Leveraging the Moment
Paul was imprisoned twice in Rome. The first time he was somewhat of a celebrity prisoner in that he was arrested in Jerusalem and was about to be left to the mercy of the Jewish Courts when he asserted his rights as a Roman Citizen and appealed to Caesar. This meant that he was escorted to Rome and there was placed under house arrest for about two years.During this time Paul was allowed to receive visitors, he mentored church leaders, shared his faith with his guards, discipled a young convert named Onesimus and wrote letters to the churches in Colosse, Ephesus and Philippi. He also wrote to a man named Philemon about his former slave Onesimus. I think it is safe to say that he leveraged his time, that he grew when he could have shrunk.
All over the world Christians find themselves "locked-down" or "socially-distanced". This puts us in a place of restriction, limitation, isolation and frustration.
What I love about Paul is how positively he used his time. He's under house arrest, his future in uncertain and while he has friends, he also has enemies. Yet in his letter to the church in Philippi he conveys a "bounciness" (joy) and optimism (faith) that catches one by surprise.
The passage below comes from the first chapter of the letter to the Philippians and from it we can glean a couple of important facets to Paul's "lockdown mentality".
- Paul took time pray deeply, thoughtfully and purposefully for the Philippians and others (we have detailed prayers he prayed for Colosse, Ephesus and Philemon too.)
- Paul didn't concentrate on his predicament, but about what his predicament could produce. He shared his faith with each soldier that guarded him and it seems that his faith-sharing was winsome and attractive, because he became known throughout Caesar's Palace as someone in chains for Christ.
- Paul looks for the positive in his circumstances. Instead of bemoaning what he couldn't do, he was excited about those who could be empowered. Instead of being a "victim" endangered by people preaching maliciously to stir up trouble, Paul is overjoyed that the gospel is preached. This is a remarkable quality. It is very easy to focus on the negatives. Paul refuses to do this.
- Paul makes a decision to "rejoice" and "continue to rejoice". (The Greek in the second verb is in the future tense and passive voice.) The passive voice conveys the sense that joy is a state-of-mind rather than an up-and-down emotion. His attitude and mindset is shaped by his hope and confidence in God. His joy is not a fleeting emotion - it is a deliberate decision. (The passive voice also is a way of showing that God is at work, helping Paul to keep rejoicing.)
- Paul believed that the prayers people prayed for him made a difference. We find a similar thought in 2 Corinthians where Paul noted that they "helped him by their prayers."
- Paul trusted that God's Holy Spirit was able to "help" (supply and support) him. (Paul is using the same word here as when he talks about every "supporting ligament" in the body of Christ.
- Paul trusted God for his future - whether that meant life or death. It's clear that Paul had asked the question: "What's the worst that could happen?" The worst that could happen was that he died, and he knew that even death was an empty threat. His trust in God was complete. Yes trouble, imprisonment and even death could come. But he trusted God.
These are the powerful qualities and attributes in Paul that leveraged his time of lockdown. - How can we grow and not shrink in these circumstances?
- How can we be a witness?
- Who can we pray for?
- What are the "letters" we could write?
- How can we choose our attitudes and deepen our faith?
Read the passage below and review Paul's qualities above and spend some time making decisions about how you'll handle this challenging time.
Leverage the moment!
| And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ--to the glory and praise of God. Now I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel. As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. Because of my chains, most of the brothers in the Lord have been encouraged to speak the word of God more courageously and fearlessly. It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. The latter do so in love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and the help given by the Spirit of Jesus Christ, what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance. I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. (Philippians1:9-21) |
