Circumstances are irrevelant, but they matter less than you think.

Steve Brown:
Circumstances aren’t irrelevant, but they matter less than you think. Let’s talk, on Key Life.

Matthew Porter:
That was Steve Brown. He’s an author, seminary professor, and our teacher on Key Life, a program all about God’s radical grace. We’re committed to bringing you Bible teaching that’s honest, straight-forward, and street-smart. Keep listening to hear truth that’ll make you free.

Steve Brown:
Thank you Matthew. If you have your Bible open to the first chapter of Philippians, as we continue with our study in Philippians. Let me read the text, it’s Philippians 1:18b through 26.

Yes. And I

Now, you’ve got to remember that Paul has just talked four times about the fact that he was in jail, that he was in chains. And then he says, and it ought to be one of those places in Scripture where you’re astonished. You go, haaaaah, is what he says after describing his situation.

Yes, and I will continue to rejoice,

Rejoice? Yeah.

for I know that through your prayers and the help given by the Spirit of Jesus Christ, that what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance, I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have significant courage, sufficient courage, so that as always, Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. But for me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I’m to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose I don’t know. I’m torn between the two. I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far. But it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and will continue with all of you, for your progress and joy in the faith, so that through my being with you again your joy in Christ Jesus, will overflow on account of me.

Now, if you were listening yesterday, we talked about the powerlessness and the sadness of isolation. Philippians 1:19, Philippians 1:26. You’ve heard me say a lot that we’re here for each other. Jesus prayed for that in his prayer in John 17.

That we would be one.

He ordained it so that we could get through life together because we can’t do it by ourselves. And so, there’s a lot of reasons why Jesus created the church. A lot of spiritual reasons, but let me tell you one that you probably didn’t know about. He created the church so we could tell each other our best jokes, and we could laugh together. I sometimes go to the Cove, and I love that place. That’s the Graham Training Center in the mountains of North Carolina. And I go there mostly every year and teach a seminar. And it is a joyous place to be. And sometimes the staff at the cove will say, well, we’ve got all these people here. If you’ll tell us what you’re going to do next year, we can promote it for you. And I hadn’t even thought about it. And so, without thinking, I just said, okay, next year, I’m going to talk about the laughter of the redeemed. So, they advertised it and the people in this present seminar came to me and said, what’s that going to be about? And I said, we’re going to have a great time together. We’re going to get together and tell each other our best jokes. And the sour ones look shocked, but the ones who knew Christ understood, and said in a very spiritual way, way cool. Ha ha. Cause you can laugh with other people, but when you’re by yourself, the joy dissipates. And Paul knew that in Philippians 1:19, Philippians 1:26. I’ve told you that if Paul had his church letter any place, it would be at the church at Philippi. And that’s a lot of reason, they’d stood by him, they’d supported him financially, they had prayed for him when he was in trouble. He was in jail now and they were fervently praying that he would be released. But let me tell you, the reason he would put his letter in Philippi is because that’s where the laughter was. Then I want to show you something else, I want you to know that joy comes not only from knowing the powerlessness and sadness of isolation, joy comes from knowing the irrelevance of circumstances, Philippians 1:19.

For I know that through your prayers and the help given by the Spirit of Jesus Christ has happened to me and it will turn out for my deliverance.

The psychologist Ellis has a list of eleven irrational ideas by which most people live. The late psychologist Ellis, and when they try to live by these irrational ideas, it causes all kinds of trouble. One is that all problems have a solution, but they don’t, some things are not fixable. And another is that my inner strength is dependent on outward circumstances. I have some friends who sometimes ask me, are you happy? And I appreciate that question, but sometimes I want to say that’s irrelevant. I wasn’t called to be happy. I was not put on earth to be happy. My goal in life is not to be happy. I want to be faithful. If I’ve ever said that to you, I repent. I am so sorry. A part of my reason for existence is to laugh. It’s the joy that comes from walking with Christ. One time, a French diplomat came to his country’s embassy in France, and he made the traditional call on the French president, who was then Charles de Gaulle. He said very formally to de Gaulle, Mr. President, I’m filled with happiness at my appointment. de Gaulle replied with ice, You are a career diplomat, happiness is an inappropriate emotion in your profession. And there are people who say that about Christians. Happiness is an inappropriate emotion if you’re a Christian. Happiness is something that others have, not you. After all Jesus has done for you, get busy and serve him. Happiness is an inappropriate emotion. That’s a lie. It’s from the pit of hell, and it smells like smoke. And you say, but I’m going through a really hard time. I know. You say, it really hurts. I know. You say, I have lost somebody I love so much. I know. I’ve been given a diagnosis by the doctor that is scary. I know. But in the middle of all of that, your Father who created you and is overseeing every circumstances says to you what I just said. Child, I know. It’s mine. Lean on me. And then something amazing happens. And the amazing thing is the joy that is the gift that God gives to his own. If your joy is dependent on circumstances, you’re going to be in a lot of trouble. The difference between Tony Campolo and me, and I love Tony, you know that. He’s going through some hard physical stuff right now, if you think of it, say a prayer for him. But I’ve told you this before, Tony and I love each other and we don’t agree on anything but Jesus. In fact, we did a television show for a year out of New York called Hashing It Out. And Tony was my pinko, liberal friend, and I was his reactionary right wing friend. And we did it so people could see how two people who disagree politically and socially could love each other. But at any rate, Tony gets up in the morning and he says, God, what kinds of neat stuff are we going to do today? And I wake up and say, God, I’m probably not going to like what I have to do today, but keep me faithful. I repent. I want to be faithful, but I want to laugh too. I want to know your joy. And so, Paul, when he talks about joy, talks about, well, circumstances are not irrelevant, they’re real. And we shouldn’t try to pretend that everything is fine when it’s not fine. That light is everywhere when it’s dark everywhere. We shouldn’t pretend that everything is perfect because we belong to Jesus. But I’ll tell you something, those circumstances are not as relevant as you think they are. And they’re not as relevant as you think they are because of Jesus. You think about that. Amen.

Matthew Porter:
Joy comes from knowing the irrelevance of our circumstances. That feels like something I could put into action today. Thank you Steve. If you’re just joining us, we’re making our way through the Book of Philippians and we often call this a journey, but you know, like days like today just feels like a banquet and we will help ourselves to another serving of God’s wisdom tomorrow. So, hope you’ll be back for that because we’ll save you a seat. Well, here’s a question you may have never considered. Are we weak by God’s design? We discussed that topic with author Eric Schumacher on our talk radio show, Steve Brown Etc. Eric’s new book is called The Good Gift of Weakness: God’s Strength Made Perfect and the Story of Redemption. It was a thought provoking conversation with Eric. In fact, we put that entire episode on CD and we would love to send you a copy today for free. Just call us right now at 1-800-KEY-LIFE that’s 1-800-539-5433. You can also e-mail [email protected] to ask for that CD. Or to mail your request, go to keylife.org/contact to find our mailing addresses. Again, just ask for the free CD featuring Eric Schumacher. And finally, if you value the work of Key Life, would you join us in that work through your financial support? You could charge a gift on your credit card or include a gift in your envelope. Or you can give out safely and securely through text. Just pick up your phone and text Key Life to 28950 that’s Key Life, one word or two. Just text that to 28950. Key Life is a member of ECFA in the States and CCCC in Canada. And we are a listener supported production of Key Life Network.