When we look back in history, at those who discovered new parts of world, people like Columbus (America) and Cartier (Quebec) we look at these as moments in history. In a sense they are moments because there’s a day/date that their feet touched land. But we know full well that the discovery didn’t end there. Each step they took led them to a new place, a new perspective, a new discovery, all on the same land they set foot on weeks and months before.
I came across a Toronto resident who looks for obscure places in the city, films them, and then shows his viewers what an amazing adventure and discovery it was to get there. Jeremy did this very thing in one of his films called, ‘The Bessarian’. It features a Toronto subway station on the purple line near Leslie and Shepherd. Why did Jeremy choose this station? Because out of the millions of tokens used each day on the TTC, only 180 are used at Bessarian station. The funny thing is that I’ve been close to that station so many times. It’s close to a Starbucks I’ve stopped at, down the street from Ikea where I’ve shopped at, by North York General hospital where I’ve been so many times. Yet I’ve never known of or heard of Bessarian, even though I use the Subway from time to time. It says something about living in a big city – there will always be places we have yet to find; places we have yet to discover.
Our faith experience is and should be very similar. If you’re following Jesus you probably can look back to a moment when things clicked; even if you didn’t realize it at the time. You will also have come to realize that you’ve grown so much since then. It’s like you discovered Jesus once, but continue to discover more about him and the church (and yourself) as your journey moves forward.
I came across this short verse in John 21. After all that occurred at the end of this gospel (Jesus living, dying, coming back to life, and about to ascend to heaven) Jesus asks Peter, the apostle a question. “Will you follow me?” This wouldn’t be a big deal except that Jesus already asked Peter this a couple of years before. You’ll see this question asked to all the disciples, and when asked, they leave what they’re doing and follow Jesus. But why does Jesus have to ask again? Because our faith experience is not a one time thing; it’s not a moment that happens in history only to be left there. Our faith is meant to grow and move and breathe and become all that God intends it to be.
It’s like discovering a city. Just because you’ve entered it for the first time, you’d never assume that you know it well. You may enter it from the east side, the west side, the north side or the lake, but you can’t imagine how big and beautiful it is until you begin (and continue) to discover it. The CN tower, Casaloma, The EX, Cabbage town, Yorkdale, all of Young Street, The Distillery District, High Park – we can go on and on.
This is why DISCOVERY is one of our values, and this is why we take DISCOVERY seriously. We know that we are all on a journey of figuring out what it means to follow Jesus, and that journey is a marathon, not a sprint. If you’re thinking from the perspective of community or you’re thinking as an individual, helping others discover Jesus is one of the most important things you can give your life to. Appreciating yours and others journey is one way to both embrace and share God’s love.
To sum this up, let’s look at two places in scripture that are connected simply because they both give us language to explore what God is up. Matthew 7 & Jeremiah 29 have very different contexts, but both urge us to pray, and by pray we mean to seek out God, search for him, long for him, ask of him, knock on his door. Jeremiah specifically says that if we pray, and seek and search, that we will FIND God. The very nature of finding God means that we will spend our lives discovering him. So we value this very process: how people discover God with us…and how we can discover God with others. Together, we will discover the Bessarian stations of our spiritual journey with Jesus. And yes…we take this stuff pretty seriously.
If you’ve been around The Village even a little bit you’ve heard us use this line from time to time. Here it is: ‘We don’t ever want to take ourselves too seriously, but we do want to take Jesus seriously’. Why do you think we say this often? It’s because we desperately want to be humble about who we are and what we know, yet we passionately want to discover who Jesus is and what kind of life he calls us to live. So for the next number of weeks we will be taking some time to narrow down what it is we should take seriously when it comes to our values, and to our faith. There are a number of places in the scripture that do this for us. The writer’s of scripture often leave us with a few things to consider or a few things to take to heart; after a broad stroke of story and principals, they give us smaller bite size pieces to focus on. Take Micah 6:8. The minor prophet is begging to hear God tell him what he wants from him, God in turn leaves him with 3 things: Act Justly, Love Mercy, Walk Humbly with God. Jesus, in Mark 12 and Luke 15 is asked what the greatest commandment is. Why? Because there were 613 of them and people wanted to know what to focus on. Jesus gives them two: Love God and Love Others. He says, ‘if you can get serious about these two, everything else will fall into place.
