‘My circumstances have turned out …’
“Now I want you to know, brethren, that my circumstances have turned out for the greater progress of the gospel” (Philippians 1:12).
How do I look at the situation I am facing now? Is this the situation I expected? Perhaps the situation that I face now is a situation that I didn’t want or expected. So now I am dissatisfied with my situation. And now I am struggling because of my dissatisfied situation. It is painful and I am distressed. I wonder how long I have to stay in this hard and painful situation. So when I look at my situation, I become discouraged and even despair. There is no hope. What should I do?
Today I read Bible Philippians 1:12. In reading, I came to think about Apostle Paul saying “my circumstances have turned out ….” First, I thought about the Paul’s circumstances. The circumstances are explained in the next verse by Paul as “my imprisonment” (v. 13). In other words, Paul was in prison. If I am in prison like Paul, how will I react? If I go to mission that is a communist state or a Muslim country and go to jail for preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ, how will I react? The words of Acts 16:25 came into my mind: “But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.” Although Paul and Silas were in the inner prison and their feet were fastened in the stocks (v. 24), they prayed and sang hymns of praise to God (v. 25). Can I pray and praise God like Paul and Silas, if I have been sent to prison in the mission field? Perhaps I would ask God at least to rescue me from prison. But I don’t know I can praise God so that even other prisoners will hear my singing. Perhaps I will not sing praise by my strength. But if God gives me grace, then I believe that the indwelling Holy Spirit will enable me to praise God even in such circumstances. The reason is that after my first baby died, my wife spread her ashes in water and the indwelling Holy Spirit enabled me to praise God His saving love. Since God gave me this faith, with the same faith I will accept any circumstances, whether I wanted it or expected it, as I acknowledge God’s sovereignty instead of denying that circumstances. And even though I don’t know what the sovereign will of God is, I certainly will believe that there is God's good, pleasing and perfect will (Rom. 12:1) and I will be comforted by the fact that I am in His sovereign will. In the midst of that, I will pray and wait patiently God's given patience with the expectation that God causes all things to work together for good to me (Rom. 8:28). The reason for this is that in Philippians 1:12, Apostle Paul said that his circumstances had turned out for the greater progress of the gospel.
When I meditated on Philippians 1:12, I realized two things. One is that even though Paul was bound, but the gospel of Jesus Christ couldn’t be bounded. So with faith that the gospel of Jesus Christ cannot be bounded in any difficult circumstances I will pray that there will be progress of the gospel through “my bonds”. Another one is the fact that God's sovereign will was accomplished through others, even without Paul. So I came to think again that I should get rid of thought that the Lord needs me to accomplish His will. God accomplished Hi will of the progress of the gospel through the two groups when Paul was in the prison. One group of people was “most of the brethren” who trusted in the Lord because of Paul’s imprisonment and had far more courage to speak the word of God without fear (v. 14). They preached Christ from good will (v. 15). Also they did it out of love, knowing that Paul was appointed for the defense of the gospel (v. 16). They preached the gospel in truth (v. 18). Yet another group of people preached Christ even from envy and strife (v. 15). They proclaimed Christ out of selfish ambition, thinking to cause Paul distress in his imprisonment (v. 17). They proclaimed Christ in pretense (v. 18). But since Christ was proclaimed, whether in pretense or in truth, Paul rejoiced (v. 18). In the end, Paul rejoiced greatly because his circumstances of imprisonment had turned out for the greater progress of the gospel (v. 12).
I hope and pray that whatever circumstances we are in it may turn out for the greater progress of the gospel. I pray that Christ will be preached through our circumstances now. Through whatever we are going through now, I hope and pray that there is progress of the gospel, so that there is progress and join in our faith (v. 25).