Philippians 4:10–23, Gospel Giving

Philippians 4:10–23 (CSB)

APPRECIATION OF SUPPORT

10 I rejoiced in the Lord greatly because once again you renewed your care for me. You were, in fact, concerned about me but lacked the opportunity to show it. 11 I don’t say this out of need, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I find myself. 12 I know how to make do with little, and I know how to make do with a lot. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being content—whether well fed or hungry, whether in abundance or in need. 13 I am able to do all things through him who strengthens me. 14 Still, you did well by partnering with me in my hardship. 

15 And you Philippians know that in the early days of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving except you alone. 16 For even in Thessalonica you sent gifts for my need several times. 17 Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the profit, that is increasing to your account. 18 But I have received everything in full, and I have an abundance. I am fully supplied, having received from Epaphroditus what you provided—a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God. 19 And my God will supply all your needs according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. 20 Now to our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen. 

FINAL GREETINGS

21 Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The brothers who are with me send you greetings. 22 All the saints send you greetings, especially those who belong to Caesar’s household. 23 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.

Tonight we’re going to go through this passage one more time.
Last Friday, we spoke about how Paul’s strength did not come from the Philippians’ gift. Although he was extremely grateful for it, his strength ultimately came from Jesus.

That is true for us tonight as well. Our strength, our endurance, and everything else are found in Christ and through the Holy Spirit, enabling us to live out the gospel and what God has done for us in Jesus.

Tonight, we’re going to go through this passage one more time and see how trusting and resting in Jesus will cause us to live a life of generosity. Paul says in verse 14 that although his strength came from Christ, he commends the Philippian church for partnering with him in his hardship. It did bless him, and even more than that, it blessed the Philippian church.

Paul goes on to say that only the church at Philippi helped him in the early days of the gospel, and even when he was in Thessalonica, the Philippians sent gifts for his needs several times. He said that he wasn’t trying to get gifts from them, but that their gift-giving was, in fact, benefiting the Philippians themselves.

If you do any research on giving, you will find that giving your time, giving your treasure, and giving your heart to someone in need will help you. An article in the Harvard Business Review shares that people are happier when they give and can see how it impacts the people they help.
https://www.library.hbs.edu/working-knowledge/why-giving-to-others-makes-us-happy

As Paul ends the passage on giving in verse 19, we learn something even more incredible: that God will supply all our needs according to his riches and glory in Christ Jesus.

As we give, God will fill us up with more than enough in Christ.

Personally, I’ve experienced this firsthand over the last year. The year began in January with our family doing a devotional time together. We got on our knees and prayed, and I emptied myself before the Lord, and I felt a cloud lift from my heart. Over the year, I felt God leading me to be a part of His kingdom-building and blessing others. Tonight is December 16, and I feel more joy than I had at the beginning of the year because I feel God’s Spirit filling me up as I’ve shared over the months with you all here and have been more active in our church. God truly does fill us up with all we need.

Tonight, as this is our final night in Philippians for now, I want to invite us all to some practical ways to give of ourselves in Christ.

If you believe in Jesus, trust him for your needs. If there is one thing that you can do for someone else this week—and maybe even commit to doing over the next several months—I would encourage you to do it. Seek a way to show the love of Jesus to others. Maybe for you, that will mean helping someone else get to church on time. Or maybe it will be making a friend here in the mission and starting a small Bible study with just them. Or maybe you will spend five minutes every day praying for someone specifically, that they would be encouraged. Maybe tonight or tomorrow you can say a special thank you to those in the mission who are serving you here. Maybe you can commit to helping out more around the mission. Maybe if you have a job, you can ask the Lord to help you serve your workplace to the best of your abilities.

This giving of yourself is not out of duty, but out of thankfulness for what God has done for you in Jesus Christ. It is also out of the knowledge that God will provide everything you need in Christ. You can latch on to verses 19 and 20 in chapter 4 of Philippians and know that God will supply your needs according to his riches and glory in Christ Jesus, for the glory of God the Father forever and ever.

This giving of ourselves is rooted in the gospel. Over the last several months, as we’ve gone through Philippians, I’ve tried every single night that we’ve gathered together to share the gospel with you all. The gospel, or good news, means that in Christ you are completely saved. You were dead in your trespasses and sins because you did not know God, and you did whatever was right in your own eyes. But because God loved you, created you, and desired for you to know him and delight in him, he sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to earth. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, lived the perfect life that you did not live and died the death and suffered under the wrath of God for your sake and my sake, so that we do not suffer the wrath of God as we trust in him. He not only died and suffered on our behalf, but he rose from the grave victorious over death, which is our confidence that he will raise us one day.

As we trust in him, believe, are baptized, and enter into communion with him, he provides us the third person of the Godhead, the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit within us causes us to live a life rooted in the gospel. The Holy Spirit may be speaking to you to give of yourself, and when you give of yourself, the Holy Spirit will fill you with everything you need in God. Your giving tonight is rooted in what God has done for you.