Gospel Worthy Lives

“Only let your manner of life be worthy of the Gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the Gospel” (Philippians 1:27).

“We’re not worthy! We’re not worthy!” Those words are very familiar if you’re a fan of “Wayne’s World.” Mike Myers and Dana Carvey created the characters Wayne and Garth, a couple of goofy high school kids from suburban Chicago. These two were a team. Whether they were playing street hockey or hosting their low budget, cable access show. And anytime something awesome would happen (like the time Aerosmith played a surprise concert in the breakfast nook), they would fawn worship and announce their unworthiness. Wayne and Garth knew without a doubt that they didn’t deserve it. But that didn’t stop them from fully enjoying it together. 

Now I’m pretty sure Paul didn’t have a prophetic view of “Wayne’s World” when he was locked up in a Roman prison. But here in this letter, the apostle encourages his friends in Philippi to live a “life worthy of the Gospel of Christ” (v27). You can almost hear the Philippians shout in response, “We’re not worthy! We’re not worthy!” Let’s face it, who really is worthy of what Jesus has done them? Go ahead and list them. I’ll wait. That’s right, nobody. But that doesn’t stop us from diving into the deep end of the Gospel pool and enjoying everything that Christ has given us. Paul let’s us know that this only happens when God’s people live in community and work together as teammates. “One spirit…one mind…striving side by side” (v27). We live Gospel worthy lives when we play hard as a team for the cause of Jesus.

After telling the folks back in Philippi that he can’t wait to hang out with them again and watch them grow in their relationship with Jesus (Phil 1:26), the apostle gives them instructions in what to do until he gets there. “Only let your manner of life be worthy of the Gospel of Christ” (v27). Sure, Paul. Piece of cake. We’ll knock that out this afternoon. At first glance this would seem to be equivalent to asking them to bail the Titanic with a teacup. Who on the planet can live a life worthy of what Jesus has done for us? In the words of Wayne and Garth, “We’re not worthy! We’re not worthy!”

But when we take a closer look at the original language, we see something very cool. In the first part of the command, the man from Tarsus encourages his readers to “let your manner of life” (v27). These five English words are actually a single Greek verb, politeuomai). It means to live as a citizen or as a member of a particular community. It’s a description of how we live in relation to others when we belong to a certain group of people. A good way of understanding this is citizenship. A little bit later, he reminds us that “our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ” (Phil 3:20). We might live in a particular country but we’re actually citizens of something greater. While we’re on this side of eternity, Paul is telling us to be good citizens of God’s kingdom.  

We do that living a life “worthy of the Gospel of Christ” (v27). Seems like we’d better have a good handle on what it means to be worthy. The Greek word here (Gr. axios) talks about doing something in a manner suitable, appropriately, properly, corresponding to a particular standard. It comes from a root word that has the idea of equal weight. Does my life carry Gospel weight? Am I pulling my weight in Christ’s kingdom? No, I don’t mean have I earned my citizenship by passing some sort of test or racking up enough points for supernatural merit badge. But does my life demonstrate to the rest of the world just how much value I place on Jesus? 

What does a Gospel worthy life look like? Paul encourages Colossian believers “to walk in a manner worthy (Gr. axios) of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God” (Col 1:10). In other words, a Gospel worthy life produces good fruit and has a growing personal relationship with God. From his Roman prison cell, the apostle writes the same idea to the church back in Ephesus and then goes on to give practical examples of what it means to Gospel worthy. “I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Eph 4:1-3). A Gospel worthy life is humble, gentle, patient, loving, and works to keep the team together in the Holy Spirit. In other words, we’re to give the same grace, love, and forgiveness Jesus has given us. We’re to shiners of His light. We’re to be spreaders of His salt. That’s what it means to live a life that’s Gospel worthy.

Paul’s optimistic that he’s about to be released from Caesar’s superman in Rome but he can’t be 100% sure. He tells them to live Gospel worthy lives “whether I come and see you or am absent” (v27). Ultimately it doesn’t make any difference for the man from Tarsus if he never leaves the slammer. What does matter to him is the teamwork of the Philippians in and for the Gospel of Jesus. He hopes to get word that they are “standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the Gospel” (v27). They’re standing firm as a team. Nothing can knock them off their feet. “One spirit…one mind” (v27). Sure sounds a LOT like what we’ll read a few verses later. Nothing would make Paul happier than if his readers were “of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind” (Phil 2:2). Everyone’s on the same page. Everybody’s pulling in the same direction. To win the fight for the faith, we must work as a team, well-oiled, Gospel worthy machine.

Paul opens the playbook for a closer look at teamwork among Jesus’ followers. We’re to be “striving side by side for the faith of the Gospel” (v27). Once again, it takes the translators of the ESV four words to get the meaning across of one Greek verb (Gr. sunathleo). It’s compound term that means to fight together, struggle as a team, or play hard as teammates. Later Paul talks about two female teammates on the Philippian squad named Euodia and Syntyche “who have labored side by side (Gr. sunathleo) with me in the Gospel together” (Phil 4:3). I see a group of offensive linemen on a football team. When they are working their butts off opening up holes, big things happens for their team. They double team certain opponents. They pick up blitzing linebackers their teammates don’t see. They bulldoze defensive backs on a screen pass. But it’s all done together. They work as a team. If one goes rogue, the play breaks down. Five fingers together are a fist. In the same way, Jesus calls us to work our tails off as a team for the Gospel. We live Gospel worthy lives when we play hard as a team for the cause of Jesus.