We Christians can be sometimes too gullible.
We believe everything we're told because we're told walk in love.
But Jesus tells us be wise as a serpent but innocent as a dove.
Welcome to a deeper dive in Philippians.
Now the first thing I want you to see before we even jump into the book of Philippians
is the historical content and in Acts 16 we see the birth of the church in Philippians
where Paul and Silas went to Philippi and they were meeting Lydia and her household
and obviously got arrested because he casted out that demon from that girl and when he did that
they got put to jail and we all know the story where Paul and Silas prayed and the miracles
happened. Most of the people in the prison with him they were part of his church so when he's
writing this letter and when you see mention the chains you know my chains most of them do
identify with it because they were in chains with him in prison and so it's good context to
understand that because there's a connectivity already that the people he's writing to already
understand. And another interesting thing about Philippians the birth of the church was in prison
and he's writing the letter when he's in prison and so there's this idea overarching the whole
book of Philippians about suffering for the gospel and so when you are going into Philippians
you'll see how even the way his language that he's talking he's a lot about surrendering to
the Lord a lot about dying himself because that is he's paying the cost for the gospel.
So as you're reading for personally and throughout this teaching series just remember the church
started from a prison and is running from a prison. Let's jump into verses three to eight and
we're just going to read those real quick to give us a full context. I thank my God upon every
remembrance of you always in every prayer of mine making requests for you all with joy for your
fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now being confident of this very thing that he who
has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ just as it is for
me just as is right for me to think this of you all because I have I have you in my heart in as
much both in my chains and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel you all are partakers
with me of grace for God is my witness how greatly I long for you with all affection for Jesus
Christ this first section or this first episode I'm calling it a father's heart you see Paul
praying and talking to them as a father and what we just read how he's in a seating for them because
he he led most of them to the Lord so there's that connection that he already has with them
and that is what all fathers all mentors mothers any person that oversees someone there's this
longing that we all have for them for them to be great because that is the parental instinct that
you have at that point and so Paul is in these verses he's acting as a spiritual father constantly
praying for them that is our responsibility whether you mentor someone or parents spiritual
parent whatever it is our responsibility that Paul is modeling is for us to pray for them to
in a seat on their behalf and verse six is a very sobering and comforting truth for me
listen this verse six again being confident of this very thing that he who has began a good work
in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ he who has began a good work in you a lot
of time as parents or mentors when you see the people that you're mentoring or your children
going astray you get this fear and anxiety and you try to interfere you try to do something to
kind of help them back and there's some things yes we could do as parents and mentee mentors
but then there's some other things we can't do you can't go into their heart and change their heart
the Lord has to do that you can't do that and that's why this verse for a parent is so comforting
because you have to trust and believe he who began a good work will complete it God the Holy
Spirit the day that you give birth or the day someone comes to you asking you to mentor them
that desire that they had to be mentored by you was not initiated by you it was initiated by the
Holy Spirit and you have to trust that the Holy Spirit will take them along and walk with them
and even for your children when they are going astray and doing all these crazy things
you have to trust that the Holy Spirit
He who began a good work in them will complete it.
That is a father's heart.
Paul is not depending on himself and his teaching
to see them grow in the Lord.
A lot of times we do that.
A lot of times we think it's gonna be based on how we speak
if you're a preacher, how you present yourself,
how you become friends with them.
That's not what matters most of the time.
What matters every single time is Holy Spirit
and what He's doing in them.
There's not a message that you can ever preach
or a punishment you can ever give a child
that will change their life dramatically.
It might derail them from doing a lot of things,
but to see a complete turnaround, a complete life change,
the Holy Spirit Himself has to do that.
He's the one who has to go in their heart
and turn it around and then bring them into the kingdom
and then bring them into His will.
See, I'm not a parent and I understand because I'm a son.
So I've seen from my parents' perspective.
And sometimes it's hard when you see your children
going through this hard times.
What am I gonna do?
Like that stress, I've seen it on my dad.
Just stressed out, what do you do?
It's in those times where we have to cling to the truth
that verse six is telling us.
We have to trust that God, the Holy Spirit
will complete what He started.
So in verse seven, you can interpret verse seven
a couple of different ways.
And I wanna read that for context
because you might've forgot in the two seconds
I've been speaking, so I hope you're paying attention.
Just as it is right for me to think this of you all
because I have you in my heart in as much both in my chains
and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel,
you all are partakers with me of grace.
So that verse, you can look at it two different ways.
If this, the people that he's writing to,
if most of them were in prison with him,
then they have a direct understanding of that verse
because they were in prison with Paul.
They heard that the angels come in the earthquake
and completely setting all them free.
They were there.
It was that secondhand.
So they can understand what he's talking about.
And another way you can look at that verse
is one of the beautiful thing about the church in Philippi
is that they were very generous.
They were one of the few churches
that constantly supported Paul
throughout his all missionary trips.
And so through the giving,
they were partakers of the gospel.
So you can look at that verse in both
and they both are acceptable.
