Philippians chapter 1. Tonight we'll be continuing our consideration of Paul's letter to the church at Philippi. And as we do so, we have come to a section in his letter that describes Paul's prayer for the church at Philippi. So if you would, please follow along as I read verses three through 11 from Philippians chapter one. Beginning in verse three, Paul writes this. I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all, making my prayer with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus. And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more with knowledge and all discernment so that you may approve what is excellent and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God. Please join me now as we seek God's help as we come to this passage tonight. Dear Heavenly Father, we again bow before you and we acknowledge our need of you. We need your help as we come to your word. We ask that you would send your spirit to guide and to direct our thoughts, my words. Lord, we pray that You would impress upon us the truths that you would have us to learn. Help us to grow. Help us to learn. And Lord, for those who are here that are yet apart from you, Lord, we plead for them that you might bring your spirit into their hearts, that they might turn from their own and turn to Christ even this night. We pray for salvation for some, and we ask this in Jesus' name, amen. Well, as God's people, we know that we're called to pray. Jesus expected this of his disciples, his followers. He expected that they will pray. In the Sermon on the Mount, in Matthew chapter six, we read Jesus' words. He says in verse five, and when you pray, And then again in verse six he says, but when you pray. And then again in verse seven he says, and when you pray. It is not if you pray, it is when you pray. The life of a follower of Jesus is a life that is marked by prayer. Paul also expected that God's people will pray. and that they would pray on a regular basis. In 1 Thessalonians 5, verse 17, Paul instructs the church and he tells them that they are to pray without ceasing. In Ephesians 6, verse 18, after instructing the church regarding spiritual warfare, he urges them then to pray at all times. And then in Romans 12, verse 12, Paul writes this, be constant in prayer. So we know that we're expected to pray. And we should desire to pray, seeing that it is a great privilege and a great blessing for all of us. But some might ask this question, well, how do I pray? What should be the content of my prayers? What should I pray for? Well, certainly we look to God's word for instruction and guidance in this area. Jesus taught the disciples how to pray in Matthew chapter 6 and in Luke 11. We have there what some call the Lord's Prayer. And here Jesus provides instructions regarding prayer. Jesus also provided his example, his example of how he prayed. One of those examples was when he was in the Garden of Gethsemane. And we read in Matthew 26, verse 39, where he says, my father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me. Nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will. But in addition to Jesus' instruction regarding how to prayer and his examples of prayer, we also have many examples in God's word of people who prayed. And one man that we can look to as an excellent example of prayer is Paul. Paul was a man who was given to prayer. And in his letters to the churches, he often shares a description of his prayers. And we see this in Paul's letter to the church in Philippi. Immediately after his greeting, in verse three through 11, Paul provides to them a description of his prayers for them. And that is what we will be considering tonight. And as we do so, we will look at two main aspects of Paul's prayer for the church at Philippi. First, we will look at his thankfulness for the church. And then secondly, we will look at his intercession or his specific petitions for the church. So first then, Paul's thankfulness for the church. Paul tells the church that when he prays for them, he begins with a note of thanksgiving. In verse three he says, I thank my God in all my remembrance of you. When Paul comes to God in prayer for the church, as he remembers them, each of them, each of the saints, all of those who are in Christ Jesus in Philippi, Paul gives thanks to God. And his thankfulness is directed to God. For God is the source of all blessing. For we know that every good and every perfect gift is from above, and it comes down from the Father of lights. It comes from God. So since God is the source of all blessings, then it is only right then that God is the one to whom all thanksgiving should be directed. And as Paul remembers the church in Philippi, and gives thanks to God for them, it seems to stir within him a measure of joy, even in his every prayer. And he writes this in verse four. Always, in every prayer of mine, for you all, making my prayer with joy. It seems that his thankfulness to God, his thankfulness for the people in Philippi, leads to joyful prayers. But what was it about the church in Philippi that causes Paul to give thanks to God and to bring joy to his prayers? Well, in his letter, Paul shares what