Episode Transcript
[00:00:05] Speaker A: The following is a legacy recording from the archives of the C.S. lewis Institute. While the audio quality of these recordings may vary, the content remains vital to the mission of the institute to develop disciples who can articulate, defend, and live faith in Christ through personal and public life.
[00:00:23] Speaker B: I'd like to read a few verses from Philippians, second chapter, beginning verse 12.
This follows that amazing passage where the Apostle Paul describes the deity of Jesus Christ and his willingness to humble himself and to become obedient to the death of the cross for us.
And then he continues in these Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence, continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.
Do everything which without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life in order that I may boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor for nothing.
But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you, so you too should be glad and rejoice with me.
And I'd just like to think with you, particularly about the focus of that passage where the Apostle Paul says that we may become blameless and pure children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life.
I had the opportunity yesterday to be with Jim Hiskey for just a little while at the Kemper Open.
Jim had a lot of people to see, and I tagged along while he saw a lot of people. So actually I didn't see much golf, but I did meet quite a few golfers.
As a matter of fact, come down to it, I only saw one stroke that was made that was made by Bobby Clampett, who was it was the day, you know, they play with the amateurs, and. And he was talking to Jim, and they were settling some matters of business.
And then it became evident that Bobby had to tee off. Of course, he was back on the blue tee, which is far enough back so it takes binoculars to see the fairway, not to speak up the green.
And he was busy talking with Jim Hiskey, and then they waved him over, you know, it was time for him to hit. He had to hit Off.
So he had his club and he walked over, teed up the ball, took a very slow backswing, and then proceeded to crunch the ball in a fashion that has to be seen to be believed.
And the ball, you know, just.
Well, by the time it landed, it was too small to see, but there were some indications where it had gone, which was exactly where he wanted it to go. The full length of the fairway there and right at edge of the green. Beautiful shot. Amazing shot.
Now, that was impressive, you see.
And after several groups had played through, I saw the TV cameras were waiting, and I assumed that they were waiting to get a picture of Bobby Clampett because of this phenomenal shot that had to be seen to be believed.
But no, they were waiting to talk to Tom Kite.
Now, Tom Kite gave them a nice interview there.
But the point I'm getting at in all of this is we all recognize in our culture that there are stars, don't we?
And I suppose maybe Bobby Clampett is a star in the sense that he's on tour and has won tournaments, but he just doesn't rate with Tom Kite.
He's a real star. He's a personality. People know him. He's recognized.
And of course, Tom Kite doesn't hold a candle to certain other golfers.
And if it's Jack Nicklaus, then that's a household word.
Well, we have a fixation on stars in the United States.
But isn't it remarkable that that figure that has been so turned around in our society to be a star is a figure that's used in this passage? You know, a figure drawn from the Book of Daniel.
That the people of God are appointed by the Lord to be stars.
God has an all star team and he's put them in this world.
That they might be stars, all right, that they might be highly visible the way stars are in entertainment or sports.
That they might be personalities in the sense that they might be seen and known about and recognized.
And indeed, Paul says that his labor will be in vain unless the Philippians are seen as sources of light, unless they're seen as stars set in the firmament, unless their witness to Jesus Christ is made evident.
Well, there are just two things that we need to think about when we consider this figure of being set as stars.
First, that our calling is to shine in holiness.
The whole epistle focuses on the holiness that Christians are to have.
And then the second part of our consideration is in the latter part of the verse where he talks about holding forth the word of life.
We're to Shine in holiness and we're to shine in truth.
And these major themes from the New Testament are present right in this passage. Shining in holiness.
And Paul thinks right away of the contrast that we are shining in a dark sky.
You'll notice how he begins the passage, do everything without complaining and arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure children of God, without fault, in a crooked and depraved generation in which you shine as lights in the world. You see, the nights sky is very dark.
We live in a crooked and perverse generation. Now it's remarkable here that the apostle Paul is paraphrasing a text from the Old Testament, the book of Deuteronomy. And there Moses In Deuteronomy 32, verse 5, Moses indicts Israel.
He says that they are corrupt and not God's children.
He says they are a generation warped and crooked to their shame.
Moses, you see, knew the people very well, and he knew what sinners they were.
And the apostle Paul says that we are to be without murmuring and without arguing. And the words that he uses there are words that are used often in the Greek Old Testament, the Greek translation of the Old Testament.
