The Blessing Blocker

“Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that increases to your credit” (Philippians 4:17).

Ever known somebody who doesn’t get it? No, I don’t mean a person who doesn’t understand your dazzling wit or how to work the cable remote. I’m talking about somebody who simply refuses to receive something offered. A friend wants to help them out but instead of accepting their offer, they give it a stiff arm that would make the Heisman Trophy proud. They don’t get it because they won’t get it.

Accepting assistance can be hard. Nobody likes admitting they need help. We like to show the world just how tough and self-sufficient we are. When sucker punched by circumstances, there’s this weird game we play where we act like we’re some bizarre combo of Bear Grylls, MacGyver, and Rocky Balboa. I’ll show everyone how I can survive all on my own. I’m sure I can disarm this nuclear warhead with a thumbtack and drier lint. I believe I can go the distance if Mickey will just cut my eyes. I don’t need help. I got this. 

If anybody had the right to refuse help it was the Apostle Paul. The guy is an absolute spiritual stud. We’re talking about the person that God used to write most of the New Testament. Have you read his bio (2Cor 11:23-28)? Scourged by the religious police not once, but FIVE times. Beaten with rods three different times. Nearly rocked to sleep with real rocks. A three-time shipwreck survivor. Spent more nights behind bars than he can count. I’m telling you, the dude is nails. 

If that doesn’t convince you he doesn’t need your help, Paul tells his friends back in Philippi that he’s figured out the secret of satisfaction in every situation. Thanks to his trust in Jesus, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me” (Phil 4:13). Sure sounds like a guy who doesn’t need a cotton pickin’ thing from anyone. Not from you. Not from me. Not from the Philippians. Not so fast.

Despite the apostle’s contentment in Christ, he readily accepts the care package delivered from the Philippians when Epaphroditus came to visit him in a Roman prison (Phil 2:25; 4:18). As a matter of fact, they have a long-running relationship of supporting the man from Tarsus as he tours the Mediterranean Rim telling folks about Jesus (Phil 4:15-16). Here in chapter four, Paul tells us that one of big reasons he readily receives support from the Philippians is for the blessing the givers are going to get from giving. “Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that increases to your credit” (v17). It’s not being selfish but being selfless. God does crazy stuff when we’re crazy generous. He loves to bless the one doing the blessing.

Paul makes it clear he wasn’t dropping hints to the folks of the Philippian church for help. “Not that I seek the gift” (v17). No passive aggressive ploys from the apostle. You know exactly what I’m talking about, don’t you? I’m pretty sure I would give anyone who would listen all sorts of not-so-subtle messages. “Do I need anything? No, I’m fine. Really. I’ve really come to enjoy my cold, dark dungeon. All the long, lonely months have given me time to catch up on writing the Bible. Some folks might be upset about the total lack of food. Not me. I’m back to my high school playing weight! I may be cold, lonely, and hungry, but I’m fine. Really, I’m fine.” I’m sure you’ve never resorted to such disgusting manipulation. Yeah, I didn’t think so.

You see, this isn’t about what Paul can get the Philippians. It’s all about what the Philippians will get from God. “But I seek the fruit that increases to your credit” (v17). The word translated as “fruit” (Gr. karpos) can actually just as easily be read as “profit.” The apostle talks like a certified financial planner to his client about building up their 401k. Instead of piling up cash for retirement, he’s all about helping his friends pile up God’s blessings. And the key to growing the Philippians’ profit is through the Philippians’ own generosity. Could Paul turn down their gift? Sure, he could. But he would be standing in the way God’s blessing to the funky church back in Macedonia.

So just how big a blessing are we talking about here? The apostle is looking for a supernatural windfall for his friends. He’s all about a profit “that increases your credit” (v17). Paul uses a Greek verb (Gr. pleonazo) that means to be more than enough, greatly abound, or overflow. In a letter to another Macedonian church just down the road in Thessalonica, he’s incredibly thankful to God at how “your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you for one another is increasing (Gr. pleonazo)” (2Th 1:3). This isn’t a microscopic increase. You don’t have to squint to see the growth. It’s over the top and overflowing profit. It’s been super sized. God has decided to “go large” in His blessing to the Philippians because of their generosity. 

