It is wonderful to be here with you this evening or afternoon. I know most of you will be tuning in for the evening service. I'm excited to be here and consider with you the fruits of our union with Christ and the righteousness that that brings in our lives. Let's open in prayer. Great God in heaven, what a blessing it is to come before you, to know that you are our God and we are your people. We pray that as we consider your word this evening, that you would bless us, that you would work in us the fruits of righteousness, that we would cling fast to Christ who is ours. and that we would be able to bring glory and honor to your name as the result of this union. Lord, we pray that you would strengthen us, be with me in my frailty, be with those who are tuning in, that they would be blessed, Lord, that your name would be glorified through our worship of you this day, this day that we've set aside for such a purpose. We are so grateful that you give us rest in your name, that we have grace and that we have peace. And now, Lord, we pray that you would watch over the words of my sinful lips and the meditations of our hearts, that these things would be pleasing and acceptable in your sight, for you are our strength and our Redeemer. And it is in your name, O Lord Jesus, that we do pray. Amen. So the text before us is in Philippians. Turn there with me. You should see on the screen there that the text is Philippians 1, chapter 1, verses 7 through 11. And what I'm going to do is I'm going to read actually the first 11 verses, starting at verse 1. So if you have your Bibles there with you, turn to Philippians 1, and we'll read verse 1 through 11. Listen, this is the word of God. Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and deacons, grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 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. In this message, we're finishing up the portion of the letter to the Philippians, this section of thanksgiving and prayer. This is a common feature of Paul's letters. He opens most of his letters in this way as he considers what God has done for the church himself as well. He thanks God and he prays for the congregation, prays for the church plant. Last time, we looked at the certainty with which Paul spoke of the salvation for the saints in Philippi. Now, this common feature of Paul, this thanksgiving and prayer, has precious value for us as we recall the great love that Paul had for this church in Philippi. Remember he stated in verse 6, as we read just a second ago, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. And we consider the source of this bold confidence. Remember it did not come from a blind faith. or an anxious hope, it was a certainty that Paul had because of the actions that he had seen in the lives of the Philippians. More than that, in the character of God, the immutable character, that unchanging character of God gave Paul certainty of the salvation that he was working in his people there in Philippi. Paul was not certain that they would be saved because of the support that they gave him, although we talked about that, how that was a sign of the fruit of their union with Christ. No, his confidence is rooted in that unchangeable character of God. Paul finds peace in God's character. Just as God swore to Abraham by his own name in Genesis 22, we may have confidence in God's work in us. And the Philippians had confidence in their day because God had placed his name upon them as he places it upon us as believers. Paul is confident because God is a sure and steadfast anchor that is fixed in heaven. This anchor, unlike a boat anchor, does not anchor us down, but anchors us in our destination in heaven and brings us to that place. God is firmly fixed and he's bringing us safely home. Despite, as we look around at the world and all the tumult and all the worry and concern, God is not moved. He ever remains our living God in whom we find grace and peace in our time of need. As we considered before, we may affirm that God does not begin to work unless He intends to bring it to completion. God perfects the work that He begins in His saints. Last time as well, we looked at two statements from John's gospel where Jesus said, first, I give them eternal life in John 10, 28, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand. Again, Jesus said in John 17, the great high priestly prayer, I have guarded them and not one of them has been lost. Remember, Peter also said that believers by God's power are being guarded through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In chapter 1 verse 5 of 1 Peter. I want to turn with you to one passage that may come to mind for you as you consider the certainty or uncertainty that we have before God. This passage is an objectionable passage perhaps. in our certainty. And so I want to examine it for us as we turn to 1 John chapter 2. Here we have a warning from the Apostle John to the church. He says, picking up in verse 19, I'll read verse 19 and we'll discuss that for a moment. He says, they went out from us. but they were not of us. For if they had been of us, they would have went, they would not have gone out