Philippians 4:14
Nevertheless, you did well to share with me in my trouble.
Nevertheless, you did well to share with me in my trouble.
Even though Paul had not made any request and is not making any, this church took it upon themselves to serve him materially.
They became partners (sharers) with Paul in the ministry of giving and receiving (Philippians 4:15). They were burden-bearers.
But let me ask you a question.
Do you think there would be commendation if this giving were of necessity? I don’t think so.
If you pay your rent, mortgage, or light bills, these are things you are obligated to do to keep the lights on, keep a roof over your head, etc.
There would not be a thank-you letter or a commendation in the mail for you because it was necessary.
So, we can conclude that forced giving does not attract commendation.
Paul said that this church, by their giving, shared in his trouble. They ministered to him, not just the gift, but also the care the gift communicates. They suffered “lack” so that he could have relief. By sharing, his burden under God was lessened.
This care was not just verbal, but practical. For example, John said that people should provide practical help to the needy, not just love in words alone (1 John 3:18).
Jesus devoted several words to this just before he died. He did not just say it is a good thing if you provide practical help to other believers, He said even though you cannot see me, I am in my people and if you neglect my people, if you neglect helping them, you are neglecting helping me (Matthew 25: 31-46).
Here is the passage:
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be assembled before him, and he will separate people one from another like a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or naked and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the king will answer them, ‘I tell you the truth, just as you did it for one of the least of these brothers or sisters of mine, you did it for me.’
“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you accursed, into the eternal fire that has been prepared for the devil and his angels! For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink. I was a stranger and you did not receive me as a guest, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they too will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not give you whatever you needed?’ Then he will answer them, ‘I tell you the truth, just as you did not do it for one of the least of these, you did not do it for me.’ And these will depart into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” (Matthew 25: 31-46)
The point is, Jesus will take some things into account when He comes back; nay, He said it would be the defining difference between whether we get His favor or He rejects us at His second coming.
He mentioned being in prison, hungry, thirsty, naked, sick, and in prison.
Can you imagine Jesus being in prison thousands of years after His incarnation? We know He is now seated at the right hand of the Father, far above all (Ephesians 1:20-22).
But remember that when Paul was persecuting the church, Jesus said he was persecuting Him (Acts 9:4-5).
Maybe that is where Paul began to understand the concept of the body of Christ, which the church is, as he expounded in various parts of his letters.
Jesus said:
- I was hungry, and you gave me food
- I was thirsty, and you gave me something to drink
- I was naked, and you gave me clothing,
- I was a stranger, and you took me in
We are presented with a Jesus that is not just transcendent. But believers are His brothers, and His identification with those he has saved is so deep that what we do to other believers is like doing it to him.
Paul even says “each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor because we are members of one another.” (Ephesians 4:25) Meaning we should live out our genuine connection.
Peter said husbands should not be mean to their wives, not because of "happy wife happy life," but because you are mutually joined to Christ. In short, it’s like being mean to Christ (my words) (1 Peter 3:7).
Jesus is saying I have a practical reward system. And in all these, we see Jesus communicating that being a believer does not mean you will not suffer or even be sick.
All those things reflect some forms of earthly suffering, for whatever reason, whether persecution-induced, as we see with Paul, or in other situations.
So these people, the Philippian church, did not just do well; I conclude that what they have done for Paul, they have done for Jesus.
The Matthew passage from Jesus also speaks to spiritual inheritance based on what you have done to meet the practical needs of believers. He would reward the people going out of their way to do those things as only He can. God is watching and would not forget (Hebrews 6:10).
And the people who would be told they are accursed and would go into eternal fire would wonder when they saw Jesus.
Therefore, whether in little or big things, the message seems to be that we need to be generous to believers.
John said it this way:
We know that we have crossed over from death to life because we love our fellow Christians. The one who does not love remains in death. (1 John 3:14)
So in a way, the good done is not a qualification for eternal life, but an indication of eternal life. It’s not as if good works will get you to heaven, but good works will mark believers as a matter of course.
Jesus said: "Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world (Matthew 25:34).
They were blessed by the Father (spiritually blessed by being chosen in Christ) to be a blessing to other believers.
Jesus also said he would say this to the people in the opposite group: Depart from me, you accursed, into the eternal fire that has been prepared for the devil and his angels! (Matthew 25:41)
They are accursed, so they are not a blessing.
became partners (sharers) with Paul in the ministry of giving and receiving (Philippians 4:15). They were burden-bearers
