Lesson 5

QUALITIES OF A CHURCH

Rev. Stanley L. Derickson Ph.D.
COPYRIGHT 2004

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the author, except as provided by U.S.A. copyright laws.

Lesson 5

QUALITIES OF A CHURCH

Rev. Stanley L. Derickson Ph.D.

COPYRIGHT 2004

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the author, except as provided by U.S.A. copyright laws.

EXAMPLED
(Phil. 1:19-26)

19 For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ,
20 According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death.
21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
22 But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labor: yet what I shall choose I wot not.
23 For I am in a strait between two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better:
24 Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you.
25 And having this confidence, I know that I shall abide and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith;
26 That your rejoicing may be more abundant in Jesus Christ for me by my coming to you again.

Seems that Paul is saying that if it weren't for God's plan for his life he'd rather be outa here! That should be the attitude of the believer today. We ought not have things in this life making us want to stay here.

If indeed we were storing up for the next life rather than this, if indeed we were concentrating on the next life rather than this, if indeed we were living in the next life rather than this, then we all would have Paul's attitude.

The sad part of Christianity today is the fact that most of us don't, we are so tied to this life we dare not think of the next.

19 For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ,

Salvation is not only related in meaning to our eternal salvation, but can be used as it is here to be protected from enemies in this life.

Paul felt that these people that were trying to cause him trouble were actually going to help in his situation - however it seems it was going to depend on the believer’s prayers and the working of the Spirit.

Again, this idea of the people preaching to cause trouble was actually doing good for God and that with the prayers of the saints would even work for the good of Paul, the one for which they were trying to cause trouble.

It may have been that Paul saw them causing him trouble in the fact that it would further solidify his coming end. If this be true he would have been rejoicing that his enemies were causing him physical trouble. Could you rejoice knowing that someone was doing you injustice?

Paul said "I know" which is in the perfect tense. This was knowledge that looks into the future to a future completion of the facts known. He knows it with this strong a knowledge, yet he knows that it is dependent on their prayers and the Spirit's working. He knows not only what he knows of the situation, but he knows that their prayers will benefit the need and he knows that the Spirit needs to be, and will be working in the situation.

20 According to my earnest expectation and [my] hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but [that] with all boldness, as always, [so] now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether [it be] by life, or by death.

This first phrase "According to my earnest expectation and [my] hope" is part of verse nineteen. He knew so perfectly yet as we have seen it was based on prayer and the Spirit's work - now we are told that all this is according to his EXPECTATION AND HOPE.

He knew in a perfect sense what was an expectation and hope that was aided by prayer and the Holy Spirit.

Now illustrate that one for us. How did Paul get wrapped up in such detailed stuff?

This is his normal life. He had that sort of faith in the Lord's provision. These people were trying to trouble him, but he had such a faith in God and His wonderful care that he expected and had to the hope that the prayers of the saints and the work of the Spirit would provide his expected outcome.

Now, who in their right mind would try to hinder a man with that sort of an expectation and faith in God?

This verse adds weight to the previous thought - the preaching of others was going to assist Him to glorify Christ either way - through life or through death.

What a truth - wanting to know that Christ is lifted up whether you live or die. Most of us look at death as the most negative of occurrences in life, yet Paul could view it as a further way to uplift his Lord and Savior.

We ought to chew on that one for a long time until we can grasp the truth and then attempt to attain that mindset in the rest of this life.

Here are some points to ponder from Paul's statement.

"Expectation and [my] hope" The Christian life should be marked with an expectation and hope. We are not without hope and we should live in a manner that brings us to expect things from God. Not in the material realm, but in our spiritual lives. We ought to be assuming that God is going to be magnified in some manner by our continued existence or our death.

"In nothing I shall be ashamed" Uups. We are to live our lives in such a manner that when all is said and done, we are not going to have done ANYTHING that we would be ashamed of - nothing!

Can you sit there and know that you will not be ashamed over anything that you have done in this life when you stand before God to give answer to your answers?

This may be one of the advantages of being saved from a very young age. If you are living like a Christian from your childhood you will have less to be ashamed of, while if you have an early life of sin, the shame has had plenty of time to stack up against you.

I did not lead a horrible life as a teen aged person, but there are many things in those short years that I would like to go back and remedy. I know they are forgiven, but they are not things that I am proud to know are in my past. Having become a Christian in my late teens my life and ways had a serious turn around.