They're used often to describe what Israel did in the wilderness. They were always murmuring, they were always complaining, they were always arguing, arguing with Moses, arguing with each other, and especially arguing with God and what God was doing with them in the wilderness. And so Moses writes this strong indictment against them.
And now you notice, Paul takes that language that was used to indict Israel, and he uses it to describe the world in which we live, corrupt and depraved, and not God's people.
And he of course, is heavy of heart as he writes this, because the apostle Paul knows that that's still true of many in Israel, that as Moses said, they proved themselves not to be God's children because of their unbelief.
You remember how the prophets cry out against Israel's sin, and how Isaiah says, speaking for the Lord, all day long I have held out my hands to an obstinate people.
That passage from Isaiah 65 is quoted by the apostle Paul in the tenth chapter of Romans.
And Jesus himself adds to that condemnation.
For, you know, Jesus pronounces, because of the rejection that he experiences by the leaders of the people, that the kingdom of God will be taken away from them and given to another nation, bringing forth the fruits thereof in the 21st chapter of Matthew. And Jesus cries out, o unbelieving and perverse generation, how long shall I stay with you and put up with you.
And when I quote that from the ninth chapter of Luke, some of you may know that in the context, Jesus isn't speaking of the leaders of Israel who have rejected him.
He has in view, his own disciples.
For you may recall that Jesus had been with Peter, James, and John up in the Mount of Transfiguration.
And when he came down from the Mount, he found a very disappointing situation.
The disciples had been attempting to deliver a demonized boy, and they'd been unaffected, ineffective at it. And Jesus had to tell them that this kind comes not out, but by prayer and by fasting. But the point was that Jesus, as he came down from the Mount of Glory, where he had tasted the glory of the Father and found himself in the midst of Israel, he speaks just as Moses did. O faithless generation, how long do I have to bear with you? But significantly, the question is raised about his own disciples.
Are they too to be unbelieving, or are they rather to show trust in God? And Paul in First Corinthians 10 warns us that we must not be, as Israel was, in the wilderness, unbelieving, and therefore condemned by God for unbelief.
There is a warning, you know, that we must not neglect that God takes immorality and unbelief very seriously, whereas in culture in which we live, neither is taken seriously, immorality is so often approved, and liberty is the name that is given to license.
But the Apostle Paul tells us that God takes sin seriously, and we need to take sin seriously.
Remember that passage in the first chapter of Romans where the Apostle Paul is describing the sin of the Gentiles, and he speaks of it so strongly.
Just one little passage where he says, furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind to do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed, and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God haters, insolent, arrogant, and boastful. They invent ways of doing evil. They disobey their parents. They are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Although they know God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things, but also approve of those who practice them.
What a solemn indictment that is.
Friends, the sky is dark.
Sin is present, and it's real, and it's black.
And people in the pattern of their lives have so accustomed themselves to sin that they regard it as normal. They not only excuse themselves for it, but even boast in it. They exchange the truth of God for a lie and defy the Lord who made them.
And yet.
And yet, friends, God shows his restraint.
God does not pour out his judgment.
And the reason he does it is because it's his purpose to have mercy.
The reason he doesn't is that while we were yet enemies, God loved us.
The reason he doesn't is to give men opportunity to repent and to turn from their sin.
And therefore, friends, we have to take seriously what Paul is saying from both aspects. You see the darkness of the world in which we live.
And we never heighten our testimony by minimizing the difference between light and darkness.
You don't show the light of the gospel better by ignoring the reality of the darkness.
But on the other hand, the light of the gospel is put in the darkness. That it might be a light, that it might be attractive, that people might be called to it, that they might be drawn out of darkness into the marvelous light of God.
Now, that repays our thinking about it.
I don't want to embarrass my friend Art here, but I borrowed from him last night, and I'm going to do it again tonight.
Let me tell you this.
I was watching a program on public television, and it was a presentation of the life of Joseph Campbell, a man who's done a great deal of thinking about religious subjects and who concludes that all religions are mythology and the only really bad religion is a religion which claims not to be mythological, but rather historical.
Well, you see where that puts us. As Christians, everybody's okay except for Christians. And the trouble with Christians is that they think their religion is true.
And if they would just give up on the truth claims, then we'd let them into the club.
Then we would say their myth is just as good as anybody else's, and Christ can take a place along side of Gautama the Buddha, and we're glad to give him a seat.
Well, now, I saw the program, and, you know, I was very angry.