Paul does something similar in 1 Corinthians 13. This is known as the love chapter. It’s a beautiful, poetic, lyrical metaphor and description of love. It’s often read at weddings because it’s just a perfect definition of love. The interesting thing about this text is that it’s sandwiched between chapters 12 & 14, both of which are about the church as a body of believers who the spirit enables, with gifts, to serve and build up one another. Corinthians in general is a letter to a church with some issues that need solving. Chapters 12-14 are part of the solution. While Paul is helping the Corinthians to understand community in a healthy way, he throws in a very important tool for it to all come together: LOVE. Here’s how Paul narrow’s things down, with two verses, 12:31b & 13:13, “I will show you the most excellent way… And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”
With all that is going on in Paul’s letter, he, like Micah, like Jesus, narrows it down to a few things to consider, a few things to take seriously, they are, Faith, Hope and Love. You can understand why, because even though all the things Paul is teaching about are important (i.e. gifts of the Spirit), faith, hope and love are that much more important. Faith (trust in God) is something that helps you in the present, but leads you to Hope, which is always about the future (knowing that tomorrow is actually better). These first two are key to our journey with Jesus. We must have full trust in God, knowing that our hope in him is secure. But Paul takes it a step further, he narrows down his list of three and turns it into a list of one – LOVE. But the greatest of these is love. Why would he do that? To confuse things, to simplify things? Neither. Paul wants to be very clear, without love everything else we have will not amount to anything; your gifts, skills, works, deeds, reputation, successes, all of it will mean absolutely nothing. What about tongues? What about prophesy? What about knowledge? What about _______? All those other things are temporary, important, but they can only help in the moment. Love (as well as Faith & Hope) launches things forward, it leaves an impact, it makes a difference.
So if there’s anything we really get serious about, it’s faith, hope and love – and if we have to narrow it down even further – LOVE.
Over the next few weeks we’ll be talking about the things that matter most, things like community, generosity, transformation, stories, and discovering what this all means together. Looking forward to it!
Being a part-time, working university student, it’s easy to get lost in the busyness of my schedule. On top of that, there are so many lingering questions like “Where is my future headed?” and “Who am I?” This stage in life has been a scary process – with numerous challenges and constant transition… But if there’s one thing I have been learning these past few years, it’s that God provides – no matter where our circumstances are. God always reveals himself to us in ways we don’t expect.
January 2014: I had just been accepted to the Nursing Program at Ryerson University in Toronto. High school was coming to an end and I was stoked that my plans for university were in place. Fast forward to July 2014: I was cruising through summer break until I received a phone call from Ryerson. Long story short, I was told that my grades were not good enough and my acceptance was revoked. All I remember was a lot of disappointment, fear and shame. That week was awful and all I felt like was a failure. I was a counsellor for a kid’s camp that week and I didn’t want to show that I was upset. I ended up telling some other counsellors what had happened. They were so supportive and told me that they were praying for me. I was praying. My family and friends were praying. My next step was to take some action. I had to look through my expired offers from other schools and see if they would re-consider me. I received a “no” from the University of Toronto. And when I thought all hope was lost, I heard back from the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT). They told me that they re-considered the offer they had given me earlier that year. God was listening and I put my trust in him during that dark, emotional time in my life.
Right now, I am preparing to enter my third year at UOIT for Public Health Sciences. I look back at what happened and I am so incredibly thankful. One: for the family and friends God has blessed me with. Two: for the challenge that God let me face. And three: that God provides for me when I feel hopeless. God used that difficult time in my life to strengthen my faith and remind me that ALL my plans are in his hands. He continues to do that for me today. I have met so many amazing friends at UOIT and I would not have known them if my life went down the other path. I am now very involved in Campus Ministry and have been offered many opportunities to serve and grow in my relationship with Christ. God always reveals himself to us in ways we don’t expect – we just have to have a lens of faith to see it.
Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. –Hebrews 11:1
Just recently I experienced God once again providing for me in an unexpected way. I have had a part-time job for about 4 years now but coming into this summer, I wanted to find another job to help with my financial situation. I applied at this one place and I was pretty confident in getting the job. I didn’t get a call or an e-mail for over a month. I was discouraged, so I was going to give up on the job search. Just when I was accepting my summer the way it was, Pastor Jonathan came to me saying that the government gave the Village a few student grants and that I should apply for one. Now here I am, writing this blog post as a summer intern! On top of that, I also was offered a social media intern job with my brother’s band Lightfall. Let me say it again: GOD PROVIDES! I found out that my mom was praying for me and a job opportunity to come my way. An answered prayer for her and for me.
