Hitch- hike! A Journey Through Philippians 4, #2
Joyride- an expansion of Pastor Ben Jeffery’s study of Philippians at SoulCity Church.
This is an exploration, an expansion, a commentary on the message given by Pastor Ben Jeffery of SoulCity church based on Philippians chapter 4 titled Joyride. It is not so much a commentary on what was said, it is a personal continuation and not affiliated or sponsored with the church or pastor. Unfortunately, I have been unable to locate a recording of the sermon, so you’ll just have to take my word for what is included in this post.
On Sunday 4th September the offering was around Acts 16:25, ‘About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.’ The scripture this entire medium account is based on.
At this point in his journey, the apostle Paul was in a roman prison with Silas. They had much to fear, and much more to complain about, however they found joy in their suffering. This joy was not just a decision, it was a state of mind, you could say they felt fully justified for being in prison.
Jesus had died and resurrected, He had shown himself to Paul and Paul knew what was waiting for him. The same, if not worse, treatment that he himself was dishing out to Christians. Paul used to be a Jewish religious leader who whipped, stoned and imprisoned Christians for proclaiming Jesus Christ to be the Messiah, the Son of God. So now here Paul was, proclaiming this very same thing, he knew he would be killed for this, so being in prison meant he and Silas were in the right place at the right time. They were so happy to be in chains for Christ that at midnight, they sang. They prayed and sang hymns to God, openly, loudly, where the other prisoners could hear them. They were on a joyride!
This joyride was fuelled by the love of God they had encountered, they knew that by bringing and inviting God into their situation that even in a 40 to 50 AD Roman prison, aged around 40- 50. The theme of Acts 16 is joy. Christian joy, true joy that comes from God is not circumstantial; it is like a fizzy drink that never goes flat, it is always bubbling within. Paul and Silas were shaken up, they were stirred up and nothing could stop them from praising God, it’s not hard to imagine the type of punishment Romans thought up for anyone, but Christians were different, they threatened the empire, they threatened Tiberius Caesar.
This was Paul’s second missionary journey, he has built such a close relationship with God and shared this with his companions, be it churches or travelling buddied such as Silas that they knew, no matter where we are, no matter what is happening, put God first. If you continue onto Acts 16:26, you see that their praises broke everyone's chains and released all the prisoners. Be careful which company you keep, it might be the difference between being imprisoned and living free.
In Galatians 5, Paul talks of the fruit of the Spirit. From v22–23, he says they are these, ‘love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self- control’. G5 is firstly titled freedom in Christ and later on sub headed as life by the Spirit, verse 23 ends by saying against these fruit, there is no limit.
Paul is talking to the churches in Galatians, this book is named after the place Galatia, which is now central Turkey. Paul originally visited during his first missionary trip with Barnabas. Galatians is believed to be the first New Testament book written around 49 AD. Paul founded this church as he was preaching the gospel, and he wrote this letter out of concern for confusing influences, mainly Judaizers who were teaching salvation by keeping the Mosaic Law, which is the 10 commandments and the other books such as Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The Judaizer were promoting circumcision and belief in Jesus, circumcision is saved by works as in the good work done by circumcision oneself, where as belief in Jesus is salvation by faith in what Jesus did on the cross which Paul was writing to clarify on, he had told them this when he was with them in person. These influences were because the Galatians were a mixture of the surrounding areas including Pontus, Cappadocia and Phrygia which means the church he founded and the other churches were a mix of Jewish and Gentile (non- Jewish) converts to Christianity. Early Christians were known by different names, originally called; sheep, followers of the way, and thought to b a sect of the Nazarene, shortly after that began being known as Christians.
The Oxford dictionary defines joy as ‘a feeling of great pleasure and happiness’, however joy is not ‘just cheer up’ it is inner stability and confidence and external chaos. Joy experiences pain but takes a stance on God’s proposes and so ensures.
In Philippians 1:21, Paul says , to live is to serve Christ and to die is to know where he is going. There is encouragement to check your tribe, the people you surround yourself with and your community for joy! Are they leading you to more or less Christ- like joy? Joy that is relational not situational!
Look for joy in others, in their lives, this can take time but it will be evident, it says in Matthew 5:45 that God causes the sun to rise on both evil and good, and sends rain on the righteous, or those who are just and the unrighteous, or those who are unjust.
Philippians, as we have discussed is the Book of Joy, ironic since Paul was in prison, but this is exactly the point! In 1:12–14, Paul encourages us to check our source of Joy. Whilst in prison Paul knew he was not alone! He said, I am in prison and Jesus is with me, Jesus is in prison with me working and encountering people. How can he say that? For him it was easy, the source of Paul’s joy, was the gospel. He says all that has happened has happened for the gospel, he has willingly spent this part of his life in chains, for Christ, finding joy that his suffering has helped to inspire others to share the gospel without fear since they know the consequences.
In Philippians 1:27–30 Paul is continuing to encourage the church community to be united without fear in Christ, for they will be saved by God. It is our gift, he says not only to believe in Jesus Christ but also to suffer for him, as he is.
This is a stark revelation and a hard request. The only way you will survive as a Christian living wholly and sold out for Christ is too check your outlook, focus and perspective. You will face challanges. You will loose friends and family. You may loose everything, but in doing so, gain more than you could ever imagine. The opposite of joy, isn’t sadness or suffering — it’s hopelessness. God is with you, He is for you, He is good and He is not finished. Nobody can steal your joy. Joy is not circumstantial and He is ever present. Jesus doesn’t give up and He will never give up on you.
If you have never invited Jesus Christ into your life and would like too, here is a short prayer for you to say out loud. Living a Christian life, wholly for Jesus is not easy, but it is worth it.
Dear Jesus,
Thank you for dying for me on the cross and taking away all my sin. Thank you for loving me even when i rejected you. Come into my life and take first place. Help me to become who you know i am. Thank you, i know and believe because i have asked i am not eternally saved.
In your name, i have prayed. Amen.
I hope you prayed that prayer, good luck with your journey, there are plenty of resources available to you to help guide you with God, the most important of which is your bible and your prayers and talks with God. Here are some additional resources including other blogs, websites, pages, scriptures and key word searches.
No commission has been made from anything in this post, it is not sponsored in anyway. Including all links and mentions of specific people by name.
A Britannica article on Paul’s letter to the Galatians.
A Got Questions article on Paul’s first missionary Journey.