I thought, well, now why should this ancient error, which has been around ever since Paul wrote his letter to the Colossians, not saying how long before, but why should this ancient error, just because it's been presented again by a person who has fallen prey to it, why should that be presented on public television in the guise of philosophic and scientific understanding and truth, whereas that would never be done for the Gospel as the Gospel? Certainly Christian programs have to pay for time, but the Idea that all religion is mythological that can go for a free ride.
I was really quite upset at the unfairness of it all.
Well, when I came here last night, Art was telling me about his dialogues with the New Age people.
And that showed a significant difference, you see, between my reaction and Art's reaction.
I hear about all this New Age business and I think, oh, no, not again, more of that.
And Art hears about the New Age business and he thinks, here are people who need help.
He thinks, here's some darkness, and the Lord's called me to be a light.
And so he gets in touch with him and talks with him and dialogues with him, and with some amazing results, because it happens, as he tells me, and not surprisingly, that many people in that movement are people who. Who had a Christian background in their early youth and then felt betrayed and slipped away from the faith into this mirage of the New Age.
My friends, do you hear what I'm saying to you?
Paul says we are in the midst of a depraved and a crooked generation.
He says, sin in the world is real. The night is dark, it's black, the errors are immense.
But he says, we're made to be lights in that dark world. You see, we're to present the radiance of the truth as it is in Christ.
We're to manifest the holiness that is seen in Jesus Christ. Christ, in contrast to the darkness of the world in a dark sky, we're to be bright stars.
The wise shall shine as stars of heaven. Daniel says in Daniel 12:3, the wise shall shine as stars in heaven.
But Paul says, yes, right now in the world. And I know this translation says in the universe, but I think taken in the context, it's this present world that Paul has in view. We're to be lights shining here in this present world. We are to be the light of the new life that's found in God. For we are called to be children of God.
The light that we bear is the light in the world. Heaven's light.
Children of God. In the midst of this dark world, my friends, that's the light of grace. It's the light of Jesus Christ, who is the light of the world, who came unto his own and his own received him not. But he is the light, and he's the light that shines forth to every man, and he comes into the world.
That verse in First John is sometimes misunderstood. It's read that Christ is the light of every man who comes into the world.
And people get the idea of this little light of mine. You know, every man that's born in the world has a little spark of light in him. But that's not what John's talking about. Because he's talking about the coming of Jesus Christ. Christ as the light. The shining of Jesus Christ as the light. The shining of the light of Christ into the darkness. And the darkness doesn't comprehend it. So John, like Paul, is talking about this present world as in darkness. And men in sin are in darkness. But he says there is the true light that comes into the world, even Jesus Christ. And that light shines forth to every man, you see, not just to the Jew, but to the Jew and the Gentile, to all the world. The light of Christ shines forth. And that light of Christ shines forth also in us. For we are born anew.
It is not the children of the flesh that are the children of God, Paul writes, but the children of the promise that are reckoned for a seed. You see, we are made to be the new Israel of God. We are made to be like. See in the world as the children of God.
God said of Israel that they were. That Israel was his son, that the people of Israel were his children. And now we inherit that promise.
You know how God said of Israel in their sin that they were not his people. But then he said that in his mercy they would be made his people. And we are called to be that people of God in the world, recognizable in the world as God's people.
The light of God's grace given to us because we were made new creatures in Christ Jesus. And not only the light of grace, but the light of glory.
For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are the children of God. It's the Spirit of God, the Spirit of heaven, the Spirit of glory that's given to us. We were by nature children of wrath, Paul says in Ephesians 2, even as the rest.
But now we've been created anew, created in Christ Jesus for good works, that we should walk in them. So the Lord has made us over new, made us to be lights. And now that light is to shine in our lives.
It's to shine in terms of visible blamelessness, the word that's used here, that we are to be blameless.
It's the same root that you find in the Old Testament, where the people of God, Moses said, were corrupt, they were defiled, they were polluted, they were spotted. But we are not to be spotted with sin. We are to be spotless. And the language has to do with the ceremonial law and with all the ritual that surrounded the ceremonial law. You know, in the ceremonial law, the great question was always between cleanness and uncleanness.
And that which was unclean ceremonially was always a symbol of that which was defiled by sin. And that elaborate structure of the ceremonial law had a purpose. And the purpose was to show us that what is needed is not the outward ceremonial symbol, but the inward reality.
