Main news for 8 October 2018

German Luther Translation (de)

Послание к Филиппийцам, Глава 1, стихи 18-19

¹⁸Was tut's aber? Daß nur Christus verkündigt werde allerleiweise, es geschehe zum Vorwand oder in Wahrheit, so freue ich mich doch darin und will mich auch freuen.

¹⁹Denn ich weiß, daß mir dies gelingt zur Seligkeit durch euer Gebet und durch Handreichung des Geistes Jesu Christi,

Comments:

Wesley's Notes

Comments on the current fragment

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Comments on the part

1:18 In pretence - Under colour of propagating the gospel.In truth - With a real design so to do.

1:19 This shall turn to my salvation - Shall procure me an higher degree of glory. Through your prayer - Obtaining for me a larger supply of the Spirit.

NOTES

At first glance the apostle's words may seem strange. Indeed, preaching Christ and the Kingdom is too important a matter to do it with impure motives...

Speaking about his arrest and imprisonment, Paul views even them in terms of how much and in what way they...

Speaking about his arrest and imprisonment, Paul views even them in terms of how much and in what way they can contribute to the task the apostle always considered most important for himself: witness (vv. 12-14). It is no longer entirely clear what Paul has in mind when he speaks of certain preachers who preach Christ "not sincerely," trying to worsen the situation of the imprisoned apostle (vv. 15-17). But whatever the case, Paul himself is not frightened by this: he thinks not about his own life, but only about witness, so his own situation concerns him little if the witness does not cease (vv. 18-20). And here before us, as can be seen, is not simply fearlessness in the face of death, the kind that distinguished martyrs for an idea. For the apostle, the Kingdom is not an idea, but a reality, and not the reality of some future that awaits a person after death, but the reality of the present in which he lives already here and now.

Paul says not figuratively but quite literally that his life is Christ, that he lives one life with Him, the life of the Kingdom, and therefore earthly life is for him neither more nor less valuable and important than the death that awaits everyone here. For the apostle, the question is only what is more needed and important to God: that he remain in the world, where further witness will be required of him, or that he be freed from earthly life in order to acquire the whole fullness of the life of the Kingdom and communion with Christ (vv. 21-26). Here Paul shows us a typical example of the Christian martyr, whom in early Christian times they called not martyrs but witnesses.

Christians are far from the only ones who know how to die for an idea. Christians died, and often die today, not for some new idea or new religion; they only give up that part of their life which their persecutors want to take from them, so as not to lose it entirely. Everyone who lives the life of the Kingdom understands that no one can take the Kingdom away from a person if that person does not renounce the Kingdom. And a Christian, agreeing to give up earthly life, thereby witnesses that he has something incomparably greater, that he has the Kingdom to which he bears witness. Then not only the Christian's life, but also his death, becomes witness.

What is witness to Christ? Who can be a witness? It usually seems self-evident to us that only a Christian, a person who follows Christ and is faithful to him, can be Christ's witness. But Paul, judging by the words of his letter, thinks otherwise. It turns out that Christ can also be preached "in pretense." What does the apostle mean when he speaks of "pretended" preaching? Judging by his own words, he is speaking of people who preach Christ in order to worsen his situation, in particular to discredit him before the authorities (v. 16). It would seem that such witness cannot be considered witness at all.

And yet Paul regards it precisely that way. He understands that even fierce denial, lies, and slander draw attention to the One to whom he himself bears witness. Of course, if Christianity were simply one more new religion, such scandalous notoriety could only harm it. But that is precisely the point: Christianity is not a religion at all. Christianity is life with Christ in his Kingdom. And this life speaks for itself. Here it no longer matters what draws a person to it: sincere searching or interest in various sensational facts.

The apostle is not concerned with how a person learns about Christ and the Kingdom, from whom and in what context he hears about the new life. Paul understands perfectly well that as soon as a person experiences this new life, he will immediately forget all the bad things he may have heard about it from people hostile to Christ and to the Kingdom. If the matter concerned a new teaching or a new religion, much would depend on people's attitude toward it. Every human word would either support this teaching or religion and strengthen it, or deny it and undermine it.

Paul knows from his own experience, as no one else does, that no person can take anything away from the Kingdom or add anything to it. Just as no person can diminish Christ or exalt him. All words spoken by a person about Christ and the Kingdom characterize only the speaker himself and determine only his own path. A path leading either to salvation or to ruin. Those who listen to the speaker make their own choice. And what they choose or reject is not someone else's words, but the salvation offered to them themselves.

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