I believe are two of the reasons for that basis of his thanksgiving and joy. If you will look with me at verse five, here we have the first reason that he gives. In verse five, we read this. It's because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. This is the first reason. It's their partnership in the gospel. As Paul reflects on what one man called the work of grace in the lives of the Philippians, he remembers their tangible actions of love and support for the gospel ministry. From the first day, By these words it appears that perhaps Paul is thinking back to those first days of the church when it was established. Those early days in Philippi. Perhaps he was remembering the work of God's grace in the life of Lydia. How it was evident from the very first He recalled that after the Lord opened her heart and she was baptized, that she urged them, saying, If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay. Lydia opened her house. She prevailed upon them to come to her house. She showed them hospitality, showed that to Paul and to his companions. And it appears that her house then served as a base of operations for Paul and the others, as they went forth into the city of Philippi, proclaiming the name of Jesus and sharing the gospel message. Or perhaps, as Paul is remembering those first days in Philippi, he thinks back to the work of grace, the work of God's grace in the life of the Philippian jailer. Who, after he was converted, the same hour of the night, he took Paul and Silas and he washed their wounds. And he brought them up into his house and he fed them. His care and his concerns for the physical needs of Paul and Silas resulted in their being strengthened to be able to be better equipped to continue their desire to preach the gospel. These acts of love demonstrated the partnership of the church in Philippi with Paul. A partnership that was from the first day. And it did not end when Paul left Philippi. It continued, even until now, even until the point when, as Paul is there in prison, as evidenced by the gift that was sent to him by the church in Philippi, a gift that was brought to him by Epaphroditus, a gift that was meant to, sent to meet Paul's needs, a gift that was designed to support Paul in his ongoing work to advance the gospel. So as Paul is recalling these acts of love and this kindness by the church in Philippi, Paul gives thanks to God. God who is the source of the grace that was at work in their lives. And he prays, and he prays with joy in his heart. A joy that comes from not only the personal benefit that he received from their partnership with him, but even more. His joy was stirred by their partnership with him in the gospel. A partnership that was demonstrated by their ongoing contribution and support of the gospel ministry of Paul from the first until now. But then the second reason we have for Paul's thanksgiving and joy as he remembers the church in Philippi is given to us in verse six. In verse six we read this, and I'm sure of this. that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. And while there is much that could be said about this blessed verse, and we may come back to it at some future date, for now I would just have us see in this verse those things that caused Paul to give thanks to God with joy in his prayers. I believe that the reason for his thanksgiving and joy is their salvation. This is the good work that Paul speaks of in verse six. It's a good work that was begun by God, and it is a good work that God will continue to completion. God was the initiator of the work of salvation. He was sovereignly at work. For example, he was the one that was directing Paul to go to Philippi to preach the gospel. And God was the one that opened the heart of Lydia as Paul spoke to her. And it was God who was the one that brought the earthquake as Paul and Silas were in prison. Such that the jailer would ask, what must I do to be saved? And Paul would respond, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved. This initial work of salvation was begun by God, when he brings to life a dead sinner, so that they would be able to respond to the gospel call, to repent, and to come to faith in Christ. And through faith in Christ, they are justified, they are declared righteous. And one could only imagine the joy that there must have been in the heart of Paul as he remembers the church in Philippi, those who had been saved by the grace of God that worked in their hearts. And as he thinks back to each of the believers, as he's praying, he gives thanks to God. God who is the one that worked salvation in their lives, and he rejoices, and he rejoices in what God has done, even as the angels in heaven rejoice over one sinner who is saved. So as Paul is praying, and as he thinks of those who are in the church at Philippi, he has no doubt that they will continue in their faith. He is certain that they will not fade away. Paul's certainty of their salvation. It was not based on his ministry. It was not even based on the Philippians themselves. No, Paul's certainty, his confidence, was based in God. Just as it was God who is the one that began a good work in them, their