"With all boldness" pictures Paul with boldness. In Eph. 3.12 "In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him." Yet, in Eph. 6.18 he asks for boldness. "Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; 19 And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 For which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak."

No contradiction, one is a boldness based his knowledge and the other is asking for a needed virtue for ministry.

"Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether [it be] by life, or by death." Do you have this attitude - that you want Christ to be magnified by either your life OR your death? We have no Biblical mandate to desire death, but at the same time we ought to be open to that possibility at any moment of our life and not be concerned that we might be taken from this life before we are finished playing with our toys.

21. For to me to live [is] Christ, and to die [is] gain.

Now, that verse has a little more meaning. Taking verses out of context to encourage others is great, but we tend to miss some of the blessing.

It is personal gain to die! Another truth all believers need to find as a reality in their lives.

Most feel buying the big house is gain. Getting a good job is a gain. Getting a new car is gain. Getting married is a gain. Getting to be the boss is a gain. Getting a summer home is a gain. Gaining large savings is a gain. Buying beautiful furniture and clothes is a gain.

Now, finish that list with "Dieing is a gain." and mean it.

That seems to be Paul's standard. He could say this because he knew what he said in verse twenty was true. "Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether [it be] by life, or by death." He knew that when he died CHRIST WOULD BE GLORIFIED. Magnified means to be made bigger, or shown to be great.

It is of note to me that the magnification of Christ is in the passive. Christ is not magnified by Himself, or what he did, nor was He to be magnified by what God or the Spirit were going to do. The magnification was due to the possible death of the apostle Paul.

In some manner, we as believers can magnify Christ by our deaths. Whether our spiritual walk is related or not is not clearly stated, but in the context I would assume that magnification came at least in part from the true spiritual life that Paul led before his death.

Barnes suggests some items that will cause heaven to be gain.

We will be freed from sin.
We will be freed from doubt. (We will be there, not wondering if we will.)
We will be freed from temptation.
We will be freed from our enemies.
We will be freed from suffering and sickness.
And most of all we will be freed from death.

See also Gal. 2.20 "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me."

22 But if I live in the flesh, this [is] the fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I wot not.

What does "wot mean?? The lexicon says to "to make known or declare" while most translations translate the word as choose. The Net Bible translates it this way. "I don't know which I prefer:" They reject the choice idea since if he has choice in death, it would be saying he had the choice of suicide.

If you add this to the meaning of the word "wot" you might see it as though Paul will not declare his choice.

How does that relate to the passage? It would seem he had a little struggle with continuing on in life and being fruitful or dieing and having gain - he did not know what he would choose if it were left up to him - not that it was.

23 For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better:

Barnes mentions that this phrase "strait betwixt two" comes from the thought of a ship anchored in a harbor where the wind is blowing in an attempt to tear the ship free from its anchor. This is a very strong phrase. Paul is really in a quandary over this realization.

Gill relates it to a similar situation in the Old Testament. In 2 Samuel 24:14 David is given the choice of fleeing before his enemies, famine or pestilence. ("And David said unto Gad, I am in a great strait:") Some might observe – that is a choice?

Not a "Do you want to eat at McDonald's or Burger King?" sort of question, but one that dealt with the stuff of life. Heavy questions that make one give serious value to life's options.

This verse seems to add to our thought relating to Paul's choice of life or death.

This verse solidifies his quandary - I want to die and be far better off and be with Christ, but on the other hand if I stay I can be fruitful here for the Lord.

He now lets the Philippians know that they aren't going to be given this choice - they are to live and be fruitful as he was being fruitful to the end.

We must note that this discussion is in the context of Paul sitting in captivity awaiting decision on whether he would live, die or spend the rest of his life in jail and that not because he had done anything wrong or illegal, but because he was preaching Christ.

He was speaking from personal, real and immediate knowledge of the contrasts.

24 Nevertheless to abide in the flesh [is] more needful for you.

There is a genuine purpose to our lives here on this earth. Paul makes it clear that there is a need for us to remain. Christ could take us home at the moment we are saved, but that is not the plan, nor would it be logical. God has decreed that man will be saved by the sharing of the Gospel by other men. If He took us out of this life immediately there would be no one to share the Gospel with anyone else.

