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Grace and Peace to You

Sunday, January 29, 2023
Pastor Jojo Ma

Weekly Bulletin | Worship Lyrics

Philippians 1:1-2

 

1 Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and deacons: 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Cor 10:31 So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

Phil 1:21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

Phil 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice.

Phil 4:6-7 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Phil 4:13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

I pray that as we study Paul’s letter to the Philippians, our awe of Christ would be enriched, our joy in Christ would deepen, and our love for one another would grow.

I.          Slaves and Saints of Christ Jesus [v1]
II.        Shepherds and Servants under Christ Jesus [v1]
III.       Grace and Peace from Christ Jesus [v2]

I.         Slaves and Saints of Christ Jesus [v1]
1 Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi…

Phil 1:7 It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart.

Phil 1:8 For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus.

Phil 4:1 whom I love and long for, my joy and crown.

1 Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi…

That’s how the apostle Paul saw himself, Timothy, and all believers in Christ. We are slaves of Christ Jesus. We’ve been bought with a price. We are not our own. We are God’s possession for His glory, to do His will.

Jesus enslaves whom he saves.

Matt 6:24 No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other.

Jn 8:34 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin.”

The truth is that every master but Jesus will exploit you, disappoint you, and discard you. That’s bad slavery. But lose your life to find it, follow Jesus as Lord, become his slave? That’s joy, that’s peace, that’s blessedness, that’s true freedom.

Do you follow and obey your good master? Do you do it with joy and humility? How would our lives change for the good, and I emphasize for the good, if you and I thought like the apostle Paul, himself a willing slave of Christ Jesus? How would this mindset, this identity, impact your marriage, parenting, family life, and church life?

1 Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi.

Embrace both your enslavement and your sainthood. As a slave of Christ Jesus, how does this reality shape your life? As a saint in Christ Jesus, how does this reality shape your life? What are you pursuing? What are you refraining from?

II.        Shepherds and Servants under Christ Jesus [v1]
1…with the overseers and deacons.

1 Pet 5:1-2 So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you.

Acts 20:17,28 Now from Miletus [Paul] sent to Ephesus and called the elders of the church to come to him…Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.

Pastor John MacArthur, Grace Community Church: “As the apostolic era came to a close, the office of elder emerged as the highest level of local church leadership. Thus it carried a great amount of responsibility. The elders were charged with the care and feeding, as well as the spiritual guidance, of the entire church. There was no higher court of appeal, and no greater resource to know the mind and heart of God with regard to issues in the church…Biblically, the focal point of all church leadership is the elder. It is the elders who are charged with teaching, feeding, and protecting the church, and it is the elders who are accountable to God on behalf of the church.”

Deacons are the official servants of the church. They primarily tend to the physical and practical parts of church life.

Deacons are not assistant pastors; they are more like pastoral assistants.

III.      Grace and Peace from Christ Jesus [v2]
2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

What Paul is saying is this: May the fullness of the Holy Spirit be with you. May you enter into a deeper communion and experience of God’s lovingkindness. That’s the idea of grace to you.

Phil 4:23 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.

Paul is extending not peace with God but the peace of God. This is the on-going, subjective experience that believers know and feel deep inside, especially through trials and hardship.

When peace like a river attendeth my way
When sorrows like sea billows roll
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say
It is well, it is well with my soul