Jesus talked about how the Pharisees washed the outside of the cup, but the inside was filled with pollution.
But, friends, that nevertheless means that it's got to be detectable.
If we're to be clean, it's got to be evident that we are clean.
And therefore Jesus said to his hearers, your righteousness must exceed that of the Pharisees.
Now, of course, the righteousness of Jesus exceeded that of the Pharisees.
And we are saved by the righteousness of Christ that's set to our account.
But we are also called to walk in that righteousness, to be patterned in it.
Paul spoke of his conduct in Thessalonica as being blameless, as walking before God without reproach.
God said to Abraham, walk before me and be blameless.
God wants his people to live a structure of life that will be recognized in the world as consistent.
He wants us to show the world that we are obedient servants of Jesus Christ.
So there is to be outward and visible blamelessness.
And therefore, when Paul writes in the Pastoral Epistles about people who enter into office in Christ's church, he always speaks of blamelessness as one of the requirements.
That such one have a good reputation before the world.
Not only outward blamelessness, but transparent genuineness.
That you would be sincere, that you would be pure, that there would be an inward reality.
You see, if we can really say to me, to live is Christ, then that means that our desires are directed toward him.
That we're not just living an outward life that is without reproach, but that we're living inwardly in a way that is pleasing to God.
And that this is expressed in our evident devotion to him. And that's why Paul says we're not to live the way Israel did of old in the wilderness, complaining and arguing all the time.
But we're to live through obedient faith, where we don't murmur against God and in humble love, where we don't complain and argue against others.
Well, friends, do you feel that?
Do you feel the way the apostle Paul catches us out?
You know, we might say blameless life.
Well, you know, I live a pretty respectable life. I have a good reputation.
I Don't quite like that word blameless. But, well, yes, I think I have a testimony as someone who follows the word of God.
Voids, profanity and deceit, lying, stealing, lustful actions for transparency, that's a little harder.
But notice what he says.
Not complaining and not arguing.
Ah, And all of a sudden you realize how the tiniest things can have the deepest mean.
And my friends, I shouldn't really be trying to speak to you tonight because I've become so aware in my own life of the reality of this problem. Really, it's so easy to complain against God, To grumble, to resent God's providence, you know, to think, well, God has no right to let this happen to me. And do you know, it needn't be a big thing at all.
It can be the tiniest little inconvenience.
And what happens? I find myself again and again resenting it, grumbling within.
And then perhaps you may even argue with God.
Now, this hasn't been as great a temptation to me because as soon as I start thinking about the Lord, the arguments stop very fast. But.
But there are many, many of God's people who have gone through deep agonies of argument with God. How could this possibly happen? Think of Job and the efforts of his friends to comfort him.
But you see, the Apostle Paul says, do everything without complaining and without arguing against God.
And then, of course, also against men.
Are you known as a complainer where you work?
Do you always get into arguments with people? Because you've got to make your point no matter what.
You know what underlies some of these little things?
See what the Apostle Paul's doing? He's saying, look, I'm giving you a cosmic picture.
Here's the darkness of sin and rebellion in this world. Here's the darkness of Israel's rebellion and the judgment that God visited on.
And now he says, what about you?
Are you really seeking to glorify God?
Are you really rejoicing in what he's called you to do?
Is your devotion to him really evident?
Will people see your good works and glorify your Father, which is in heaven?
Well, friends, it's not just that we need to take sin in the world seriously.
We need desperately to take sin in ourselves seriously and to recognize that some of the tiniest sins that we might think of as mere peccadilloes, impatient, you know, oh, that shouldn't have happened, that little burst of discontent. But what underlies it? I ask you, what underlies it?
Is that darkness or is it light?
Well, think about it and think about what Paul says and why it's so important that he says it.
You know, sometimes we think of spirituality as to be found only on the very great pinnacles of devotion, when we are being swept into the very presence of God.
And we should seek such intimate fellowship with God. Yes, but let's remember that real devotion is a daily business.
Let's remember that if our light is going to shine in the world, then we're not going to be grumblers, we're not going to be complainers.
We're going to have hearts that are full of praise.
And then finally, where our light is to shine, not only in the holiness of our new obedience, but in the truth, we are to hold forth the word of life.