We are an integrated part of his plan. We have no option for the easy life; we are to walk with Him all the days of our lives. We are to be living for HIS benefit not our own. We are to be living for His glory not our own. We are to be living for His desire not our own. Serving Christ should be the highest priority of our lives. Serving Christ should take precedence over all else. Serving Christ should be our passion in all that we do.

25 And having this confidence, I know that I shall abide and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith;

Oh, what a confidence - to know that you are going to be a joy to those you minister to. This is not a confidence many have in this life. Many are the ministers that never know if they are a joy or hindrance to their people.

Why is this?

1. People never tell their minister that they have been a joy to them. They assume they know.

2. They may not be a joy to those they minister to. Many are the pastor/teachers that bore their congregations/classes to tears with their drivel that comes from too little preparation and too little knowledge of their people.

3. People don't really allow a pastor/teacher to teach and minister as they desire thus there is little blessing on either part. This occurs when people will not listen to admonition from the pulpit/lectern. This occurs when the people will not fellowship with the pastor/teacher as a brother in Christ, but rather are standoffish as though fearful of learning something that would change their life.

26 That your rejoicing may be more abundant in Jesus Christ for me by my coming to you again.

"Coming" seems to have a much larger foot print than the just plain meaning of the word. Constable quotes Beare as follows. "In Classical Greek it referred to the pomp and pageantry that accompanied the arrival of a king or governor in a city." I will stop the quote there since Beare goes on to suggest that Paul was looking to receive a king's welcome when he returned to Philippi. Not a conclusion I would reach.

However "coming" might suggest the joy with which Paul would return. This context is about Paul and his continuing to live for ministry. I doubt that he would suggest they roll out the red carpet for him when he arrived. More in keeping with the context would be the thought of his enjoyment of being back with them to continue to minister to them.

Again, this thought of joy over the ministry of one ministering. Every pastor and teacher should aspire to this standard - not just allowing the status quo to be their standard of operation. It takes real work to feed a flock - not just digging in the file cabinet for something that worked once, but the putting together of a good meal.

When I retired I started fixing supper while the wife was on the way home. To fix a meal can be done in a few minutes with a freezer full of precooked meals and a microwave. To put together a real meal takes a lot of planning and preparation. The results are markedly different.

So pastor how many of your people count it a joy to come to church to hear your lessons and sermons? Are they listening intently or are they off in la la land trying to fill their mind full of something that is useful, such as wondering about the dinner in the oven, or planning what will be done Monday morning.

We attend a small church and I often look around at the folks. This is in part because I am finding nothing in the message, but I call it an educators desire to see how the crowd is reacting. People are gazing everywhere but at the pastor. At any given moment there are at least two asleep. Others are nudging the other to talk about something or other. In my wife's case it is usually something relating to the sermon and its illogic or lack of Scripture.

There is little joy in attending church anymore; probably that is why the bands, the new music, and all the trappings we see today have entered into the church.

1. I would suggest that the reader take some serious time and give it to thinking about the relationship Paul had with the believers to which he was writing. Compare that relationship to the relationship you have with your fellow church members.

If you are a pastor do you have this type of relationship with your church folk?

We don't know just how long Paul was there at Philippi, but it wasn't all that long. Probably in the months and yet, there was a close bond.

Today the average pastor only lasts around eighteen months in a church before he decides God is moving him on to another ministry. Now that isn't bad if you are an itinerant missionary or preacher, but for a church pastor it isn't very good.

It has often been said that a pastor cannot get to know his people in eighteen months. Yet Paul seemed to have built a strong bond with the folks in a very short time.

Maybe someone should answer how he did that and answer why the average pastor cannot. This would revolutionize the ministry of our day.

Granted, Paul probably led most of the people to the Lord himself, but this does not seem to account for the close relation completely.

In perusing my memory banks many pastors are found, but those that bring a fondness to mind are those that preached the Word of God in a way that it touched my life. They were the ones that taught from the Word and were able to show how the Word applied to my daily life.

Today, application has been reduced to a four letter word. When someone says “Where is the application?” many pastors say huuh? They have no concept of showing people they should change their lives. They have no concept of showing people how to change their lives. They have no concept of showing anything but fun, games and the fuzzy wuzzys.

The most recent message I suffered through covered three verses and it all related to three major points of theology that had been covered numerous times the previous weeks with the same glossing over of verses as is usual. How many times in a two month period do you have to explain how wonderful God's grace is? How many times in a two month period do you have to declare the goodness of God with tears to make the point?

