because we share a common salvation.
God gave us our
“community of faith” so we would not have to
travel this journey
alone. Not only did God give us this community of faith, God has also given
each of us His Comforter, or the Paraclete,
to live with us, in us, and through us.
In the final days
before Jesus was arrested and crucified, He had been preparing the disciples
for the time He would be taken away from them.
This was very troubling for these men who had walked, talked, and
ministered with Jesus night and day for three years. It was so troubling that Jesus had to stop
and say:
John 14:1:
Your heart must not be troubled.
Believe in God; believe also in Me. Later in this same conversation Jesus
said: Jn. 14:16-17 And I
will ask the Father, and He will give you another Counselor to be with you forever.
The word for
Counselor or Comforter is “parakletos.”
It is a beautiful word that means: “One who walks beside, or
along with you.” If you are a Christian, do you realize that God, the Holy
Spirit, the Comforter, is right beside you – He never leaves your side. I think of that verse in Psalm 23:
4
Even when I go through the darkest valley [the valley of death], I fear no
danger, for You are with me;
In this “Incredible
Journey” we call, life, we must realize we are not travelling alone. We have each other—the wonderful Community of
Faith we call, the Church. We also have
God’s Comforter, Counselor, and Guide with us.
God’s very Spirit is with us, inside us, and around us. There is nothing to fear as we face the
future for God is with us. We have the
company of the Comforter every moment of every day. We should expect great things with God at our
side.
CLOSE: In the cinematic masterpiece, The Lord of
the Rings, there is a scene early in the movie as Frodo and Sam, Hobbits of
the Shire, set out on a fantastic journey over mountains, through forest, and
fraught with wonder and mystery. As they
are about to leave the comfort and certainty of the shire for a world of
unknown mystery and unspeakable wonders, Sam stops and says to Frodo, “If I
take one more step I will be farther from the Shire than I have ever
been.”
Every day you live
in obedience to Jesus Christ, you move “farther away from this world of status
quo than you have ever been.” But, in
the same manner, you move one step closer to your destination of heaven than
you have ever been before.
Oh, how I long for
us to “take another step of faith, today.”
How my heart yearns for us as a church to embrace the “Incredible
Journey” which we call life. We are going somewhere. We are not in a hurry. And, we are not travelling alone.
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