justification, so too it is God who is the one that will bring that good work to completion. He is the one that will ensure that they will persevere to the end. And therefore, Paul could say that he was sure, that he was certain that the good work of salvation will be brought to completion. Think of Hebrews chapter 12, verse 2, where we read that Jesus is both the founder and the perfecter of our faith, the author and the finisher, the initiator and the completer. So Paul has confidence. What God begins, God completes. And with this confidence, Paul prays to God for everyone in the church, and he gives thanks to God with joy, knowing that none of his saints shall be lost. And as we look at this verse and we pause and think further about that good work of God in completing his work of salvation in the saints at Philippi, I found that this that was written by Dr. Sinclair Ferguson to be very insightful. He notes that we often have our gaze fixed on the end of life. We look to that day when we will reach the goal line, the finish of the race, when we will depart to be with Christ. And while this is true, that it will be a blessed day when our souls will be with Christ, but then he goes on to note that what Paul is looking forward to here is to Christ's return and our glorification. He says that Paul is looking to the return of his savior and majesty and glory. For Paul writes that the good work that is begun by God, he will bring it to completion at the day of Christ. It's not at our death, it is at Christ's return. For it is then that the final transformation will take place. It is then that we will be made fully like him. It is then that our transformed and resurrected bodies will be reunited with our glorified souls. And it is then that the work of salvation, which God has begun, will be complete. So as Paul is praying for the church, for all of the saints, for all of those who are in Christ Jesus, Paul is looking forward to this glorious day, and he gives thanks to God with joy in his heart. Paul then, as he's writing to the church, adds this very personal and transparent note, as he then expresses his heartfelt love for them. We read of it in verse seven. He writes this. It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus. Paul writes, I hold you in my heart. Paul's feelings for the Philippians flow from his heart. partakers with Paul and God's grace, they have a bond of love that is based on their fellowship with Christ. They are in Christ. And it is a love that appears that may have grown and been strengthened even by the adversity that Paul has faced, as they continue to be partakers and partners with Paul in the gospel, standing by him and supporting him, both in his imprisonment and as he continued to proclaim the gospel. So Paul's love, his deep affection for the Philippians, for all of them, it's a love that's, it's a patterned after the love of Christ. And Paul lets the church know that his love and his affection for them creates in him this desire and a yearning to be with them. So we have seen Paul's thankfulness for the church. It's a thankfulness that is directed to God. It's a thankfulness that stirs within Paul a joy, a joy as he prays for them. But then secondly, let us now look at Paul's intercession for the church. This is found in verses 9 through 11. Picking up the reading in verse 9, we read this from Paul. And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God. I believe in these verses as Paul is describing his intercessory prayer for the church. I believe that we see that it is a prayer that is marked by his focus on their spiritual growth. First we read that he is praying for their growth in love. Praying that their love would abound. To abound. For those who are in Christ Jesus, they already have a measure of love. But Paul is praying for it to increase. not to a set limit, not to a boundary, but he is praying for growth in love to abound, to go beyond any boundary. We know that the source of love is God, for God is love. And we also know that we love because he first loved us. And in Romans chapter five, verse five, we are told that God's love has been poured into our hearts. And so as I was thinking of this prayer for their love to abound more and more, I was thinking of it as though that the heart of each of the members of the church is likened to a cup. And Paul is praying for God to pour his love into each of those cups, into their hearts. Paul is not praying for God to stop filling that cup as it reaches the brim of the cup. No, he is praying that God will continue to fill their cup, fill their hearts with love so that it is overflowing. And even as that cup might overflow, he prays that God would not stop, but that he would continue to pour out his love in their hearts more and more. And in doing so, there would be this constant overflow of love from the hearts of the church. This is the prayer of Paul for the church, a prayer that their love would grow and continue to grow to overflowing. But we know as God's people we must admit that we know that we have never arrived, not in this life. And the goal for our love is to have a perfect love. A love for God in which