And that's what he's trying to tell them.
Either whether you've experienced my chains
or you've given into my ministry,
we are all partakers of the gospel.
And in verse 9 and 11,
Paul kind of lets us in into what he was praying.
Look at what he says.
And this I pray that your love may abound still more
and more in knowledge and all discernment
that you may approve the things that are excellent,
that you may be sincere and without offense
till the day of Christ,
being filled with the fruits of righteousness,
which are by Christ Jesus to the glory and praise of God.
In verse 9, Paul mentioned that he's praying
that their love may abound in knowledge
and all discernment.
In knowledge, now think about what he's saying.
He's praying that their love may abound
in knowledge and discernment.
When I read those, I just stopped
and because I've never heard anyone or read anything saying
that your love may grow in knowledge and in discernment.
So let's go into those two phrases
and see what Paul is talking about.
So let's start with that your love may abound in knowledge.
Go with me to 1 John 4, from verse 7 to 11.
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God.
And everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.
He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.
In this, the love of God was manifested toward us,
that God has sent his only begotten son into the world
that we might live through him.
In this is love, not that we love God,
but that he loved us and sent his son
to be the propitiation for our sins.
Beloved, if God so loved us,
we also are to love one another.
Our love abounds in knowledge,
the more we know of God who is love.
The more we are intimate with him,
our love grows because he is love.
The more time we spend with him,
the more we become like him.
The more we are like him,
the more we act like him in loving others.
When we are spending time with him,
he reveals to us his love through the Holy Spirit.
And our knowledge of love abounds.
Remember, John talks about us being a vine.
The more you're connected to the true vine,
the more fruits you produce as a vine.
The same thing with love.
The more you're connected to love, you grow in love.
So when Paul is talking about abounding in knowledge of love,
he's talking about how intimate are you with the Father.
Where the more you're intimate with Him,
the more your knowledge of love, who God is, will grow.
So the other thing he talks about is,
love may abound in all discernment.
And now this right here requires maturity.
A lot of times we are told to walk in love.
We assume that it means to be a doorman.
We assume that when you're walking in love,
you just have to say yes to everybody.
But if you see the life Jesus lived, He didn't do that.
There were times He was very stern,
and there were times He was very loving.
And that, both are love.
Look at what Jesus says in Matthew 10, 16.
Behold, I send you out as a sheep in the midst of wolves.
Therefore, be wise as serpents and harmless as a dove.
Be wise as serpents and harmless as a dove.
Jesus is saying the exact same thing that Paul is talking about.
Let your love grow in discernment.
We must be wise and understand that
not everyone has the same goal as we do.
Not everyone is out for you.
Look at what Jesus again says in Matthew 7, 15.
Beware of false prophets who come into you in sheep's clothing,
but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.
They claim to be prophets.
They claim to be for you, but they were never for you.
They were there to take advantage of you.
And with those verses in mind, Jesus reminds us this.
Not everyone who claims to be with you is with you.
Love growing in discernment is reading the true nature of the situation.
We Christians can be sometimes too gullible.
We believe everything we are told,
because we are told, walk in love.
But Jesus tells us, be wise as a serpent,
but innocent as a dove.
We must learn to balance the ratio of love and discernment.
I feel like sometimes we're like 90% love and then 10% discernment.
It's supposed to be 50-50.
And that's what Paul is praying.
He's praying that his children in Philippi grow in love and discernment.
And then in verse 10, we see why.
We see why he says that.
So turn with me to verse 10,
and you see why he's praying that they grow in love and discernment.
And verse 11.
When someone burns you, when someone takes advantage of your innocence or of your love,
what do you feel?
You feel betrayed, you feel hurt.
And offense my brood.
And so when he's praying for them to grow in love,
in the knowledge of love,
and in discernment,
he's praying that they will be able to discern a situation.
They'll be able to know when in a current situation,
are they for me or are they against me?
And because when you, if you get hurt,
he's trying to prevent you from being taken advantage of.
And then when you're taken advantage of,
your heart will be broken, offense will brew,
and then you become bitter.
And he doesn't want that.
He does not want you to be bitter
because in verse 11, you see what he wants.
He wants the fruits of righteousness to flow through you.
And how can they when you've been taken advantage of,
when you're in pain,
but when you're wise and you're able to discern the father's heart in every situation,
then you know how to engage them.
Then you know who to let in and who to let out
because you gotta be able to let out some people.
Not everybody who's with you is for you.
Remember that.
And that is the heart of Paul.
In this, as he's introducing the book of Philippi,
he's introducing as a father and saying,
I want you to grow.
I am for you.
I am not against you.
And this, the heart of the father is to see their child mature in life
and more importantly, in the Lord.
And so that is the message I want to leave with you today.
A father's heart or a mentor's heart is to see the people they are mentoring
or their children grow.
And for that to happen,
you have to learn how to discern situations.
You have to be able to grow in love.
And you only grow in love when you're growing in the Lord.