Call to Paradox

“It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. The latter do so out of 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” (Philippians 1:5-18).

Last week, Pastor Michael talked about the challenge of praying for and loving our fellow believers who frustrate or disappoint us by their words and actions. In the verses today, Paul adds a layer of complexity in being obedient to this command. There are some, he says, who preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, with selfish ambition and not sincerity, to stir up trouble. 

Many of us have likely encountered people, whether in-person in churches we have attended, or in online ministry or other spaces, and discerned that perhaps their motives in sharing Christ with others are not entirely pure. We are regularly exposed to stories of the corruption of church leaders whose ministries are centred around ego and personality, and yet in those same places are congregants who speak about transformation, of conversions, baptisms, healed bodies and relationships, care for the poor and oppressed. What do we make of such collisions of beauty and brokenness?

In the words of Paul in today’s verses, I think we see a couple layers to the way we are called to respond. First, is the necessity to name what is wrong, to call out false motives, to bring to light abuses of the gospel message for the sake of personal advancement. There is a temptation to read this passage as a sort of “ends justify the means” approach to ministry, to ignore the twisting of scripture and mistreatment of persons through a misreading of the text which declares, “Well, Paul said that we must rejoice whenever the gospel is shared! Sometimes that requires us to put up with the consequences of bad leadership.” But before Paul’s declaration of joy, he names the false motivations of envy, rivalry, selfish ambition, and stirring up trouble. He draws the church’s attention to those who would presumably use the message of Christ in such ways, with the intention to put them on their guard, not to excuse their behaviour. This is the first thing Paul does, and to forget this has been, in the history of the church, to use passages like this one to sanction or turn a blind eye to much abuse.

When he has called out the failures of leaders, Paul then gives thanks for the preaching of the gospel in spite of the falseness of those who have done the preaching. Now, how is it that he can do that? How do we ourselves follow this pattern without the mistake we have just identified?

First, we need to examine ourselves. Rather than being too quick to identify ourselves as the Philippian church, subject to false motives of others, we need to discern our own false motives, our own twisting of the gospel to serve our own ends, and our own limitations to see how Christ is at work among those with whom we might disagree, those whom we might be tempted to “stir up” our own trouble for. 

Second, we are called to develop, by the Spirit, a capacity to do what is at the heart of the gospel (but also one of its most challenging expectations): To live in paradox. To find redemption in brokenness. To anticipate resurrection as we contemplate the cross. To hope in the “already and not yet” of new creation. 

To give thanks for a gospel message preached even with false motivation as Paul does in these verses requires profound spiritual maturity and prayerful discernment with the community of the church. It requires condemning and pursuing consequences for what is false and still desiring what is true, even when it means we have to do a lot of untangling to find it. This kind of work can be deeply painful, and so it is critical that we remember that to bring beauty out of brokenness, redemption out of sin, led Jesus on the road to Golgotha, to his very death on a cross. And so, as we do this work, we are not alone. And it is for this reason that we can, even as Paul did in chains and subject to the trouble-making of others, rejoice.

So as you journey on, go with the blessing of God:

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.