we love him with all of our heart, with all of our soul, with all of our mind, and with all of our strength. And then also we are to love our neighbor, both our fellow Christians, and then also the lost, even our enemies. And we are to love them with a love that is as we would love ourselves. But I'm sure that if we're honest with ourselves, we must acknowledge that we fall so far short of this type of love. We have not loved God as we ought. At times we may find ourselves to be indifferent, perhaps even cold to God. At times our love might be divided, not fully and completely focused on the Lord. And we do not consistently love God with all of our hearts, souls, mind, and strength. But likewise, when it comes to our neighbor, I'm sure that we must confess at times that we are selfish, unwilling to serve, unwilling to sacrifice, and fail to love our neighbors as ourselves. So I think we would all acknowledge that we will always need greater measures of love in our lives. So how can that love grow? Well, Paul prays that that love of ours might grow through the growth and increase in our knowledge and discernment. So he asks that that growth and love be accompanied by an increase in knowledge and discernment. First, let us consider our knowledge. We start with our knowledge of who God is. God, who is, he is glorious. We look at him and we see his majesty. We see his holiness. We see his righteousness. We see that he is the king of kings. He is the Lord of Lords. He is the one who sits upon his throne. He is high and lifted up. And as we more fully know and understand who God is, we can only echo the words of the psalmist in Psalm 8, oh Lord, oh Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth. You have set your glory above the heavens. And then the psalmist goes on to say this, when I look at the heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man? that you are mindful of him and the son of man that you care for him. Our knowledge of who God is causes us to see his glory and his greatness. And as we do so, we also then recognize that we are nothing. We are insignificant in comparison to God. And so then that brings us to what is our knowledge of ourselves? So we need to increase in our knowledge of who we are. That knowledge for us, it's revealed to us in the scriptures. There we learn that we are sinners. We have absolutely no ability to save ourselves. We are helpless. We are utterly desperate and have dependence upon God and God alone for his mercy. We need him to save us, to spare us from his judgment and his wrath that we rightly deserve. But then as we realize who God is and who we are, then we come to this most amazing reality. We come to the knowledge of what God has done for us. God has loved us. He has sent his son to save us. Jesus Christ who came and was manifested in the flesh. And he showed us the greatest of loves, in that he laid down his life for us, even while we are yet sinners. And so I would suggest as we increase in our knowledge, our knowledge of who God is, our knowledge of who we are, and our knowledge of what God has done for us. With this knowledge, how can we not grow in love? Love for God. Love for our Savior, love for our Lord. And then to our knowledge God, Paul also prays for discernment. He prays and asks that we would increase in our ability to discern, to perceive, to judge rightly. We need God-given discernment to understand how God is at work in our lives. As we see and we experience the events that take place in our lives and the events throughout the world, we see the good and the bad. We experience the pleasant and the painful. We experience the joys and the sorrows, the successes and the failures, the times of ease and the times of trials. But we need discernment and wisdom to understand these events. We need to see them in the light of a God who is sovereign, A God who is in control of all things. A God who is at work, working all things for our good, as he conforms us more and more to the image of Christ. So when our discernment increases, this will help us to understand the love and the care of God for us. And in turn, this will cause us to grow in our love for God. And in Paul's prayer for growth and love, it is also not only just focused upon God, which certainly is the first and foremost focus for our love, but he also prays for growth in our love for our neighbor. A love that extends to one another, those who are outside of the church, but a love that's for all people. But with our love, we must also have knowledge. particularly spiritual knowledge and discernment, we need judgment, so that when we encounter those who are in need, it will help us to understand and to perceive what the real need is, and then to be able to apply biblical principles to the situation, and to know how to appropriately respond. Our love should not be in a vacuum. It is not driven solely by emotion or feeling. It must be directed by God's word and wisdom from the Holy Spirit. For without God-given knowledge and discernment, our love can be misguided. As Hendrickson writes, he says, a person who possesses love but lacks knowledge and discernment may reveal a great deal of eagerness