from us. They would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they are not of us." So at first reading, we can understand why this might be a scary passage. Those in the church are going out. Members of the church have left. Yet as we reflect upon this and consider the fuller context, we realize that John does not write this warning for the people who have remained, but as a comfort to them. He continues on in verse 20 and 21, but you have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge. This is a theme that Paul will pick up here in our passage, this knowledge that we have, and how that knowledge becomes a foundation for our faith. Our faith is built upon knowledge. And then he continues, the Apostle John here in 1 John 2, continues in 21, I write to you not because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and because no lie is up the truth. So you can see how this is actually a comfort to us, as we're seeing the Apostle is encouraging the church when people are leaving. encouraging them in their faith that they have knowledge, what they know, and that the Spirit is guaranteed in them, testifying to their ownership by Christ. John brings them comfort in the light of the news that many have left the church. They have the Spirit and they have knowledge. This is the same message that Paul gives to the church at Philippi here. They may be assured of their salvation, not because of anything that they have done, but because of Christ and what he has done. The Philippians have been made partakers in Paul's imprisonment. Here we see that Christ has sent the Spirit into their lives. He's enlightened their minds to the knowledge of Christ. and that is being testified in the fruits of their righteousness, that they are partakers of Paul's imprisonment, as we see in verse seven of Philippians chapter one. And defense and confirmation of the gospel, receiving grace from God as a gift through these things. This is incredible. They're receiving grace, blessing from God through suffering and partaking in Paul's imprisonment. and in his defense of the gospel. This word partakers here in verse 7 is the same Greek word that's used in verse 5. We considered this last time. It's a Greek word, koinonia. Some of you may be familiar with it. I mention it because we brought it up last time, this fellowship that we have. Fellowship is an important word for us in the church, something that we all know is missing now in this time of social distancing and something that we long for and seek to nurture in the church. So here there's this fellowship, that they are partakers with Paul. And here, Paul makes particular emphasis of this word. It's not just koinonia that he's using, but he uses a prefix. He uses the word sun, the Greek word sun, which is with. So Paul is not just talking about a fellowship here, but a with fellowship. He's emphasizing this, this close relationship with Paul in the midst of his suffering, in two things specifically, in his bonds and in his defense and confirmation of the gospel. So you may recall from the earlier message that one of the characteristics of the church in Philippi is their joy in the midst of suffering, that they may rejoice in all of these things. As they look around at the world and they experience persecution for their faith, they have times of joy and rejoice in that. That's what Paul is highlighting here. He gives thanks and praise to God because they have with fellowship in his suffering, a close fellowship in his suffering. They seek to be associated with Paul in the midst of his suffering and in his imprisonment, in his defense of the gospel. Calvin says, it is an honor that our God confers upon us when we suffer persecution for the sake of the truth. Matthew talks about this in his sermon on, sorry, Matthew talks about this in recording Jesus' sermon on the mount in chapter five. He said, blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad for your reward is great in heaven. For so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. It is not our actions that preserve us, but it is Christ who will not allow the temptation, not allow us to be tempted beyond what we are able, but through that temptation provides a way of escape also. In fact, this is something that Paul talks about. It is through the testing of fire that God refines us. He purifies us. Peter says in chapter one, The tested genuineness of your faith, which is more precious than gold, that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. An early church father, Tertullian, said that the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church, and this seed grows and produces an abundant harvest. Always, the church flourishes and grows under persecution. Look at history. Consider the Jews in Egypt. Though they were persecuted, they grew. It was something that Pharaoh could not fathom. He did not know what to do with all these Jews. How did he stop their growth? They were becoming a threat to him. And the more he persecuted him, the more they grew, the more they were blessed. Consider it as well. The church in Jerusalem, as they were persecuted by the Jews and by the Romans, they grew