Iron State of Encouragement

Philippians 1:3-6

At first glance the beginning of Philippians doesn’t look like much, perhaps at best a warm greeting some pleasantries etc. A brief look at what Paul was going through might provide a little insight to his situation. He was being held in a Roman Jail where he could not go out and preach the word as he so desired. He was in jail for two years waiting for a trial he thought would end his life. While he was in jail and he could have asked for help, for freedom, and many other things for himself. Instead he wrote to the church of Philippians and to begin he says…

Philippians 1

Greeting

1 Paul and Timothy, bondservants of Jesus Christ,

 To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, with the bishops and deacons:

2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Thankfulness and Prayer

3 I thank my God upon every remembrance of you,

Now, I don’t remember the last time I ever told anyone something like this. To look back and be thankful for every memory of someone let alone a group is pretty powerful not to mention the fact that he thanks God for you. To me its kind of like being at work and your Boss says something like “I was just talking to “THE BOSS” (His Boss, or the highest boss he has access to) about all the great work you’ve been doing.” Ok, even that pales in comparison to what Paul said. But the fact remains he was talking to his boss about all the great things they’ve done and it doesn’t stop there.

4 always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy,

So this verse takes it a step further “always” and “every.” So wait! This wasn’t a one-time deal? You mean to tell me everyday, or even multiple times a day he tells “THE BOSS” how awesome you are.

5 for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now,

6 being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;

This verse is one of my favorites in this section. “He who has begun a good work in you will complete it.” This tells me that “THE BOSS” has your back. He will support you and guide you as you work toward the goals he has set you up for. Take a look at your own situation how many times has your own boss let you down? How many times has your boss told you to do something in a certain way, and not backed you up? I’ve had that happen to me a few times and it sucks. You start to loose faith in what your boss tells you. When this happens, you stop pushing toward the goal, you loose the vision and start second-guessing yourself and the boss. As it continues and builds you begin to settle into a safe or comfortable zone so you don’t get into trouble or get yelled at. But in this small Verse Paul affirms and encourages the Church that “THE BOSS” is working in you and will finish what he started, he will back you up and follow through. There is no guesswork! “Be… confident!”

The encouragement that Paul gives to the Philippians is every bit in line with the way Paul envisioned them. He wasn’t worried about his own situation, and he sincerely encouraged them as if they were already succeeding. It was more than just pleasantries; the encouragement he gave was more than his own it was ”THE BOSS” Gods vision for them. When you tell someone they are excellent they will strive to live up to expectations. When you tell someone they can do it, it gives them hope, and at the very least they will try. Hope is where it all begins get out there and try! Try your best from the beginning to the end and “THE BOSS” will see you through. Encourage others like they are already winning, and they will.