and enthusiasm. He may donate to all kinds of causes. His motives may be worthy and his intentions honorable, yet He may be doing more harm than good. So how greatly we need Paul's prayer for growth in love with an increase in our knowledge and all discernment. Paul's prayer for the church started with his focus on love. A love that is accompanied by knowledge and discernment. For I suggest that this is the key to helping the church in their spiritual growth. D.A. Carson writes this, he says, the love for which Paul prays for is not an end in itself. It's a means to an end. We might say it has a purpose. And this purpose then is shared by Paul to us in verses 10 and 11. In verse 10 he writes, so that you may approve what is excellent. And so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ. And then in verse 11, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God. Paul's prayer seeks spiritual growth in the church. that would be evident in their lives as they approve what is excellent, as they seek to live a life that is pure and blameless, as they are filled with the fruit of righteousness to the glory of God, all of which is fueled by and flows out of love. So let us look further at each of these and try to understand what is meant, what does Paul mean by to approve what is excellent? Paraphrasing what D.A. Carson writes, he says this, the church needs love that is shaped and honed by knowledge and discernment to test and approve what is best, to then be able to make the best possible choice as we make the countless decisions in our lives. As the church increases in love, a judicious love, a love that is guided and some might say constrained by knowledge and discernment, they will be better able to recognize and then choose that which is excellent. To separate or distinguish not only the good from the evil, but what is even more of a challenge to correctly distinguish between that which is good, better, and best. and then to choose that which is best, to approve that which is excellent, to choose those things that will honor God and be pleasing to Him. Perhaps an example might help. Think of the use of time. We only have 24 hours in a day. How do we spend our time? How do we make the choice of what to do in any specific hour in a day? and to help us to distinguish and to choose between each of the myriad of options that there are for how we might use our time, we need a greater measure of love, a love that is guided by knowledge, knowledge of what God's word says, and by discernment, wise God-given discernment, so that we might identify and choose to do the best things during that hour, so that we might approve what is excellent. But secondly, then we read that Paul's prayer has this additional end in view, that they would be pure and blameless. So what does he mean by that? Purity. The word purity gives a sense of something that is unmixed, that is without alloy. It's something like a precious metal from which the dross has been removed. In a moral sense, it conveys this idea of living a life where there's an absence of moral corruption and the sins of the world. But in some of the translations, we find that this word is translated as sincere. Commentators tell us that the word sincere comes from two words. One, son, and the second, to judge. It was originally used to describe a piece of fine pottery that was judged in the light of the sun and found to be without any cracks. The authenticity of the value of the pottery was revealed when it was held up to the light of the sun. So this word that describes sincerity, it tells us that we are to have an authentic life of integrity. A life of consistent devotion to God every day and in every circumstance. Not acting one way on a Sunday and then another way during the week. No, we need to have a consistent life that is sincere and pure. But then also, Paul says that we are to be blameless. To be blameless is to seek to live a life that is void of offense towards God and towards man, in which we strive to not fall into sin or cause another to fall into sin. Sinclair Ferguson describes it this way, blameless may mean either that we have not stumbled morally or that we have not been a cause of stumbling to others. When we grow in love, knowledge, and discernment, both are true. We learn to see temptation and sin in their true light and to turn away from them. But we also learn to live with a loving concern for others, sensitive to their weaknesses and temptations. So to be pure and blameless, it means to pursue a life of holiness, a life that we live in obedience to God, Obedience that is motivated by our love for God and our love for our neighbor. But then thirdly, Paul shares this. He says that in his prayer for the church, his desire for the church is that they would be filled with the fruits of righteousness. the fruit of a righteous life, fruit that begins to show at the time of conversion. Once again, recall back to the actions of Lydia and the Philippian jailer, how we immediately saw those fruits as they sought to care for and provide for Paul and his companions. But here it appears that Paul is looking to that fruit of the church to not only be