Now I know that when I ask questions like “Where is my future headed?” and “Who am I?” I can find comfort in the fact that my identity is found in Christ and I don’t need to be afraid if I just trust in him. It is so amazing knowing that wherever life takes me, God is walking beside me. I just need to have faith. There are still so many obstacles that I deal with every day. Personal issues and emotional battles. But he is with me through it all. Amidst those dark and painful moments in life, are beautiful opportunities to learn and grow. He has a perfect plan for me.
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. –Romans 8:28
It was a great summer working at the Village. I’ve loved getting to spend time with the Manafo family and get to know Lindsay (our children’s director) and Emily (our summer media intern). I look forward to see where God takes our church community at The Village.
What is it about conflict that scares us? Or about difficult things that we want to hide. Seems like when we mess up or failed or made a bad judgement call, instead of coming clean we want to sweep it under the rug. We do this with conflict as well. Rather than talking about it or bringing up in a mature manor, we avoid it and hope that it just goes away.
Paul starts Philippians 4 by highlighting a conflict. We’ve seen that with every sentence and paragraph in this letter, another layer of what it means to be community is being peeled away. Some say that Paul has been leading to this moment where he could deal with the elephant in the room, a conflict between two women. Check it out… 2 I plead with Euodia and I plead with Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord.3 Yes, and I ask you, my true companion, help these women since they have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life.
Up until this point in the letter, Paul doesn’t call out anyone by name. Here however, he feels it’s necessary to point out these two woman who are obviously at odds with each other. A few things to consider:
– This letter was read aloud, publicly, for the whole community to hear at once. Imagine what that might feel like?
– Paul calls these two women colleagues. Where else in a first century context are men calling women colleagues. How refreshing is the gospel that in a male dominated world, Jesus invites woman to fully participate.
– Two reasons why dealing with this conflict is so important: for the sake of community and for the the sake of the gospel.
With this in mind, Paul continues with some teaching on how to react and respond to other difficult circumstances in our lives. One of the main characteristics of being a follower of Jesus is that we would respond differently than others do when things go wrong or times are tough. After addressing conflict, Paul says… 4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
How are we to be different or unique in how we live as followers of Jesus? Paul gives us 4 ways.
be JOYFUL
Paul doesn’t mention this once, but twice. This is a big deal. This is the kind of joy that pushes through difficult times. Joy that doesn’t make sense, but is so evident and life changing.
be GENTLE
Paul then says that our gentleness should be evident to all. This is a characteristic that replaces retaliation. Gentleness comes as a surprise to most people. Why? Because it’s shown in a situation that could’ve easily gone the other way? This is also something Paul thinks everyone should see – when they see it, they see something different in us, they see Jesus.
Both Joy and Gentleness are refreshing. Why? Because they’re not common, not expected, but so welcomed and appreciated. Christ-like, you could say.
don’t be ANXIOUS, but PRAY
How about this third thought from Paul. So many use this verse as a friendly reminder not to worry. And there’s nothing wrong with that.
Paul says…matter-of-factly…do not be anxious about anything!!! This means of course what we read it as…not being unduly concerned about anything…but…it was also often used in contexts where persecution was an issue. However, that doesn’t mean God doesn’t care about what we care about. Actually, he is concerned about all the things that we are concerned about. NT Wright puts it like this, “…ask God about everything. If it matters to you, it matters to God.”
But how? This may sound simplistic, but Paul’s answer to that is ‘prayer’. You can pray about anything and everything. It’s not about how God answers, but how much he listens.
let God’s PEACE guard you
Finally, we reach the sum of all this – God’s peace. This is a unique take on peace. It’s described as a guard, a protector, a boundary. What does this mean? That it’s not my job to guard my heart, it’s God’s. Of course, we do our part, but if we discover JOY, exhibit GENTLENESS, give up our worries, struggles & fears to God, his Peace will guard our hearts.
Proverbs 4:23 says, ‘above all else guard your heart, for it is the well spring of life’. Paul outlines how we are to actually do that right hear in Philippians.
So…in light of this text, ask yourself these questions…
Are we going to be people who run away from conflict or … deal with it in an honest, open, and loving way?
When it doesn’t make sense, will Joy & Gentleness be evident in my life? And will those things, along with humility, point people to Jesus.
Will we be people who pray, at least as much, but hopefully more than we worry? Will our praying remind us that God cares about it all?
