Upward and Outward
The Apostle Paul’s letter to the church at Philippi is one of my favorite books in the Bible. Paul writes with such unrestrained delight that the letter has often been called The Epistle of Joy. Over and over again the words “joy” and “rejoice” appear throughout the book.
One would think that Paul was enjoying the most exhilarating time of his life, yet he is in prison awaiting execution. He knows he is living on borrowed time, but you would never know it from the tone of his letter. He refuses to complain about the unfairness of it all or wallow in self-pity. Instead, he writes to the church in Philippi a letter of unrestrained joy. “Rejoice,” he writes, “again I say unto you rejoice.”
Many of us, perhaps most of us, would have been focused on ourselves. We would have raised our voices to the heavens and complained, “Why me?” Not Paul. He doesn’t waste time brooding over his dismal situation. Paul knew what many of us never discover—a sure path to depression and despair in difficult times is to turn inward and focus on oneself.
Instead of turning inward, Paul turns upward and outward. He looks upward and gives thanks to God and then outward he gives thanks for his friends (1:3). Paul expresses gratitude for all the wonderful people who have prayed for him, supported him, and stood by him. Even when death’s shadow hovers over him, Paul is thinking of others. Meister Eckhart once said that if the only prayer we ever pray is a simple “Thank you,” that would be enough.
The Christmas classic “It’s a Wonderful Life” has already appeared on television this year, and I’m sure it will run throughout the Christmas Season. If you haven’t seen it, please take time to watch it. It’s my favorite Christmas movie and has an enduring message. The story centers on George Bailey who believes the world would have been better off had he never been born. But through the intervention of a rather inept, but good-hearted, second-class angel, George discovers that his life has indeed made a difference, primarily through the friendships he has forged. Through caring relationships his life has touched and made better the lives of countless people. The heart-warming Christmas movie ends with George giving thanks for his wonderful life that is rich in friends, if not material possessions.
Karolyn Grimes and James Stewart in It’s A Wonderful Life, 1946
When I was in my early 30s and serving a church in Oklahoma City, there was a member of the congregation who rubbed me the wrong way. He was forever criticizing my sermons, my dress, or even how my children behaved. He intentionally tried to irritate me and get under my skin, and he frequently succeeded.
I tried for a time to get to know him. I invited him to lunch, prayed with him, played golf with him, but nothing I did lightened his sarcastic criticism of me. Finally, I just gave up and told myself that there are some people you just can’t win over.
One of my staff members knew that I was struggling with this man and dropped by my office one day to see how things were going. I confessed to him that I had thrown in the towel trying to be friends with the man.
The staff member was almost twice my age and had served in churches for over 30 years. He was quiet for a several minutes and then said, “You know, Michael, Jesus never drew a circle where he placed some people on the outside of that circle. He never purposely excluded anyone. It might be a good idea before you throw in the towel to take a page from His book.”
His words jolted and embarrassed me. I was the pastor, and I was supposed to know this stuff, right? I had no defense. He was absolutely spot on. I had drawn a circle of friendship, and the man who annoyed me was on the outside of that circle. If I was serious about following Jesus, then I could not draw a circle that excluded some people just because their personalities rubbed me the wrong way. I did not have that right.
No doubt there were also people in Paul’s day who annoyed him, but he put aside his personal feelings and excluded no one. Notice what he writes: “I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus” (1:8). Pay particular attention to the phrase, “all of you.” What an incredibly powerful statement! And then Paul continues, “with the affection of Christ Jesus,” for goodness sakes! For Paul, Christian love is not based on feeling, but commitment. Paul had made a conscious decision to love all people because he was a follower of Jesus. He would leave no one outside his circle of friends!
Our culture emphasizes that love is based on feelings. “Trust your feelings” is the modern paradigm. If it doesn’t feel right, then it can be discarded. If someone offends us or hurts our feelings, our culture teaches that we are justified in deleting them from our friend’s list.
Christian love, though, is remarkably different. The love of Jesus is not tied to feelings. Of course feelings may accompany Christian love, but they don’t have to. Love is a choice, a commitment, a decision one makes. “Love,” Paul writes, is not just an emotional feeling but seeks “knowledge” and “depth of insight” and continually grows and matures day by day (1: 9-11).
Sure, we may not feel loving toward some people, but our fickle feelings can’t be used as an excuse for leaving them out of our circle of friends. The Christmas season can be a holy time, but it can easily be just another day on the calendar. Christmas will only be holy if we turn upward and outward and thank God for all the people.