there, but to increase and to grow. So that the church would be filled. So that their spiritual fruit would be evident. That it would be seen in their lives. That they would have a life that is filled with the fruits of righteousness. And that their lives would be marked by this. the fruits of righteousness, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control, all of which comes to the believer through faith in Jesus Christ. So as Paul concludes his description of his prayers for the church in Philippi, he shares with them that the ultimate purpose of his prayers is this. His great desire is that all of these things, in all of these things, God would be glorified. to the glory and praise of God. So as our love for God and our neighbor grows, and as our knowledge and discernment increase, such that we identify and choose to do that which is well-pleasing in the eyes of God, as our conduct of our lives has this goal in mind, to be pure and blameless, let it be done with this being its chief end, so that what we do and how we live bring glory to God. May that be our supreme motivation in all that we do, to glorify God. May this likewise be our great desire in our prayers and in our lives. So here we have seen Paul's prayer for the church at Philippi. And in his prayer we have seen his thankfulness for the church. We have seen his intercession for the church. But as we close, let us just look at a few lessons from Paul's prayer. First, I think in his prayer we have a good reminder that our prayers for the church should be marked by a note of thanksgiving and joy. We should be thankful to God and rejoice whenever we hear of the grace of God that is at work in the lives of God's people. Grace that can manifest itself in a variety of ways. Perhaps as the church members show love for one another. Perhaps as they help or they serve or do good to one another. Perhaps as they have shown their love for a lost world by supporting the work of the gospel ministry. And as we think of the church and remember these things, we give thanks to our God for his grace that is at work in their lives. And in this, we rejoice. But also, even more so, we can be thankful to God and rejoice for God's work of salvation in the lives of God's people. It is a good work that God has begun. It is a good work that God will bring to completion. And we know that none of God's children will be lost. No matter what the difficulty you might face, no matter what the trial may be in your life, God will bring your salvation to completion. And therefore, we can have confidence as we are praying for our brothers and sisters. We can have confidence in their salvation. And for this, we can give thanks to God. And we can rejoice as we pray for the church. But then secondly, we learn this when we pray for the church, we should seek to pray for their spiritual growth. And while it is right to pray for temporal needs, I think that there's a need for a greater emphasis in our intercessory prayers for the church. They need to be more focused on spiritual growth. Specifically here in Paul's prayers, we learn of his example of how he prays for growth in love, how he asks for an increase in discernment and knowledge. And we must confess that we always need a greater measure of love so that we might love God and love our neighbor as we ought. And we need greater knowledge and discernment so that we would be better equipped to distinguish and choose that which is excellent. We need it so that we might increase in holiness and seek to live a life in obedience to God, exhibiting the fruits of righteousness, all these things to the glory of God. But then thirdly and finally, as I close tonight to those that might be here that do not love God, we pray for you. We pray that God would work in you. We pray that God would bring a work of salvation in your heart. that good work of God, that he would give you a new heart and a renewed mind so that you would know and more fully understand who you are, who God is, and that you might embrace that which God has done for sinners. We pray that God would enable you to discern for the first time so that you might rightly choose between life and death, and that you might choose life as you come to faith in Christ. Please join me now as we close our time in prayer. Dear Lord, we bow before you and we confess that we fall so short of how we are to love. So we pray that you might increase and grow our love, our love for you, our love for our neighbor. And as you increase that love, we pray for an increase in knowledge and discernment so that we might choose that which is excellent, so that we might live a life in which we are pure and blameless with the fruits of righteousness filling our lives. to the end that you might get the glory. So we pray, our Father, that you might help us, cause us to grow in these areas, we ask. And then for those who do not love you, we pray once again for them, for we know that you are the one that initiates the work of salvation. So we pray that your spirit would come, that you would enliven their hearts, that you might enable them to choose life even this night. And so we ask this in Christ's name, amen.