Will we be those kinds of people who have (God’s) peace as our protection, as our guard?
As we continue walking through the small letter of Philippians, we are hopefully noticing every layer Paul is using to enhance our understanding of faith and community. In the middle part of chapter 3, the metaphor shifts from accounting to athletics. If you recall, Paul was passionately talking about everything in his life being a loss in comparison to the gain that he has found in Jesus. He went so far as to say that everything is garbage in comparison to knowing Jesus. In 3:12-16, Paul uses runners and racing as the image for us to keep in mind when moving forward in our walk with Christ. Actually, moving forward, and letting go of the past, is what Paul wants to get across.
Here’s what the text says…
12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.13 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead,14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.15 All of us, then, who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you.16 Only let us live up to what we have already attained.
1) no one has ARRIVED (3:12)
As Paul continues this theme of considering everything a loss compared to knowing Jesus, he let’s us in on something that is huge for our faith journey – he has not arrived…and we have not arrived.
Arrival is a false stop in any journey, especially our spiritual one. What holds us back more often than not is that we think we’ve arrived at our destination, when in reality, we are still on the move.
We use the word ‘becoming’ a lot in referring to our faith journey. We should use this word in all area’s of life: I’m becoming a father, a friend, a husband, a musician, a wife, a student, etc. Most importantly, we’re becoming Christians. We’re further than when we started, but not yet where we are destined to be.
One thing this idea warns us against is ‘super-spirituality’. You know those people who have nothing to learn and only things to teach. Let’s not be those people.
FORGET what is behind you… (3:13)
What comes next is great advice for anyone who wants to move forward in life. Don’t dwell on your past. It’s an essential step in moving forward. In Philippians 1 we read that chains shouldn’t hold you back, here Paul says your past cannot and should not hold you back either.
Gordon Fee helps us here…“Forgetting is not obliterating the past, rather, it’s not letting it absorb our attention or impede our progress”. It’s still part of your history…of your story…it just doesn’t have a hold on you any longer.
So what kinds of things should you forget? What do we put behind us?
our shaded past…
our glorified past…
Move FORWARD / PRESS on (3:14&12)
The next step in this equation must be to move forward. This race/athletics metaphor is a favourite of many. Why? Because either they can identify with it…or they desperately want to see themselves like that in their heads. We want to be winners. We want to cross the finish line…in whatever it is that we do.
Paul takes this common metaphor and applies our faith to it. The words are powerful:
straining (toward what is ahead)
pressing (on to the goal)
I‘ve got my eye on the goal (msg)
I’m off and running (msg)
It’s not just about running, but about finishing. Finishing well is an important part of this journey.
Ravi Zacharias says it like this, “Beginning well is a momentary thing; finishing well is a lifelong thing.”
what does MATURITY look like (3:12-16)
We do all this for one thing – the same thing Paul so passionately writes about earlier in chapter 3…knowing Jesus. We are to take hold of Jesus, as he takes hold of us. As this text comes to a close, Paul introduces the word ‘mature’. We are to strive towards maturity in our faith. What does it meant to be a mature follower of Jesus?
one who doesn’t feel like they’ve arrived
one who forgets what’s behind
one who strives forward in and to Christ
one who lives up to their present understanding of faith (vs 16)
one who understands that everyone discovers Jesus at a different pace (vs 15)
In light of this text, ask yourself these questions…
What are you holding on to that needs to be forgotten?
What is holding you back from being ‘you in Christ’?
Are you putting your best foot forward when it comes to reaching God’s purpose in your life? Pressing on? Moving Forward?
Is your spiritual journey leading you towards the most mature version of yourself today?
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small(er) group questions: (read through the 3:12-16 before the discussion)
Is a sense of ‘arrival’ a hard thing to avoid? If so, why? How can one with lower confidence apply this?
Why do people have a hard time forgetting what’s behind them?
How can our past effect our future?
Forgetting isn’t just for the the bad/difficult stuff, but also the victories and accomplishments. Why?
Does this sound like a good description of our faith journey, ‘God is always pulling us forward’?
Do you like Paul’s metaphor? Can a non-sporty/non-athlete get this? If so, why? What does it look like to press onward, to strain ahead?
Spiritual Maturity sounds so good. How would you define it? Before you read this text and after you’ve read it?
