Courage: Real Faith in Life's Struggles

Philippians 1:12-18

There was a test conducted by a university where 10 students were placed in a room. 3 lines of varying length were drawn on a card. The students were told to raise their hands when the instructor pointed to the longest line. But 9 of the students had been instructed beforehand to raise their hands when the instructor pointed to the second longest line. 1 student was the stooge. The usual reaction of the stooge was to put his hand up, look around, and realizing he was all alone, pull it back down. This happened 75% of the time, with students from grade school through high school. The researchers concluded that many would rather follow the crowd than be right.

Fear can paralyze us. It can prevent us from doing the things that we want to do and from doing the things that we know we ought to do. . . from doing the things that we know are right. We need courage to persevere. We need courage to overcome the negative influences of the world within which we live.

It seems that it was fear that Paul was concerned with when he wrote his letter to the Philippians while he was in prison in Rome. He was writing to his Christian friends in Phillipi who were worried and fearful about his safety and the future success of the Christian movement without his leadership.

While the Philippians probably assumed that Paul was fearful and saddened too, Paul writes them to tell them that his imprisonment has actually worked to advance the gospel message and that he is thankful for that. Rather than hampering the spread of the gospel, Paul says that the hardship that he has endured has actually worked to spread the Christian message.

Paul was not likely confined in a prison as we would generally think of it, but rather under more of a house arrest. The catch, however, was that Paul had to always wear a chain around his wrist that connected him with a Roman soldier who was given the task of guarding him. The soldiers from the Roman Imperial Guard would rotate and take turns staying chained to Paul.

Two great things, however, happened because of his imprisonment. 1st, Paul became a famous prisoner amongst the soldiers who guarded him. Paul was allowed visitors and the soldiers chained to him saw first hand how Paul preached and talked with his friends. They knew he was in prison because he was a minister of the Christian message. Paul does not hold back and speaks freely about his faith even though he is in prison for practicing it. Paul’s ministry did not end because he was locked up. . He was merely given a new environment in which to minister.

His imprisonment had opened the way for preaching the gospel to the finest regiment in the Roman army. No wonder he declared that his imprisonment had actually furthered the Christian cause. All the Roman Imperial Guard knew why Paul was in prison; many of them were even impacted for Christ; and the very sight of this gave to the Christians at Philippi fresh courage to preach the gospel and to witness about Christ.

The 2nd great result of Paul’s imprisonment was that Paul’s lack of fear encouraged other Christians to be more confident in the Lord. Paul’s chains had removed the barriers and given him access to the finest section of the Roman army, and his imprisonment had been medicine of courage to the Christian men and women at Philippi.

What a crazy development. Paul’s political and religious opposition achieved the opposite of what they intended to accomplish. They sought to silence the Christian community by arresting Paul, but they only succeeded in making it more bold and outspoken. Instead of destroying the Christian movement with Paul’s imprisonment, the government succeeded in giving the Christian movement new life and boldness because of Paul’s courage. God uses unlikely instruments to achieve his purposes!

Paul’s ability to courageously transform the difficult into a benefit advanced the Christian message.

Courage in the face of times of difficulty leads people to accomplish amazing things. Consider the following.

After Fred Astaire’s first screen test. . . a 1933 memo from MGM said: “Can’t act. Slightly bald. Can dance a little.” Astaire kept that memo over the fireplace in his Beverly Hills home.

An expert said of famous football coach Vince Lombardi: “He possesses minimal football knowledge. Lacks motivation.”

Beethoven handled the violin awkwardly and preferred playing his own compositions instead of improving his technique. His teacher called him hopeless as a composer.

Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper for lacking ideas. He also went bankrupt several times before he built Disneyland.

With courage and perseverance, people are capable of turning negative things into positive things. This is what Paul did.

There was yet another thing that was on Paul’s mind . He says there are some who preach Christ “out of jealousy and rivalry . . . with selfish ambition, not sincerely, intending to make my chains more painful to me.” Paul does not identify these people but simply describes their motives with such terms as jealousy, rivalry, selfish ambition, insincerity. It seems that with Paul in prison, many within the Christian movement sought to take over his position as the leader of the Christian movement. There were those who preached fervently now that Paul was in prison, for his imprisonment seemed to present them with a heaven-sent opportunity to advance their own influence and prestige and to lessen Paul’s.

Paul was not jealous or resentful, however. Instead of identifying those who sought to compound Paul’s distress he surprised the Philippians by taking an entirely different approach. It is one thing to see the positive side of difficult circumstances, such as losing a job or facing illness. It is something entirely different to be in a position where one’s integrity is attacked and people are actively trying to undermine one’s life work.

Paul’s response is one that we can only make if our lives and our faith are truly integrated, if we know what is of ultimate importance. . . if we are not fearful that we will be hurt, but trust in the power of the gospel. There is no doubt that Paul probably had to struggle with feelings of anger and frustration toward these people who made his life difficult. But his conclusion was that the preaching of the gospel was more important than the attacks on his person and integrity. He rejoiced that Christ was being proclaimed and talked about, whether in deception or in truth.

As long as Jesus Christ was preached, he did not care who received the credit and the honor. He did not care what other preachers said about him, or how unfriendly they were to him, or how contemptuous they were of him, or how they tried to go one better and outdo him. All that mattered was that Christ was preached. Paul lifted the matter beyond all personalities; all that mattered was that Christ was preached.