and they spread from Judea to Samaria and then from Samaria to the rest of the world. The church grew. through persecution. We can think of many instances throughout history and even consider now how God is using our suffering and the suffering of the church to grow His church at this very moment. And we praise Him for it. This then brings us to the next thought, that Paul loves those whom Christ loves. What is it that nurtures our love for those whom we would not usually be knit to? Why is it that the Philippians love Paul? Paul talks about that it is because they're communion with him. Paul appeals to God then, who cannot lie and who judges the hearts of men, to search his own heart to observe the love that he has for Philippi. He says in verse eight, Here at Philippians 1, God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus. He's taking an oath upon himself. He's asking the Lord to look into his heart and see this love that he has for Philippi. And he's writing to Philippi to encourage them in the love that he has for them. This is the theme that Jesus emphasizes several times in the Gospels. He says in John 13, 34, just as I have loved you, you also ought to love one another. He goes on to say that this is how people will know that we are his disciples, that we will love one another. In addition, John talks about in his epistle, in chapter four, if anyone says, I love God and hates his brother, he is a liar. For he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from him, whoever loves God must love his brother. It is part of our union with Christ that we love our brothers. We are one body with our brothers in Christ. One body with Christ, we love Christ and we love being a part of his body. How often do we consider that we are one body with those believers we don't really get along with? This is something that we should think about, something that we should seek to nurture in our lives, this love, that we would have the love of Christ in our lives overflowing in abundance to love others as well. Paul's love is patterned after Christ's. And he will pick up on this again in Philippians chapter 2 and verse 5. He says, have this mind among yourselves which is yours in Christ Jesus. So he acknowledges, he knows that this mind only comes because of the work of Christ and his union to Christ. It is the mind of Christ. And if I seek to have the mind of Christ, I will have a mind and a heart that loves my brother. In addition, Paul is energized then by Christ's indwelling love in his own heart. Our brothers are made in the image of God. We look around the world and we see men of all races, all created in the image of God. And for that reason alone, we should value them and cherish them. In addition, our brothers in Christ are renewed in the image of Christ, doubly formed in the image of God, whom we love. They bear his glory, the glory of him we adore. Therefore, we should love our brothers. This is such a serious matter that Paul takes up an oath that the Lord would search his heart and that the Philippians would know and that they could then nurture it in their own hearts. They are beloved of God and so they are beloved of Paul. His oath before God emphasizes the honesty of his affection. It is structured after and founded upon Christ's affection for his people. This brings us then to the prayer. The prayer starts in verse 9 and continues till verse 11. So he's ended the portion where Paul is giving thanksgiving for what the church in Philippi has in Christ. And now he is praying for them. We observe here the prayer that Paul has made reference to in verses three through four. He talks about the prayer that he has for them. And so we can see the content of the prayer that Paul is making. What a blessing it is to see the prayer that the apostle is making for the churches, that he makes for us as well. Paul prays that the Philippians' love will abound and have discernment, lest they be mesmerized and driven along by the passing breeze of their passions or fancies, led astray by foolishness or flippant love. Paul prays that they have an informed and mature affection instead of a childish fancy. If we combine this prayer with the prayers that we see elsewhere in Paul, in Colossians and in Ephesians, we can make a list of the things that Paul's praying for, for the churches. We notice that Paul prays that those addressed may abound in wisdom, in knowledge, in power, in endurance, in long-suffering, in joy, in gratitude, and in love. This is what Paul prays that we may have in Christ. as a fruit of our union with him. He desires that the church grow in love for Christ and also for one another. This is the love that may come as a fruit of our union with Christ. And a result is the glory of God. We are united to Christ and the fruit of that is then our love for the brothers. And our love for the brothers then results in the glory of God. When we love the brothers, we serve them. We desire to see them blessed. And that results in our praise and their praise to the glory of God. It is entirely dependent upon and caused by God's love, which it strives to imitate. This love in us is striving to imitate the love