Paul wants us to see that God’s economy turns everything upside down. It’s not about being selfish, but selfless. This is not about what I can get. It’s about what I can get…for YOU. By receiving the generous gift from the Philippians, whether he truly needs it or not, the apostle understands he’s playing a key role in building their spiritual account (Prov 11:24-25; 19:17; Lk 6:38; 2Cor 9:6). Jesus calls this storing up “treasures in heaven” (Mt 6:20). It’s the gift of receiving. When the giver gives generously and the receiver receives gratefully, the Lord flips it around by turning His firehose of grace back on the ones who gave in the first place. Paul may not have asked for this gift, but he’s certainly not blocking their blessing. 

It’s just one more demonstration of how the Gospel does some absolutely whacky stuff for you and me. It’s a reminder of our spiritual condition before Jesus came to the rescue. We try to do it alone. We try to save ourselves. We spend our lives working our tails off to try and follow the rules to earn God’s approval. But we can’t. He demands perfection. That’s where Christ comes in. He lives the perfect life we failed to live. He dies the death for our sin we should have died. He rises to new life we don’t deserve.  Only when we humbly receive what Jesus has done for us do we gain entry into God’s kingdom. 

As a Pharisee, Paul spent his early life trying to dot all the i’s and cross all the t’s of the Old Testament’s rules and regs. Eventually he came to the difficult realization that his religious resume was no better than a big steaming pile (Phil 3:8). He came to learn the only thing to do is admit we all need a Savior and position ourselves under the waterfall of His grace. It’s only when he accepted outside help from Jesus that he received God’s ultimate blessing.

So how about you? Do you see yourself as you a stud of self-sufficiency? Do you continually turn down offers of help because you’re determined to relationally live off the grid? Have you ever considered how you’re impacting the lives of those around us? When we accept assistance, God allows us to play a critical part in His blessing of the giver. Whether we need it or not. Take a lesson from Paul. Don’t be a blessing blocker. 

Philippian Philanthropy

“And you Philippians yourselves know that in the beginning of the Gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church entered into partnership with me in giving and receiving, except you only. Even in Thessalonica you sent me help for needs once and again” (Philippians 4:15-16).

Sometimes help comes from the most unexpected places. Somebody who would never imagine comes through in just the right way and at just the right time. Paul knows all about that. The Roman colonial seaport of Philippi may be in his rearview mirror, but the support of the local believers continues to drop in his lap. These brand new followers of Jesus aren’t exactly rolling in cash. Despite their poverty, they bankroll the apostle’s Good News road trip. Call it Philippian philanthropy. They give so much because they’ve been given so much. 

Paul begins by flipping back through the scrapbook and remembering those crazy days when he first rolled into Philippi. “And you Philippians yourselves know that in the beginning of the Gospel” (v15). This was during his second Mediterranean tour and the first time anyone in Europe ever hears about Jesus. Breaking news! The God of Israel is now throwing the doors open to His kingdom to the entire world, not just the Jewish people. Dr. Luke wrote all about how the time Jesus used the Gospel to turn Philippi upside down in his sequel we call the book of Acts (Acts 16:12-40).

Think about the Gospel Paul brought to Macedonia for just a minute. God makes salvation available to anyone and everyone by placing your trust in the resurrected Rabbi/Carpenter from the boondocks of Galilee. Jesus lived the perfect life of obedience to God’s commandments that we failed to live. He died the brutal death for our sin we should have died. He rose to jaw-dropping new life we don’t deserve. The risen Christ gives us what we could never ever dream of getting for ourselves. That’s the “beginning of the Gospel” and 2,000 years later, it hasn’t stopped. 

Yeah, it was a whole scene in Philippi. Conversions. Riots. Public flogging. A supernatural prison break. Even a bizarre confrontation between Paul and city officials where the apostle demanded public ceremony as his team left town. But Paul’s connection to the Philippian church didn’t end the day he packed up and hit the road. “When I left Macedonia, no church entered into partnership with me in giving and receiving, except you” (v15). You see, the goofy little church in Philippi had Paul’s back like no other.

They give. They receive. By writing “giving (Gr. doseus) and receiving (Gr. lempseus)” (v15), the apostle uses financial terminology. He’s describing debit and credit. He’ll use that same language a little later in verse 17. Think QuickBooks. Picture a spreadsheet. Dave Ramsey would be proud. If the apostle was keeping a profit-and-loss statement for churches who provided financial support, he only had to keep one at this point. They do it out of gratitude. They do it out of love. Paul says this is the only kind of debt we should have. “Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law” (Rom 13:8). The fellowship at Philippi stood alone. Later, the Thessalonians and Bereans also gave significant cash to the cause (2Cor 11:8-9).

