Volume 1 , Issue 4 Page 7
Identified by Our Location
“ 12 Now I want you to know , brethren , that my circumstances have turned out for the greater progress of the gospel , 13 so that my imprisonment in the cause of Christ has become well known throughout the whole praetorian guard and to everyone else , 14 and that most of the brethren , trusting in the Lord because of my imprisonment , have far more courage to speak the word of God without fear .” ( Phil . 1:12-14 )
Reading scripture with fresh eyes impacts you in a greater way than you could have ever imagined . I ’ ve read through Philippians many times over the years , even taken tests and written papers on the text , but it is so easy to miss the deeper truth that is embedded in the text .
To understand Paul ’ s letter to the Philippians is to understand two things : The first is that Paul is in a Roman prison for the cause of the gospel , and the second is that he dearly loves the believers in Philippi . He makes his love known all throughout this letter .
Jonathan Venable Vestavia Hills , Alabama jonathanbvenable @ gmail . com
It ’ s amazing to read this letter and see Paul ’ s optimism . It would be easy for him to fall into a state of depression ; at one time he was revered as a great religious leader and had everything going for him , but the moment he decided to follow this man named Jesus , he lost it all . Because of his allegiance to Jesus , Paul finds himself in prison . I ’ m sure that prison for Paul is way different than the type of prison that we see here in America . I ’ m sure Paul was given some food to eat , but his prison was more like what we would see as a torture camp . Rats and other rodents were running around , disease was rampant , and the water was polluted . On top of that , you know it had to be torturing him that he was not able to be out on the streets advancing cause of the gospel . Would the spreading of the good news slow down while he was locked in a cell ?
“ We must not be identified by our condition , but by our location in Christ .”
His fear turns into joy when he realizes that his misfortune has really turned into greater success . He notes that his imprisonment for the gospel has become well known and is serving as courage for the believers to speak the Word of God without fear . What could have been a bad situation actually is turning out to be better than Paul could have ever imagined .
I ’ m reminded of something that one of my seminary professors once said : “ Don ’ t be identified by your condition ; be identified by your location .” If we are located in Christ , then we have nothing to fear . So often we let our circumstances and our condition cripple us . I know I ’ m guilty of this and have in some ways been battling it over the last few months . I was on track to become a pastor when , in the very last step before going before the leadership board , another pastor slung my name through the mud , calling me unfit not because of anything I had done , but because of my reserved personality . This completely halted the process and prevented me from living into what I Story continued on pg . 8