of Christ. True love is not based upon emotion. Instead, it's based on knowledge. Remember I said we would pick up on this theme, this knowledge that we have, knowledge of who God is, and knowledge of what God has done in our brothers, and a love for that work that God is doing, that Christ is doing, and the Spirit is working in them. Love is built on that sure foundation of certain knowledge that will never fail or waver in the trials of life. We know that oceans are going to ebb and flow, but God does not change. And the work that He is doing, He will complete. Love without discernment we know from experience may do more harm than it does good. And that's not what Paul is urging. He's urging that we have discernment and knowledge in our love. The Philippians' love will increase in accordance with their knowledge or in measure with their knowledge. Consider a couple who's been married for 50 years. They have a pure and patient love. They know who it is they love. They have been with them. They've seen how they react. They've depended upon them in times of need. And this is a knowledge that they have that informs their love. This is the type of love that Paul is talking about. We know who God is. We have seen how he has acted with his people throughout history, as we talked about before. We can look back on the saints from ages past and see how God has preserved his church and blessed his people. And we may know that He will do the same for us. The key text for us to see how this love works from God in us is 1 Corinthians 13. I'm sure you're familiar with it. Love is patient and kind. And we could go on and we could turn there, and I encourage you to do that later and see how love is described by Paul to the Corinthians there in chapter 13. This is a love which may only come as the fruit of the grace found in Christ and our union to Him. Paul is not praying that they would have knowledge of all things, but rather that they would have a complete knowledge of Christ. And that this love would affect the rest of their lives. That we would seek to know all there is to know about Christ. He is unfathomable, unfathomable. It's difficult to know truly all that he is, and yet we seek to know more and more of Christ. And that knowledge of who Christ is will overflow in our lives and result in love being poured out to others. Hendrickson, in his commentary on Philippians, says that this hearing becomes manifest in three things. that our love becomes manifest in our attitude, it becomes manifest in our words, and it becomes manifest in our deeds. This is because it is a work done first in our hearts, that we have a love in our hearts, and so then our affections are changed, our minds are changed, our thoughts are changed, our words are changed, and our actions and deeds are changed. Paul is not praying, remember, that this love may begin. It's already there, as he said in verse 6. It's already present. Instead, it would reach a full weight, a full height, that it would overflow and abound more and more. Consider Psalm 23. When David talks about the Lord furnishing a table in the presence of his enemies, anointing his head with oil, but then he talks about the cup of blessing that he has, that his cup overflows. This is the love in our lives. This love is overflowing. There's an abundance of it so that we may share and it will spill over onto others. This is a great amount of love and this is what we have in Christ because of His abundance love overflowing in our lives, it spills over to love others as well. It not only increases in measure of love for one another, but it increases in quality. We have more and more love, but we have more and more pure love based upon knowledge of what Christ is doing in their life and what He is doing in our life. This then brings us to verse 10 where he's talking about what the fruit is in approving, fashioning our desires, approving what is excellent. Brings us to the purpose of their love, namely that they may be purified like a precious metal, untarnished by impurities and sin. without any reason for blame in their lives, that they may be so purified that they no longer desire evil, but only good. They no longer have temptation to evil, but their desire is to do good. How is this done? We can look back and see, but what is it that Paul tells us? This purifying is done through suffering. And that's not easy, but we can rejoice in it, that this suffering is producing in us sanctification. Peter talks about this as we examine in his epistle. Chapter 1, it's done through a testing by fire. Paul has been tested through bonds in prison, tested through persecution, tested through being stoned. And the Philippians have align themselves with him. That Paul who is stoned, I am with him. That Paul who is imprisoned, I am with him. That gospel that Paul preaches, the reason for his imprisonment, I preach that to you as well. That is what I hold fast. That name of Christ, that is what I bear. And they are suffering for this. The Philippians lived in a world of many distractions just as we do today. And this is so much noise around us, it's difficult to know which news is worthy of our attention