Their financial support continued to flow “even in Thessalonica” (v16). This was Paul’s next church-planting stop after leaving Philippi (Acts 17:1-10). Apparently things blew up after just three weeks of telling Thessalonian Jews that Jesus is indeed the Messiah they’ve been waiting for. Some believed, including many Gentiles as well as a significant number of powerful women. However numerous Thessalonian Jews didn’t buy what he was selling. Think Ferguson. Think Baltimore. As a result, the city erupted in mob violence and rioting with vigilante Jews going house to house, hunting down Jesus’ followers. Thessalonian believers were able to slip the apostle out of town one night down the road to Berea. 

During the those dangerous days in Thessalonica riots, the little Philippian church provided significant financial support to Paul. They “sent me help for my needs once and again” (v16). The money flowed from Philippi to their founding pastor not once, but twice. The apostle kept moving. The Gospel kept spreading. The money kept flowing. During his legendary stop in Athens and his amazing message on Mars Hill, the Philippians had his back. During his 18 months in Corinth, the Philippians had his back. And it’s not like they’re rolling in the cash. Their support for the apostle and his road trip was a huge sacrifice. In one of his letters to the Corinthians, he describes how the Macedonian churches’ poverty didn’t stop their generosity (2Cor 8:1-3). 

Macedonian tour stops include places like Philippi, Thessalonica, and Berea. Jesus uses Paul and his posse to plant churches in each of these cities. After that, the apostle headed south on the Grecian Peninsula to the Athens and eventually Corinth (Acts 17:6-18:18). While the names of the cities continue to change as the Gospel tsunami washes across the Mediterranean Rim, there’s one constant. God’s love and support for Paul through the Philippians. And nobody saw the philanthropy of the Philippians coming. 

The Philippians give because God has given so much to them. Our incredibly giving God has placed them under the waterfall of His grace and they know it. He gave us His Son (Jn 3:16). His Son gave us His life (1Jn 3:16). He gave us His Spirit (Jn 14:16-18, 26; 15:26; 1Jn 4:13). God is remaking us in His image. There is no great Giver in the history of the universe. He’s making each one of us into overflowing givers too. 

The Philippians get that. How about you? Stop and think for just a moment just how amazingly generous God has been to you. As the old hymn says, “Count your blessings, name them one by one.” Do a little accounting of God’s goodness in your life. Family. Job. Health. Home. Church. I don’t know about you, but it sure seems like I’ve been on the receiving end of the firehose of His grace. I can’t help but give because I’ve been given SO much! That’s what it means to be a giver. I’m to be generous with my money. I’m to be generous with my time. I’m to be generous with my talents. And if you knew me a few years back, you would have never seen that coming. Talk about help from an unexpected source.

Pete Writes a Sequel

“Simeon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ” (v1).

Peter doesn’t crank out Scripture like his buddy Paul. Between Paul and Dr. Luke, they’ve got most of the NT covered (15 books and possibly also Hebrews). There are three documents that have his fingerprints. Pete has written one other letter with his name on it. Most smart dudes believe “Mark” is his biography of Jesus written through Barnabas’ nephew. This is his third. At some point just before his death, Pete dusts off his pen one more time. This time he’ll write with no other help (outside of the Holy Spirit, of course). He revealed the help he got from Silas in the first edition of his divinely inspired franchise (1Pet 5:12). What’s the reason for this followup? A speed read of 2 Peter tells you that some false teachers have infiltrated the churches who received his previous correspondence. They must be stopped now. They must be shut down and kicked out immediately. That’s why Pete needs to write right now.

Some folks make a big stink that Pete refers to himself as “Simeon Peter” this time around. It’s not exactly the first time it’s happened. Luke is one of the most accurate historians around and he calls him by that name back in his sequel (Acts 15:14). And don’t miss the importance of that scene in Acts. This is a meeting of the early church’s leadership team as they try to sort out what to do about Jesus’ conversion of more and more non-Jews. Chances are this would be the heavy hitters of the faith. And Pete was fresh off trips to Samaria and Caesarea Maritima where he saw with his own eyes Gentiles converted to faith in Christ. 