Most people can grasp those concepts the first time, if not surely the second time, but the third, fourth and fifth time is overkill.

Teach the Word and allow the people to feed on it rather than jamming it down their throat. If the Holy Spirit cannot apply it to their lives, how can a pastor think that he can?

2. Paul related that to die is better, but there seems to be a balance a desire to live for the ministry that he was involved in. Yes, to die would be so much better, but the balance seems to be on the side of sticking around to minister as long as possible.

Some today seem as though they have given up on this life. True, with the pain, the problems and the lack of finances, it is tempting to look at life as the poorer of two choices, but Paul seems to tell us to see that life is the better for now, and to look unto the eternal state as your overall goal and gain.

If you find yourself looking forward to the eternal more than getting things done here, then you are probably lop sided in your emphasis. God does not want us to throw up our arms and holler come and get me Lord, He wants you to roll up your sleeves and get to work until He does come and get you.

3. "For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain."

Let us try some different combinations to Paul's little phrase.

For to me to live is money.
For to me to live is houses.
For to me to live is a great job.
For to me to live is a fantastic spouse.
For to me to live is a large savings account.
For to me to live is a great education.
For to me to live is a summer home.
For to me to live is -- fill in the blank with your goal in life if it isn't Christ.

Let me ask, how are those working for you? Are they comparable to Paul's statement? Not hardly.

None of the above hold a candle to what we ought to be doing for God - living as Christ lived here on earth.

He is our greatest example. He stuck it out in this life until God called Him home and so we ought to be working for Him following His direction until the end, until death sends us on our way to those rewards that Scripture tells us about.

4. One might be struck by the tone of Paul's comments. They concentrate on the Spiritual rather than the physical. His concern is spiritual. He is not concerned about being chained to a guard, he is not concerned about being in prison, and he is not concerned about what is on for Sunday dinner. He is concerned with the spiritual value he has in this life, versus the spiritual value of being in the next.

Today in prayer times - I picked the word specifically "times" since few churches have prayer meetings any more. In our prayer times, if we even have those, it is the physical ailment of the day for the different ones that have physical ailments that ought to be mentioned in public, if not then an unspoken.

When is the last time you heard someone ask for boldness of speech to witness to a neighbor? When is the last time someone prayed that the pastor would have the spiritual integrity to preach as the Spirit leads, rather than avoiding some topics to keep the peace on the water? When is the last time someone asked for prayer about their besetting sin?

We need to get back to the spiritual needs of the church rather than feeding the physical side for comfort and fuzzy wuzzy value.

5. Paul was feeling that his gospel witness was moving others to do the same. Again, when is the last time you saw anyone in the church witnessing, much less witnessing to the point that others were being motivated to do the same?

It seems that a unified witness of people based on the leading and power of the Spirit results in others getting involved.

Years ago a man that I had never met moved in close by. He was in the habit of going into the downtown of our city to witness one or two nights a week. His constant and regular witness stirred others to consider their own introverted Christian life and moved them to become more vocal in their witness to others at work and their everyday life.

6. Constable observes, "Paul felt himself in a bind. If forced to choose life or death, he faced a hard decision. On the one hand he desired to depart this life and go to be with the Lord forever (2 Cor. 5:8)." The question might come to your mind, is the joy of your ministry equal to putting you in a bind if faced with this decision between death and life? Are you so confident in the quality and usefullness of your ministry to know that staying in this life would benefit God? I trust you can say yes with great confidence.

On the reality side of this is the fact that God is the one that values your service to him, and He is the one that decides whether you live or die, not you. Even though all of it is out of our hands, isn't it a little like us humans to want to be in on the decision making?

7. We have noted from this passage that some were doing good out of a poor motive. The results were good for God, but poor for the individual since they were building with wood, hay and stubble.

It might be submitted that it is hard to know where you are building with honest and pure motives, or with false and skewed motives. For the most part we probably know full well when we are doing either, however there are times when your motives might be a tad off and you may not realize it until after the fact.

