“Pioneer Advances” (Part Two)

In our first look at Philippians 1:12-18, we found Paul telling his Philippian friends that, rather than being curtailed, his ministry in Rome was advancing. Soldiers in the imperial guard were being converted in such great numbers that the major greeting from believers in the capital city came from Caesar’s palace. Today, we will discover another evidence of Paul’s influence for Christ: Timid believers were gaining courage. “Most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear” (Phil. 1:14). This verse challenged the believers in this way: If Paul could be courageous as a prisoner, what might they accomplish as freemen?

Why was Paul prompted to write about fear? Because fear was a big problem with these believers. They had been followers of Jesus for 10 years, but life was not easy. Their man Epaphroditus must have shared that some of them were on the edge of “caving in” under the pressure of culture. They were going through what Paul went through—persecution. He told them to be fearless, like their brothers and sisters in Rome.

But persecution of believers is not just a part of the ancient history of the church. An International Day of Prayer was observed in November of 2009. The call to prayer reminded us that there are many countries in the world today where Christians are martyred for their faith. “The world watched in horror at the unbridled violence that was unleashed on Christians in (a particular country) last year. There are other places in the world . . . where acts of persecution take place, but we often do not hear the full story. Brother Andrew of Open Doors once said, ‘Our heroes are not with us simply because they are in prison.’ ”

Tomorrow, we conclude with a third evidence of the power of a Christlike example.