Just in case you’re not entirely sure of this dude’s identity, the author gives you a quick glance at his resume. “A servant and apostle of Jesus Christ” (v1). Pete makes it clear who’s his boss. He serves the resurrected Rabbi. He writes with both humility (“servant”) and authority (“apostle”). As a matter of fact, he has the guts to claim he’s an “apostle.” This is the Greek word apostolos. It describes someone who has the same authority and privileges as the one who sent them. In the Greco-Roman world, when you talked to someone’s apostle, it was just like you were talking with the person they worked for. This is no casual claim. Not something you’d just throw around to impress folks at a party. He’s letting us know that he’s not just any Peter. He’s THAT Peter. Peter the fisherman. Peter the disciple. Peter the leader of the Twelve. Peter, the one turned his back on his Savior not once, but three times. Peter, the one the risen Jesus restored during a walk on the beach. Peter the preacher who saw God convert 3,000 people at the end of his first ever sermon. Yeah, THAT Peter. Pete THE Apostle.

Now that we have the introduction of the author confirmed, who’s on the receiving end? Who’s Pete writing to? “To those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ” (v1). The apostle writes to folks who are equal in their standing before God. He let them know about his apostolic ID, but he wants them to know that he’s no spiritual superstar. Did he walk with Jesus? Sure. Has Jesus given him authority? No question about it. But Pete needs a Savior just like everybody else. He makes it clear that just because he’s a capital “A” Apostle, he’s just as desperate as they are. For any of us in authority, this is a powerful reminder to not get cocky. Stop copping an attitude. Don’t look down on other believers. You need a Savior just like everybody else. 

From a very practical sense, Pete wrote to these same folks in his first letter (2Pet 3:1). The address on the previous note listed the recipients as Jewish Christians “in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia” (1Pet 1:1). For those of us without a detailed knowledge of first century geography, that’s the northern part of modern day Turkey. In that first epistle, he encouraged them to hang onto Jesus in the midst of some nasty persecution and abuse. First time around, they were on the attack from the outside. This time, it’s from the inside. Some spiritual hucksters have infiltrated their ranks (2Pet 2:1).

Pete reminds them that they “have obtained a faith” (v1). The apostle uses a rather funky verb here. It’s the verb lagchano, which means to receive or be chosen specifically to get something. In Luke’s Gospel, the priest Zechariah “was chosen by lot (lagchano) to enter the temple of the Lord” (Lk 1:9). The former fisherman wants his readers to know that they had absolutely nothing do in gaining their faith. They were chosen to receive it. They were selected to receive it. They were handpicked to receive it. Their faith is a direct result of God’s grace. We only have our faith in our possession because God handed it to us. Actually, other translations (NASB, NIV, NRS) use the word “received.” The NLT reads that this is a “faith given to us by Jesus Christ.” 

In football, the quarterback throws to his open receiver. The truly great QBs are able to thread the needle with tremendous accuracy. They’re able to drop a touch pass into the hands of the most stone-fingered wide out. In this case, Jesus is able to get the ball of faith into our hands despite the fact that we’re covered by the lockdown cornerback of our own sin and rebellion. He got us the ball even though we never made it off the line of scrimmage. Forget Montana. Brady? Not even close. Don’t even bring up Manning. Jesus’ ability to ensure the reception of our faith makes these Pro Bowlers look like peewees. 

The apostle lets us know the process of just how this faith landed in our hot little hands. It’s “ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ” (v1). God demands perfection. “You shall be holy, for I am holy” (Lev 11:44-45; 1Pet 1:16). There’s just one tiny problem. You and I are jacked up from the moment we’re born. We have a sin nature. We can’t do it. Not even for five minutes. So we desperately need outside intervention. That’s where Jesus comes in. He willingly takes our steaming pile of sin and gives us His perfect righteousness. “For our sake He (God) made Him (Jesus) to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God” (2Cor 5:21). Luther called it the Great Exchange. Our filth for Jesus’ perfection. Mark Driscoll sums it up this way. Jesus lived the perfect life that I failed to live. He died the death for my sin that I should have died. He rose to a glorious new life that I don’t deserve. When I trust in what Jesus has done for me (that I could NEVER do for myself!), He hands me His righteousness.

Pete writes with incredible humility. He’s a servant. He’s willing to humble himself for our benefit and the glory of God. He’s an apostle. He has put his agenda to the side in order to be one of the handpicked reps of Jesus. He understands that his faith is no better than anyone else. He’s just a beggar that’s figured out where to get the bread. And that bread is the Living Bread that we can only receive from Jesus.