Paul is deeply convinced of the surpassing value of Jesus Christ, who can, as Paul’s life shows, use the least likely people and events to achieve his purposes. Paul is convinced that Jesus Christ is able to break through even the most hostile settings in order to make himself known.

As Christians we are called to the same understanding. We must acknowledge that God is greater than our problems and far more significant than the struggles we face in our lives. Through Christ we are capable of turning any difficulty into a benefit for God.

It takes courage, however. We need to have the faith to stand firm and confident in God’s goodness even when it does not seem so clear.

This summer as many of you know, I am working as a chaplain at MacNeal Hospital in Berwyn. Each day I talk with people who have just been given horrible news. Some are told that they have cancer; others that a loved one has died. . . and I am called to talk with them about their struggles and often their anger towards God. One of my tasks is to help these people understand what Paul did in his time of difficulty. . . that good can often come out of our most difficult struggles. That we can repair broken relationships or more deeply demonstrate our faith in the face of adversity.

We must seek to have Paul’s outlook on life.

Paul is confident of the power of the essential truth that is found in Jesus Christ, and therefore he is prepared to ride out this present storm. Paul’s conviction is that over the long haul truth prevails and that the living God is able to endure setbacks.

Increasingly our world is riddled with hardship and difficulty. Whether it be violence around the world or difficulties in families at home. . . each of us are faced with struggles that seek to separate us from our faith and it takes courage to stay focused. But it is our faith that can anchor us to a God that is greater than our problems. To a God that can use us to turn our problems into blessings if we simply allow him to.

Roy Campanella understood the power of setbacks.
He was one of the first African Americans to play in major league baseball. In a distinguished career he won the Brooklyn Dodgers Most Valued Player award many times, and in 1955 was on the team that won the World Series.
But in January 1958 his career was cut short after a car crash left him a quadriplegic. After he was injured he spent a lot of time in the Institute of Physical medicine and Rehabilitation in New York City. One day he stopped to read a gold plaque upon one of the walls, and for someone who had been blessed with such athletic gifts it resonated deeply within him:
"I asked God for strength, that I might achieve.
I was made weak, that I might learn to humbly obey…
I asked for health that I might do great things.
I was given infirmity that might do better things…
I asked for riches that I might be happy,
I was given poverty that I might be wise…
I asked for power, that I might have the praise of others.
I was given weakness that I might feel the need of God…
I asked for all things, that I might enjoy life.
I was given life that I might enjoy all things…
I got nothing I asked for, but everything I had hoped for.
Almost despite myself, my unspoken prayers were answered.
I am, among men, most richly blessed!

In Philippians, Paul is alerting his Christian friends to trust in the durability of truth and the ability of God’s truth to win at the moments that count most of all. His physical circumstances are of little consequence to him. He knows God’s plan is much larger than the difficulties he is called to endure.

Paul is willing to wait for those moments when God can be revealed as the source of his strength and hope.

The strongest Christian witness is the simplist witness. It is straightforward, down to earth, earnest and growing faith in Jesus Christ that is the most powerful antidote to the ever present struggles we face. The gospel is true and good wherever it is discovered. And people will truly see our faith if we bind ourselves to it even in times of difficulty. Since Paul knows this he is able to relax and trust. Time is on his side and he knows it. In the end, God always wins.

Our character may be called into question and attacked, our bodies may fail us, we may face many struggles. . . but if the truth of the gospel and God’s integrity are the foundation of our worldview, we will be sustained.

Perhaps you have the story of the oyster, who turned its pain into something beautiful.

There once was an oyster
Whose story I tell,
Who found that some sand
Had gotten into his shell.
It was only a grain,
But it gave him great pain.
For oysters have feelings
Although they’re so plain.

Now, did he berate
The harsh workings of fate
That had brought him
To such a deplorable state?
Did he curse at the government,
Cry for election,
And claim that the sea should
Have given him protection?

No – he said to himself
As he lay on a shell,
Since I cannot remove it,
I shall try to improve it.
Now the years have rolled around,
As the years always do,
And he came to his ultimate
Destiny – stew.

And the small grain of sand
That had bothered him so
Was a beautiful pearl
All richly aglow.
Now the tale has a moral;
For isn’t it grand
What an oyster can do
With a morsel of sand?

What couldn’t we do
If we’d only begin
With some of the things
That get under our skin.

Paul did not allow his setbacks to prevent him from accomplishing his goals. He did not allow his fear to paralyze him. Paul courageously stood up for his faith. He turned even the negative into positives for the Kingdom of God.

We are called to do the same. Not to allow the worries of our world and the struggles of daily life to interfere with our task of spreading the gospel. But to turn these difficulties into benefits. If co-workers are speaking badly about you. . . respond by showing Christ’s love to them. If friends or family pass from this world. . . rest confidently in Christ’s promise of eternal life. If your faith makes you an outcast at school. . . be a beacon of light to the others that have been outcast. If friends are angry with you. . . be the one who mends the broken relationship. In all circumstances, good and bad. . . seek to glorify God.

Do not be fearful, but bold. Rest in confidence and claim the truth of the gospel message. It represents a reality that an entire world needs to hear.