Sometimes you find yourself in a passage of scripture that is both inspiring and very challenging. Philippians 3:1-11 might be that one. It’s inspiring because of the passion Paul exudes about his faith in Jesus; how he gives up everything for the sake of the gospel. What’s challenging about it is the language he uses to communicate it, mainly because it’s so contextual and there’s a fear that we, 2000 years removed from it, won’t totally get it. I guess we can say that about all of scripture and any ancient text.
In the first 11 verses of Philippians 3, Paul shows us his best accounting skills as well as what he comes to see as valuable confidence builders. Both of which are not what you expect, but then again, come to expect from Paul.
Up until now we’ve be encouraged from Philippians to be abounding in love, gracious in humility, patient during struggles, and live a life full of joy. This all in the context of a loving biblical Jesus community.
Another layer is added to this letter in 3:1-11. First: Confidence & Status. Second: Relationship. All of which intertwine with the other.
When Paul talks about confidence, he uses his own list of accomplishments and credentials to make his point. He is worried that some ‘religious’ Jewish leaders will come and try to dismantle all the work he’s done in Philippi. Up until now, the philippian church knows that their status as children of God comes from one place only, Jesus (death and resurrection). This young church has faithfully followed Paul’s teaching, that salvation is God’s initiative, not ours – that God does the work in us, and we simply must accept his invitation to love him back. Paul is evidently concerned that some religious Jews will come and tell them that they must add external symbols to make their faith authentic, mainly, circumcision. To show them that this isn’t the case, he lists off all his credentials (circumcised on the 8th day, born a jew, from the elite tribe of Benjamin, a pharisee, a faultless law-abider). Paul says that even though this used to be his gauge for confidence, it is no longer the case. Only one thing gives him confidence, his relationship with Jesus.
The conversation switches to the language of accounting, adding up gains and losses. Saying the same thing, with different words, Paul tells us that what used to be a gain for him is now a loss, what used to be usable to him is now garbage, what used to be valuable is now nothing. He goes so far as saying that it’s all ‘CRAP’ (yes I said crap, only because I didn’t feel to use the other, more appropriate 4 letter word here). Definitely some strong language here to get a point a across, but one that Paul is so passionate about: What he thought to be so important before, means absolutely nothing to him now. But why? Well, Paul is convinced that more than anything, knowing Jesus is what he wants. Knowing the power of Jesus resurrection and the pain of Jesus’ suffering is worth more to Paul than any of his other accomplishments, career or religious.
How can I apply this text for me, for us, here, now, today?
Where do you get your confidence? Is it your bank account? Your new car? Your new position at work? Your nice home? We can get caught up in these things, but in the end, they don’t mean much and they certainly don’t have any long lasting (eternal) value.
How do you or your friends view spiritual religious status? What do you think you have to do for God’s approval in your life (assuming you’re looking for that). The religious answer would be to work as hard as you can, be as good as you can be, add up the chores and external symbols at the end of the day and hope you come out on top. But that won’t last too long either. Actually, it didn’t. Jesus came to change all that; to remove all that; to redeem all that.
When we start drawing a line to keep people out (like the religious pharisees of the 1st century did) we must know that Jesus will cross that line and be with the people we’ve left out. Paul warns the Philippians that some will come and want to draw a line, but they must be on the side of Jesus who stands at the door and knocks, hoping that we will let him in.
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small(er) group questions:
What are some things in our society that can give us false confidence? Why should be we careful of those kinds of things?
Have you ever struggled with trying to achieve certain things only to realize they wouldn’t satisfy in the end?
Why do you think some religious types (past and present) want so badly to fit us into a perfect box when God’s mercy and love is all about breaking down walls?
Philippians 3 has two (C) words that can cause a problem to some: Circumcision & Crap (garbage/rubbish). What do you do with texts like this? Are they a breath of fresh air or a something you’d rather skim over? How about being a woman and approaching this text and theme (eg. ‘we are the circumcision…those who serve God by his spirit’)?
How have you come to Paul’s conclusion in your own life, that everything else is ‘nothing’ in comparison to knowing Jesus? Or…where are you in that process, and is it a difficult place to arrive to?
What does ‘being found in Jesus’ & ‘knowing Jesus’ mean to you? How would you describe Paul’s words in verses 9 & 10 to your experience?
(Thanks for taking time to be community together on Mondays & Thursdays. Maybe plan some kind of summer event to be together (which won’t be too hard for you guys;) or even a serving event that your group can creatively think of. No pressure, just a suggestion.)