and what is just a buzz to get our attention. Paul tells us to look to one fixed point. He says, look to the day of Christ. Look to that day and let that day fashion your life. May your life be be formed based on your understanding of that day and what will come in our vision of our blessed Savior. There's so much noise around us, but all of our life is preparation for that day when we will see our Lord Jesus. This is the theme of Paul's letter, that we approve what is excellent. We turn to the end of Philippians in chapter four. If you want to turn with me there, you're welcome to. Chapter 4, verses 8 and 9, Paul tells them, finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned, again, knowledge, and received and heard and seen in me." Practice these things and the God of peace will be with you. Paul is able to say what you have seen in me because he knows Christ has worked in his life. So then the union of Christ testifies in our own lives. But that testimony, Paul is saying, this testimony to me can also be a testimony to you of the work that Christ has done and continues to do in your life. Their complete knowledge of Christ will lead not only to a deeper love of Christ, but a deeper love for one another, a deeper love for those who have been affected by Christ and united to Christ, that they have knowledge and they have discernment. More than that, Paul believes that their discernment and approval of excellent things will lead to the sanctification of the Philippians. They will be pure and blameless at the day of Christ. because they have built a foundation upon the truth of God's immovable character. He does not change, as we said. That anchor fixed in heaven brings us to heaven. They will not turn away from God, but will remain fixed upon his glorious name. They will be enamored with their savior and seek all that resembles him. Those whom you love, when you're in a relationship with someone, Early on, you think of all the characteristics that they have, and you hold close to you anything that reminds you of them. If you have letters that they've sent to you, you hold those close to you. You read them over and over as it brings you remembrance of them. Paul is telling us that, in a sense, Christ is writing a letter to his people in his people. We are blessed and have more knowledge of Christ as we see the way that Christ has worked in other believers. It's our encouragement. And so we seek and love all that is resembling him. I can see Christ in you. And that's a means and reason for rejoicing, not only for you, but for me and for all the church, that the Lord may be praised because of the work that Christ has done and the Spirit has done in you. This is what Paul sought and prayed for the Philippians. And this is what Paul sought and prayed for you, believer. That you may become more and more like unto Christ. That the believers around you may see you and know that you are Christ. That you have Christ's name on you. You call yourself a Christian. And we desire to see that Christ worked in our lives. It is in this manner that Paul closes the letter to the Philippians, as we saw a moment ago. Finally, seek out these things, things that resemble Christ, as you have seen Christ in me. Seek those things in your life. In our sanctification and pursuit of honorable things resembling our Savior, we shall be filled with the fruit of righteousness in our lives that comes through Jesus to the glory and praise of God, is what Paul tells us in verse 11. These are the positive implications of removing wickedness from our lives. Removing wickedness, again, through trials and tribulation. through testing and fire. When these evil habits are removed from us, there's a void. What is filled, what is placed in this void, but good habits. Paul is encouraging us to remove those evil habits and put in their place pure and wholesome habits. Anyone who's quit an addiction knows that this must be the case. If you remove something that you've done for so long that is wicked and evil, You can't just have that void. You're going to have this period, rhythm of life where you expect that evil, wicked habit. So when we remove that wicked habit, we put a good habit in its place, seeking out things that are honorable, things that are pure. And so this is the fruit of the righteousness of our union with Christ. We are physical people and a people of habit. It's far easier to break a bad habit if we put a good habit in its place. And so this is what Paul is urging the church at Philippi to do, urging us to do. Out of our hearts, we know actions will flow. Do you know, Christian, that the world can look at your life and know if you are a Christian? They can look into your heart by seeing your actions. They can look into your heart by listening to the words of your mouth. This is a scary thought, isn't it? It should cause repentance when we fail. No, I'm not saying, don't take the words that I'm saying wrong. I'm not saying that you are to be, that you will be perfect in this life. We will fail. And that is why there's testing. That's why there's tribulation. That's why there's this testing of fire. so that these evil thoughts