Sunday Devotional: Philippians 1:28-30

²⁸ And don’t in any way be frightened by those who oppose [you], [for] this is a sign to them of [their] destruction, and of your salvation–and this from God. ²⁹ For it has been gifted to you, for Christ’s sake, not only to believe, but also to suffer on account of him, ³⁰ having the same struggle which you saw in me, and now you hear about in me.

In this brief passage, Paul is giving comfort to the Philippians, who are clearly experiencing persecution for their faith. He tells them not to be scared by those who oppose them. I have translated this as a new sentence, but technically it is continuing the thought from the previous sentence. Without getting too technical, the verb “to be frightened” is in a participle form, and participles usually go with a main verb. In the immediate context, I think this verb is in verse 27: “you stand.” To put all this into plain English, he wants the Philippians to show that they are standing firm in one spirit by not being afraid of their opponents. Their lack of fear comes from their united stand. And it’s true that, while we draw our strength from the Lord, He has given us each other–fellow Christians united by the gospel, and organized into churches–to manifest that strength.

The enmity the Philippians receive from these opponents is a sign of two things: first, that their enemies are headed for destruction. They are not lovers of God, and hence have no eternal hope. Second, that the Philippians have a future hope in Christ. If they did not have a gospel to proclaim, they would be left alone. However, the fact that their faith draws opposition from God-haters is a sign that they are, indeed, loved by God.

So this opposition is, in fact, a gift of God. Not only is their salvation a gift (they did not cause themselves to believe, but God gave them the faith to believe), but their suffering for Christ’s sake is also a gift of God. I deliberately translated the verb here as “gifted,” since the idea of giving freely is inherent in the original Greek (charizomai). And I think Paul really wants the Philippians–and us–to see that the troubles we face in life are as much given to us as a gift from God as our salvation. This should comfort us, since it tells us that our suffering is not without purpose: God has given it to us for a reason that we may not see now, but God knows.

Finally, Paul indicates that the Philippians can now sympathize with the struggles that they have seen in his life, and now hear about. These conflicts with the enemies of the gospel have been part of Paul’s ministry from day one; now the Philippians can understand first hand.

I think there are a couple of ideas in this passage we need to meditate on. First, that we need not fear opposition, especially if  we are standing together with our brethren in the Lord. This is another argument for being part of a local church. Not only is there prayer support, but there is strength in the encouragement and unity among God’s people. If you’re not in a local church, you are easy prey for the Enemy’s attacks.

Second, we should draw comfort from the fact that adversity is as much a gift of God to us as anything else–even our salvation. God brings trouble into the lives of His people to help them grow into the people He wants them to be. It also helps to draw us together as Christians, binding us in prayer and faith as we go through difficult times together. Also, our struggles serve a greater purpose in God’s kingdom than we can yet see. One day, perhaps from the perspective of eternity, we’ll see our trials like part of a beautiful quilt God is making from us all.

Have a great week!