How do we assure ourselves both in mind and soul that our motives are the correct motives? Let us consider this for a moment.

a. Continue in prayer with each decision. Give time in prayer before the decision asking for God to reveal any impure motives in your coming actions.

b. Do not make quick, off the cuff decisions if they can be avoided. If your gas gauge says empty, no don't put off getting gas so you can pray about it, but if a ministry change is possible take some time to determine if it is really of the Lord and not of your pride of life and want for bigger name and recognition.

c. Seek the counsel of wise men you know and ask them for insight into your motives. They may have observed something in you that you have missed.

d. Read the Word and understand the clear teachings of God. Many motivational items are addressed in the Word. If you see that you are tempted toward more recognition, then the Word speaks to the pride of life. Do not allow these things to color your decision making.

e. If you feel something in your prospective church is unfair or unethical, tell them so, don't just go along with it. Years ago I received an application from a church that I was not familiar with. One of the last questions was whether I would give them permission to do a credit check on me. I replied with a number of reasons why I thought their request to be unbiblical and unethical. I also told them I understood the reason for their request but that they should rely on their own minds, feelings and God's leading instead of a credit report.

f. Ask yourself why you are considering this decision. Why do you think you want to go positive or negative? Why do you think the decision has been set before you? Is it from God for your good, or is it from God for your testing?

g. If you make this decision will you be happy because you are bettering yourself, or because God will be glorified. Betterment isn't wrong, but it should not be the primary reason.

h. If you are financially tight, and you are offered a better level of pay, is it a decision of whether God wants you to live on what you have and allow Him to fill in the details, or whether this is a move God has orchestrated? When asked to interim pastor I met with the board and the subject of money came up. I told them it mattered very little what they would pay. I was there to minister to the people was my feeling. One of the men, a doctor, blurted out "Well then we won't pay you anything." I replied, "That would be fine with me."

The next Sunday they asked me to stay for the business meeting. I agreed not knowing the topic of the meeting. The reason for the meeting was to determine my level of pay. The result was that they were going to pay us $1000 per month - two and a half times what we were getting in missionary support.

Talk about shock. I approached one of the deacons and asked him to cut the amount drastically, but they would not. They felt it was a fair amount for the work to be done.

We were so terribly blessed by their generosity in wanting to do this for us and the material benefits were unreal at the time.

I must admit however it wasn't long before I was very glad that this was God's provision and not from a decision I had made based on finances. I would have second guessed the decision the rest of my life had I allowed financial benefits into the picture.

8. Paul was getting old at this point in his life. It is clear that he is tired and pressed physically due to his "thorn in the flesh" and the fact that he is in prison wrongfully. He speaks of his possible coming death in a very calm matter of fact manner.

His philosophy at this point is death is okay, life is okay, but his focus was on ministry no matter which outcome was to occur.

As we age and face death as humans our focus often changes. Solomon with the riches of the world found that the riches weren't the important part of his life. Many when death is near find they change their priorities drastically.

Two points:

a. Why wait till death knocks to live your life properly? Why not get your priorities straight as a young person as Paul did and minister your life away for the Lord.

b. Secondly, if you haven't set priorities in your life, take time to consider it. When death knocks the consideration begins in many peoples lives. Often they find themselves wanting before the Lord and in the following days attempt to make up for the deficit.

My dear father-in-law was brought up short in his life with terminal cancer. It wasn't but a few days before he was lamenting his lack of witness to his friends and relatives over the years. From that day forth everyone that entered his hospital room heard the Gospel, and they heard it at his funeral. He made the days God allowed him to have count for God, not for his position or future, just because he knew it was the proper thing to do for life, and in his death God would be honored.

Let us finish with a thought from Ray Stedman as he relates of a man that he once met briefly. "I remember when I traveled with Dr. Ironside we were together at Montrose Bible Conference in Pennsylvania and in one evening service a well-known gospel singer on the east coast sang very beautifully the song, "Homesick for Heaven". He sounded as though he was about to soar right off the platform right up into glory. After the service we were meeting together in what they call the "tuck shop" having a little refreshment. Several had ordered hamburgers, including the singer who was among us. He noticed the top of the catsup bottle had somehow been broken and there was ground glass at the top of the bottle. He had already taken a couple of bites out of his hamburger, and the thought occurred to him that perhaps he had unwittingly eaten some ground glass. They checked it out in a hurry to see whether any ground glass had gotten into the bottle and it didn't appear that it had. But he said, "you know, for a moment there I don't think I was quite as homesick for heaven as I thought I was.""