might be removed from us. As we look in our lives, as we consider and reflect upon the sin of our hearts, the sin of our words and our deeds, we should repent. We should turn to Christ and ask that he would cleanse us of this unrighteousness. Calvin says, it's a good conscience that produces its fruit by means of works. Our heart, when it is pure, will produce a fruit of good works. Whenever we find ourselves struggling to love others, we should ask ourselves, how much do I love Christ? How much does Christ love me? Is there enough love in my love for Christ, or if not in my love for Christ, in Christ's love for me when he died on the cross? Is there not enough love in that? that it overflows in my life to love this person who is created in the image of God and being refashioned after the image of Christ. Can I not see Christ in this person, the work that Christ is doing them, to then love them? Surely the answer will be yes. As we love Christ, as we feel that blessing and overflow of grace in our lives, we will have the ability to love even the most vile of people. Paul says, I am the chief of sinners, and yet I'm saved in Christ. And we now know that chief of sinners is telling us at the end of Philippians to look at his life. He's not saying look at the persecutions, although he does that later in to Timothy. He's saying look at the fruit of the work that Christ has done to the man who used to persecute the church. This murderer is now a man who has the fruit of Christ, the fruit of righteousness in his life, so abundant. that it can be an example to us in our lives. These are fruits that come from a right relation between God and man. They are fruits that come from our union with Christ. Consider the fruits of the Spirit in Galatians 5. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, and the list goes on. These are the fruits that come from the work of the Spirit in our lives. We may recall from Ephesians 2, that God is creating us for good work. He is refashioning us after the image of Christ for good works, that we may do good works. Why? For the glory and honor of God and the praise of his name. Remember, Jesus is the vine and we are the branches. The vine has an abundant source of grace, an abundant source of life that He pours out and pours into His people, that the branches may produce abundance of fruit. If we are united to Christ in His death and resurrection, we are a new man, as Paul makes clear through his epistles. Therefore, by faith, then, we are united to Christ and made perfect in righteousness. But what is the end? This is always what we must come back to. What is the end? Paul has said, look to that day, that day of Jesus, the day of the Lord. Here in verse 11 he says, the end is to glorify God. Filled, in verse 11 he says, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God. This is the Westminster Shorter Catechism, question number one. Our chief end is not just to glorify God, but to enjoy Him forever. That our enjoyment of Him results in praise of Him, in glorifying of Him, and our glorifying of Him results in our enjoyment of Him forever as we dwell in His presence. all eternity. God pours out his blessing on believers abundantly in order that we may show love and kindness to others and his name may be praised by our lips and by our actions and by our thoughts. This is a circle that must be completed. God has poured out his grace upon believers so that they may love other believers and that those believers together with us will praise God and it becomes a circle that goes full circle, goes around and feeds into the next phase of that circle. That God would be praised and we would be able to nurture more and more our love for God and our love for others. Hendrickson says again in his commentary, the majesty of the redeeming love and power of God must be acknowledged in spontaneous, anthems of praise and adoration. As we close out this message and the Lord's day this evening, let us consider how we may practice spontaneous praise and adoration of God in our lives. Consider how we may practice that today, but throughout this week and throughout the rest of our lives, because always in our lives, we will be looking to the day of the Lord Jesus when he will bring us home. Through our union with Christ, we shall indeed be filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes with the result of glory and praise of God. Let us close. Lord God, Heavenly Father, we thank you for this message that you've given to us. We thank you for your word worked in us. We pray that you would indeed nurture love in our hearts for all people, but especially for your people, that we would, in our lives, reflect your glory. and that we may have spectacles enabling us to perceive of your work in others, that we may see Christ in others and love them as we love you. When we are unable, give us strength. May we recall the love that you have for us and pour out that love upon us. Spirit, work in us richly, this love for others. and reconcile us to yourself, reconcile us to others. We pray for all these things in the name of Christ Jesus. We look for the fruit of his righteousness in our lives. Amen.