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"They preach Christ of
strife..."
In
Philippians 1, Paul is speaking about the results of his imprisoning
concerning the movement of the Word of God. There, in verses 12-18 we
read:
Philippians 1:12-18
«But I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened
to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel, so
that it has become evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the
rest, that my chains are in Christ; and most of the brethren in the
Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to
speak the word without fear. Some indeed preach Christ even from envy
and strife, and some also from goodwill: The former preach Christ of
STRIFE, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my chains; but
the latter out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense
of the gospel. What then? Only that in every way, whether IN
PRETENCE or in truth, Christ is preached; and in this I rejoice, yes,
and will rejoice.»
Paul being in the prison speaks about what he was seeing to take place
outside, concerning the gospel. The gospel was preached and Paul was
very glad about it. However, not all preached it sincerely. Among
those that preached Christ, there were some that did it out of STRIFE.
Their motive was not love or interest about the Word of God but
strife. It is not simply what we do, but also WHY WE DO WHAT WE DO. As
then, so also today there are ministries that are not totally based in
sincerity but (also) in STRIFE. Those people that preached Christ out
of strife competed Paul thinking that they were adding to his
affliction. But they didn’t. Paul was glad that the Word was
preached. His interest was not in self-promotion but in the movement
of the Word of God.
«Let
nothing be done through strife..»
After Paul expresses his gladness, he carries on in the second chapter
of Philippians:
Philippians 2:1-3
«Therefore if there is any consolation in Christ, if any
comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and
mercy, fulfill
my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one
accord, of one mind. LET NOTHING BE DONE
THROUGH STRIFE OR VAINGLORY, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem
others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his
own interests, but also for the interests of the others» (NKJV-KJV)
As
the Word states very clearly, NOTHING SHOULD BE DONE THROUGH STRIFE OR
VAINGLORY. Whatever is done out of these motives is not acceptable,
even if this is the preaching of the Word as those that envied Paul
were doing. In fact strife is one of the works of the flesh listed in
Galatians 5:20. You can preach the Word of God and still this be out
of a work of the flesh! Before therefore we start our next activity
let’s just think: WHY DO I DO IT? Because the Lord called me or
probably because of strife (because the so and so I envy did it) or
vainglory (because of a desire that me or my ministry be shown to
others)? The motive is what determines the quality of a work. We do
not want works that will be burned in heavens but works in which God
has called us to walk. And indeed there is a great need for workers of
such works.
Tassos Kioulachoglou
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