When we think of joy, we often think of the opposite or absence of pain. The truth, however, is that safety and security are far from certain in this life, which means if our happiness is contingent upon the absence of suffering it is uncertain whether we will be able to remain joyful in this life. What Paul shows us from Philippians 1 is that joy can be experienced no matter what happens.EXPERIENCING JOY NO MATTER WHAT
1) BE PURPOSEFUL NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS (vv. 20-21)
20 as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. 21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
In these verses, Paul shows that he never loses the sense of purpose that he has. Whether he regains his freedom or goes on to be with the Lord, his purpose is constant—that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored…whether by life or by death. The reason he could have this mentality is because he held loosely to the things of this world and was Christ-centered.
It doesn't matter how tightly we try and hold on to the things of this world, they are temporary. John is clear when he says, “The world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever” (1 Jn. 2:17). The world is passing away meaning its appearance of permanence is deceptive. Therefore we like Paul need to loosen our grip of the world and cling to Christ who is permanent. Augustine in a sermon on this text wrote, “Hold fast to Christ. For you he became temporal, so that you might partake of eternity” (Homilies on the First Epistle of John 2.10).
2) BE HOPEFUL NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS (vv.22-24)
22 If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. 23 I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. 24 But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account.
Paul here struggles with which outcome he should desire more. After some discussion, he seems to have a stronger personal desire to depart and be with Christ, but is hopeful no matter what happens. When things don’t go according to plan, especially when trouble comes, although it is OK to be honest with God about troublesome circumstances it is also important to remember that God is in control and trust in Him regardless.
3) BE FAITHFUL NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS (vv.25-26)
25 Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith, 26 so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again.
Here it seems as if Paul comes to terms with the fact that he will continue with his earthly ministry. Although he was prepared and even looked forward to departing to be with the Lord, he willingly shelves this personal desire so that he can faithfully continue to labor for the cause of Christ. It is also important to note that Paul sees the spiritual benefit in God's decision even though he has a greater personal desire for the alternative. He shows confidence in v. 25 that through his continued faithfulness God will grow the Christians at Philippi.
I think the reason our faithfulness often gets put on hold when things don’t go according to plan is because we fail to see the spiritual benefit in the alternative. When times get tough our response is often, “Really God? This? How can any good come from this?” When we begin to question whether or not there is spiritual benefit in the dark storms of life, I think it is helpful to look to the cross.
Although Jesus understood the horror of the cross, he also understood the spiritual benefit of the cross and went willingly even though his disciples had a difficult time accepting his death because they saw no benefit in a crucified Messiah. For example, Peter tried on more than one occasion (Mt. 16:22; Jn. 18:10) to prevent Christ from going to the cross. The ironic thing is that although many failed to see the importance of the cross, it ends up being the most important and spiritually beneficial accomplishment in all of human history. Through the cross the impossible (being right with God) is made possible due to the person and work of Christ.
If God was at work in the darkest moment of history and if the cross is the most important and spiritually beneficial accomplishment in all of history, then we should trust that He is at work in the darkest of storms and trust that there is spiritual benefit for us in seemingly tragic circumstances.