You see, the word of life is God's gift to us. And it's our life giving, possession. It's the Gospel, and it's from the word, it's from the Scripture, that we receive the norm of God for the holiness of our life. This is where we find what is pleasing to God and what is displeasing to God. And it's in the word of God, the Gospel, that we find the source of our holiness. That which can deliver us from sin, that which can build us up in our new life. It's interesting that one version of the prophecy of Daniel in Greek translation reads like this. The passage, and the wise shall shine as luminaries, heaven and those who hold fast my words, like the stars of heaven, forever.
It seems to me that in this passage Paul is reflecting familiarity with that form of the Old Testament passage.
Those who shine in holiness, but those who shine because they hold fast the word of God.
But the word of God is not only our possession, it's also our presentation.
Now, the term that's used here, the Greek term that's used here has generated all manner of discussion because the word often means to hold fast or even to hold back.
But occasionally it can be used to hold forth. It's used, for example, of holding a cup to somebody's lips that he might drink. And it does seem in this passage that the apostle Paul, because he's thinking about our shining as lights in the world, is also thinking about our holding forth the word of life, that we are called to shine as witnesses, shine as we hold forth the Scriptures, as we hold forth to the world, the word of life in the midst of its death, seeing the need that the world has for the gospel and recognizing that we must be prepared to commit ourselves to the furtherance of the gospel. You know, the apostle Paul speaks to the Philippians that he appreciates their fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now. Isn't that a beautiful thing? Paul's in prison in Rome, but they're back in Macedonia. But Paul says, your fellowship with me I appreciate in the furtherance of the Gospel. They prayed for him, they sent gifts for him. A gift which was like an odor of a sweet smell. They were involved. They didn't just look at Paul as presenting the gospel to the world. They were presenting the gospel to the world.
And this must be our purpose, to hold forth the word of life. You know, this passage in Daniel that Paul's referring to is from a chapter where Daniel is told that the book is sealed until the great time of fulfillment. But now you see the time has come and the seals are broken open and we don't have a sealed book, but we have an open book to hold forth to the world the word of life, to make our purpose clear and to make our actions speak with our work for friends, holiness and witness fit together as a life giving operation.
Our words aren't going to mean much if our lives don't back them up.
It's one thing to be an eloquent preacher. It's another thing to be a godly man.
It's one thing to be a witnessing Christian. It's another thing to manifest the holiness of God in the light of your life.
Well, friends, when you look at a passage like this, you may feel a little discouraged.
You may think, in many ways I'm much more like Israel was than like Paul says Christians are to be.
But the apostle, as he writes this letter, is confident that the Lord who began a good work in these Philippians is going to accomplish it. He's confident that they too can forget the things that are behind and press forward to the things that are ahead.
And my friends, tonight I want to tell you that I really do remember.
To be a saint, to be a holy one in this world, is the calling of every Christian.
It's not for a select few.
It's for everyone who names the name of Christ.
We are all called to holiness, and we are all called to hold forth the cup of life, the water of life, to those with whom we come in contact.
If it were to be done in your strength, it would be impossible. It would be a counsel of despair.
But it's not done in your strength. It's done in the power of the Holy Spirit and the Lord who calls you, the Lord who has made you to be his child.
The Lord who has set you as a star in his firmament.
And the Lord who's put you in that very constellation where you're shining with the group of Christians with whom you're associated. That Lord calls you to make your light shine by the integrity of your obedience and by the love with which you offer the gospel to men and women.
Friends, let's realize that and humble ourselves and hear the word of the apostle. Shall we pray?
Our Heavenly Father, we do indeed realize how often we have sinned against you.
By the impatience of our hearts, by grumbling, complaining, arguing and forgetting, Lord, the wonder of what you have done for us.
But forgetting also the way in which you do, day by day and moment by moment lead us.
We ask, O Lord, that you will drive the darkness from our own hearts.
That you will give us a thirst for righteousness.
That you will draw us, Lord Jesus, to yourself.
That we may indeed confess that to me to live is Christ.
And Lord, we pray that just tonight the power of your spirit will work in our hearts.
That what Paul here says may be true.
Our own experience that in our lives, Lord, and in our words, we may manifest the light of life in Jesus Christ.
We ask it in his name.
[00:43:35] Speaker A: The proceeding was a presentation of the C.S. lewis Institute. In the legacy of C.S. lewis, the institute endeavors to develop disciples who can articulate defense, defend and live faith in Christ through personal and public life. For more information, please visit our website at www.cslewisinstitute.org.
[00:43:54] Speaker B: thank.
You.
